Right on the heels of grabbing the #1 spot on TripAdvisor's list of 3,200+ Florida Panhandle restaurants, Water Pig BBQ has handily won the hearts -- and taste buds -- of USA Today's national audience. 

Readers from New York to Napa named Water Pig BBQ the #4 Best New Restaurant in America, flocking to the beachfront eatery for melt-in-your-mouth St Louis-style ribs, rustic, delectable mac and cheese, and other tempting barbecue staples from Texas and beyond.  

The Readers' Choice Award from USA Today and 10Best.com comes roughly six months after the restaurant's 2020 summer opening. Nominees are chosen by an elite panel of USA Today and 10Best.com editors, but only the readers decide where restaurants stand on the top-10 list. 

“When we opened Water Pig BBQ, we knew we'd be facing competition from a legion of extraordinary, established barbecues and other restaurants. We couldn't settle for anything less than perfection,” said Water Pig BBQ's award-winning pitmaster Steve Seige. “We're humbled by the devotion of USA Today readers, and absolutely thrilled that they love the dishes we serve up -- just as much as we love making them.”

Thanks to spectacular word-of-mouth, hundreds of daily visitors now travel to Water Pig BBQ, owned and operated by Innisfree Hotels, to savor Seige's creations. Ingredients are farmed locally and sausage is made in-house, adding an extra layer of authenticity to the restaurant's slate of shareable sides, appetizers, and main courses.

While award-winning food draws diners to the family-friendly restaurant, Water Pig BBQ's location follows very closely behind. Seats and tables adorn the sandy shores of Pensacola Beach, where visitors can sway to live music, sip on carefully crafted cocktails, and take in live sporting events on the restaurant's oversized TV screen. 

The restaurant is currently open Thursday through Sunday, starting at 11 am. Water Pig's staff remain dedicated to following COVID-19 safety, sanitation and social distancing protocols.

Visit 5 Via De Luna Drive, located across from Hilton Pensacola Beach, to find out why USA Today readers chose Water Pig BBQ as one of the best new restaurants in the country. 

Follow Water Pig BBQ on Instagram, or visit the restaurant's website at waterpigbbq.com.

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About Water Pig BBQ

Opened in June 2020, this waterfront, casual dining BBQ joint brings authentic Southern barbecue to the Pensacola Beach, Florida, community. Sitting along the Santa Rosa Sound, the open-air, beachfront dining experience features a family friendly atmosphere, beautiful water views and a variety of entertainment to go with a genuine smokehouse menu created by award-winning pitmaster Steve Seige. Using a 4,300-pound smoker that can handle up to 700 pounds of meat at a time, Seige oversees Water Pig BBQ's low-and-slow-smoked style of barbecue, turning out classic Southern BBQ favorites such as brisket, pulled pork, chicken and house-made sausage. The restaurant is owned and operated by Innisfree Hotels (Northwest Florida's largest owner of beachfront hotel properties) and was developed in collaboration with Atlanta-based Concentrics Restaurants, the world-class designer of unique dining experiences. Water Pig BBQ is located at 5 Via De Luna Drive, Suite K, Pensacola Beach FL 32561.

About Innisfree Hotels

For more than three decades, has expertly developed and managed dozens of hotels in partnership with many of the world's most-recognized hotel brands. Today, the company owns or manages 3,470 hotel rooms and employs approximately 2,000 people. Innisfree is the largest beachfront hotel owner-operator on the Gulf Coast, with 14 Gulf-front properties totaling 2,128 rooms.

Innisfree is a triple bottom line company, measuring success not only in profits but also through its impact on people and on the planet. To these ends, Innisfree strives to promote a culture of responsibility and service to humanity. A value-driven corporate culture enables the company to have a deeper understanding of the needs of its guests, partners and clients, resulting in service that ensures fun and memorable experiences. The company's headquarters is in Gulf Breeze, Florida.