Who’s heard about Shawn’s Smokehouse BBQ in Culpeper, VA? I know it hasn’t been long since we visited Culpeper but we had to take another ride up there to check this one out. Are you with me? Well I hope so. Shawn’s is located on Sperryville Pike also known as Hwy. 522. I had read mixed reviews about this place. Seemed that folks either loved them or hated them. Well the love did outnumber the hates just for the record. However, when I find a place like that it gets my curiosity up. So off we went to find out for ourselves. We took I-95 most of the way up but cut across the country from Spotsylvania for a little scenic ride. The trip home just took us across on Hwy. 3 to Fredericksburg to pick up I-95 South.

One day I’m going to make that trip with no interstate. Sounds like a topless Jeep ride to me.

The Restaurant and Staff:

When we pulled into the parking lot the first thing that I noticed were several catering trucks parked there. My thoughts were that Shawn’s Smokehouse BBQ must be doing something right to keep that many trucks on hand. Located at the end of a row of businesses they seemed to have a good location. We arrived around 2 PM, so that put us there between lunch and supper rushes on a Friday afternoon. My other motivation was to be back on 95 heading south before Washington DC started empting out for the weekend.

When we went in the front door the smells became oh so familiar and refreshing. We began smelling the smoked meats at that point. Nice! They have a very nice sized dining room which I might add was spotless. The young ladies working the front were friendly, helpful, and kept the dining area in top notch condition. The dining room is modern looking and not a lot of decorations. Yet we felt very comfortable and right at home. I’d say we were off to a good start. Still looking for the reasoning behind the 1 star reviews mind you.

My Choices at Shawn’s Smokehouse BBQ:

OK, you’re going to love this. I chose the Smokehouse Jr. Sampler. They say it feeds 1 – 2 people and it’s priced very reasonable once you see what I got. This sampler comes with Pulled Pork, Sliced Brisket, ½ Chicken, and 3 or 4 Ribs. Also included are 2 sandwich buns and choice of 3 sides. For sides I went with Fresh Cut Fries, BBQ Beans, and Dirty Rice.

Have mercy, I’ll start with the sides. They were all wonderful. The fries were just fresh cut potatoes fried up and seasoned with their dry rub seasoning. Great way to start. Then came the bbq beans. These were either pintos or great northern beans, I’m leaning towards great northern, cooked in a homemade bbq sauce. The dirty rice was fantastic too. I’m not a dirty rice expert but I really liked this and all three choices were great with my sampler.

And the meats. OK, you’ve probably figured this out by now but I was in heaven. By the way, I requested all of my meats with no sauce. The pulled pork was great. It had a wonderful smoke flavor, nice smoke ring and some great bark on the outside. In addition to all that it was well seasoned. No sauce required. The sliced brisket was up there with some of the best I’ve had. Mine was moist brisket and the name was right on. It was smoky, moist and had a good smoke ring along with nice bark on it too.

Well many of you know that I’m no big fan of chicken either but the chicken at Shawn’s Smokehouse BBQ was a homerun. I only ate a wing, since I was saving room for the rest of my platter but Tammy tried the breast and both pieces were wonderful and moist. Finally comes the ribs. These babies just fell right off the bone. Great smoke and nicely charred on the outside. I’ve had ribs that were as good in a few places but I can’t really think of better ribs anywhere I’ve had them. All 4 meats were just awesome, no sauce required on any of them.

Tammy’s Choices at Shawn’s Smokehouse BBQ:

Tammy went for a 2 Meat Platter with Burnt Ends and Sliced Brisket. For sides she chose their Three Cabbage Coleslaw and Mac & Cheese. Let’s just say if there’s a burnt end to be found this side of Kansas City, she’s going to find it. Point here is that Tammy is the burnt end critic / expert of the family. She absolutely loved them at Shawn’s. They were delicious. The burnt ends were nice little chunks of brisket well-seasoned, nicely smoked and then finished off in a good bbq sauce. We already talked about the brisket so let’s move on with the sides.

The slaw at Shawn’s Smokehouse BBQ was really good. Tammy loved it. It has a mayo base but in addition to having 3 cabbages, which I didn’t know there was more than one, Shawn also adds shaved coconut to it. Now some may think this sounds crazy while others are thinking what a cool twist, I’ll just say you need to try it. If you find yourself scared of it because of the coconut, ask for a sample. They want you to be happy with your selections.

The mac & cheese also fell into the “killer” category. It’s made with penne pasta instead of regular macaroni. The cheese mixture was wonderful too. Between our two meals we had 5 different sides and every one of them were wonderful. I can’t imagine any of the ones we didn’t try being bad. I don’t see where you can make a bad choice. Just dive in and enjoy.

Sauces:

I did try the homemade sauces at Shawn’s Smokehouse BBQ. To be honest I don’t remember a lot about them since I went with no sauce on my choices. I remember that the ones hinting about being hot were just that. I believe one of them was “Texas” something. The sauces were good and it’s a shame I love the meats without them so much. These probably should get a little more attention. Now Tammy did try their mustard sauce and she really enjoyed it. I guess my SC roots don’t include mustard sauce because I’m just not a big fan of it. Oh well. Bottom line is that if you like sauces on your meats I’m sure you’ll find one to meet your taste.

Desserts:

Well we went for it when dessert time came. Tammy ordered an Oreo Crumble and I went with a Double Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cheesecake with Oreo Crust. These were just delicious. All I can say is either save room for dessert or order some to go and eat it later. By the way we met Shawn while we were eating our dessert. He said we had to try Mama Sue’s Homemade Nanna Pudding. He was right, it’s a must try. What more can I say here. Pick one and enjoy.

Final Thoughts:

As I said we met Shawn while eating dessert and talked with him a while. He and his wife run the

restaurant. They also have a location in Warrenton, VA. He was just a great guy to meet and get to know even though we were limited by time. Shawn told us they just had their five year anniversary at the Culpeper location. They seem to be doing well. And to make it even better, before leaving we were introduced to his brand new red Jeep. His and Tammy’s hit it off great.

 

What else can I say about Shawn’s Smokehouse BBQ? We are both so glad we went there and were able to meet Shawn was a wonderful bonus. I wish them nothing but the best in business and family life. Such a pleasure meeting you. I look forward to our next trip there. Keep up the great work.

Now For Your Thoughts:

So what do you think? Have you been to Shawn’s Smokehouse BBQ? How did your experience go? Get some comments to me so I can post them for everyone else to know about your trip here.

What do you regulars think?

With 5 years in business there have to be a lot of loyal regulars out there. Here’s your chance to chime in and let others know how you feel about them. I’d love for you to send in your comments and let us all know the rest of the story here. What are your favorites? Give us some more info on this place. Let everyone know what makes your local bbq joint so wonderful.

I look forward to hearing from you. 

I encourage you to share this review on Facebook and other social media sites. Follow us on Facebook to see where else we go.

 

You can check out their website at: https://shawnsbbq.com/

You can also find them on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/shawnsbbqculpeper/

 

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