Monk: YouTuber and horse racing announcer Jason Beem documented his road trip from Richmond down to Ayden, NC to visit both Skylight Inn and Sam Jones BBQ.
Description: I took the short drive from Richmond to Ayden, North Carolina to try a few famous barbecue places I wanted to try.
For Monday night’s College Football Championship game, the governors from each state made a bet of barbecue, with Kay Ivey from Alabama wagering Dreamland Barbecue against Brian Kemp’s bet of Fox Bros BBQ. Which, must be said, is a Texas-style barbecue joint. Perhaps Georgia should have come up with Fresh Air Barbecue or Paul’s BBQ or Hot Thomas; you know, something a little more in line with Georgia-style barbecue. Never heard of it? Here’s an impassioned primer from our friends at Marie, Let’s Eat!
The BBQ Lab‘s upcoming North Hills location has started construction in Raleigh
Vote for the best barbecue in Charlotte in Charlotte Magazine’s BOB Awards
PSA: Franklin Barbecue may have shorter lines during colder weather
Matt Horn‘s fried chicken restaurant is open in Oakland
Fort Worth is where it’s at for barbecue now
Monk: While my hunch is that I had roughly as much barbecue as last year, I suspect the ratio of mediocre barbecue to great barbecue was higher than in past years. There’s always highlights to pick out, but let’s hope next year is a more favorable ratio.
In alphabetical order:
Jon G’s remains the gold standard for the Charlotte area. And it seems that the rest of the southeast is starting to catch on with Eater Carolinas naming them “Barbecue Restaurant of the Year” and Texas Monthly barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn raving about them in an article from mid 2021. The future for Garren and Kelly remain bright.
Some of the meats at Noble Smoke can be a little hit or miss for me, but the Lexington-style chopped barbecue sandwich is ever reliable.
Speedy has said he often thinks the ribs at Peg Leg Porker are the best in the state of Tennessee, and who am I to argue? The full wings are also a must-order.
Randy’s ribs are a sub-regional variety with a sauce that I understand is found primarily in the Savannah area. It expanded my framework as to what barbecue is in different parts of the US.
Life-changing whole hog. So far I’ve only made it to Sam Jones’ outpost in Raleigh but I can’t wait to try this same tray at Skylight Inn this spring.
Between the house-made sausage, the barbecue hash, and Lewis Donald’s ever-constant tweaking of his main meats, Sweet Lew’s continues to evolve, and I’m here for the the journey.
It’s a shame that Whispering Pines was takeout only but I’ll make the hour drive to Albemarle again I’m sure. Great Lexington-style barbecue.
ICYMI, Kevin’s BBQ Joints rounded up from over 120 barbecue personalities what made barbecue so special to them. We were honored that Kevin asked us to be a part of this fantastic project. While some folks focused on their earliest barbecue memories, both Rudy and I focused our answers on bites that broadened our barbecue horizons from more than just the chopped pork they grew up on in NC. Definitely worth a read.
Ayden, NC (home to Skylight Inn and Bum’s) unveils new marketing campaign: “‘Que Marks the Spot”
Noble Smoke is the only barbecue restaurant on Charlotte Magazine’s annual list of the 50 best restaurants in Charlotte
Grady’s is closed until late January for their well-deserved “winter rest”
Lawrence Barbecue as well as Lewis Barbecue in Charleston gets some love from Eater Carolinas contributors on this “Best Restaurant Meal of 2021” post
Thankfully, Pik-N-Pig’s closure will only be temporary and they aim to reopen ths year
Huli Sue’s BBQ and Grill in Asheville serves a “Hawaiian influenced take on Texas barbecue along with some other island-esque plates”
ICYMI, the Jon G’s Barbecue x Salud Beer Shop/Salud Cerveceria pizza collaboration is happening now
Barbecue options in Birmingham
Blake’s BBQ photo progress update from late December
From Lifehacker: “With my Weber, I smoked a little, grilled a lot, and learned even more—and I’d like to share my favorite dishes (and lessons) with you now, in no particular order. This is what my grill taught me over the past year.”
From last month, RIP John Mueller