Introducing a take-out tour of Richmond barbecue joints.
Photo by Carmen Troesser
You’ll want to have an empty stomach and a full gas tank when you embark on the new RVA BBQ Tour, a one-of-a-kind taste of Richmond’s barbecue scene. Led by a guide and listening to podcast narrations, visitors caravan to assorted barbecue restaurants in the area for socially distant tastings.
The tour is the brainchild of entrepreneurs Greg Hofbauer and Ryan Martin. “We started working on the idea last fall as a bus tour to different barbecue locations, but made some changes to it to better suit the pandemic,” Hofbauer says. “Ryan also works as a home inspector and would discover lesser-known barbecue places on his drives. He runs the tours and works with the restaurants, and I manage the ticket sales and marketing.”
The Saturday flagship tour lasts about two and a half hours and features three restaurants. Each stop includes barbecue and samples of sides, with a special dessert at the third stop. Pandemic precautions include contactless food delivery, hand sanitizing, and avoiding indoor spaces.
For the drives between restaurants, Hofbauer and Martin provide podcast interviews with pitmasters that offer sneak peeks into how the restaurants started and the unique process each uses to make their barbecue. “I developed a love for small businesses and connecting the community to them, which is exactly what we hope to do with these barbecue tours,” says Hofbauer.
Tickets are $25 for young adults (11-18) and $59 for adults. Kids 10 and under eat free. RVABBQTours.com
This article originally appeared in the December 2020 issue.