6 Alabama barbecue chains that started small and grew big

We don’t need to convince anyone of the virtues of Alabama barbecue – whether it’s hickory-fired ribs, smoked chicken, or pork shoulders cooked low and slow.

And thanks to these six barbecue chains that all have deep roots in the Yellowhammer State, folks in surrounding states also get to experience the wonders of Alabama barbecue.

Before they grew big, though, they all started small.

For this list, we only included current barbecue chains that opened their first location in Alabama or whose founders are Alabama natives.

We also limited it to chains with at least 10 locations and ones that have grown beyond their original footprint. All have at least one location outside Alabama, and two have multiple restaurants in multiple states.

Dreamland Bar-B-Que

How it started: The late, legendary John “Big Daddy” Bishop, a bricklayer by trade, opened his Dreamland Café, as it was called back then, in Tuscaloosa’s Jerusalem Heights community in 1958. At the time, Bishop also served hamburgers, hot dogs and fried catfish, but he soon became famous for his pork spareribs, which he grilled over hickory wood in an open pit. For nearly four decades, Bishop held court in a king-sized chair next to the pit, and after he died in 1997, his son, John Jr., and daughter, Jeanette, ran the business until Birmingham’s Dreamland Holding Company bought Dreamland in 2000.

How it’s growing: Including the original Tuscaloosa location, Dreamland Bar-B-Que now has eight restaurants in Alabama and two more in Georgia.

Famous for: Those hickory-fired, “ain’t-nothing-like-’em-nowhere” ribs -- served with a small stack of Sunbeam white bread and a Styrofoam cup of Dreamland’s signature, vinegar-based sauce for dunking – is barbecue nirvana.

Don’t leave without: The creamy banana pudding – with bite-sized vanilla wafers from Birmingham’s Bud’s Best Cookies instead of the usual Nabisco Nilla Wafers – is the next best thing to your grandmother’s.

More information: dreamlandbbq.com.

Full Moon Bar-B-Que

How it started: Pat James, a former football coach who spent a dozen years as a trusted assistant under Paul “Bear” Bryant, opened the original Pat James’ Full Moon Bar-B-Q on Birmingham’s Southside with his wife, Eloise, in 1986. They nicknamed their place “The Best Little Pork House in Alabama,” and it more than lived up to the boast. In 1997, brothers David and Joe Maluff, who grew up in Homewood, bought the business and began to expand the brand beyond Birmingham.

How it’s growing: While that original Southside pork house remains our favorite, Full Moon Bar-B-Que now operates 15 locations throughout Alabama and one in Mississippi.

Famous for: Full Moon does so many things well that it’s hard to pick a favorite, but the smoked turkey sandwich, which is what sold the Maluff brothers on the business, can’t be beat. Doused with Full Moon’s sweet and smoky sauce and dolloped with that spicy chow chow, it might make you rethink your definition of barbecue.

Don’t leave without: Full Moon’s carrot cake, layered with a cream-cheese-and-chopped-pecan frosting, is made from a recipe passed down by Eloise James.

More information: fullmoonbbq.com.

Jim 'N Nick's Community Bar-B-Q 141124 — Jim 'N Nick's Bar-B-Q was founded by the father-and-son team of Jim and Nick Pihakis in Birmingham in 1985. Jim 'N Nick's now has 48 locations in six Southeastern states.(Ben Flanagan/[email protected])

Jim ’N Nick’s Bar-B-Q

How it started: Nick Pihakis, who had worked his way from bartender to management at Rossi’s Italian Restaurant, and his father, Jim Pihakis, who had retired from the insurance business, opened their first Jim ‘N Nick’s Bar-B-Q restaurant in a former Pasquale’s Pizza on Clairmont Avenue in Birmingham in 1985. The restaurant later relocated to Lakeview before eventually settling into its current location in Five Points South.

How it’s growing: You can’t travel hardly anywhere in the Southeast these days without passing a Jim ‘N Nick’s, which now has 48 locations in six states, including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Famous for: As much as folks love Jim ‘N Nick’s pulled pork barbecue, those sweet, little cheese biscuits, which are served with every meal, are so beloved that the Jim ‘N Nick’s folks started selling the biscuit mix in grocery stores about 10 years ago.

Don’t leave without: Miss Mable’s lemon ice box pie – sculpted from scratch daily from a recipe by Jim ‘N Nick’s pie queen Mable Washington -- is so tart it will make your lips pucker.

More information: jimnnicks.com.

LawLers Barbecue

How it started: “Armed with nothing more than an open pit smoker and a humble dream,” brothers Jerry and Phillip Lawler, who grew up in the northwest Alabama town of Athens, started their barbecue business in 1978. (Although their roots are in Alabama, their first restaurant was in Pulaski, Tenn.)

How it’s growing: After the brothers partnered with Jim Kelly around 2000, the LawLers (with a capital “L” in the middle and no apostrophe at the end) brand has grown to include 13 locations in North Alabama and one in Tennessee. To keep up with the demand and maintain quality, LawLers opened a state-of-the-art commissary in Ardmore in Limestone County in 2016.

Famous for: The stuffed tater – which has been featured on the Alabama Tourism Department’s list of “100 Dishes to Eat in Alabama Before You Die” – is a big baked potato topped with a choice of pork, chicken, ham or turkey, plus cheese and scallions.

Don’t leave without: The mac and cheese at LawLers “is creamy and comforting,” AL.com’s Haley Laurence writes.

More information: lawlersbarbecue.com.

Moe's Original Bar-B-Que — Three Alabama natives who met at the University of Alabama started Moe's Original BBQ in 2001. Their first location was in Colorado, where they had moved, but Moe's now has 21 restaurants in the founders' home state of Alabama.(AL.com file photo)

Moe’s Original BBQ

How it started: The first location of Moe’s Original BBQ opened in Vail, Colo., but the Moe’s story began when Alabama natives Mike Fernandez, Ben Gilbert and Jeff Kennedy met at the University of Alabama. Fernandez learned the art of low-and-slow cooking from Tuscaloosa legend Moses Day, and after the three friends all moved to Colorado, they eventually went into business together and opened their first Moe’s there in 2001. Five years later, Moe’s opened its first Alabama location in Orange Beach.

How it’s growing: Selected one of the Top 10 BBQ Chains in America by USA Today in 2014, Moe’s has 49 locations in 13 states -- including 21 in Alabama and stretching as far west as California and as far north as Maine.

Famous for: The jumbo smoked wings -- which are fried and coated with a house-made wing sauce and served with an Alabama-style white barbecue sauce for dipping – rank right up there with Moe’s pulled pork sandwich.

Don’t leave without: The Redneck Nachos come with a sheet of kettle-fried chips served with a choice of pork, turkey or chicken, and topped with tomatoes, onions, jalapenos, queso, and red and white barbecue sauce.

More information: moesoriginalbbq.com.

Whitt’s Barbecue

How it started: Whitt’s Barbecue began when bricklayer Floyd Whitt started smoking meat in one of his custom-made barbecue pits, which he built as a hobby. He opened his first location of Whitt’s Barbecue at the end of a dirt road in Athens in 1966.

How it’s growing: The Whitt family still operates five locations of Whitt’s Barbecue in northwest Alabama – including two in Athens, two in Decatur and one in Moulton – while there are 19 separately owned Whitt’s locations across the state line in Tennessee, as well as one in Rogersville.

Famous for: The pork sandwich, which is served with a sweet coleslaw and a choice of sauces, was named “Alabama’s Best BBQ Sandwich” in AL.com’s statewide barbecue quest in 2016 and is featured on AL.com’s list of “68 must-try Alabama dishes.”

Don’t leave without: You’ll want to get a bottle of Whitt’s mild, white, hot or spicy thick barbecue sauce to take home with you.

More information: whittsbbqoriginal.com and whittsbarbecue.com.