AIRPORT AREA. You want history? Bar-B-Cutie dates from 1950 and was one of the city's first drive-in barbecue joints. Still serving terrific pork after all these years, the restaurant has become an object of civic pride. After all, with a name like that how can you possibly resist?

BRENTWOOD. Corky's Bar-B-Q brings the sweet flavor of Memphis-style BBQ to Music City. The diner-like atmosphere is made complete with classic rock and roll and sharp-tongued waitresses ­ you get the feeling that the clocks here are permanently stuck on 1959. The menu is impressive for a barbecue joint, including everything from pork sandwiches and coleslaw to tamales and a half chicken dinner. If the traditional fare doesn't tempt your taste buds, have a go at one of their massive baked potatoes, which comes disguised as a heaping pile of toppings.

In a shabby white shack behind McDonald's and facing Centennial Park, you'll find a great little barbecue joint. Unlike many Tennessee barbecue places, Hog Heaven offers not only pork, chicken, and ribs but also beef brisket and turkey, as well as a vegetable plate. To see what the place is all about, try a pulled pork plate with cornbread, black-eyed peas, turnip greens, and a BBQ pickle spear, followed by homemade peach or blackberry cobbler.

DOWNTOWN. Conveniently located in the downtown area, Jack's Bar-B-Que has gained quite a bit of regional and national attention for its excellent hickory-smoked barbecue. Their St. Louis Ribs and Tennessee pork shoulder are among the specialties, and both go down best with sides of coleslaw and "Mac Cheese." Jack's "Special Meals" include the family-sized chicken and ribs packs ­ either of which could feed a platoon of hungry soldiers! To prove to your friends that you sampled some of Jack's barbecue, be sure to pick up one his popular "Pigs Over Nashville" tees ­ you'll be the envy of everybody back home.

This Birmingham-based barbecue chain is a big hit all over the south, so it's no surprise that Nashvillians love it too. Jim 'N Nicks features traditional barbecue and meat-and-three dishes like the pulled-pork sandwich and the smoked ham plate. "Trimmings" like mashed potatoes and Mac the Cheese ensure a filling meal ... Just be sure to save room for one of Mable's Homemade Pies!