Cheap Eats
Pioneer Pit Beef
Lee Gardner
Published: August 3, 2011
This literal shack erected in the parking lot behind a liquor store won Best Pit Beef in our 2008 Best of Baltimore issue, but it has never been subjected to the rigorous culinary gauntlet that is Cheap Eats. And plus we were over by Woodlawn, hungry, and, as always, on the hunt for cut-above pit. Thus we found our way out to the intersection of Rolling and Johnnycake roads to the west of the city, pulled into the lot, and were met with the smell of smoke—along with Pioneer’s general shack-iness, an excellent sign. And instead of the more common Kinda Surly Pit-Beef Dude, a total sweetheart served up a regular pit-beef sandwich on a fluffy white roll with tiger sauce ($5.50) and a small order of hand-cut fries ($2.25). The beef, ordered rare, was as tender and flavorful as we’ve ever had it, sliced thin and piled high (the small was plenty; the jumbo would be a gut buster). The fries were good, if a little overcooked. Next time we’d order the beef a little more done for some crust action, but Pioneer offered a truly superlative (cash only) pit experience.
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