OpenTable Restaurant Reviews Reveal the Top 30 Best Barbecue Restaurants in America

SAN FRANCISCO, July 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- In a nod to our nation's longstanding love affair with barbecuing, OpenTable OPEN, the world's leading provider of online restaurant reservations, is pleased to honor the 2014 Diners' Choice Award winners for the Top 30 Best Barbecue Restaurants in America. These awards reflect the combined opinions of more than 5 million restaurant reviews submitted by verified OpenTable diners for approximately 19,000 restaurants in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Showcasing regional styles and techniques, including dry rubs and wet brines, the winning eateries use a balance of nuanced spices and smoke to bring forth complex flavors in their barbecue dishes. The complete list includes notable restaurants in 12 states and Washington, D.C., such as Dinosaur Bar-B-Que in Harlem, Lambert's Downtown BBQ in Austin, and Wexler's in San Francisco. California has six award winners, followed by Illinois and New York with five each, Texas with four, and Ohio with two. Arizona, Colorado, Maryland, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Washington, D.C., and Wisconsin are also represented.

"The recipients of these inaugural awards have elevated the craft of barbecue to a form of edible art," says Caroline Potter, OpenTable Chief Dining Officer. "With patience and passion, the pitmasters at each of the winning restaurants are using their expertise to transform even the most humble cut of meat into a smoky and tender fare to remember."

The 2014 Diners' Choice Awards for the Top 30 Best Barbecue Restaurants in America are generated from more than 5 million restaurant reviews collected from verified OpenTable diners between July 1, 2013, and June 30, 2014.  All restaurants listed as "barbecue" cuisine type with a minimum number of qualifying reviews were included for consideration. Qualifying restaurants were then sorted according to a score calculated from each restaurant's average rating in the food category along with a minimum "overall" rating.

Based on this methodology, the following restaurants, listed in alphabetical order, comprise the Top 30 Best Barbecue Restaurants in America according to OpenTable diners. The complete list may also be viewed at http://www.opentable.com/m/best-BBQ-restaurants-in-america.

2014 Diners' Choice Award Winners for the Top 30 Best Barbecue Restaurants in America

Annapolis Smokehouse – Annapolis, Maryland
Bluebird Barbecue – Burlington, Vermont
Bobby Q – Phoenix, Arizona
Boneyard Bistro – Sherman Oaks, California
Carson's Prime Steaks & Famous Barbecue – Chicago, Illinois
Carson's Prime Steaks & Famous Barbecue – Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Chicago q – Chicago, Illinois
Chuck's Southern Comforts Cafe – Burbank, Illinois
Chuck's Southern Comforts Cafe – Darien, Illinois
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que – Brooklyn, New York
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que – Buffalo, New York
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que – Harlem, New York
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que – Rochester, New York
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que – Troy, New York
Freedmen's – Austin, Texas
The Granary `Cue & Brew – San Antonio, Texas
Gus's BBQ – South Pasadena, California
Hill Country Barbecue Market – Washington, D.C.
Iron Starr Urban Barbecue-OKC – Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Kenny's Smoke House – Plano, Texas
Lambert's Downtown BBQ – Austin, Texas
Montgomery Inn-At the Boathouse – Cincinnati, Ohio
The Montgomery Inn-Original – Cincinnati, Ohio
Naples Rib Company – Long Beach, California
Percy Street Barbecue – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Piggyback Tavern – Forest Park, Illinois
Russell's Smokehouse – Denver, Colorado
Southpaw BBQ – San Francisco, California
Sweet T's Restaurant + Bar – Santa Rosa, California
Wexler's – San Francisco, California

Diners can also read more about the Diners' Choice Awards for the Top 30 Best Barbecue Restaurants in America by visiting the OpenTable "Dining Check" blog.

About OpenTable Restaurant Reviews
Originally launched in November 2008, the OpenTable Reviews program helps diners find restaurants that best fit their dining occasions.  Diners who recently honored an OpenTable reservation are invited via email to submit restaurant feedback using an online form. Visitors to OpenTable can access reviews for thousands of OpenTable restaurant partners across the United States, Canada, Germany and the UK.  The OpenTable Reviews program has generated more than 25 million restaurant reviews by verified diners, establishing OpenTable as one of the largest and most trusted sources for restaurant reviews. 

About OpenTable
OpenTable is the world's leading provider of online restaurant reservations, seating more than 15 million diners per month via online bookings across more than 31,000 restaurants. The OpenTable network connects restaurants and diners, helping diners discover and book the perfect table and helping restaurants deliver personalized hospitality to keep guests coming back. The OpenTable service enables diners to see which restaurants have available tables, select a restaurant based on verified diner reviews, menus, and other helpful information, and easily book a reservation. In addition to the company's website and mobile apps, OpenTable powers online reservations for nearly 600 partners, including many of the Internet's most popular global and local brands. For restaurants, the OpenTable hospitality solutions enable them to manage their reservation book, streamline their operations, and enhance their service levels. Since its inception in 1998, OpenTable has seated more than 620 million diners around the world.  The Company is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and the OpenTable service is available throughout the United States, as well as in Canada, Germany, Japan, Mexico, and the UK. More information is available on http://www.opentable.com.

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