QUICK BITE: Guy's Pig & Anchor BBQ on Carnival Mardi Gras

One trend I have seen on cruise ships over the last several years is the addition of BBQ speciality restaurants.  Princess has a concept called Planks, Royal Caribbean has Portside BBQ Norwegian has the Texas Smokehouse and Carnival has the Pig & Anchor sponsored by celebrity chef Guy Fieri.  They all have a similar concept in that you pick several proteins and sides and it is served to you on a tray.  This is what I ordered last night. 

Clockwise from the bottom right is pulled pork, beef brisket, Cole slaw, pickled vegetables, green beans and St Louis ribs.  

All the meats were moist and flavorful.  There are also several sauces to add to your selections.  I went with a smokey tomato BBQ sauce but they also had Carolina style and a chipotle.  

The green beans were the most surprising.  Tender, flavorful beans along with some crunchy pork.  The slaw was tangy and tasted great with the pulled pork.  The pork ribs fell off the bone and had some bark for crunch.  And the brisket was some of the best I have had.  The vinegary and briny pickled vegetables provided a nice contrast to the meats. And the most surprising?  Since ships don't have open flames, they have to smoke all this meat using electric or induction heat.  Pretty impressive.  

I hope to try the selections on the other cruise lines soon so I can compare.