Zig Zag BBQ — Restaurant in Philadelphia

Disappointing for this to be some of the best rated bbq in Philly on Google.

Got chopped brisket sandwich, 1/4 lb of brisket (1 slab), side kale salad, cornbread.

Food: -Brisket sandwich tasted like burnt, overdone end pieces and the sauce didn’t cover it well. The sauce itself wasn’t very complex or smoky and a bit too sweet in my opinion. -The slab of brisket was somehow gristly and dry at the same time and largely flavorless; not enough salt & time to penetrate & flavor the meat. No smoke ring to be seen and all the rub was concentrated on the gristly outside. -Salad was just kale, the most crushed up walnuts I’ve ever seen, similarly-prepared goat cheese, and oil. I didn’t want the dairy-based dressing the salad came with and they didn’t have an alternative. -The cornbread might be the biggest offender. Cornbread should be yellow or yellow-ish, moist enough to clump in your hands and it should smell like… corn. This was dry, largely flavorless, and blue-brown (maybe the kind of corn used; no hate on that from me). They were out of the accompanying miso maple sumac butter so I raw dogged it. Maybe the butter makes up for the cornbread, but without it was meh and did nothing to improve an already underwhelming meal.

Interaction: -I didn’t actually plan to order the 1/4 lb of brisket lol. It happened by accident bc the person taking my order didn’t wait to confirm what I wanted and didn’t really listen when I was trying to explain my order. -After I tasted the cornbread in my car I went back inside and asked for my money back for it ($8 for two pieces and I didn’t get any butter?? Nah.) To Zig Zag’s credit the person at the counter didn’t hesitate or argue with me and handed me cash on the spot. (Maybe they were trying to stop me from criticizing the cornbread in front of the people ordering lol idk.)

Vibes: -It’s Fishtown so you get what you get I guess 🤷🏾 -The decoration is sparse and cute; I really appreciated the sprinkle of childhood artifacts and whimsy. -Remarkable amount of African music playing in a place remarkably lacking in…. nvm.

Overall: If you’re looking to drink marked up wine & beer and eat some okay BBQ at a chill spot with your friends: this works. If you’re trying to satisfy a deep need for flavorful, lovingly prepared smoked meat not met since leaving the southern US: keep looking (and lmk if you find...

I just finished eating Zig Zag BBQ for dinner and unfortunately I'm disappointed. While I'm aware that BBQ is pricey to begin with Zig Zag seems to have taken that to another level, with over $40 for a rack of ribs, $14 for a medium mac and cheese, and $5.50 for the banana pudding pictured next to their provided sauce cup. Suffice it to say that the price for the portions left me wanting.

Disregarding the prices entirely, the food itself was very underwhelming. The brisket was certainly the best of what we ate and is decent. The ribs on the other hand were quite tough and bland flavor-wise. The queso mac and cheese tasted like it was made literally with Tostitos queso right out of the jar. I kept hoping that maybe the next thing we ate would blow us away and save the meal, but it just never came.

I know Zig Zag is new to the neighborhood and I'm not trying to pass a final judgement because I know that new businesses have kinks to work out, but my first impression was...

Ok. I really don’t understand how people compare this place to Texas BBQ. Not even close. I will say the briscuit sandwich wasn’t bad. The meat was tender and not dry, and I liked whatever sauce they use. But I fear that the sauce may not be homemade considering they use cheese from a jar(white cheese at that) for their Mac n cheese. No thank you. Fresh cheese or nothing at all. I had my hopes up for their corn bread from all the reviews I read. I don’t know how you mess up corn bread. Corn bread from the box would of been better than the lump or corn CAKE they gave me. Seriously I felt like I was eating cake. Idk what they put in there but that’s not traditional corn bread. Non traditional can be great, but that’s not a good rendition of it. This is just a gentrified hipster bbq joint that...