Reviewed by Stephen R. Lang

Have you ever been to one of those places that, while paying the check, you find yourself dreaming of your next visit?  Well, at Bulldog BBQ they will give you probably some of the best barbeque in North Miami at the best price and in the greatest environment.  When it is said that a successful business owner thinks everything through before opening, Howie “Bulldog” Kleinberg has, and usually has a wait at the door to show for it.

Opening to much anticipation on February 9, 2009, Top Chef Miami contestant Howie “Bulldog” Kleinberg brought the North Miami/South Aventura area some of the best North Carolina style barbecue ever tasted.  So good in fact, that it was up for Best BBQ in Miami for NBCMiami.com’s Golden Local. 

There are many reasons to go to a restaurant, but there is really only one basic reason to go to Bulldog BBQ—the food.  Honestly, there is nothing better than a rack of ribs hand rubbed with herbs and spices that is slow roasted and either eaten alone or covered with a secret recipe red barbecue sauce that will make you moan.  Other reviews have been coined “The Best Date Place” but this is all about love.  You have to be careful who you bring here because you will eventually vocalize your love of their baked beans, mac & cheese, or that slow cooked half barbeque chicken.  Do not expect intellectually stimulating conversation or even to sustain one when you have a pulled pork sandwich in your hands.  Sure they offer a Wedge, Tomato Chopped, and Cobb Salads—but what you really will want is what the other table has, the beef brisket!  Bulldog BBQ is definitely a meat-lovers paradise.  Now be careful, they will bring you out your cornbread first, but set it aside and wait to eat it with your meal, it’s worth the wait and you’ll be happy you did so.  Why not start off with a bowl of White Chili?  It is made with ground turkey, White Beans, Cheddar Cheese, cornbread crumbles, sour cream and is totally big enough for two!  How about Shrimp and Corn Chowder with Cornmeal Crusted Shrimp, Roasted Corn, crispy bacon, and scallions?  Now, to wash it all down with and to make you feel really at a barbecue restaurant, they use Mason jars as cups!  Be it homemade Lemonade, Sweet Tea, or sodas, they also have a selection of bottled beers and wines to choose from (not in jars). 

One of the best parts of eating at Bulldog BBQ is that everything is simple yet refined.  The space is cozy and limited, yet can still fit a fair amount of people.  With a long narrow space, tables are along one side of the wall with everything set up for you in a cool hanging wire basket.  Be it the amazing red barbecue sauce or the yellow mustard sauce, or even a roll of paper towels, everything is right there within anyone’s reach.  They have really thought about the environment with their paper products.  Everything from the table mats to their Carry Out boxes are made with a percentage of post-consumer recycled materials.  Even their metal baskets are lined with newspaper!  Bulldog BBQ actually cares about the community and was the Host restaurant for the 2009 Care Resource’s Dine Out for Life.  They not only gave a portion of their nights proceeds but served as a base for the night’s operation.

Finally, one of the greatest parts of going to Bulldog BBQ, besides the food, the great no-frills genuinely nice service would be to see the owner, Bulldog, in the kitchen working.  Stop in, eat, and be sure to wave at him and thank him on the way out and try not to pocket the bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce!