Connie's BBQ - St Petersburg FL

One of the fun things about traveling all around the country is finding new and interesting places to go and eat while in a new city. One of the problems with this is that, invariably, when you ask someone where you should go while you're in town, they always end up mentioning this great little Mexican restaurant that you need to go try out.

Which is great and all, but unless you want to be surviving of a steady diet of burritos for a month (in college still I am not), it helps to have a little variety. Which is why I was excited when somebody mentioned that, while we were in St. Petersburg, we needed to stop by Connie's BBQ. 

Before we even walked inside I knew we'd been pointed in the right direction. The smell coming out of their kitchen would have been enough to get me inside without the recommendation. The restaurant itself was little more than a hole in the wall, with no indoor seating and a single cement picnic table outside. I ordered the pulled pork sandwich, a sweet potato pie, and the baked beans. 

Everything was amazing. The sandwich was spicy, messy and delicious. The pork was perfectly cooked, and generously sauced with a tangy, savory sauce. Everyone kept telling me I needed to try my pie and the beans, but that wasn't something that was going to happen until my BBQ was gone, my fingers licked clean, and maybe the paper it was wrapped it.

Next up was the sweet potato pie. While sweet potato fries are a fairly popular menu item in Seattle (usually served with garlic aioli), pie has never really made any inroads. This as well was delicious, spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg, and gone in a few bites.

Finally were the baked beans, which might have been more of a dessert than the pie. Sweetened and spiced with cinnamon, they were an interesting departure from the smokey/savory flavor I'm used to. 

If you find yourself in St. Petersburg, and are looking for a delicious, affordable meal, stop by Connie's.

Connie's BBQ
1795 16th St S
St Petersburg, FL