Ore Nell’s Barbecue

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "BBQ means everything. BBQ means family. BBQ means Sunday afternoon. BBQ is love."

Few people love barbecue more than Will Myska.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "BBQ is my life, essentially. I think it's THE comfort food, especially for me."

That's because Will comes from deep in barbecue country.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "I was born raised outside of Houston, Texas. I would spend my summers going up to my uncle's house in Copeland, Texas, which is right outside of Austin. And where I really grew a passion for barbecue."

And that passion is evident in every slice of brisket, rack of ribs, and pile of pork, at Ore Nell's Barbecue.

With a gorgeous location on Badger's Island in Kittery Maine, Ore Nell's Barbecue offers stunning views of the Piscataqua River, and its picnic tabled patio makes for an idyllic spot to take in a New England sunset. But inside, this place is straight out of Central Texas, with a horseshoe shaped bar, plenty of natural woods and aluminum, and the Texas state flag and longhorns on the wall.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "It's not only the food, it's everything. It's the atmosphere, it's the energy of the building, energy of the food, that goes beyond just filling your belly, you know what I mean? Hopefully you have a good, warm, loving experience. You might get the meat sweats at the end, you know what I mean? But it's just that kind of love."

And that love comes straight from Ore Nell herself, Will's grandmother, who he lovingly named the restaurant after.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "Ore Nell Myska is my grandmother. She raised me along with the rest of my family, and just growing up going her house every weekend. You know, potato salad, coleslaw, BBQ chicken, ribs. It's the food I grew up on. And now that I'm a resident here in New England, I just wanted to bring the food and comfort that I grew up on eating, and try to share it with everybody else here."

First and foremost, what you'll find at Ore Nell's is real deal authentic Central Texas barbecue.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "Texas barbecue is beef. Obviously we have pork items, pulled pork, we have the pork ribs too, but brisket is what we're all about here."

In fact, they're so devoted to brisket here, Will has adorned the wall above the open kitchen with 'The Brisket Prayer'.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "The Brisket Prayer: ‘May our bark be crispy, our juices be flowing, and may our smoke ring runneth deep.’"

And tasting a slice of this stuff is like a religious experience.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "You want it to just kind of dissolve in your mouth. You want to be able to cut it with a fork essentially. To show the tenderness and the care you put behind it."

All that care starts with a dry rub of just salt, pepper, and a touch of brown sugar.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "I like the way the sugar crystalizes and establishes more of a bark, and it gives it a little bit of sweetness."

Then it's smoked for at least eight hours over white oak, until Will feels it's done, and we literally mean feel.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "It's all about the feel, it's all about the jiggle of it. We don't temp anything, we go by touch and feel. So when we get a nice jiggle to it like so, we know that she's ready."

Once it's sliced and served, this might just be the best brisket you can get outside of the Lone Star State.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "That's the best piece of brisket right there. You have that fattiness, you can see that it can lean over my fingers and it's not going to fall apart, so it's not overcooked, and you can really just see the juices in there, you get a little bit of that smoke ring right there. If I'm gonna serve brisket to the president it's gonna be this one right here, you know."

While the brisket is the star of the show at Ore Nell's, there's plenty more barbecue worth trying, like meaty St. Louis Ribs seasoned with salt, pepper, paprika, cumin and brown sugar, tender Pulled Pork with just enough sauce, and Chicken that's brined in pickle juice, smoked for hours, then finished in the fryer, ensuring juicy meat and crispy skin. The best way to taste it all is to bring a few friends and order Ore Nell's Family Cookout.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "It's trying Ore Nell's on one tray. You get a half pound of all of our proteins, two sausage links, and a half chicken, and then you get four sides of your choice. It's a half sheet tray. Boom. It's stacked. It's a carnivore's dream."

Beyond barbecue, there are all kinds of awesome specials, like a Loaded Deep Fried Baked Potato, great on its own or stuffed with Brisket, Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread drizzled with de Arbol Honey, and one of Will's childhood favorites, Frito Pie.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "Frito Pie was a huge day in school growing up in Texas. Frito Pie day. We do it a little different here than we then we did at school. We take our trimming from our brisket sauté it to order with some pinto beans, toss some Fritos in there, and then serve it in a cast iron skillet, and we garnish it with sour cream, pickled red onions, cilantro, and cotija cheese. It's very rich, very filling. I don't know if I say this on camera, but I like to call it 1:00 AM drunk food. Like if you want to sober up, come get a Frito Pie, you know."

Desserts at Ore Nell's are not to be missed, like the State Fair Funnel Cake with ice cream and whipped cream, or the surprising Texas original, German Chocolate Cake.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "German Chocolate Cake was invented in Texas. That's a shocker right there for everybody, look it up I'm telling you."

But there's no questioning the origins of Ore Nell's Banana Pudding.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "That one is my grandmother right there. Every family reunion, grandma makes a big bowl of banana pudding. It's very rich, very filling, but you're going to come here to eat, you might as well top it off with some banana pudding for sure."

And that's a sweet way to end a meal at a place you'll love, just as much as Ore Nell herself does.

Will Myska - Chef/Owner, Ore Nell's Barbecue: "She's very proud, you know. She raised me, she raised me on this food, and that I can give back to people up here in the community, make her proud, that's what life's all about right there."