Danny Cassano has been selling out of brisket every single business day for a decade. His Barabicu Smokehouse (5767 Ridge Rd.) in Parma sits at the top of the list for diehard barbecue fans because Cassano is a pitmaster in the truest sense of the word. He works all week to produce a weekend worth of smoked meats, a few sides and scratch sauces. Pity the customer who arrives after the last half-pound of brisket or slab of baby backs has been claimed.
“Running out is pretty much the only complaint we’ve gotten,” Cassano says. “We operate Barabicu like a true smokehouse; when it’s gone, it’s gone. Everything is made fresh every day and it’s never reheated. If you’re not running out of brisket, you’re either psychic or you’re reheating it.”
Cassano just announced that he will be closing Barabicu after service on Saturday, July 11, three months shy of the restaurant’s 10th anniversary. He has sold the building that has housed the barbecue restaurant since the start and will be taking some time off to attend to personal matters…