Smokin’ Bear BBQ (Dorchester, NH)

A week after our trip that had us visiting Franklin, NH, we again found ourselves traveling through central NH, and this time decided to check out a barbecue place. Did you read that right? Yes. As my regular readers know, fewer things invoke more more of my skepticism than the use of “New England” and “barbecue” in the same sentence. For every good place I’ve found, there are at least two places that reward my seeking them out with leathery disappointment. But several people, most of whom I actually trust to not steer me wrong had mentioned that there was a promising barbecue spot in Dorchester, NH, and while I was out of the country in July, Carol scoped it out, and enjoyed her meal. So we decided it was worth the diversion to the quiet town of Dorchester to find Smokin’ Bear BBQ.

Smokin’ Bear is a pretty low-key place: this isn’t one of your fancy “western-themed” BBQ joints, just essentially just a kitchen shed in a field, with a small covered dining area, and the requisite smoking trailer nearby. The location isn’t by accident: owners Bear and Kim used to live in Austin (which is pretty close to the epicenter of proper Texas BBQ), and when they moved back East, they bought a smoker and brought it with them. After some initial parties and catering, they ended up selecting a plot of land in Dorchester because it is on one of the major snowmobile trails. So the “sled shed” was born, and they’ve been serving up barbecue ever since. It’s not just the winter, either… in the summer, they do a brisk business with the rock climbing community as well (the popular climbing cliffs of Rumney, NH are just a few minutes away).

Smokin’ Bear doesn’t maintain an extensive menu: Bear and Kim select meats they want to smoke, mostly from local farms, and do a batch at a time (so if it’s brisket, they are starting in the middle of the night). So the menu will vary more than a little: brisket some days, turkey others, and even ribs. So the selection, and prices, vary a lot, but they are good about updating their website, and you can always just roll the dice and see what’s on the menu board.

On this trip, the meat was… brisket. Which is great. I adore barbecue, but there are few styles of barbecue I love more than a properly done smoked brisket. As I mentioned above, I’m generally more than a little skeptical about “barbecue” in New England, and doubly-so with brisket. But this was a seriously good brisket: everything here was done nicely: a few slices (a mix of flat and point), with good fat marbling, really tender interior, good smoke throughout, and a nicely done bark. I’d be happy with in general with this if we were in Texas, and delighted with this since we’re so far from Texas. Add in a side of some surprisingly good confetti pasta salad and some house-made pickles, and this was a great lunch. Probably the best brisket I’ve had in New Hampshire (sorry, The Refinery).

So yes, unless you like rock climbing or snowmobiling, you’re unlikely to just happen across Smokin’ Bear BBQ, and it’s a bit distant for a dedicated trip. But if you happen to find yourself craving real good BBQ in central New Hampshire, it’s worth checking out their menu online and seeing if it’s worth checking them out. I’m glad I did.

Smokin’ Bear BBQ (Dorchester, NH)

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