Old Blue BBQ, Alexandria, Virginia

Another 100% wood cooker in the Washington area, and a good one at that!

I’d been looking forward to trying Old Blue BBQ in Alexandria since I first learned that they cooked exclusively with wood. I was duty-bound to check it as the guy with the Campaign for Real Barbecue for the DC area and Virginia — and as a lover of good barbecue. I finally found a day that fit our schedule (one car, two granddaughters, life) and braved the traffic across town on one of those days when a major traffic route was closed due to “security considerations.”

I found Old Blue BBQ with ease. It’s just off I-95, the southern section of the Beltway, and I found a place to park among a warren of shops similar to the semi-industrial shops that host the excellent Corned Beef King. Good things can happen in small spaces. There’s no inside dining. Old Blue is carryout and catering only. It’s an unassuming place.

but with a nice pile of freshly split oak out front.

That wood smells wonderful even before it starts cooking. I entered the small space, and there was Steve DiCicco, a very relaxed and genial person, behind the counter taking an order and chatting with a customer from the Memphis area.

I ordered the Three Meat Sampler plus one — 1/4 pound each of pork, brisket, chicken, and two ribs, and took it out to eat on the hood of our car. (Did I tell you we got new seat covers?)

I wanted to try it right away to catch it at its best. Where to start? How about the chicken?

At 12 0’clock are the ribs, and in my flawed photo they blend over into the brisket, with its flavorful bark. Then the chicken at lower right and the pork is lower left. In the center is a cup of slaw — excellent slaw with a light vinegary dressing, topped by two bread and butter pickles. (I really prefer dill chips.)

The ribs were top notch. They were meaty and deliciously smoky, with a just-right texture. An unwelcome touch of sugar was offset by ground coriander, so the pork and the smoke were what I tasted. And it tasted good.

The brisket had a very good flavor and it was more tender than the pork at the vast majority of places. The chicken was juicy and tender, as was the pork. All of the meat had a lovely dose of oak smoke. This is good barbecue.

Old Blue offers four sauces for the meats. I ignored the sweet sauce but tried the others. The Texas sauce was a solid, well balanced sauce. The vinegar-pepper sauce had, for me, too much sugar and not enough pepper to really balance the pork, but then I’m very sweetness-averse with pork. The mustard sauce was very good. My appreciation of mustard-based sauces blossomed on recent trips to South Carolina, and this one clicks. It has that good bite that you want, especially with the richness of pork, and even brisket, potentially. (Classic Texas brisket comes with vinegary pickles (and often pickled jalapeños), and raw onions to provide that bite. And no sauce.)

I was well pleased. You noticed that I didn’t order any sides, although Old Blue has interesting and seductive menu offerings. I figured a pound of meat was enough. I’m very interested, though, in the three types of barbecue egg rolls, and the good looking breakfast burritos that are available on weekends. My chances of trying the latter have gone up as Old Blue now has a booth at Union Market — the same space 2fifty had before they opened their downtown location. Steve’s better half, Carol, was running the Union Station operation, and I need to run down there for some further sampling. I also need to give her the Campaign for Real Barbecue window sticker.

Steve and Carol started running a catering operation out of their basement in 2012, and moved to the current carryout and catering space in 2015. The Union Station opening has been their latest step forward. I expect them to continue to advance, so check on their evolving hours at both locations. You also should look at their catering menu, which boasts all manner of dishes for every occasion.

Old Blue is a very welcome addition to the area. The real strength of barbecue in Metro Virginia leans to the west, with the 2023 Best of the Washington Area list, and new-to-me HammerDown. At least for now, Old Blue offers the best barbecue in Alexandria, and the ribs are contenders to join the best in Virginia. Definitely give Old Blue a try, if you can where it’s cooked in Alexandria, but also try the Union Station location. I will.

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Good mustard sauce. Good strong flavor.