Third Wave BBQ

Third Wave's Moorabbin outpost, at 20 Station Street, cooks the way the brand always has: over wood, without shortcuts. Beef brisket leads — twelve to sixteen hours over hickory until the bark sets dark and the fat turns to silk, Texas thinking in Melbourne's south-east.

The rest spans the American traditions: dry-rubbed pork ribs, pulled pork, and a flavor-forward, Kansas City-style house rub with more going on than most, rounded out with maple and applewood smoke.

Then the Thor's Hammer lands — a huge bone-in smoked beef shank, carried out to turn heads. It is barbecue for people who understand that the good stuff takes time, and is worth every minute.