Mark’s Bark

this place is by far the best bbq i have had in california.
phills is good but you pretty much only taste the sauce and not the meat.
i’ve tried everything on the menu, garlic fries — large portion and great
ribs: outstanding — even great cold and a day old
pork shoulder — fantastic
brisket — great smokey flavor
chicken — very moist and smokey
mac and cheese — not the best I’ve had but very good
coleslaw — my new favorite place for it
beans — with bacon, because it makes everything better
potato salad — tell me where its better, seriously
they are only open on Sunday because they have a full time catering company that sports more 300 events a year.
its the best undercover local food joint around. SERIOUSLY CANT BE BEAT!

Large portions, reasonable prices, delicious food… I definitely recommend this place. I think it’s a good thing that they only open one afternoon each week. Otherwise, we’d be tempted to go all the time. This beats Phil’s hands down. Yum!

Some of the best BBQ in SD. Problem? They’re only open for (what seems) like 15 minutes a week. You kinda have to plan your Sunday afternoon/​morning around the place otherwise you’re going to miss it. If this place was open at least 5 days a week, I’d change this to 5 stars, but alas, it’s only open on Sunday.

Definitely worth checking it out, you will become a fan!!!
I love the brisket, so tender and flavorful. I crave their food often! ;)
The potato salad is also pretty amazing.

Great food! I’m lucky that they’re just down the street from me.

why is this place only opened on sundays? I don’t get it…

Best bbq in SD. This place is absolutely insane. We ordered the beef brisket and I was blown away. Wildly tender and smoky. The chef doesn’t drop the ball on the sides either. He makes a solid cole slaw. I ate way more than I had planned.

I live right around the corner and finally made a point of picking up some brisket on a sunday afternoon.
The brisket was absolutely delicious, though I wish there had been more of a «crust». The flavor was there, I just wanted the satisfying crunch that came with it.

First time, got mixed with coke slaw. They forgot the BBQ sauce so I got to taste the meat plain, before my amazing wife ran back for some. Outstanding. The beef is tender and full of rich barbecue smoked flavor the pork equally as tender and sweet with that soft gentle taste of good fresh pig. It was a struggle to wait for the sauce I had to close the package and paste the house. Now the sauce was exquisite light spicy and sweet tangy full-​bodied just perfect for these two meets both the spicy and sweet sausage complement each type of meat exceptionally well and while I would’ve been happy to indulge in the entire double meal. The sauce is just served to enhance the meat. Took every bit of self-​control once again to close that package and save the rest for my damsel who saved me from distress and went and got the sauce.
I may have found a Sunday tradition.

Wow! I just moved to the area and read wonderful reviews, so I had to try it for myself. All I can say is WOW!
The brisket and pulled pork is SO juicy and tender, and all of the sides are super yummy.
This will be my go-​to place to grab food for Football Sundays! You can call in advance and they’ll have your order ready to go.
I can’t wait to try their ribs… they don’t come out until 2pm, so I was too early today. As a Texas native, this brings me back to eating my grandad’s brisket. I highly recommend for those looking for meltingly good barbecue.

Yum yum! Enjoyed our visit to Mark’s Bark, situated inside of Bettina’s Custom Catering in Normal Heights. Service at the front counter was warm and informative. We got the brisket plate, which came with a roll, a side of potato salad (we chose this side based on the description) rice and beans (we also chose this side). The hubs ate most of it while I tucked into a side (side? HUGE order) or garlic fries. first, the fries were skinnies, which are my preference. They came with ketchup and aioli — yummmm! We ended up taking them home and my man heated up in oven to nom last night.
Anyway, the brisket was tender, not dry, with a lovely, flavorful «crust». I don’t speak BBQ fluently, I just eat what I like, and I liked it. We both did.
The beans were almost more like chili– black beans with veggies and chunky tomatoes. I noticed the hubs pouring bbq sauce onto his beans to eat. I’m more of a Bush’s or Hunt’s beans type girl, so these were not my jam. The potato salad was great. Maybe just a touch of salt would’ve been nice, for our preference, but I loved the boiled eggs and bacon that were in there. A delicious meal!

Great BBQ deserves mentioning among the best in the area. Won’t be long before Mark has himself quite a following.

The very best brisket in San Diego by far. Coops has been inconsistent for me. Phil’s is a total joke.
The bbq sauce that was supposedly hot did not seem very hot at all.
Good brisket anyway does not need sauce.
This guy needs to find a way to offer his BBQ more than one day a week.

Love this BBQ. Not going to bother writing much more, just wanted to upload a photo of the menu since i couldn’t find one.
Sadly isn’t quite as cheap as it used to be, but still worth it in my book!
Menu as of 5÷31÷2015:

Wow what great food this little place serves! They only open on Sunday because they cater during the week. There are outside and inside seating. A nice lady took our order and explain the menu to us. We ordered the ½ and ½ which serves the brisket and the pull pork with rice and a side order of potato salad and cole slaw for $ 12.They gave us a cup of chili too with our order. We also ordered the garlic fries ($ 3) and the dip that came with it was amazing! The meat was so soft, juicy and tender. It was very very good! The portions were big that we shared and even had left overs to take home. Will come back soon!

My wife and I met Amy M. and her husband for lunch last Sunday. We planned to eat at SQUE BBQ, but at the last minute, misled by SQUE’s Hours of Operation as posted on Unilocal,decided on Mark’s Bark, instead.
I’d never been to Mark’s. Several of my Friends are fans of the place, and I’d heard good things about the food, so the switch offered a welcome opportunity to try something new, something that I’d looked forward to.
Walking in, I knew not to expect fancy. A few tables and a couple of high-​tops; a cooler filled with soft drinks and water; a choice of beef or pork, with picnic salads, beans and homemade pickles and sauces; and the ubiquitous smell of smoking hardwood and melting fat. Blow some dust in from a nearby field and you’ve got any good barbecue joint from rural Virginia to the Texas Panhandle.
Stepping to the counter, my Beloved and I ordered half and half plates — pork shoulder and brisket, both meats smoked slowly for a long time — plus coleslaw and beans and potato salad. Amy and Chet ordered sliders, which Chet, a genius, later loaded with coleslaw. [n.b. «Chet» is not his real name, but Amy calls him «Man Candy» and I just… can’t, so «Chet» it is.]
The best of the extras included:
— Nicely shredded coleslaw with a hint of everything good (namely, mayonnaise and vinegar);
— A homemade Texas-​style «mop» sauce, tasting of tomato and garlic and something else… I think Sriracha. It was spicy and seductive, even to a sauce-​averse guy like me;
— Redskin potato salad with egg, celery, red onion, celery seed, mayonnaise and bacon. I know that sounds basic, but I promise that this potato salad will make you feel good about yourself, inspire great achievements and maybe even save your marriage.
The meats, too, were delicious. I was handed my plate and quickly tasted them both, then went back to the counter and ordered a half-​pound more of each, to go, ’cause, you know, we were out of delicious meats at the house.
But here’s where things got confusing:
Both meats were smoked with hickory (yeah!) and mesquite (boo!), but the woods didn’t really matter, because, while both meats had a nice bark, they had virtually no taste running through them beside their native flavors.
I’m not complaining. I’m just saying.
The meats were tender, but there was no discernable rub on either one. Moreover, Mark’s didn’t chop the pork — was served in uncut, handful-​sized chunks — and the brisket was sliced into ½ inch thick slabs, so in neither case was there an opportunity for the outside to rub up against the inside, spreading the smokiness around.
As a result, the meats were juicier than any such product I can remember having eaten, anywhere, but while Mark’s Bark served the best roast beef and roasted pork shoulder I’ve ever tasted (which, incidentally, made outstanding panini at home), it was tough to think of them as barbecue, as I understand that moniker.
Nonetheless, lunch was filling and delectable, the company was great, and I’m a newborn, diehard Mark’s fan, from here on out. Just don’t call it barbecue.
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SQUE BBQ:

4.5 stars
Rounded up but I would absolutely give this place 5 stars except for a couple things. The restaurant IIRC is only open on Sundays, and sometimes they run out of meat on the one day that they are open so that kind of sucks.
The pulled pork and brisket are both amazing. Their spicy BBQ sauce (haven’t tried the original) is very tangy with just the right amount of spice to it. The potato salad and cole slaw are also great.
Will definately be back

Ate here for the first time last Sunday, just got one of the pulled pork sliders with some potato salad. It was amazing, the pulled pork was so tender and the spicy bbq sauce went perfectly with it. Now that i know how much i like it, will be going back for more. Too bad they are only open on Sundays, but its definitely going to be one of my go-​to places now

Architecture is basically a container of something. I hope they will enjoy not so much the teacup, but the tea.
Yoshio Taniguchi
This building was old when I was young. Every Saturday I biked by on my way to Golden State Comics. The excitement of new comics waiting for me fueled me to pedal faster. This place was a dive bar in the day. I always wondered what it was like inside.
Now that I’m old enough to enter it’s a bbq joint. You can feel the history in the walls. I tried the smoked pork shoulder and beef brisket. Excellent pork shoulder. Melts in your mouth and has a really nice smoky flavor which goes great with the regular bbq sauce. The beef brisket and the pork shoulder had a beautiful bark on it. The secret blend of spices, the juicy, tender, smoky beef, the slightly spicy bbq sauce… So delicious! Best beef brisket I’ve ever had. :-)
I met the owner Mark and he was really nice as was his mom who was taking care of customers. He gave me a first hand look at a beautiful beef brisket right out of the smoker. :-)
If buildings could talk I’m sure this one has stories to tell. Mark’s Bark is an excellent addition to this old building. Thanks to Aaron H. for telling me about this place. :-)

Best BBQ on the west coast so far! Serious, serious food coming out of here. Chatted with Mark briefly. Super nice guy, but he’s pulling off the gloves when it comes to his BBQ. Custom made smoker using mesquite and hickory smoking meat for 14 hours with his amazing dry rub.
I’m pretty sure no one has been able to finish a dinner plate. Huge amount of coleslaw, rice with brisket slabs over top. The potato salad comes in it’s own container and could probably be a lunch for most people by itself. Top it off with a sweet dinner roll and you have the best bang for your buck in town. A couple could easily share 1 dinner plate. Honestly, it felt like at least 3 lbs of food in the bag.
Potato salad is hands down my favorite I’ve ever had. Just done perfectly. Big chunks of potato, bacon, egg in it and a perfect amount of celery. No chincing out on this. The coleslaw is good. Better than most but easily over shadowed by the potato salad. The brisket is no joke. You can pull it apart perfectly. Juicy and succulent. The brine is packing a huge punch of smoke. Can’t get enough of this smoke. Spicy sauce is the way to go here. Dinner roll was great and I couldn’t even take another bite to try the rice. If you live in SD and love BBQ, this is a must!