This weekly Simi Valley sensation is part pop-up, part restaurant, part meme-generating Instagram sensation. Chef/owner Logan Sandoval makes whatever the heck he wants, every week, from smash burgers to beef ribs and curry noodles to smoked housemate Spam musubi — and the fans can’t get enough. Expect fast sellouts, long lines, and lots of banana pudding for dessert. Address provided after pre-ordering.

While LA’s barbecue scene feels like a recent thing, its history goes back decades and is deeper than just the backyard Texas-style stuff in play now. For a glimpse of simple, high quality barbecue done with love (and for the local community) head up to Swinging Door. Lightly charred ribs, fatty brisket, and more come off a unique two-forked off-set smoker, and big take-home platters are always available.

For a taste of Tennessee-specific barbecue, get to the Memphis Grill in North Hollywood. The pandemic-era restaurant has been turning out some surprising meats over the past year-plus, and has big plans to not only grow its menu but also its restaurant, so keep an eye on them for more.

Hailing from Louisiana, this eastside restaurant is light on decor and heavy on smoke, with options for links, chicken, brisket, pulled pork, and all the usual sides.

Now with two locations (including the original in La Puente), this east Los Angeles County star turns out a wide array of smoked meats and other dishes, from burgers and ribeyes (and tea-smoked duck breast) to brisket, tri-tip, and St. Louis-style pork ribs.

Moo’s Craft Barbecue began life as an East LA backyard pop-up before becoming a staple tenant at Smorgasburg LA. Now the family-run setup operates a restaurant of its own, further east in Lincoln Heights. Moo’s serves some of the most impressive brisket and links in LA, if not America, with LA-specific sides like esquites to match.

Burt Bakman and his Slab team serve up some of LA’s top barbecue, starting from a trailer in a backyard and moving on to become a top player in the smoked meat scene. Stop by for Monday pastrami, all-the-time brisket, smoked chicken, and ribs two ways.

This Orange Countyspecialisthas been anchoring the new smoked meat scene at Smorgasburg in Downtown Los Angeles lately, turning out crispy pork belly, smoked brisket, and a bunch of unique-to-them flavors that make this one of the most interesting new barbecue options to hit Los Angeles in years. The standard hours helps to keep new customers coming, too. Look for a brick and mortar restaurant to open in Garden Grove in 2023.

It’s no surprise that long lines snake out of Los Angeles barbecue icon Phillips Bar-B-Que, especially on weekends. This is a classic spot for saucy ribs, rib tips, chicken links, and more.

Lonnie Edwards is the smiling face behind Ribtown, the daily parking lot rib specialist in Jefferson Park. His off-set smoker, small selling trailer, and a few open-air tables are all it takes to turn out some of LA’s most tender rib tips — and don’t sleep on the beef ribs, either.

For more than three decades, Santa Maria Barbecue and Catering has held it down for the greater Culver City area. The group focuses on California’s most well-known regional smoke style, using red oak to cook off tri-tip cuts, ribs, and a whole lot more. Find them via catering and/or delivery options.

Big, sticky takeaway platters of pork ribs and slices of brisket are the main attraction at Woody’s, a staple Southern spot that’s been cooking in South LA for a generation. Far from the delicate, salt-and-pepper-only Texas style of barbecue, this is a saucy place to get those hands reliably messy.

Ray’s has been quietly serving the Huntington Park area for several years, doling out brisket, ribs, and links. The strip mall stop has legions of lunchtime and weekend fans from the local community.

This north Long Beach barbecue staple doesn’t offer much in the way of ambiance, but that’s sort of the point. Instead, the family focuses on making some of the most popular barbecue in town, with plenty of pulled pork, brisket, hot links, ribs (and rib tips), to go around. Expect a wait, especially on busy weekends.

This family-run Carson restaurant is the place for barbecue with heart. The center of My Father’s Barbeque has always been chef and pitmaster Shalamar Lane, who presides over a hulking bespoke smoker to make some of the city’s best ribs, hot links, smoked chicken, and more.