Barbeque Nation

1 Big Nate's Barbecue

San Francisco
? The big guy behind the counter is Hall of Fame center Nate Thurmond, the first NBA player to make a quadruple double. He banged the boards for 11 of his 15 seasons at the Cow Palace for the Warriors, and in '90 used the recipes of his mother, Lena, to open this four-table cow (and pig) palace not far from the old arena.

Style
Alabama-inspired

Nate Recommends
Memphis Pork Sandwich, $8.75. "We chop our pork--not real fine--over a bun, open-faced with sauce. A side of slaw and you're good to go."

Critics Say
"Layers of firm, savory flesh [on the ribs] giving way to creamy fat, just greasy enough to let us know we weren't eating healthy, and tasty enough that we didn't care." --SF Weekly

2 Randy Jones' BBQ

Petco Park, San Diego

The 1976 NL Cy Young winner admits he lifted the concept from Boog Powell's Camden Yards joint ("As long as I didn't steal his cooks, he was fine," Jones says), but Jones's pulled-beef-and-pork sandwiches have one thing Powell's don't: the family BBQ sauce recipe. "It's my grandpa's," says Jones. "My dad made a batch; then I sent it to a lab and had it duplicated."

Style
Sweet Texas BBQ

Randy Recommends
The Randy Jones Slugger, $6.50. "It's an all-beef, half-pound hot dog that we do up on the BBQ. Growing up, I was a fan of the Dodger Dog. I finally found a dog bigger than that, but it took a while."