Eat Athens: Smoky excellence from beloved Crawford BBQ spot is now a shorter drive away

For those who love barbecue, taking road trips to visit the most well-renowned eateries is a common thing to do, but there's nothing quite comparable to the thrill of discovering one. Though mostly known for its catering in the Athens area, G Brand BBQ has become a favorite in nearby Crawford over the last few years, and the recent opening of a drive-thru location has brought their flavors a bit closer to the Classic City.

Located at 1973 Hog Mountain Rd. in Watkinsville, G Brand is open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Unlike the larger restaurant in Crawford, the Watkinsville spot is for drive-thru and carryout service only, but the flavors and the portions are big enough to satisfy any appetite.

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If the "G" logo design for G Brand BBQ looks familiar, that might be because founder and owner Fred Gretsch took inspiration from the world-renowned musical instrument company that bears his family's last name. Gretsch is a University of Georgia graduate, and called upon his expertise from 17 years in pork and broiler production when he opened the 1140 Athens Rd. "mothership" location in Crawford in 2018.

"I always wanted to work on the restaurant side of the agriculture cycle," Gretsch told the Banner-Herald. "I know where the best food comes from because I used to be the guy who supplied it."

The Watkinsville G Brand BBQ opened back in March and was designed to be a kind of utilitarian outpost for easy pick up and drive-thru service that can accommodate single plate orders or larger quantities for groups of parties. There is no dining area inside or outside, but there is a modest retail space where bottles of G Brand's signature sauces are available for purchase.

Prices start at $6.59 for a barbecue or chicken sandwich, and meat plates with two sides start at $10 for chicken salad. The list of side items features many of barbecue's best friends, including baked beans, Brunswick stew, coleslaw, and mac n' cheese. The dessert menu features banana pudding, peach cobbler, a variety of loaf cakes and Alumni Cookie Dough.

When the Banner-Herald visited the G Brand outpost, we ordered a $17.99 half rack plate of baby back ribs with stew and mac n' cheese and a large-sized $2.50 cup of Publix sweet tea. Since a half rack contains six ribs, we decided to eat three with no sauce and the others with G Brand's sweet hot sauce and Alabama-style white sauce. The ribs were smoky perfection with lightly crispy bark on the outside and easy-to-bite tender meat on the inside.

Though the sauces were good, Gretsch's no-frills approach to barbecue will be appreciated by the purest of tastes, and the flavor of the ribs remained ever-present. Even when drenched in the the sweet hot sauce, which was low on heat and high on a multitude of interesting spices, G Brand's outstanding smoke stood front and center.

To view the full menu at G Brand BBQ and place online orders to pick up, visit gbrandbbq.com.

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Eat Athens: G Brand BBQ offers to-go meals in Watkinsville