Locale BBQ Post is heating up Wilmington dining scene

WILMINGTON – Dan Sheridan didn't anticipate the overwhelming reaction from customers at his new eatery, Locale BBQ Post.

Since opening the 1014 Lincoln St. barbecue take-out with partners Mike Gallucio and Justin Mason on Aug. 17, he has been selling out of food every day.

In two days alone, Sheridan smoked at least a dozen pork butts. The first five days he and his staff, which includes cook Chris Baittinger, cooked around 30 dry-rubbed briskets (11- to 12-pounds each), and about 50 whole chickens.

And Sheridan still had to put in an emergency order with his supplier, George L. Wells Meat Company.

"It's been nuts," said the chef, his eyes widening. "The first day we were completely out by 2 p.m. The next day we made it until 4 p.m.

"But people have been surprisingly understanding. If we're out of brisket, they know we can't just throw it on the smoker."

On Monday, Sheridan said he and his staff were more prepared for the onslaught as customers queued for brisket, ribs, bratwurst, shredded chicken and pulled pork sandwiches just before noon at the shop on the edge of Wilmington's Little Italy neighborhood.

"We're still getting our flow down. We had to figure it out. We're getting to be a nice well-oiled machine," said Sheridan, a graduate of the University of Delaware and Le Cordon Bleu in Australia.

The chef said with only a week in business under his belt, he is still tweaking a few things. The barbecue styles vary from Carolina to Kansas City. Barbecue sauces, for now, are peach and Carolina mustard.

What's bringing the customers to a brand new business that hasn't advertised other than on social media?

Maybe it's the intoxicating, smoky scent of cherry wood that greets patrons at the front door. Maybe it's celebrating the last hurrah of summer with the kind of food that pairs well with warm weather.

Most likely, it's the word-of-mouth from satisfied patrons.

Kristen Moore, who works at nearby WSFS, was already on her second visit on Monday.

The attraction? "It's a great place. I didn't even think I liked barbecue," she said after ordering a brisket sandwich ($9) and some takeout dishes for her colleagues.

Sheridan, who has worked at the former Bistro on the Brandywine in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, Big Fish Grill in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, Cantwell's Tavern in Odessa and Wilmington's La Fia Bakery + Market + Bistro, started a sideline gourmet pickle business known as Wilmington Pickling Company in 2012.

His pickles are sold at Janssen's Market in Greenville, and come with sandwiches at Buckley's Tavern in Centreville. Sheridan soon began thinking about expanding the pickle business and realized barbecue would be a great companion.

He teamed with friends Mason and Gallucio, whose family owned Gallucio's Tavern on Lovering Avenue, to renovate the former home of Sugarfoot Fine Foods & Gourmet Catering on Lincoln Street. (Sugarfoot is now at The Devon condominiums on Wilmington's Pennsyvlania Avenue.)

Sheridan also brought aboard veteran cook Baittinger, a pork aficionado who cures his own bacon. (He has a pig-themed tattoo). Baittinger has cooked at Wilmington's Ernest & Scott and Chelsea Tavern, and Ulysses American Gastropub in Brandywine Hundred.

At Locale BBQ Post, shelves are lined with jars of pickles and a wide range of cookbooks including "Puerto Rican Cookery," Anthony Bourdain's "Medium Raw," Hugh Acheson's "The Broad Fork," "Smoke & Pickles" by Edward Lee, "The Way to Cook" by Julia Child and Thomas Keller's "Ad Hoc at Home."

There's no indoor seating, though there is a counter against one wall to eat a meal while standing. Two picnic tables set out on the sidewalk filled up fast.

Barbecue is not a business for anyone who likes to sleep in. Sheridan said he starts the fire for the smoker around 5 a.m. and then begins to fill its rotating racks.

"We're on our first tree," he says of the split cherry wood provided by Corrin Tree & Landscape of Bear.

Sandwiches, which come with coleslaw on top (if desired) and a can of soda, cost between $8 for bratwurst, $9 for shredded chicken and $10 for pulled ribs.

A half pound of brisket is $11, and $19 for a pound. Pork butt is between $9 to $16; a half chicken is $11, and a whole one is $19; ribs range from $13 for a half rack to $24 for a whole. Six wings are $7 and a dozen are $12.

Sides ranging from $3 to $5 include stewed tomatoes, collard greens, corn-on-the-cob, pickles, potato salad, baked beans, creamed spinach, French fries, hush puppies, jalapeno creamed corn and macaroni and cheese.

Hours are 11 a.m. until supplies last Mon.-Sat. The business is closed on Sundays.

For more information, visit localebbqpost.com, its Facebook page or call (302) 510-4929.

Contact Patricia Talorico at (302) 324-2861 or ptalorico@delawareonline.com and on Twitter @pattytalorico Read her blog at www.delawareonline.com/blog/secondhelpings