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Lots of barbecue restaurants claim to have the best barbecue around. But some can back up that claim.

Michael Evans, manager of Texas Ribs and BBQ in Clinton, points to his restaurant sweeping the Maryland State BBQ Championship at the Chesapeake Bay BBQ Cook-off and being named Grand Champion of the July 25-26 event.

The restaurant's victories earned it a chance to take its mobile kitchen, which is also used for catering and fairs, to Kansas City, Mo., in order to compete in the Great American Cook-off.

The entire operation is centered on the staff's love of food.

"We really care about our food and our service," Evans said. "We keep the place clean. … We're willing to do the extra work for the quality."

The work can be quite involved. Evans said that this work is key to each dish's flavor, saying, "the amount of smoking, the timing, the temperature; all of these are important."

All of these are things that have been learned for more than the 30-year period during which most of the recipes have been developed. Evans also said that the "extra work for the quality" comes into play when dealing with freshness of ingredients.

"Everything that can be made in house is made in house," he said. Texas Ribs also buys as many ingredients locally as is possible, including local produce during the summer months.

When it comes to the actual food, the meat takes center stage. More than half of Texas Ribs and BBQ is kitchen, and a large portion of that is the smoke house, where many of the meat dishes smoke over red oak for hours.

One of the more popular dishes, the baby back ribs ($12.99 half slab, $19.99 full slab), are served tender, with a light crust, and are smoked until the meat practically falls off of the bone.

"That bite right there," said Evans, pointing at a rack, "is the culmination of decades of hard work. They come miles for them bad boys."

The pulled pork is also popular. It is available both in a sandwich and in a wrap ($6.49 each). Barbecue sauce is available on the side. Evans suggested that the pulled pork be eaten with both barbecue sauce and cole slaw, because the flavors complement each other well.

The brisket is a point of pride for the restaurant. It is smoked for 16 hours, and served "Texas style," without sauce with a thin trim of fat.

"In our business, this is the Holy Grail," Evans said of the brisket, "This is what we compete in."

Also available are a variety of steaks, chops, two kinds of sampler platters, and seafood dishes. The hand breaded, farm raised catfish ($14.99) is Evans's favorite dish.

"I tell people, this is where you set the bar for catfish."

Customers can choose from three types of barbecue sauce, each made on-site: sweet, spicy, and tequila hot sauce.

Each sauce is a point of pride for the restaurant, but Evans is especially proud of the sweet barbecue sauce, which is a secret recipe.

"That sauce is decades old," Evans said. "I've had people offer me serious money for it. There are only two recipes that we lock up — our rub and our sauce."

Customers agree with Evans's assessment of the restaurant. Regular customer Josh Brackett said, "The food's real good. Good customer service; people are friendly. Good prices, and the food usually comes out pretty quickly."

Texas Ribs and BBQ

7701 Old Branch Ave., Clinton

Phone: 301-877-0323

Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday; 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday

Waitress Hulda Scoles holds two of Texas Ribs and BBQ's popular dishes: at left, the Full Rack Baby Back & 4 Shrimp; at right, a dish the restaurant calls Our Famous Catfish Dinner.