Meat Sweats?

As a child I grew up in the Northwest and the term Barbeque was a verb. You barbequed a meat it was an action word, not a noun. When I advanced to Junior High (7th grade), our family moved to Tennessee. There was a drastic culture shock in many ways, but one incident involved a food called barbeque. In Tennessee, at that time in 1977, barbeque was a noun.

Our introduction to this noun happened one Wednesday evening at a church dinner. I asked a friend of mine there what we were having for dinner. Her reply, "Barbeque." My reply, "Barbequed what?" After the laughter subsided I learned that Barbeque was a smoked pulled pork (rarely any other smoked meat, and never in sliced or other form). I have a deep love for Barbeque in its many forms and flavors, whether it is barbequed pork, chicken, beef, etc...but my first experience with pulled pork barbeque was delightful and it has been my favorite ever since.

This changed for me recently during a trip to a local venue serving Texas Style Brisket (barbequed beef). My husband and I have a love of trying new foods and new to us locally owned restaurants. On one of our recent dates for breakfast we tried Meat Sweats BBQ in the greater Nashville area. I had no idea what the name meant but we love BBQ, so we were off on our culinary adventure. As you might surmise, I thought it would be pulled pork maybe chicken etc...

But no, though we were assailed immediately upon entering with the sweet and savory smells we associate with scrumptious barbeque, it was Texas style which involves smoking and chopping or slicing meats. One of the more delectable parts of brisket is something called "burnt ends." These are the crunchy flavorful pieces on the outside of the brisket (smoked beef) and may now be my favorite part of barbeque!.

We enjoyed a brisket burrito that was so large we most assuredly should have split it. The eggs and potatoes were excellent, but the scrumptious burnt ends in the burrito made my mouth water! Normally I don't like burritos because the flavors seem muddled. This was completely different! The burnt ends used in the burrito created a beautiful savory experience that was tantalizingly unique.

Additionally, we had something called Million Dollar Bacon. It is seriously off the chain! The bacon is coated with maple syrup and is peppered. It doesn't cost a million dollars, but wow it tastes like it! I ate it too fast to take a picture. So no official pic of the Million Dollar Bacon which was only $3.00!

I kept thinking that Sweats must be pronounced sweets, because the BBQ was both savory and sweet, but alas... it is an actual term "meat sweats" which refers to a phenomenon some people reportedly experience upon eating excessive amounts of red meat, they sweat profusely. A little unseemly for food, right? But does depict a place where there is an abundance of meat available for the hungry Carnivore or Omnivore among us.

It is not yet known if the onset of meat sweats occurs due to heat produced through the digestive process of foods which are more difficult to digest, or if it may be due to allergies, or perhaps an unknown cause. The scientific community does not seem to have weighed in definitively on this subject. And, I have never experienced it, so maybe I haven't consumed enough in one sitting (or I am not allergic).

We highly recommend visiting this restaurant when in the Nashville area and enjoying the suburban area in Hendersonville, Tennessee as well as the wonderful food. **Located at 393 E Main Street, Suite 2, Hendersonville, Tennessee**