Up Close and Local Low and Slow Barbecue Tour

Do not eat any breakfast was our prime directive from Up Close and Local tours before heading off on their Low and Slow barbecue tour. And thank goodness we didn’t because there was so much food that we were all full!

Our seniors group was picked up just outside Perth Train station at 9:25 on a Sunday morning. Tours are limited to 12 people and our driver Paul did a great job of entertaining and informing us on the way to several barbecue hot spots.

First up was the Swan Valley Settlers Market. Dan from Gryphon Smokehouse regaled us with tales of competing in American bbq competitions while showing us the Gryphon method of smoking brisket (grain fed not grass) – over fruit wood, preferably cherry but plum, nectarine and apple are also used. Home barbecue enthusiasts were also given some tips by the very eloquent bbq boss.

Meanwhile, we were all tucking into a brisket muffin (McDonald’s eat your heart out!) – delicious smoky brisket with bbq sauce, a fried egg and lacy cheese accompanied by the traditional sides of cornbread and the ever-popular mac ‘n’ cheese. A definite winner.

Gryphon’s pit masters have won several awards in the BBQ arena and regularly compete in contests in Australia and the United States.

We had time to wander around the market stalls at Settlers – carefully avoiding the cake stall, as we knew that there were more bbq stops ahead.

Next up was Porkies in Bayswater. This is a destination restaurant and well worth a visit. John and Byron make their own rubs for all the meats. Coffee is a surprising ingredient in the pork rub.

The ‘Ole Hickory’ smoker, imported from Missouri in the USA, handles more than 220 kilos of pork that is smoked for more than 16 hours. Porkies use Marri wood with the addition of macadamia nuts in their smoking process.

Chicken, ribs and pulled pork are also on the menu. John is a qualified Kansas City BBQ Society judge and holds a Bachelor of Barbeque science degree.

Our feast at Porkies was brisket and chicken wings as well as great sides of macaroni cheese and apple slaw.

All the food was excellent, but the highlight for me was the Burnt Ends – these are smoked point meat from the brisket, which are cubed, sauced and then placed back into the smoker to caramelise – yum!

Then it was time to have a rest, and I can’t believe I’m writing this, from food. We went to the Palace Arcade in Victoria Park where we were greeted by the bar staff and a waiting cocktail – the choice was between a new take on an Old Fashioned or a lychee gin concoction. The majority of us went for the gin, and although I found it a bit sweet, several of my fellow travellers were taking details of the recipe.

We were also given a Palace Arcade card to play games. It was definitely a trip down memory lane with pinball machines and retro games on the agenda. I regret to say that my Pac-Man and Space Invader skills have not improved over the years but my pinball balls definitely lasted longer before disappearing down the black hole.

It was a very short walk to our final stop at Frank’s BBQ Texas Smokehouse. Frank is Indonesian, and he and his Canadian wife set up this huge restaurant to showcase their love of Texan barbecue.

Although fairly full at this stage of the tour, we did manage to squeeze in some very moist brisket, falling-off-the-bone tender, pork ribs, some smoked sausage and some very good beans. I am not a huge fan of beans but this smoky mixture was really, really good.

All of the BBQ places we visited make their own sauces – customers can choose which level of ‘hotness’ they enjoy.

Up Close and Local tours has picked places with back-stories, which made our stops there even more interesting. Paul and Shannon have done their research, picked the best bbq places in Perth (a hard job but somebody has to do it!) and give their clients a fabulous experience. We discovered eating places we didn’t know existed and will definitely visit again.

Go on this tour – take your friends, take your family, take your visitors – you won’t regret it – just don’t eat breakfast beforehand!

Restrooms: All of our stops had clean and accessible restrooms

Phone: 0423 454 795

Website: http://upcloseandlocaltours.com.au

About Hazel Broomhead

My name is Hazel and I am a Perth senior!

Originally from Edinburgh in Scotland, my husband and I moved to New Zealand with our children in 1974. As my husband is in the oil business, we moved to several other countries including the Sultanate of Oman, the Netherlands, Singapore, the Philippines, the USA, Russia and Kazakhstan during the next 36 years before retiring to Perth.

We have six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren who live in different parts of the globe – New Zealand, Scotland and Colombia - which makes a great excuse for us to travel and visit.

My career background is in radio and print journalism in Scotland and New Zealand as well as public relations in various other countries.

We love to eat out, walk, travel and enjoy the wonderful lifestyle here in Western Australia.