“Female-owned barbecue spots are not common,” Olivia Landry, owner of Jordan Springs Market in Stephenson, Virginia, pointed out. She stepped into this smoky world and now customers can’t get enough of her barbecue.

Landry and her former business partner bought the market in 2008. “His family was from Texas and had a love of barbecue. I was in the hospitality business and have always had a love of great food and exemplary service. I took over the business myself in 2018.”

If you ask a serious pit master about the secret to great results, they will most likely say low and slow—and Landry emphasized the point. “You can’t cheat on smoking meats! I always say it is an art, not a science,” she said. “Get your smoker to temp, load the meats and shut it down for the night. We smoke at 225 degrees with locally sourced hickory and cherry wood on custom Bubba Grills. In the morning, we wrap the meats and finish the smoke for another six to eight hours.”

She was also firm in saying that “good barbecue doesn’t need sauce.” Landry serves all sauces on the side and optional.

The most popular sandwich is the Brisket Grilled Cheese, which is made with toasted white bread, brisket, provolone cheese and the store’s Memphis BBQ sauce. Landry said, “I joke with people it’s either a grilled cheese sandwich with brisket or a brisket sandwich with cheese—either way, it’s delicious.”

Great sides make a barbecue plate great. Landry is all about attention to detail in this area, noting that her staff shreds the “cabbage for slaw and cooks our collard greens in our Carolina Vinegar Sauce with a secret smoky ingredient to give them awesome flavor.”

Each Wednesday, Jordan Springs Market offers a $30 dinner that serves four. Customers can pick it up and take it home.

Continue reading “Barbecue That Speaks for Itself” in the August issue of NACS Magazine.