Pica Rica BBQ — Restaurant in Saint George

Let me drop some love for Pica Rica BBQ in St. George, Utah—this spot is straight-up fantastic. I swung by on a sunny Sunday afternoon, stomach growling, ready to dive into some legit BBQ. The place has that perfect BBQ joint vibe: smoky aroma hittin’ you as soon as you walk in, chill music, and a crew behind the counter who clearly know their craft. It’s nestled in downtown St. George, pulling in locals and road-trippers like moths to a flame.

I went big and ordered the Double X—brisket and ribs, baby, because if you’re gonna do BBQ, you gotta do it right. When that platter hit the table, I was in awe. The brisket was melt-in-your-mouth tender, with a crispy, smoky bark that screamed hours of low-and-slow love. The ribs? Fall-off-the-bone perfection, juicy with just a whisper of seasoning that let the pork shine. They smoke everything with Post Oak, and you can taste the woodsy depth in every bite. Here’s the wild part: they set me up with their house-made sauces—Carolina mustard, a cherry glaze, and this killer mole-inspired one—and I legit felt like I was committing a BBQ cardinal sin by even thinking about saucing up the meat. It was that good naked. The brisket had this rich, smoky soul, and the ribs were like a love letter to pork. I tried a dab of the mole on a rib just for kicks, and it was dope, but honestly? Didn’t need it. The Double X is a masterpiece on its own.

I paired it with some sides—mac and cheese and esquites (that Mexican street corn vibe). The mac was gooey, cheesy, and pure comfort, soaking up the meaty vibes like a champ. The esquites brought a zesty, slightly spicy pop that balanced the richness perfectly. Oh, and I gotta shout out their beef tallow tortillas—homemade and next-level. I wrapped some brisket in one, and it was like a flavor bomb went off in my mouth.

The staff was mad cool, letting me sample a slice of brisket before I committed, which sealed the deal. The Double X with sides set me back about $40, but for the quality? Worth it. This ain’t no assembly-line BBQ—they’re smoking fresh daily with all-wood pits, and you can tell they pour their heart into it. Word is, they ranked #7 in the U.S. for Texas-style BBQ outside Texas, and after chowing down, I’m not surprised.

Only heads-up: they can sell out of meats later in the day, so don’t sleep on getting there early. Pica Rica BBQ is the real deal, blending Texas tradition with a Mexi-Cali twist that slaps. I’m already dreaming of my next Double X, and I’ll probably skip the sauce again just to keep it holy. If you’re in St. George, hit this spot—you...

We just moved from Texas not that long ago and in our time living there, it has kinda made us into BBQ snobs. We are thrilled to see a legit BBQ place open in St. George, so please take any criticism being left as my excitement to see this place succeed!

My wife and I were invited to try out this new BBQ joint opening on Thursday. We were treated very graciously to a platter of some of what is offered on the menu. I am going to go ahead and rank what we had with 1 being the best:

Serrano & Cheese Sausage - By far the most flavorful on the menu we had and should not be missed. Smoked Chix Wings - The sauce on these things definitely is tasty and complements the flavorful wings nicely. Barbacoa Tacos - Good juicy meat wrapped in cheese and a freshly made warm fluffy tortilla. The tortilla really stood out on this one and was very good. Tres Leches - Just the right amount of flavor and made for an awesome dessert. Esquites - Super delicious Mexican street corn. Turkey Breast - Very tender, but not as flavorful as it could be. I was hoping for a little more smoke flavor on this one. Still good though. Sliced Brisket - This was a little dry, however I do typically favor more on the side of the point. What we had looked to be the lean and I would like to see the bark be more flavorful. I was given some of the point to take home, so I will have to see how that fares for leftovers. Caesar Salad - The dressing was better than your standard, however in the end, it is what it is. Spare Ribs - These were pretty tough to get off the bone. The batch we had probably could have used some more time on the smoker. The taste wasn't too bad though. Tajin Spiked Seasonal Fruit - Watermelon and Pineapple with a sauce drizzled on with some seasoning. This was a little different than the norm, however it didn't really stand out to me. Potato Salad - This was a little bland and could use a little sprucing up.

I am pretty sure that was everything on the platter we had. We did not leave much behind, but those are my thoughts on what is great there and what could use some improvement. I fully understand that kinks will be worked out as time progresses and they are off to a good start. You can tell that everyone working there is super excited and motivated and the service was fantastic! Go out and support these guys as we definitely need good BBQ in Southern Utah as it has been pretty lacking. I look forward to returning as they mature and wish the best for their success!

I fully plan on revising this review after...

I gave this place a three star for one reason and one reason only, read further to find out!

The place smelled amazing from the street.Parking was relatively easy, even though the Ironman had just wrapped up. Pro Guide Tip: Don’t sit next to the barbecue tanks on the outside patio when it’s above 60F outside! It was about 100F outside when I discovered this seemingly obvious maxim.

My wife and son loved their brisket, turkey, ribs (pork?) and mac and cheese.

My ‘smoked chicken’, not so much. It was a half of a small game hen-at best. Tiny. The skin was nearly impenetrable with the plastic knife and fork-think Kevlar here. The meat was dry and stringy and tasted like burnt plastic. Sorry, but I cannot put it any other way. The skin was impossible to macerate with human teeth. Think black suede leather, with a burnt plastic finish. I threw away $18.00; as in straight to the garbage bin. Thus, no photos. The slaw was okay to good-ish. I loved their Carolina and house sauces; delicious. I had a 1/4 lb. of the ‘takes a week to prepare’ pork belly; amazing, juicy smokiness and perfect seasoning/smoke balance. A cold beer would have been heavenly paired with the pork. Just saying… FYI: As of this writing, they don’t serve alcohol (some sort of LDS temple related ordinance I was told, anecdotally). The real kicker was the sudden onset GI issue I had after eating just the thigh and leg-sans skin. I can’t positively confirm direct causation, but, the event would be quite the coincidence if not related to my ingestion of said chicken. I hadn’t eaten anything else in 10-12 hours (I ate the pork after my recovery from the GI event), so, you decide. The people were great-friendly and helpful. The ambiance was great, the aroma even better! I recommend Pica, just not the chicken I had. Perhaps it was simply an anomaly. I hope so-for Pica’s and everyone...