Thomas' Smokey Pit Stop - Manchester

This BBQ was good, decent even but not great. Place has 3 seats and is mainly Togo with plenty of parking. Cornbread was kinda dry, the macncheese was more of a mixin/ingredient then a standalone. I think the sandwiches are the play not the platter. Beans and pudding were good. Free mini pancakes.

First off, brave souls opening right as Covid hit, and cheers to a pretty solid BBQ joint in CT! It 's a small place seating provided for a few people mostly take out. It was awesome to see their history love of barbecue on the walls via photos! BBQ and soul food is family, and they clearly love each other and their craft.Service was friendly prompt. Asked for the BBQ 'naked ' aka without sauce so I could taste the true nature of their cook but got sauce anyway. No biggie because their signature sauce is really quite good! They call it a Carolina sauce but I 'm not sure *which* Carolina b/c North Carolina sauce is heavy vinegar based with ketchup added in the West of the state, but not the Eastern part. South Carolina is known for their mustard based sauce. From my geographical living and eating experiences over the years, I honestly feel they 'd be true to tag their sauce via TN. Tennessean BBQ sauce takes a bit of sweet from Kansas City and the heat vinegar from NC sauce to create a masterful sauce which is what Thomas ' serves. It 's excellent. Bottle that stuff. Yesterday!Food wise, I 'd eat their collards all day long. Man, they 're good and TRUE soul food. SO GOOD! Their coleslaw (also tagged 'Carolina slaw ' is delicious but again, I 'm not sure which Carolina they 're referring to? It tastes mostly vinegar based like a Texas slaw and it 's a fantastic palate cleanser but if they 're referring to NC, it 's definitely not a NC slaw. NC slaw is finely chopped and either laced with ketchup (West or mayo (East . Still, their slaw is solidly delicious. As is their mac cheese. It 's what you would crave at grandmas house, expect at a church potluck, and WISH you knew how to make.Their brisket is spot on. The pulled pork, on the other hand, maybe needed more time on the smoker. I have no doubt they know what they 're doing just so happened my pork on this particular day was tough and stringy and extra fatty (meats were measured by a scoop. I didn 't care to get a good portion of my pork with inedible fat. That was disappointing . Things happen and smokes are never 100%, 100% of the time. I get that, which is why I would totally give Tomas ' another try. I can see them being a solid, long term BBQ joint. Kudos, CT!

The best barbecue I've had in the state. Real Southern barbecue. I can vouch for the pulled brisket, cornbread, Mac cheese, yams and collards. And the coconut pound cake is no joke! Some of the best cake I've ever had. 5/5. Highly recommend and affordably priced for a lot of food. Found my go-to spot.

I smoke lots of meat and I rarely order or rate smoke foods as they don 't meat my smoking standards. If you want real smoked meats and BBQ with heart and soul just go here. They don 't over season nor drown their meats with sauce. You can still taste the levels of smoke throughout the meat and get the flavor of the meat. Their j chicken is on point and mild enough for all to enjoy. Then you have the sides that really bring it all home.

Got takeout here today. Definitely hit the spot Not a ton of places to get real BBQ in CT! TTried several of the meats, and the Pork Ribs Smoked chicken were standouts, very flavorful. Sides were great coleslaw was refreshing, yans were stellar and BF housed the mac and cheese have to get a large next time!Oh, dont forget dessert The coconut pound cake was incredible. Moist and with a pleasant homemade flavor to it.Highly Recommend. Excited to try the rest of the menu