THE FUTURE OF barbecue in California — and America — probably will read and taste very much like the crosscultural connectivity that pitmaster Daniel Castillo is shaping in San Juan Capistrano.

As with many savants of the new generation, Castillo looked to Central Texas to master technique; he perfumes meats over California white oak in four 1,000-gallon pits. Yet as he grows more assured in his own smoky arts, he casts a wider spell. The brisket, beef ribs and chorizo links may share the menu with pastrami, striated blocks of pork belly glazed in the manner of char siu and perhaps a special of smoked shrimp in green curry. On the side? Beans beefed up with brisket and guajillo chiles, jalapeño cornbread and potato salad that in the day’s mix of flavor may conjure the American South or Hawaii. The array changes ceaselessly, but there is one constant at Heritage: the line, which you’ll encounter no matter the time or day.

• 31721 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano, heritagecraftbbq.com