STORY AND PHOTOS BY ALEXA CUTRER A t the Gather Gulf Coast Fall Market, we ordered The Kitchen Sink platter from six smoked meats, three craft sausages, four sides, bread and pickled vegetables. Choosing just one thing would have been a much harder assignment. What surprised me most was how fresh and light this protein-forward meal felt. The meats weren’t drenched in sauce, and with so much flavor from the smoke, rubs and seasonings, I hardly needed any. Vegetables and pickled accompaniments balanced the richer bites, and the variety let us try a little bit of everything. This was unlike any other barbecue I’ve had around here: fancy barbecue, perhaps, but really, barbecue how it should be. Micks’d Up Kitchen. The name promised a little of everything, and the spread delivered: Micks’d Up Kitchen puts a fresh spin on Gulf Coast barbecue A LITTLE BIT OF everything — including the ‘kitchen sink’ (platter)
interesting. Maple Brandy Belly paired smoked maple pork belly with brandy and a Dijon drizzle, bringing sweet and sharp elements to a rich cut. Glazed Pork Coppa featured hand-butchered, marinated pork cooked slowly over smoke. Confit Beef Cheeks took a different route: four hours of smoking followed by 12 hours of confit cooking in tallow, seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic. Each cut gets its own preparation and cooking time. That variety gives you a reason to try each one and discover what you like best. The sausages were equally distinctive. Cane Sugar & Jalapeño combined pork with fresh cane sugar and both roasted and with fresh jalapeños. Apple Butter & Rosemary brought together pork, house-made apple butter, fresh rosemary and mustard seed. The bratwurst used pork, ginger, mace, caraway and heavy cream. Sweetness, heat, herbs and warm spices each had a place in the lineup. UNIQUE TOUCHES, THOUGHTFUL SIDES The Tomato & Cucumber Salad combined smoked tomatoes, cucumbers, lemons and herbs, offering a bright counterpoint to the meats. Steakhouse Mushrooms featured smoked mushrooms with shallots, parsley and herbs. Parmesan Potatoes were smoked scalloped potatoes prepared with Parmesan, cream, herbs, salt, pepper and garlic. It’s comfort food but with the same attention given to the proteins. The Rosemary & Rye Cornbread, finished with a burnt honey glaze and whipped brown butter, was wonderfully flavorful and unique. Pickled carrots, red onions, jalapeños and cucumbers added color and tang, while bread and sauces rounded out the spread.
Photo by Savvy Snapshots
A CREATIVE MENU WITH MANY STANDOUTS TO TRY
The sliced prime brisket started with a house dry rub and 16 hours of smoke, producing that dark exterior barbecue lovers recognize. Smoked pulled pork offered a familiar favorite: dry-rubbed pork butt, pulled by hand. Sliced turkey breast, brined, rubbed and smoked, added another option to a spread that gave every protein its own preparation. Then came the dishes that made this menu especially
November 2026
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