I havent tried Royal oak. I have tried stubbs, and didnt like it.. I have tried cowboy brand, but all it is, is pieces of hardwood flooring... that stuff has been kiln dried and more often than not treated with chemicals. When i started noticing pieces of tongue and groove flooring coming out of the bag, i looked for a new brand. Then i found HEAVEN IN A BAG!!! Lazzari Natural mesquite charcoal. I buy it in 40lb sacks at a local restaurant supply store for $14.00 This stuff is great!!! I mean, you open the sack and you see logs and sticks staring back at you!! It has such a great flavor, that you probably dont even need to add chips. If you can find it, you should try it. You wont be dissapointed!!!
It has everything from larger logs, down to marble size pieces in a 40# sack.