The BBQ Trail leads us to Mountain View BBQ in Orange, VA this time. After a trip to The Cheese Shop in Stuart’s Draft, VA we thought it would be a good opportunity to check out a new restaurant. I had received an e-mail inviting us to Mountain View BBQ so this seemed a good time to check them out. We did get to travel through some beautiful countryside areas but most of our trip was still Interstates and major highways. The short winter days make it tough to get a good long Jeep Ride in. We still made the best of it and here’s what we found.

Where is Mountain View BBQ Located?

Mountain View BBQ is on Byrd St. in Orange, VA. Traveling I-64 East, returning from Stuart’s Draft, I let the GPS once again guide me. We got off the Interstate around Charlottesville. I have no idea how we got to Gordonsville from there but it was a beautiful ride. In Gordonsville we picked up Rt. 15 to Orange. Our return trip took us straight back on Rt. 15 to I-64. I had wanted to ride back down Rt. 15 to get home but it was getting late by then so I just hit the Interstate to get back home.

The Restaurant and Staff:

We parked beside Mountain View BBQ and entered through their side door. They are in a street front building so there’s no parking lot on the front side. We were greeted when we came in. The waiter, who turned out to be the owner, was waiting on another table so we picked our table and seated ourselves. The couple being waited on were the only others in the restaurant besides us. It did take a while to get menus. The owner’s wife came over and chatted with us, then she got menus for us while we were waiting for the waiter.

Inside the restaurant was fairly large. They have a bar and a couple of pool tables in there as well. Other decorations included pictures and basic bbq décor.

We visited Mountain View BBQ a couple of days after Christmas so they were not very busy. The owner and his wife were quite friendly and did keep check on us. After our dinner I told them who we were and that we were there to check out their restaurant. We talked for a while after that and got to know a little more about them. Both seem to be really nice people.

One Small Hitch:

We did run into one disappointment at Mountain View BBQ. We had looked at their menu on line and had high hopes for our dinner. However, the menu on line is not the same as their new menu. The new one does not include any dinner plates, only sandwiches. The owner told us that they had removed the plates from the menu but could turn any sandwich into a plate. So we made our choices.

Our Choices at Mountain View BBQ:

Tammy chose the Sliced Brisket. She substituted the Fries which are included for Mac & Cheese. She added a side of Slaw to go with it. The mac & cheese was pretty good. It was very cheesy. The slaw was also good. It had a little vinegar taste. Her brisket was excellent. I tried it without sauce and really enjoyed it. Only problem was there was not enough of it. Keep in mind that this is a sandwich portion so it probably would be plenty on a sandwich, just not enough for a plate. And yes I’d expect to pay more for a plate than a sandwich.

I ordered the Pulled Pork with the Fries as a plate instead of the sandwich. I added an order of Baked Beans and a cup of Beef Soup for sides. The fries were regular frozen French fries but had a dry rub type seasoning on them making them pretty good. The soup was vegetable beef and had an excellent beef stock

with plenty of veggies and beef. The beans were excellent. I loved the thick sauce, bacon and seasoning.

The only problem I had was my pork was ice cold when brought to the table. I told them about it and they quickly replaced it and apologized. Seems something had happened to the warmer. Needless to say, the warm pork was much better than the cold. It had some smoke flavor though I would have liked a little more smoke and maybe some more seasoning on it.

The Sauces:

Mountain View BBQ has two different sauces. I tried both of them. One sauce was a standard Eastern NC style with vinegar and some pepper. It was pretty good. I felt the vinegar was stronger than the pepper so it was not hot if that’s a concern for you. The second sauce was a basic tomato base sweet bbq sauce. I liked this one and actually used more of it on part of my pork. I ate most of my pork without sauce though.

And Yes, Desserts too:

Tammy had Chocolate Cake with Ice Cream. This was not homemade but it was still good. Plenty of chocolate. When they brought the cake to her we were given a small piece of homemade brownie to sample.

So after sampling the brownie, I ordered the Brownie with Ice Cream. Yes, Tammy’s was good but mine was better. Loved the brownie.

Final Thoughts:

Wrapping this stop up is a little complicated. I did enjoy what we ate but I think a little tweaking would make it even better. Nothing major. With the current setup, I would probably stop back in for a lunch if I were near but not so much for dinner. I would rethink a supper visit if the dinner plates were back on the menu. Adding sides to the sandwich plate gets a little expensive. One side is included with sandwich. I’d also like to try their competition pork. While the brisket was very good, the pork, although good, could have been stepped up a little and been even better. Again I’ll mention that when smoking meat not every batch will come out the same. Maybe what I had was not their best and the next one will be better.

Hopefully I will not be misunderstood here. I really liked the owners and would love for them to do a great business. I believe they really care about their business and the quality of their food. These are just a couple thoughts from someone on the outside dropping in. I do wish we had arrived earlier so we could check out the town. Maybe next time.

Now For Your Thoughts:

So now you’ve heard my thoughts. What do you think? If you’ve been to Mountain View BBQ drop off some comments and I’ll get them posted as soon as I can.

What do you regulars think?

We’d also like to hear from the regulars. Tell everyone what it is that keeps you coming back. You can add much more to this story than I can with my drop-in visit. Let us know what you think. Show your support for Mountain View BBQ and tell us the rest of their story.

We look forward to hearing from you. Get those comments in and I’ll get them posted.

 

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You can find them on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/MountainviewBbqAndCatering

 

Enjoy the ride, good eating and thanks for stopping by.