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" The votes are in, and \u2014 according to readers of Eat Like a Man, at least \u2014 Home Team BBQ officially makes the most life-changing ribs in America. Since opening six years ago in Charleston, South Carolina, the joint has cleaned out awards for best barbecue, best bar staff, best ribs in Charleston, etc. Our own poll drew some relatively diverse reaction, with praise for Pappy&amp;#039;s Smokehouse in St. Louis coming closest to Home Team, which, all told, got 40 percent of the vote (see the full results below). Owner and pitmaster Aaron &amp;quot;Fiery Ron&amp;quot; Siegel chalks the passion for Home Team up to self-imposed standards: &amp;quot;Sometimes when you go to a more casual place, people start taking shortcuts on things, using a lot of prepackaged items,&amp;quot; he says. Home Team cooks from scratch and hires staff with serious backgrounds in the industry. The meat is king, and Home Team knows enough to slow-cook its ribs for five to six hours, using a signature dry rub that&amp;#039;s also used on almost everything else. &amp;quot;The ribs have a wonderful bark on them,&amp;quot; Siegel says. &amp;quot;The sugar caramelizes. It all kind of comes together \u2014 the sugar, the smoke, and the spice. Because we cook them so low and slow, they just fall off the bone. That&amp;#039;s how we present them. We don&amp;#039;t slop a bunch of sauce on there.&amp;quot; If you&amp;#039;re in Charleston any time soon, Siegel recommends you stay long enough to try not just the ribs but also the chicken wings, made with the same dry rub, then coated in Alabama white sauce after being smoked for 2 1/2 hours. They&amp;#039;re quickly becoming one of the most popular menu items. &amp;quot;We can&amp;#039;t keep them in the place.&amp;quot; Like many a BBQ joint, Home Team is not just one thing. It&amp;#039;s a small music venue, a bar, a place to take the kids. You can take a virtual tour, if you&amp;#039;re so inclined. And if you have any memories of eating at Home Team, ribs-related or otherwise, please share in the comments.  PREVIOUSLY: The Most Life-Changing Fried Chicken and Burger "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.esquire.com/food-drink/food/a15960/home-team-best-bbq-ribs-winner-1348591660/>