The best barbecue in Jacksonville depends on what you want around the plate, so here are five real pits sorted by the reason you would pick each one.
For the history: Bono's. Lou Bono opened the first one in San Marco in 1949 and moved it to Beach Boulevard to make way for I-95. It is a regional chain now, and the Beach Boulevard room is the thread back to the start.
For sitting outside: The Bearded Pig in San Marco, where the backyard is half the point. Use 1808 Kings Ave; most listings still show the address it left in 2021.
For the origin story: The Butt Hutt ran as a food truck for eight years before settling on Roosevelt Boulevard, where Murray Hill meets Avondale.
For the beach and a full bar: Mojo Kitchen on Beach Boulevard at Penman. It is named for the blues; its own site says it is not booking live shows right now, so go for the smoke and the bar rather than a band.
For Mandarin: Yellow Rose BBQ, Texas-style out of a San Jose Boulevard strip center. No website we could find, so call before you drive.
None of this is ranked, and nobody paid to be here. Every pit we track lives on the BBQ category page.