Needham Hidden Gems - Blue Ribbon BBQ Truck

Food trucks are everywhere in the Boston area, and a growing business here in the MetroWest region.  Recently, I visited the Blue Ribbon BBQ truck on Second Avenue for a lunch of North Carolina pulled pork sandwich, cowboy beans, coleslaw and a pickle.  It was delicious. The truck only started serving there in late May, but you may know the company from two popular restaurants.  Yep, it’s that Blue Ribbon BBQ.

As a southerner, I can be pretty particular about my barbeque.  I still hesitate when my husband suggests we barbeque for supper at 4 pm.  For a split second, I picture creating a dry rub (Memphis BBQ, mmmm), cooking a rack of ribs for hours and putting together my favorite vinegar-based sauce.  I usually realize we are talking about grilling burgers before I even get to imagining the beans baking in the oven and cutting up the vegetables for slaw. 

I love all sorts of BBQ, and Blue Ribbon makes some of the best North Carolina pulled pork I have tasted!  And I went to college in North Carolina.  It’s hard to believe that Geoff Janouski, a long-time Needham resident can make such succulent barbeque.  It assuages my southern pride to know that his brother, with whom he opened his first restaurant, went to school in Virginia. 

The Truck is a wonder, with a giant smoker, ovens and room for all the fixings.

Geoff’s brother returned to Virginia to open a successful BBQ business in the DC area there, but Geoff and his two partners continue to serve great barbeque at their two restaurants in Arlington and West Newton.   When they decided to use the truck for serving street food, Needham was the obvious place to look to.  Not only does Geoff live in Needham, but their commissary, where the truck goes for food cleanup and storage, and where those long hours of BBQ cooking happen, is in Needham Heights.

Those extras at the bottom of the menu are at a station where you can serve yourself the combination you want. Mmm, their sweet tea was just right!

I think Geoff originally planned to use the truck for BBQ competitions, but found he didn’t have the time for that with a popular and growing business. He decided to stick around town and serve us wonderful barbeque instead.  Thanks for that, Geoff.  I, for one, really appreciate that decision!

The truck has been used by their catering service when clients want their premium an on-site pig roast.  If you are interested in the variety of catering services that Blue Ribbon BBQ provides, you can click here.

The truck can be found on Second Street, Needham Heights, Monday through Friday from 11 am to 7 pm. So, if you are in town and it’s too hot to cook, go on down for the best BBQ in town!

Written by MC Brown