Year of the Pig

I was lucky enough to find myself in Charlottesville, Virginia this past weekend on a gorgeous fall day. Charlottesville is a favorite town of mine (yes, I am a wahoo), especially in the fall. I had some time to kill and what better way to kill it then to search out some barbecue? I had read some positive reviews of a place called Jinx’s Pit’s Top on East Market Street, not too far from Charlottesville’s historic Downtown Mall. My friends and I (Mr. Blue and Mr. Red) walked down Market St from the Downtown Mall, not really sure how far it was. We had walked about a half mile or so when Mr. Red spotted Jinx’s in the distance. We crossed the street and made for the place and as we got near, we noticed a figure standing by his car out front. He saw us coming too and yelled out as we came down the block, “I hope you aren’t coming here!,” to which we replied, that we most certainly were. We walked up to him, loading a cooler into the trunk of his car. He nervously and apologetically explained that he had closed the place up and was heading out to a catering job for 300. He was obviously right in the middle of getting everything together, and frankly, he looked a little stressed.

He apologized profusely, and said that he hated to send people away disappointed. He reached into the cooler in the trunk and loaded up a plate with 6 pieces of smoked chicken. He gave it to us free of charge and told us to enjoy. We were all hungry, and most grateful for the delicious smelling chicken.

We had a seat on a couple tombstones at the next door funeral dealership, and got down to enjoying some fine barbecue chicken.

The chicken was flavorful, juicy and good. We sat in the warm autumn sun and enjoyed it to the last bite, all the while watching Mr. Jinx busily loading his car. When he saw that we were done, he called over to see how we liked it, and we let him know it was delicious. We got to talking about barbecue, and I told him I was a big barbecue fan and an amateur “pitmaster” myself. He told me that chicken is not normally on his menu, which is mainly ribs (by popular demand) and his specialty, pulled pork, which he described as Western Kentucky style, NOT that Carolina style. He said the words “Carolina Style” with a sneer and then literally shoved his finger into his mouth and leaned over like he was gonna puke. Fortunately he didn’t, but this man certainly has some strong opinions on Barbecue!

Soon after, he waved me over, and he invited me into the tiny vine covered shack that is the Pit’s Top. The place has like 4 or so tables and a counter, and the wall are all covered with various barbecue ephemera. I don’t know what it normally looks like, but on this day that place looked like a cyclone had come through, and every level surface was covered with a jumble of pots and pans, and other cooking related flotsam. He had obviously been working hard to get everything done.

He pulled out another plate and generously scooped out a pile of pulled pork that looked wonderful. He didn’t offer any sauce, and mentioned that its better without. He looked around unable to find a fork, and I said I was fine to eat it with my fingers. “Even better,” he said, and we headed back outside.

Back on the gravestone, Mr. Red, Mr. Blue and I all sampled the pork, which was by all accounts delicious. Mild but flavorful, and juicy as hell. The pork was pulled in big chunks and pieces that you could really sink your teeth in. The was no shortage of tasty pork fat either. All in all, it was very very good.

Jinx called over again, and I again let him know that it was delicious. He looked pleased, and so were we. I would have loved to chat with him more, but he was obviously in a big hurry, so I guess it will have to wait til the next time I can get back to Charlottesville, hopefully soon. I highly recommend Jinx’s if you find yourself in the area. It’s a treat to have great food from someone who puts a lot of love and care into his ‘cue and takes great pride in work. Thanks Jinx!