The Pit
I tried one of Raleigh’s newest places last night. The Pit opened up shortly after Thanksgiving. It’s located where Nana’s used to be and is still owned by Empire Eats, they also do The Duck and Dumpling, Raleigh Times and Morning Times. Ed Mitchell is the pitmaster, he’s been around the NC BBQ scene for quite a while.
I started with the B.B.L.T. This is bbq bacon on two homemade bisciuts with lettuce, tomato and garlic aioli. I’m a blt fan, and this was done well. The biscuits are fresh and fluffy and the garlic aioli added a little extra taste to the traditional sandwich.
For my entree I got the Double Combo. I chose BBQ Chicken and Pulled Pork Shoulder. The chicken was fall off the bone tender. The sauce wasnt too heavy and it was very good. The main reason for me going was obviously the BBQ. The pork shoulder was excellent as well. As with many bbq joints, you get a lot of food. You can tell time and care went into the preparation of this dish. They’ve got 3 sauces available. 2 vinegar based (one hot, one not) and a sweeter texas style sauce. They’re all good, adn they all go well with everything, my favorite was the hottest one. You could taste some of the heat. People can argue for days about bbq and sauces etc.., Mitchell’s food goes well enough that no matter what sauce you prefer, the food will stand up with it.
Along with the two meats, you get an assortment of breads (cornbread, biscuits hush puppies), slaw and your choice of a couple sides. I had the greens and black eye peas. All of which I would recommend.
The menu is broad enough that there are still many things i want to try. They’ve got a blue-cheese filet, horseradish slaw, fried chicken, chopped BBQ, ribs and brisket. I’ll definitely be back soon to work my way through the menu.
-Matt