The Most Delicious Ohio Road Trip Takes You To 6 Hole-In-The-Wall Barbecue Restaurants

Ohio is a dark horse when it comes to killer barbecue, boasting a wholly unique BBQ flavor all its own! There's no barbecue quite like Buckeye State barbecue, and we've put together the following road trip to prove it. From Cincinnati to Columbus, Zanesville to Dayton, we're getting down and dirty at some of the best hole-in-the-wall barbecue restaurants in the state. Grab the wet naps and get ready for the most delicious road trip you'll ever take, visiting six of the best BBQ restaurants in Ohio.

You'll visit six of the best BBQ restaurants in Ohio on this epic road trip. Clocking in at just over six hours, you'll travel 367 miles and enjoy some of the best BBQ of your life!

View a Google Map of this road trip here.

Eli's BBQ

Eli's BBQ is a Cincinnati institution, and it's the perfect start for our Buckeye BBQ adventure. Locals and visitors alike rave about Eli's pulled pork sandwich, and it's an absolute barbecue bucket-list must!

7 Miles Smokehouse

If you like your ribs wet and rich, 7 Miles Smokehouse will be your happy place. The ribs are so sticky-sweet and tender, they're almost dessert-like. Grab some wet naps and a bib, and be prepared to lick your plate (and fingers) clean! No judgement from us.

Bill's Real Pit BBQ

Those craving a big plate of carne will be in hog heaven at Bill's Real Pit BBQ. Humble and unassuming, at Bill's, it's all about the barbecue. Smoky and tender, slathered in sauce, this BBQ is the same family recipe that's kept folks coming back for generations.

Ray Ray's Hog Pit

Peek behind the curtain at Ray Ray's Hog Pit, where the ribs are slow-smoked right out back. Carnivorous locavores will be in heaven at this Buckeye BBQ pit, which smokes up fall-off-the-bone proteins from local farms using hickory and oak logs they harvest from their own woods.

Fatback's Barbecue

This no-frills BBQ joint is a Dayton institution, with the pulled pork sandwiches a major crowd pleaser. Slathered in sauce, piled high on a toasted bun, this is really all you need.

Combs BBQ Central

Combs BBQ Central might just be the most "hidden gem" BBQ joint on this list, and it's a definite diamond in the rough. This Middletown joint serves up homestyle barbecue platters that harken back to church potlucks or family reunions, in the very best possible way. The sauce is downright drinkable, and you'll want to slather it on everything.

What are your picks for the best BBQ restaurants in Ohio? If we didn't visit it on this road trip, nominate it here and tell us why it's the best!