I grew up on CA's Central Coast (literally an hour from Santa Maria), and I'm ashamed to say I've never experienced this! Actually, growing up I associated the term "barbecue" more with grilling than slow-cooking with smoke, so my idea of barbecue was more along the lines of F. McLintock's in Pismo Beach or A.J. Spurs in Templeton. How much I missed!

Can you recommend any good restaurants serving true Santa Maria barbecue so I can check them out next time I'm down? (I still have family in the area.) I have heard good things about Alex Bar-B-Q (or maybe it's just in my memory because I used to drive past it every week), but their menu just appears to contain your typical barbecue-served-in-a-non-barbecue-area food.

On another note, I lived in Fairbanks, AK for a summer and ate at Big Daddy's. I'm not sure where the guy learned his trade, but I went right from FAI to a two-month tour of the South. I ate brisket and more at Arthur Bryant's in MCI and Corky's wet ribs and pulled pork in MEM, and honestly, Big Daddy's beat them both. (It appears they can hold their own against Outside teams in the annual State Barbecue Championship, at least...). Of course, my barbecue taste buds are hardly the most refined (and it's been a few years, too), so I was wondering if anyone's been to Big Daddy's in FAI and what their impression of it was. And if anyone's going to FAI anytime soon, make it a point to drop in at Big Daddy's and post back your verdict!