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Ace BBQ

Earlier this year Cville welcomed a new barbecue joint to town – Ace Biscuit and BBQ. I have had it several times and loved it the BBQ itself, but I had yet to visit the restaurant until my mom friends and I decided to meet for lunch.

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The reason I was so happy to hear that Ace was opening was because they serve pastured pork. As a North Carolinian, I have a high level of nostalgia associated with BBQ but I don’t always feel so good eating as I’ve learned more about the pork industry. But when I asked Ace on its Facebook page if the pork was going to be pastured, they replied yes, and I knew I’d love the spot.

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The menu isn’t cheap – $7 will get you a sandwich alone – but I’m willing to pay more knowing the effort and care that goes into free-range pigs. Sides are $2. I’m eager to try that waffles and/or biscuits for breakfast sometime soon!

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The restaurant itself was tiny inside but bright, airy, busy and charming. We were lucky to be able to fill up the one and only table with plenty of bar seating left for those coming in for a quick lunch break.

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I’ve had the pulled pork sandwich before, so this day I decided to be adventurous and tried the Cuban, which included pepperjack cheese, pickles and mustard. They make the pickles in house and they are fabulous! The sandwich was grilled and pressed and totally delicious. I think my favorite remains the classic pulled pork sandwich (for its overflowing volume!) but there was nothing I didn’t love about this Cuban.

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On the side (and extra $): collard greens and fried green tomatoes topped with pimento cheese. Both were great. The bold and spicy BBQ sauce was great (very spicy!!) and I would have loved to get the North Carolina style except I know it has one-too-many onions for my taste! My half-lemonade-half-water was free because I ordered two sides – a fun perk.

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Lunch was awesome, and I’m so glad we have another fun spot in town.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

      • A Cuban is made with ham and pork, that’s traditional- the pepperjack cheese is the twist. Traditionally, it’s made with swiss.
        Re: pricing, a side and a sandwich comes to $9? That’s a totally normal price point for non-free range pork, so you really got a deal.
        If the onions are cooked down til they provide flavor but no texture, will you eat a dish with them?

        Reply

          • Katie, a traditional cuban sandwich has glazed ham and roasted pork, not pulled pork (unless this BBQ place puts a spin on the sandwich with it). Yes, ham is pork but she is referring to roasted pork when she said “pork”.

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          • Katie, me again lol. I went and read the menu board in Kath’s post and it reads that the “Ace Cuban” version they serve has “pulled pork” and “country ham”.

            Reply

  4. I seriously miss BBQ joints! It is nice that some restaurants are really highlighting food that is local, organic, or meat that is grass-fed, etc. It does make it nicer to enjoy and I am willing to spend a bit more $ there!

    Reply

      • I’m in the DC metro area so we’re getting pretty much the same weather on the east coast. I haven’t planted yet either. Hoping to do some this week since we seem to have warmed up permanently. I look forward to this post. Also wondering if i should start from seed or plant since the planting season is so delayed this year.

        Reply

  10. I’m having a Kath day! Whipped banana oats with TJ’s sun butter for breakfast and a smoked trout salad for lunch 🙂

    Reply

  12. As a girl who grew up in the south I’ve got the biggest soft spot for great BBQ. As a Daddy’s girl I’m still convinced my dad makes the best brisket… even though for the majority of my childhood he had be convinced it was made from an exotic bird. I would love to find a place like that near here in Denver.

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  13. Glad you enjoyed it this time! I got the impression from your previous post that you didn’t really care for it b/c of the sauce. I’m also from NC and agree that raw onions are not traditional and I wouldn’t fully enjoy that, although my husband would be all over it!

    Also, I can’t think of any restaurant these days that doesn’t charge $9-11 for lunch entrees. Add in higher quality meat and I definitely think Ace sounds like a deal.

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  14. Hey! Just curious, and not trying to come off as jerky/offensive, but do you receive free food or financial reimbursement for posts like this? Do local restaurants in Cville usually know you’re reviewing them ahead of time?

    Reply

    • No, neither : ) I would write something like “Ace asked me to come have lunch on them” or something to that effect if I had been invited as a guest to review it formally. This was just a group of girlfriends going out and I wanted to spread the word. Thanks for asking though.

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  16. Hey Kath! I have been following your blog for SUCH a long time now and it is one of my highlights in the day to read your blog. I was wondering if in the future you could possibly do a post on your favorite granolas? I know you have alot going on now but I am trying to find a granola I like and having difficulty with it. There is no rush for the post it is simply an idea for the future! Thank you for inspiring me to live a healthy happy life!

    Reply

    • On my list!! Problem is I have a hard time remembering them all, but I’ll definitely start working on this

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          • Dear Kath,
            I really need to ask for a clarification: is granola what we call here in Europe “muesli”?

            Muesli-girl Ella

            Reply

            • My understanding is that muesli is dry oats with dried fruit that gets soaked in milk/yogurt whereas Granola is baked oats with mixins to a crunch served over yogurt, in milk, or as a topping

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              • Thank you Kath, I must definitely try your Granola, it sounds fantastic and I am sure I’d love it!
                Yes, muesli is dry oats and fruit and it needs (a lot of) soaking.

                Since they do not sell granola in shops here, I should try and prepare it myself…. let’s experiment, I am on a new frontier!
                Thank you for widening my horizont 🙂

                Ella

                Reply

  17. I love when restaurants serve free-range. It makes all the difference to me! Too bad more places aren’t jumping on the bandwagon. Now I want BBQ!

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  19. I love that restaurants are going local and using more friendly/humane techniques with their proteins. I will always go for a restaurant like that even if its not as good as a place that imports everything. It’s gotta be local and environmentally friendly for me!

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  24. Maybe it’s just where I live but $7 for a sandwich is not a bad price at all.

    Everything there looks delicious!

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  27. Your Cuban sandwich looks delicious! I love a great barbecue restaurant…and $7 is pretty reasonable for a great sandwich! Aren’t Great Harvest sandwiches around the same price? Maybe Great Harvest could do their own variation of the Cuban? : )

    Reply

  28. I love Cuban sandwiches! That one looks really tasty. Cville sounds like such an incredible food town. Maybe I’ll just have to add it to our list…and eat my way through town! 🙂

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  29. Do you have a recipe for pimento cheese? Your blog is the first place I heard about it, years ago, but I don’t think there was a recipe. Deadspin.com just ran a recipe/commentary on pimento cheese sandwiches and I wanted to see how theirs compared (and which was easier to make because I’m super lazy in the kitchen!)

    Reply

  30. I agree, I’ll pay more and be willing to pay more for those little places that go the extra mile to make sure they are using conscientious food principles (pastured pork, cage free chicken, grassfed beef, local veggies, etc.). I figure if we continue to support the little guy, one day they might be cheaper 🙂

    Reply

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