Just when you thought it was safe to hit the salad bar, Meat Week comes roaring back into Washington ready for round two.  Last year, Snowmageddon forced the cancellation of the final two Meat Week events in our area, leaving hungry carnivores unable to enjoy scheduled outings to Branded ’72 in Rockville and Mr. P’s Ribs and Fish on Rhode Island Avenue.  Some folks might have taken that as a sign, a warning from on high to repent and change their ways.

Not us.

This Sunday, DC Meat Week will once again provide carnivores with seven nights of barbecued deliciousness at some of the area’s best ‘cue joints.  And for the second year in a row, Meat Week will be one of your first opportunities to check out a highly-anticipated newcomer to the DC BBQ scene.  Some of the venues have stayed the same (we HAD to kick things off at Urban Bar-B-Que again, and you know we wanted take a second run at Mr. P’s), and a couple of recent additions have been added to the list as well.

Perhaps the biggest change in DC’s Meat Week chapter is who’s running the show.  I’ve passed the Captain’s hat to Jenelle Dennis, aka BabeBQ, though I’ll be staying on as First Mate along with David Gootzit.  Jenelle brings an impressive barbecue pedigree to the role – she’s a KCBS Certified Barbecue Judge and one of the architects of the Snackadium.  Seriously impressive.

Check out the full line-up of venues for this year’s Meat Week after the jump, and pay special attention to Tuesday and Wednesday nights: they’re RSVP-required sneak-peeks at two of the best things that are about to happen to the DC barbecue scene.

For those who need a Meat Week refresher, the “Holiday that Time Forgot” is a week-long celebration of your area’s best barbecue.  Each night takes place at a different location, and they’re generally come-as-you-are.  Check out last year’s Q&A post to get a better idea of what you’re in for.

Here in Washington, we’ve been lucky enough to connect with some of the yet-to-open barbecue venues to arrange “first look” tastings at their partner restaurants.  Last year, we brought you a Pork Barrel BBQ buffet at Mango Mike’s so you could taste their ‘cue before their Del Ray location was open for business.  As it turns out, they’re still a few weeks away from being ready to go in Del Ray, so we’re doing the same thing again this year with a few tweaks to enhance the experience.  And Purveyors of Rolling Cuisine, a soon-to-launch BBQ food truck that will be hitting the DC Streets soon, is going to be giving us a Meat Week Sneak Peek on Wednesday night at Torries @ Wilson, the corner restaurant just down the block from the 9:30 Club.  In those cases, seating is limited and we ask that you respond in advance to jenelledennis AT gmail DOT com to let the Captain know you’ll be there.  I’ve noted these two response-required events below with an asterisk.

You don’t need to attend every night (though you’re certainly welcome to), so feel free to pick and choose how you’d like to celebrate.  At each venue, be on the lookout for Meat Week banners and flags to find your fellow Meat Weekers.  In most cases, everyone orders a la carte from the standard menu, though rumor has it there will be some Meat Week-specific specials on offer at a few places.

And if you’ve got any questions, don’t hesitate to drop us a line, ask in the comment section below, or email Jenelle. 

MEAT WEEK 2011 OFFICIAL SCHEDULE

Sunday, January 30
Urban Bar-B-Que (the place that started it all)
2007 Chapman Avenue
Rockville, MD

Monday, January 31
American Ice Company
917 V Street, NW
Washington, DC

* Tuesday, February 1
Pork Barrel BBQ at Mango Mike’s
4580 Duke Street
Alexandria, VA

* Wednesday, February 2
PORC (Purveyors of Rolling Cuisine) at Torries @ Wilson
700 V Street, NW
Washington, DC

Thursday, February 3
Capital Q
707 H Street, NW
Washington, DC

Friday, February 4
Rocklands Barbecue
2418 Wisconsin Ave, NW (Glover Park)
Washington, DC

Saturday, February 5 – 1 PM
Mr. P’s Ribs and Fish
514 Rhode Island Ave, NE (in the Safeway parking lot)
Washington, DC

Enjoy!  And once you’ve shaken off the Meat Sweats post-Super Bowl, think about checking out DC Meat-Free Week.  Amber McDonald at DCVegan is working on a second round of vegan enticements that will run from February 7th through the 14th.  We’ll be sure to share the line-up once it’s announced.