Barbecue That Delights the Taste Buds and An Engineer's Heart

Last night we went to a restaurant and ordered take-out.  Reason?  We were at that end of town when Writer's Workshop finished at 2 p.m. and the new barbecue had gotten very good reviews.  It was closed the Monday we went there for lunch.  We love barbecue as does any right-thinking American citizen.  Take-out because we dine around 6 or 6:30 p.m.

Willingham's World Champion BBQ is at 443 S. PCH, #A, Redondo Beach  This is a short strip mall between Pearl and Ruby Streets.  The street-facing end is a liquor store.  willinghamsbbq@gmail.com

The reviewer - the inimitable Richard Foss of the Easy Reader, paid particular attention to the brisket, remarking that it comes in two styles - lean or "juicy" meaning the meat wasn't trimmed as much as the lean was of the fat.

We took home 1/2 lb. of lean brisket $9.95, one pint of cole slaw $5 and one pint of beans $5.  The beans were amazing because they were thick enough to stand a spoon upright in the middle of the container and what was making them that way was the meat included with the beans!   Both were good.

The brisket was beautifully plated, spread out like a fan, displaying the lean slices of meat and their traditional crust.  They were as tasty as they looked and really didn't need sauce.  We asked for a sample of their trademarked W'ham BBQ sauce and were given "sweet" - modestly so - and "hot" which wasn't except for a little heat at the back of the mouthful.

Now barbecue-loving engineers:  The W'ham turbo cooker which slow cooks and uses the smoke to cook the meat, a lengthy process as it takes an hour to smoke 528 hotdogs.  John Willingham, the inventor, was proud that the meat never touched fire.

The illustration of it looks like a Rube Goldberg creation - it is not small either.  It is 77 in. tall, 35 in. deep and 60 in. wide.  It will cook 32 slabs of ribs via hooks attaching the ribs to a carousel giving each rib a blast of smoke.  It will take 100 lbs. of butts or brisket and 16 burgers at a time.  The chef's version of this smoker will accept 100 lbs. of ribs.

We ate all of the brisket (with gusto) and still have 2/3rds each of the cole slaw and beans.  This dinner was $20 and with the addition of another half-pound of ribs and another half-pound … fat city!