Barbeque lovers unite! We discovered a NEW delicious barbeque destination that every meat lover should visit. Welcome to Palmira Barbeque in Charleston, South Carolina. When we heard about this now famous little BBQ joint you know we had to make the trip. We wanted to meet pitmaster Hector who is masterfully combining South Carolina, Texas, and Puerto Rico flavors to create award-winning and famous meaty deliciousness.
When I say famous and award-winning it’s a FACT! They’ve been featured in Forbes, Southern Living, The Local Palate, EATER Carolinas, Charleston Magazine, The Post and Courier, RESY, and Texas Monthly and I’m sure there’s more to come. We’ve been traveling coast-to-coast, from Los Angeles to Miami and every in-between, on the hunt for America’s BEST BBQ. We’ve visited thirty-one states on our BEST BBQ mission. It was only fitting after I read, researched, and viewed all the delicious social media posts Palmira was a must-visit for us.
If you follow our foodie and travel adventures, you know I love to tell the backstories. I’m a firm believer that anything tastes better with a good story. This is why the Palmira story was so intriguing to me because pitmaster and owner Hector Garate has an interesting family history. Buckle up it’s story time!
When we visited, I was honored to spend some time with Hector walking around his smokehouse area and discussing the finer details of his success. We also discussed his passion for designing and creating custom smokers. He showed me his latest whole hog smoker and it was beautiful. After speaking with Hector, I noticed that his passion for creating BBQ perfection was only matched by his love for serving people and seeing them smile with the satisfaction of deliciousness.
Hector’s passion for BBQ started at an early age and has not stopped him from perfecting his craft since. Born in Puerto Rico, he was exposed to whole animal cooking pra early on. Hector specializes in smoking beef cheeks, brisket, whole hog, and house-made sausages. In the pursuit of creating the best product, Garate devoted their free time to building his custom cooking appliances, in particular an offset smoker. Hector has partnered with Brasstown Beef, Creekstone Farms, and Peculiar Pig Farms to source the most sustainable farm-to-table smoked meats for Charleston, SC through Palmira Barbecue. Palmira Barbecue’s name is an homage to Hector’s grandmother, who grew up on a sustainable cattle ranch.
The menu is loaded with a BIG variety of smoked meats like beef cheeks, barbacoa, brisket, phat beef rib, whole hog, pork ribs, BBQ chicken, chuleta kan and so much more. He also has rotating specials and fresh house-prepared sides like Puerto Rican beans, hash and rice, mac-n-cheese, and more. The sides complement his succulent meats. They’re so fresh, savory, and delicious that it’s a must that you pair with any BBQ when you enjoy your meal.
We chowed down on a beautifully presented tray of meaty deliciousness that was loaded with those South Carolina, Texas, and Puerto Rico flavors. It was packed with barbacoa, pork ribs, beef cheeks, whole hog, sausage, Puerto Rican beans, mac-n-cheese, hash and rice, and phat half chicken. We enjoyed it all but I did have some unforgettable favorites. The BEEF CHEEK, WHOLE HOG, and BARBACOA were smoked meat perfection and STUPID DELICIOUS. I discovered one important aspect after each bite I took. ” Hector and his culinary team do a masterful job with creative flavor explosions that are unforgettable.”
We enjoyed our visit to Palmira! It was well worth the trip from Texas to chow down on Hector’s creative and explosive flavors. If you LOVE BBQ, I would highly recommend you make plans to visit Palmira BBQ to enjoy some unforgettable flavors with a unique BBQ experience. You will love it and thank me later!
” Thank you and please follow us for more delicious destinations and perfect travel locations around the USA. “
Trey ( Chow Down ) Chapman
