Opening a new restaurant or bar is always a leap of faith, but it's even more courageous to open one along Aurora Avenue North, the much-maligned strip of Highway 99 associated primarily with used-car lots, sketchy-looking taverns, dusty gun shops and hotel rooms that rent by the hour. The latest brave entry along Aurora is the Steel Pig BBQ, a secondary outpost of the more family-oriented Steel Pig BBQ further south on Aurora, just before the Seattle Center exit. While its sister location is guarded by a quite literal steel pig mascot, forged in metal and gazing sternly toward traffic, the newest Steel Pig sticks with painted signage featuring the restaurant's signature talisman and encouragement to stop in for happy hour or to watch the Seahawks game. When we enter through a side door just before 10:00 p.m., it's evident that the sports crowd has cleared out for the night, leaving only a handful of patrons in vinyl booths adjacent to the kitchen. We just came for drinks, but one whiff of sweet smoke and I know I won't be able to leave without ingesting a pork product of some kind. My companion and I split a splendid pulled-pork sandwich, generously stuffed with shreds of saucy meat and served atop the perfect barbecue roll--not too soft, not too toasty. The Gap Band cranks over the sound system and I hear someone yell, "Is this your song, Dino?" As it turns out, the query is coming from Mace, a happy fellow dancing appreciatively behind the bar. My photographer returns with the amusing announcement that there's an Alicia Keyes oil painting in the back of the bar and we decide it's a sign that we must order a second round of drinks. HANNAH LEVIN