Linkdown: 10/30/24 – Thank Goodness for a Firewall edition

Courtesy of WFAE

Featured: In case you missed it, Red Bridges Barbecue Lodge in Shelby experienced a fire in their pit room late last week. It reportedly took 15 minutes to put out the fire but thankfully, the fire was contained by the firewall between the pitroom and the restaurant.

While in the immediate aftermath of the fire, the restaurant announced that it would be closed “indefinitely,” I’m happy to report that they are utilizing exterior pits and will reopen for their normal hours starting Wednesday (today!).

Eventually, Red Bridges will redo their pit room once they get through the insurance process. Thank goodness for that firewall, else we would’ve potentially lost an iconic barbecue restaurant that’s been around for nearly 80 years.

Native News

According to Edmar Simoes‘ Instagram, he has left Resident Culture and joined Flour Shop, a new American restaurant in the Montford neighborhood of Charlotte that utilizes a wood burning oven and emphasizes “a traditional style of cooking with fire while using the freshest, locally sourced ingredients.”

I reached out to Edmar and he confirmed the move and mentioned that he will be working on some sort of smoke special soon. So stay tuned.

Congrats to Longleaf Swine, who took home some awards in the recent News & Observer Raleigh’s Best List: Gold for Best Barbecue and Silver for Best Ribs & Best Chicken Wings

The Pik N Pig stall at the NC State Fair in Raleigh is always a popular stop

A recap of this past weekend’s Barbecue Festival in Lexington

In the afterglow of last weekend’s Concert for the Carolinas in Charlotte, here’s a great story on Eric Church’s early days playing at the old Woodlands Barbecue & Pickin’ Parlor in Blowing Rock from The State You’re In

Non-Native News

A couple of recent reviews from the ever-prolific friend of the blog, John Tanner, starting with smoked pastrami at ZZQ

…then he tried the Fletcher’s BBQ food truck that serves the Richmond area

…his most recent review is of Redemption BBQ in Short Pump, VA, which he proclaims may have the best pork in all of Virginia but don’t sleep on the Brunswick stew

Linkdown: 10/4/23 – The Texas BBQ Bubble About to Burst? Edition

Featured

Monk: Is the Texas barbecue bubble about to burst? Daniel Vaughn reports slowdowns at a few barbecue joints in Texas due in part to the sheer number of joints that have opened in recent years, the intense heat wave that rocked Texas over the summer, and the skyrocketing price of brisket.

As a result, joints are struggling to make the economics work and are trying to lure casual customers in with lower cost items or specials.

From an outsider’s perspective it does seem as if the growth was unsustainable but despite that, Vaughn lists his reasons why he thinks the barbecue bubble isn’t quite yet about to burst. A fascinating read.

Native News

GGCC Smokehouse, an all-wood smoked barbecue food truck, is in the final four of the CharlotteFive Reader’s Choice Poll

The Lexington Barbecue Festival is featured in CLTure’s fall festival guide

Don’t forget you can take the train to the Barbecue Festival

I wonder if you will see any of these shirts at the festival…

A short video on Cook Out on Insider Food

Smoked chicken and dumplings at Pik N Pig

ICYMI, The Smoke Sheet recently profiled Morris Barbeque in Hookerton

Non-Native News

Congrats to Chef J BBQ for being named #1 barbecue in Kansas City; that’s high praise!

Zavala’s Barbecue is voted best brisket in Dallas

The town of Spring is home to Corkscrew BBQ

Also ICYMI, John Tanner dropped his best barbecue places in DC list

Now that’s a great barbecue sign

Linkdown: 7/27/20

“Black Smoke” by James Beard Award-winning “Soul Food Scholar” Adrian Miller is officially a go for Spring 2021. Very excited to read this next year.

A short interview with Derrick Walker of Smoke-A-Holics BBQ on “Tex-Soul” and being a black pitmaster

This year’s Barbecue Festival has been canceled, which should surprise no one

John Tanner’s Barbecue Blog stops by a few eastern NC barbecue restaurants on his way to the beach: Boss Hog’s Backyard Barbecue in Washington, Stephenson’s in Willow Spring, Marty’s in Wilson, the rebooted Wilber’s in Goldsboro, and Southern Smoke in Garland:

City Limits Barbeque gets a shout out in this feature on Columbia

22% of Americans say Texas style is their favorite regional style of barbecue, according to a recent HuffPost/YouGov poll

Steven Raichlen has some tips for barbecued ribs, which he calls”barbecue at its most primal and unadorned”, in the New York Times

The “Ultimate Guide to Barbecue,” from The Wall Street Journal

Pig Beach is heading south, but not just for the winter; it plans to open a Florida location in West Palm Beach by the end of the year

“Carolina-style” BBQ cauliflower? C’mon man…

Linkdown: 10/30/19

The Old Hampton Store & Barbeque is part barbecue joint, part general store, and part music venue.

John Tanner’s BBQ Blog really batted for the proverbial Barbecue Bros cycle of NC barbecue in the Charlotte area with Lexington Barbecue, Noble Smoke, Sweet Lew’s BBQ, and Red Bridges Barbecue Lodge

Houston’s Blood Brothers BBQ makes the Smithsonian Magazine

Last weekend’s 36th Annual Barbecue Festival sounds like it was a success

The 90th Mallard Creek Barbecue was heavy on barbecue (as per usual) but light on politicians

Keaton’s BBQ in Cleveland does serve pork barbecue but its really known for its friend chicken that is dipped in Lexington-style barbecue sauce

How three Harvard students enhanced the Kamado Joe cooker with computer modeling

Adrian Miller’s Black Smoke research hits the Richmond area this weekend