A weekly barbecue pop-up has set up shop in the parking lot of Brew Belly in Olney, bringing competition-style brisket, ribs, and pulled pork to Georgia Avenue every Friday. Underbelly Barbecue, a new catering operation launched this month, hosts its “Friday Smoke Show” from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. right outside the gastropub at 18065 Georgia Avenue, serving smoked meats alongside Brew Belly's existing beer and sandwich menu.
The venture is the work of David Calkins and Ben Schwartz, two barbecue veterans whose professional history stretches back more than a decade, according to The MoCo Show. Calkins owned Brew Belly for roughly eight years before selling it to Schwartz, who acquired the business about six months before the outlet's report. The two are now partnering on Underbelly Barbecue even though Schwartz, not Calkins, holds the keys to the building where the pop-up operates.
A Reunion Rooted in Rockville
Calkins founded Urban Bar-B-Que, the fast-casual barbecue concept he grew into a regional chain after launching it in Rockville in 2003, eventually striking a national expansion partnership with Ledo Pizza System in 2013, according to a PRWeb release from that time. He also spent several years competing on the World Food Championships circuit, the same release noted. The original Urban Bar-B-Que flagship on Chapman Avenue in Rockville closed on March 29, 2020, after more than 17 years.
Schwartz, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, previously served as executive chef for Urban Bar-B-Que and was a culinary partner alongside Calkins when Brew Belly first opened, per the same Washington Post account of the restaurant's 2019 debut. Underbelly Barbecue effectively reunites the pair, with Calkins returning to the competition-style smoking he built his name on while Schwartz continues running Brew Belly as its own gastropub.
What's On the Smoker
The Friday Smoke Show menu leans into regional American barbecue traditions: Texas-style brisket, Memphis-style pulled pork, St. Louis spare ribs, and jalapeño half smokes form the core lineup, per the MoCo Show's reporting. Calkins has said he may introduce rotating specialty items such as Dr Pepper ribs, salt-and-pepper ribs, pork belly lollipops, and Texas Twinkies.
The initial setup features four meats and five sides, with plans to expand to as many as six of each as the pop-up grows. Sides include honey lime coleslaw, deviled egg potato salad, burnt end barbecue beans, braised collard greens, and Cooper sharp mac and cheese, the same report detailed. Underbelly also offers barbecue catering separate from the weekly pop-up, operating entirely out of Brew Belly's kitchen.
Brew Belly's Own Menu Shift
Brew Belly itself has changed under Schwartz's ownership. The restaurant's sandwich lineup shifted from traditional Philly cheesesteaks to hybrid sandwiches combining cheesesteak and chopped cheese styles, served on sesame-seeded Liscio's rolls, the MoCo Show reported. The gastropub opened in Olney in November 2018.
A Corridor on the Upswing
Underbelly's arrival lands amid a broader burst of activity along Olney's Georgia Avenue dining corridor. The century-old Olney Ale House reopened last October after a six-year hiatus following a 2019 kitchen fire, undergoing a full rebuild before welcoming diners back, according to Montgomery Community Media. Fast-casual openings have also picked up pace this month, with a Buffalo Wild Wings GO takeout spot debuting on Spartan Road and a new Bubbakoo's storefront opening on Georgia Avenue, both within weeks of Underbelly's debut.
Whether Underbelly Barbecue eventually seeks its own standalone location, or how the outdoor Friday format will hold up once winter weather sets in, remains to be seen. For now, the partnership keeps Calkins' competition-barbecue ambitions alive in the same Olney parking lot where his old collaborator now runs the show.
