Trust Me BBQ, a family-owned eatery known for dishing out smokey Caribbean-inspired bbq, might just be the best bbq joint in the Tampa Bay area you've never heard of.
Because, while most barbecue restaurants are relegated to strip malls, single buildings, even a few roadside carts here in Tampa, Trust Me BBQ, of all places, sits inside a B.P. gas station in Riverview.
Following the written praise from trusted (get it?!) foodie/Creative Loafing writer Arielle Stevenson and WUSF reporter Dalia Colon, I ventured out to this oddly-located BBQ haven on Wednesday afternoon for a midday lunch that turned out to be equally unique and deliciously surprising.
Trust Me resides, technically, in two places at the station; a cart out front, which they use as a makeshift kitchen, smoking up various meats like ribs and jerk chicken, and a storefront inside, where they serve it all from.
Your standard assortment of BBQ lines the menu - ribs, pulled pork, sausage, and more - with a Caribbean touch that shines bright with items like jerk chicken and red beans and rice.
Speaking of, Trust Me's jerk chicken is some serious business. Boasting a deep, bold flavor and succulent moistness, the jerk chicken comes in a huge portion of chopped bone-in chunks slathered in a sweet-spicy bbq sauce you nearly want to lick clean off the plate. With two sides included - a surprisingly flavorful red beans and rice and slow-simmered collard greens for this visit - the $8 price tag almost feels like robbery for the quantity and quality of food you good.
BBQ ribs, another Trust Me staple, were right on par with some of the best in Tampa in terms of deep, smokey flavor (once again bolstered by an assist from the aformentioned BBQ sauce). This monster mountain of chopped rib chunks and two sides - a uniquely spiced, and quite addicting macaroni salad and uber-garlic-y mashed potatoes - for only $9.
Something tells me that Trust Me BBQ's been a well-kept secret amongst those who know and love it for a good while now, and that's fine. Waiting 30 minutes for a lunch you used to get in 5 because a place has become so damn hip can be kind of a pain, but it's near-impossible not to spread the word when the eating's this good.
Check out Trust Me BBQ, located at 8624 U.S. 301 South in Riverview, see if you agree, then let us know your take on the Trust Me BBQ 813area business listing.
