Two Bangkok BBQs
The Roadhouse Silom and Billy's Smokehouse
It’s not a great head-to-head comparison, because even though they’re both BBQ joints run by Americans, they’re not competing in the same division. The Roadhouse is more of an everyday spot, or a twice a week joint. Billy’s is a “special occasion” location. This is mostly a result of the difference in price point. RH isn’t cheap, but it’s definitely less brutal on your wallet. Billy’s is expensive, though justifiably so. Their BQ game is just a level above.
And those are great reasons to love both places. At Billy’s, you’re going to get your socks blown off. At The Roadhouse, you’re going to get a plate of familiar, munch-worthy comfort food every time. For this reason, I’m going to give them different ratings: RH out of 5, and Billy’s out of 10.
And since I’ve been to RH probably 20 times in the past decade and a half, I could go on and on about their menu. The pulled pork, the tacos, the Texas chili, the burger, the buffalo wings. They’re all great. For this post, I made a special trip to get a rack of ribs (for the fourth time). This time I only got a half rack, plus a baked potato. Occasionally they run a special where you can get a basket of wings with your ribs, and that’s a heavenly session, to be sure. But the ribs are always good on their own—perfectly slow-cooked, falling off the bone, with excellent Texas barbecue sauce. Even the potato tastes like it could’ve been cooked over a campfire during a cattle drive. For coleslaw, RH always offers two choices: creamy or vinegar. I always opt for the latter, because their recipe is uniquely pleasurable. I give the whole schmear a 4 out of 5.
Billy’s Smokehouse specializes in American Southern-style food, enough that anyone from Austin to Ft Lauderdale would feel right at home. This was my second visit, though for the life of me I couldn’t find the photos or description from the first. I do remember that I had both pork and beef ribs the last time. However, that was a few years before Covid, and in the time since—just like the rest of the world—prices skyrocketed, and I couldn’t justify doing the ribs again on a retiree’s budget. That said, my eyes were much bigger than my stomach, as I ordered smoked chicken wings, the brisket, mac and cheese, and corn salad. Everything was on point. The wings were insanely delicious, oozing with smoked succulence and oh-so-satisfying. The mac and cheese was like being transported back home to a home-cooked meal from mom on a chilly autumn night. The side of cornbread is worth a mention—warm, moist, and bursting with downhome flavor, with garlic butter on the side that melted like magic into the hot bread. But the dinner winner was the brisket. So perfectly seasoned and cooked, if my tastebuds could’ve teared-up they would have. With two kinds of sauce (Memphis and Kansas City), every bite was better than the one before. Somehow I thought the cow must’ve been looking down from cow heaven with a sense of satisfaction at the exquisite rapture I felt whilst gnawing on her.
I didn’t have room for the corn salad so I took it to go and ate it later that evening. It was nothing to write home about…I mistakenly imagined it to be something like a corn casserole, which is was not. But all in all, I give the plate at Billy’s a 9.5 out of 10.
Both joints have a list of lovely craft beers that pair with the fare like a hand in a glove. To be fair, RH’s beer list is more extensive and eclectic. But in both places, foodies can rest assured their meal will be supported by a hearty glass of brewed brilliance that serves to make the BBQ even better.
