Counter Culture: Brileys BBQ
The best ribs in town? You'll have to go to Lake Forest Park.
By Brandon Ferguson August 6, 2025
Seattle might not be the first city you think of when it comes to barbecue — but head north to Brileys BBQ and you’ll see why that narrative is changing, one rack at a time. I’m calling it now: these are the best ribs in town.
Tender, smoky, and perfectly caramelized, the ribs scream Southern goodness, complete with a beautiful smoke ring that comes from many hours of preparation. No sauce is needed, but the housemade mild sauce is so good it borders on addictive. (Don’t let “mild” dissuade you — it’s packed with flavor.)
But wait — don’t sleep on the sides. I have two personal favorites: the Brunswick stew and the cornbread. The stew is rich, hearty, and packed with smoky meat and vegetables that will make you wake up in the middle of the night craving it. As for the cornbread, there seems to be two camps: sweet and cakey versus savory and dry. I’m definitely in the first camp, and this cornbread is everything I want. A piece of advice: dip it in the mild sauce. You’ll thank me later.
About Counter Culture
Brandon Ferguson is a CFO by trade but a foodie at heart. He has a passion for small, humble restaurants that rarely make it onto the radar of mainstream food critics or glossy dining guides. Join him as he discovers warmth, tradition, and authenticity along with great food.
Follow Us
Restaurant Roundup: Holiday Cheer at SLU BRU, StarChefs, and Kabul Closing
Here’s what was served up recently in the Emerald City.
Fusion food has an innate ability to bring us together. In the blending of two (or sometimes more) cultures, new perspectives are unlocked and we are all better for it. Esquire is in agreement, as the magazine has selected Lupe’s Situ Tacos, a Mexican-Lebanese taqueria in Ballard, as one of the 33 best new restaurants…
Counter Culture: Sansonina Ristorante Italiano
An Italian escape hiding in Renton.
Tucked just off Rainier Avenue, across from a Safeway, Sansonina Ristorante Italiano—which opened early in 2019—is the kind of place you drive past for years without noticing until you walk through the door. Once inside, the outside world dissolves, the hum of traffic fades, and suddenly you’re not in Renton anymore. You’re in a dimly…
5 Things to Eat in December
This month’s assignment: Take the pressure off.
There’s something about the end of the year that adds pressure to everything we do. Despite all the talk of holiday cheer and “merry and bright,” heightened expectations can bring a sense of weariness. We’re fretting over feasts and gatherings while working fervently to tie up loose ends—gifts, work, everything—with a pretty bow. Each month,…
Ahead of the Cut
How a tech-minded home cook turned years of tinkering into a chef’s knife powered by 40,000 vibrations per second.
Scott Heimendinger traces his love for knives back to college, when his dad taught him how to cook over the phone. By his junior year he had saved for his first real knife, a JA Henckels Santoku. Compared with the $9 IKEA knife he had been using, “it felt like a laser… things that used…