Barbecue is big business in America. The U.S. barbecue restaurant industry is valued at about $4.9 billion in 2026, and there are more than 15,000 barbecue businesses across the country serving up brisket, ribs, and pulled pork.
That love for smoked meat isn’t just a Southern thing, either. In Minnesota, a new league of chefs has been fighting for a spot at the pit, and Minneapolis even cracked the top 15 in one ranking of the best barbecue cities in America…