The best cheap BBQ

Bill Fletcher and Matt Fisher slap a heap of bold flavor onto their bird at this Gowanus ’cue cafeteria. Before a four-hour smoking over red oak and sugar maple, the poultry is covered in a dry rub of 30-plus seasonings (allspice and thyme are in the mix). It gets a glistening glaze of tangy Red Hook Red barbecue sauce at the finish.

The smoked brisket is the pièce de résistance of Hugh Mangum’s critical darling. Simply seasoned with a salt-pepper-paprika rub and lovingly smoked for up to 22 hours in the J&R, the beef is a minimalist masterpiece, moist with a hefty top cap—request slices from the fatty end—and charred, flavorful bark. The only thing more delicious than the generous pile of meat is the bargain-bin price.

Brisket may be in the name of Food & Drink winner Daniel Delaney’s Williamsburg joint, but his pork ribs—pepped up with a paprika-and-cayenne rub—are just as top-notch. Attentively smoked in an oak-fueled fire, the glistening meat are so tender and juicy, it won’t take long for you to blow through the roll of paper towels at your table. $13.00 for ½ lb.