March 1, 2016 – not just any other date. It’s actually the official birthday of BaconMedic. Granted, he existed long before that date, but that’s the day that things became ‘Facebook official’ as they say these days. The Facebook page was born, Twitter account activated, Instagram went live – and yes, even a YouTube channel. But there was one glaring omission – an actual web page. Now I always knew that in order to become an all star in the food blogging world that a website would be necessary, but to be honest I was (and still am) terrified. Years ago, in another life and another adventure, I had tried my hand at building a site. Sure, it was ‘ok’, but at the end of the day it was just ‘ok’ and honestly that wasn’t – and still isn’t – good enough. Eventually, I passed the project – and some money - over to a friend of mine who built an amazing and very successful website for that venture. Now I am faced with the same decision. Go it on my own or depart with some hard earned cash for what is admittedly a hobby. After several months of being frozen in my own fears, I finally decided to take the jump and learn how to build a site. Admittedly, it may not be the prettiest thing at first, but as my good buddy Voltaire once said ‘Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good’. So with that motivation, I signed onto Squarespace to get started and promptly froze.

After a few days of hemming and hawing, I contacted my close friend and fellow blogger (check out her blog www.mybacktothewind.com) and asked for some guidance. Of course there would be payment, in the form of lunch, and within a couple of days we were sitting at a table ready to discuss technology and websites and were suddenly distracted when our food arrived. Of course if you know anything about the BaconMedic to date, you know that its only appropriate that this website was born in a BBQ restaurant, and it was the succulent taste of Texas brisket that brought the meeting to a sudden halt. Now I ‘could’ go on about how this site came to be, but honestly, wouldn’t you just rather read about some great barbeque? I know I would, so all I am going to say about TheBaconMedic.com is simply be patient as I work on this and check back often for some great chit chat about the things I love most – food, beer and travel.

You probably know by now that I’m certainly no beginner when it comes to real barbeque. I have had the pleasure of dining at some of the most famous places ever to serve up smoked meat, I have vacationed in the heart of 'Que country for the sole purpose of eating the best stuff out there, and I have been my own Pit Boss for more than 2 decades, buying my first (and still my favorite) smoker back in 1995 (the second greatest thing to happen to me that year, next to the birth of my oldest). I love all things smoked meat, my specialty is my applewood smoked pulled pork and I go absolutely bonkers over properly smoked Texas brisket. So this blog, being the first that will be published on my site, is a special one and is one that has to have a special place for me to tell you about. Yes, I could tell you about a famous place like Franklin BBQ or the Saltlick in Texas, or possibly about Arthur Bryant’s in Kansas City but I’m going to save those for later. Being a New Hampshire guy and knowing how difficult it can be to get great 'Que in New England, I decided to tell you about what is hands down the best barbeque restaurant in the Granite State – Goody Cole’s Smokehouse.

Goody Coles is located on Route 125 in Brentwood, just over a mile south of the intersection of Route 101 in Epping (exit 7). It’s a small place, so don’t blink or you may end up seeing the welcome to Kingston sign. If you are driving by with the windows open, however, you wont miss the amazing smell of hickory smoke coming from the building (the first sign of a ‘proper’ BBQ joint). Goody Cole’s offers your standard menu of smoked meats including pulled pork, ribs, chicken, turkey and sausage but the real go to here is the Texas beef brisket. Now this is where I have to hop onto my soap box for a minute. Ever since returning from central Texas on one of my BBQ journeys, I haven’t been able to get enough brisket. The problem, however, is that prior to my trip to brisket holy land, I didnt care for the stuff. Every time I ordered it at a New England place, generally as part of a combo meal, I found the stuff to be dry and chewy. I honestly had no idea it could be as moist, tender and flavorful as they did it in Texas. I was hooked from my first bite down there, and I haven’t looked back. Problem is, once you have the good stuff, you need more. It’s truly like a drug, and knowing that I get nothing but disappointment locally was incredibly frustrating. Frustrating that is until I decided to try that little place I had driven by so many times in the past. I am here to tell you folks that Goody Cole’s nails it on brisket. I can’t get enough of it, and for that reason, they are my pick for top joint in New Hampshire.

A little more about Goody Cole’s Smokehouse before I get back to building my site (or taking a nap, which is probably what’s going to happen). Yes, the brisket is amazing, but I did try the other meats. Whenever I try a new place, as a rule I usually go for the combo platter, which is usually a number of meats and a choice of a couple of sides. I am happy to report that these guys aren’t a one trick pony. I was extremely impressed with the ribs and sausage, and both the chicken and turkey were moist and delicious. Like a little old Italian grandmother judging someone else’s sauce (errr, gravy?), I am incredibly critical of someone else’s pulled pork, but I gotta say it was pretty darn tasty. Finally, the sides. One day I’m going to blog about nothing but BBQ side dishes, and this place has all the usual suspects. For me, the mac & cheese and beans are my go to, and I was quite happy with both. The cucumber salad is a nice lighter choice to go with all that heavy meat. The corn bread, so simple to mess up, was moist and about as good as you can get in the south.

So that’s it. Blog Number One of many is in the books and Goody Cole’s Smokehouse is officially the Best BBQ in New Hampshire. The summer is now more than half over – give these guys a try and tell them the BaconMedic sent you.