An Aussie pitmaster is bringing American-style BBQ to Red Hill

AT Red Gum BBQ, in Red Hill, Martin and Melissa Goffin are delighting Aussies with American-style barbecue.

Red Gum BBQ at Red Hill. Picture: Nicki Connolly

IT sure ain’t Texas, Kansas City or the Carolinas. Not with those beach vistas and vineyards. But down at Red Hill, American-style BBQ is really smokin’. Red Gum BBQ brings low, slow southern-style cooking to this corner of the Mornington Peninsula with an Aussie twist.

Native timbers power “pit” smokers, cooking melt-in-the-mouth meats, while local wines, craft beers and old-style American sodas quench everyone’s thirst.

“BBQ in the southern United States is not simply food but a way of life,’’ Aussie pitmaster Martin Goffin says.

Red Gum BBQ has become a passion for Martin and his US-born wife Melissa. What started as a pop-up marquee at peninsula markets has evolved into a thriving stand-alone business in a converted mechanic’s workshop.

Red Bum BBQ’s pulled pork roll. Picture: Nicki Connolly

FOOD

Meat is king here. We’re talking Borrowdale pork, Bannockburn chicken and grass-fed Riverine beef. Quality, and where possible, free range.

Goffin — who tends a Texas offset smoker nicknamed Big Red — can take anything from four to 24 hours to get the right finger-lickin’ results and everything is cut to order. That means the meat is served warm rather than hot ... the way it’s done in the States.

The Red Gum folks recommend you mix it up. So we ordered a tray (right) laden with 200g of pork rib ($18), 150g of beef brisket ($18) and a chicken quarter ($10) on butcher’s paper. Pretty fine chook. Goffin brines his birds overnight so their backsides are burnished, the pearly white flesh inside still juicy. Pork ribs are done St Louis-style, glazed rather than sauced.

Red Gum BBQ’s tray, with chicken quarter, beef brisket, pork rib, coleslaw and cornbread. Picture: Nicki Connolly

Splash on hot-sweet sauce from bottles on the table, but don’t smother: you want to savour the subtle, smoky sweetness of these babes.

Then there’s the brisket. Goffin rubs his down with salt and pepper. This one’s top-notch: oozing smoky richness with claret red seams and peppery black bark.

You’ll want cornbread with that ($6), lathered with whipped honey butter, and some slaw ($8). The Red Gum version — inspired by a hand-me down cookbook — fuses red and green cabbage with vinegar, celery seeds and house mayo. And did I mention the bean chilli ($17) and broccoli salad ($11)?

For dessert, time will tell if Australians are up for banana pudding or a sour cherry pie.

Red Bum BBQ owners Martin and Melissa Goffin in front of their pit smoker. Picture: Nicki Connolly

DRINK

Barbecue and beer are very good friends. Red Gum’s bar offers a dozen craft beers — our Jetty Road Pale Ale and Tassie Oak Pilsner came in chunky jam jars. But there are locally sourced wines, natural juices and peach iced tea, too.

SERVICE

Proactively helpful. Before you order, staff can answer questions about cuts, tastes and serving sizes. More info is on a FAQ sheet.

X FACTOR

Rustic Red Gum BBQ plonks you at long picnic-style benches where you go elbow
to elbow with strangers. Get used to it

BANG FOR YOUR BUCK

Fair. You don’t get heaping portions as in Texas but quality is high, prices competitive.

VERDICT

Red Gum BBQ — celebrating its first birthday this month — is a passion project that connects strongly with its community.

Red Gum BBQ in Red Hill. Picture: Nicki Connolly

RED GUM BBQ

87 Arthurs Seat Rd, Red Hill. Ph: 5989 3156

FOOD Barbecue beer hall

HOURS Wed-Sun 11am-9pm

CHEF Martin Goffin

BOOKINGS Yes, but walk-ins welcome

TIME BETWEEN ORDERING AND EATING Eight minutes

PERFECT FOR Kicking back with beer and ribs

DESTINATION DISH Beef brisket and cornbread

NOISE LEVEL Genial, less rackety sitting outside

ONLINE redgumbbq.com.au