We often hear that the world of Southern barbecue moves slowly, sticking stubbornly to its time-worn traditions. That may have been the case a few decades ago, but here in 2025 tastes and trends seem to be shifting at a faster and faster pace.
It’s been just two years since we released Southern Living’s last list of the Top 50 BBQ Joints in the South, but this year’s rankings look quite different than they did in 2023. The economics of barbecue are increasingly challenging, and the past few years have seen a half dozen former Top 50 restaurants close their doors for good. Other former luminaries are still in operation, but their brightness has begun to fade as they begin to show their age.
But hope springs eternal when it comes to barbecue, and there’s been no shortage of new, ambitious players entering the business and making a splash on the scene. Some are steeping themselves in traditional ingredients and cooking techniques, while others are brashly striking out to forge creative new styles. The best have a foot in both camps, embracing the lessons of the past while looking to the future. They’re simultaneously rooted in their specific geography and local traditions but also look around the South—indeed, around the globe—for inspiration.
A definite theme of this year’s list is expansion or continuous improvement. One well-regarded barbecue operation after another has updated its offering or moved to a new location over the past few years. In many cases these improvements have pushed an existing Top 50 restaurant higher up in the rankings or put a new restaurant on the list for the first time.
There’s plenty of top notch ribs, chopped pork, brisket, and chicken to be found at the Top 50 joints, but there’s so much more to be discovered, too. Lamb chops, pit-smoked steaks, smashburgers, barbacoa tacos, and pork steaks are among the most memorable bites from the arduous research undertaken to compile this list.
I’m often asked how the entries are chosen and what criteria are used to rank them. I would like to say that I employ an elaborate, sophisticated, and completely empirical algorithm. Something, perhaps, based upon a sliding 63-point scale of credits and debits. Serve slaw on your sandwiches by default? Add two points. Line longer than 30 minutes? Deduct three. Located in Texas? Minus 15! (I kid. I love Texas. I do.)
In the end, when it comes to picking the best barbecue, you have to go with your gut.
What informs the selection more than anything else is the overall impression taken away from the full dining experience. That starts with the quality and flavor of the meats, of course, and of the side dishes, too. It extends to the overall ambience of the setting, the “wow” factor of something new and unexpected, and all the little finishing touches. I’m not saying that hanging a taxidermied cow’s head on the dining room wall is enough to put a restaurant in the Top 50, but if that cow is wearing a stars-and-stripes top hat and has a toothpick in its mouth . . . well, that surely counts for something.
In the end, when comparing one joint to the next, it comes down to this question: If I could eat right now at just one of these places, which would I choose? These are not easy decisions to make, especially considering the rich diversity of styles and techniques found across the South. How do you compare an old-school whole hog joint in the Carolinas with a creative, beef-centric new joint in Texas? At some point, you’ve got to just make the call and stand by it.
Here, then, ordered from number 50 down to number one, are my picks for the Best BBQ Joints in the South in 2025.
Methodology
The rankings in this list are determined by Robert Moss, Southern Living’s Contributing Barbecue Editor, based upon many years of traveling the South eating barbecue. He has dined at each and every restaurant on this list in person and has visited almost all of them multiple times.
When compiling each year’s list, he revisits as many previous honorees and as many potential new contenders as time will allow. There are no score sheets or empirical grading systems employed. Instead, it is a qualitative ranking based upon the enjoyment of the meal and the overall experience of the visit.
Panther City BBQ
Fort Worth, Texas
In 1875, The Dallas Herald ran a snide column about a panther roaming the streets of the then-sleepy town of Fort Worth. Instead of taking offense, locals embraced the creature as a civic mascot, and Fort Worth has been “Panther City” ever since. There’s no better name for a Fort Worth barbecue joint, either, for like that apocryphal panther, the city’s once-sleepy barbecue scene has awakened and begun to roar. At Panther City BBQ, everything that comes off the five big Moberg smokers is excellent: spareribs finished with a peppery glaze, thick-sliced brisket with a perfect smoked-infused bark, snappy sausages laced with bits of melted cheddar and enough jalapeño heat to make your head tingle. The side dishes are exemplary, too, like the purple-hued spicy vinegar slaw, tender borracho beans swimming in a thin smoky broth, and rich, gooey smoked mac and cheese. Weekends bring beef cheek barbacoa and carne guisada in a spicy red sauce, both served with fresh-made tortillas for rolling into tacos. Panther City is definitely on the move.
201 E Hattie St, Fort Worth, TX; panthercitybbq.com
