SC

Linkdown: 12/17/14

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– The Raleigh News & Observer is doing a multi-part story on a four-way crossbreed of pigs called silky pork created by two brothers in eastern North Carolina that are craved by consumers in Tokyo

The Iveys are part of a weekly race against time and circumstance to deliver the pork fresh – never frozen – from barns east of Raleigh to the world’s largest metropolis. It has become an unyielding effort to penetrate the demanding Japanese marketplace, where pork is consumed with a passion akin to North Carolinians and their barbecue.

– We don’t use the word “joint” here to describe just any restaurant, and this story is about how pitmasters consider it a badge of honor

Due to its working-class reputation and association with rowdiness, “joint” came to be applied to other establishments considered uncultured or cheap. The terms “beer joint” and “burger joint” started appearing in newspaper articles in the 1940s and ’50s. It was about this time that the word “joint” started transitioning from meaning a disreputable establishment to one that is, more accurately, inexpensive and informal.

– Four Star BBQ in Wichita “focuses on Carolina-style meats that have been marinated in apple juice and rubbed with brown sugar”…hmmm

– Virgie’s Bar-B-Que, which Rudy visited a few months back, gets a write-up on its nearly 50-year history

– Billy’s Bar-B-Q in Gaston County was damaged by a fire in April and is now planning to reopen for lunch and dinner in January

– The reviews from the latter part of the barbecue circumnavigation by Marie, Let’s Eat!: Skylight Inn in Ayden (which he absolutely raves about), Grady’s in Dudley, Shuler’s in Latta, SC, and BBQ Barn in North Augusta, SC

– Look who stopped by Buz and Ned’s in Richmond this past weekend!

– If you need smoked meats or sides for Christmas lunch or dinner, you have until next Monday to place an order with Midwood Smokehouse

521 BBQ and Grill – Tega Cay, SC

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Name: 521 BBQ and Grill
Date: 11/29/14
Address: 1135 Stonecrest Blvd, Suite 101, Tega Cay, SC 29708
Order: Pork and rib barbecue combo plate (link to menu)
Price: ~$16

Last time I tried to use a Livingsocial coupon for 521 BBQ and Grill, Speedy and I ended up at the wrong location mostly – ok, completely – due to my lack of reading the small print. Well, on the day of expiration Mrs. Monk, the Monkette, and I made a trip back out to Fort Mill specifically to try the other, slightly closer location.

Of the two locations, I think I liked this building slightly more. What it lacks in traditional barbecue shack-iness – though the original is located at the end of a strip mall it looks the part of a shack (this one is also located in a strip mall but has more of a sports bar vibe) – it makes up for in beer and flat screen tv’s with sports (though I didn’t partake of any beer on this particular day).

And as it turns out, the other thing I liked slightly more at this location was the food. The pork had more smoke and some nice bark mixed in (again, for a gasser Update: they use a FEC 150 wood pellet smoker). It also wasn’t as dry as the other location, while still being a tad on the drier end of the spectrum. Similar to the other location, I added the vinegar-based sauce and that greatly helped its cause. I didn’t order the ribs last time around but did on this trip. I found that I mostly agreed with Speedy’s take on them – they were meaty and I liked the sauce, though I could take or leave the finishing of them on the grill.

The sides were more or less the same as the other location, with the scratch-made hush puppies again being the highlight. The crinkle cut fries were standard but solid, the beans seemed a little bit like an afterthought and may have been straight out of a can, and the red slaw still had too much ketchup that made it more sweet than tangy.

I didn’t mention it last time, but the combo plate gives you a ton of food, enough for a to-go box and a second meal the next day. So you definitely get a lot of food for the price.

At the Tega Cay location of 521 BBQ and Grill, the food is decent and the service was friendly but I don’t know if I would consider it worth the drive from NoDa. Though for options in Fort Mill, you could probably do a lot worse.

–Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 3 hogs
Pork – 3.5 hogs
Ribs – 3 hogs
Sides – 2.5 hogs
Overall – 3 Hogs
521 BBQ & Grill on Urbanspoon

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Linkdown: 12/3/14

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– How Do You Spell Barbecue? Personally, I go with “barbecue”

Back in the 18th century, there were almost as many ways to spell barbecue as there were people cooking it: barbacue, barbicu, borbecue. In his diary entry for September 18, 1773, George Washington recorded that he attended, “a Barbicue of my own giving at Accotink.”

He may have been the Father of our Country, but Washington’s spelling didn’t stick. By the time of the Civil War, Americans had settled on two primary versions—barbecue and barbeque—and that’s as close as we’ve come to consensus. The North Carolina Barbecue Society has come down on the side of the “c”, but their neighbors in the Palmetto State, home of the South Carolina Barbeque Association, are more prone to go with the “q,” as are the folks out in Missouri in the Kansas City Barbeque Society.

– Southport has a new barbecue restaurant in Terry’s North Carolina Bar-B-Que & Ribs

– Zagat: Arrogant Swine brings Carolina ‘Cue to Brooklyn

– Speaking of Arrogant Swine, I haven’t linked to a Tyson Ho blog entry on SeriousEats in a few weeks, but here’s a link to his latest, on changing his menu and taking feedback; if you haven’t read the whole series, do yourself a favor and catch up asap

We’ve already cut two items from the menu: turkey legs and corn pone. There’s a certain amount of market efficiency when it comes to a barbecue menu. Certain items appear everywhere because they’re guaranteed hits: brisket, ribs, pulled pork, and chicken are time-tested and reliable. Sometimes you win big when you go against the grain, but for the most part one would do well to heed the wisdom of crowds.

– The SC Barbecue Trail marketing campaign (specifically the web series) wins some accolades by highlighting the state’s barbecue tradition

– An Army veteran has opened a NC barbecue restaurant in Tampa, Three Brothers BBQ Smokehouse

– Austin writer Matthew Odam picks apart a recent WSJ article on Austin barbecue that just plain got some things wrong

– Marie, Let’s Eat! begins their 12 chapter (!!) circumnavigation of barbecue restaurants in South Carolina and eastern North Carolina with Maurice’s in Columbia, some less than great places around Florence, and Parker’s in Wilson

Linkdown: 11/26/14

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– The Pit beats out NC State University in The Triangle Business Journal’s Battle of the Brands for Reader’s Choice

– Downtown Charleston is getting yet another barbecue joint, this time with Irish pub Egan & Sons coming back as a barbecue restaurant (under a new name) complete with a new smokehouse to be built out back

– I missed this back in the summer, but Home Team BBQ (currently with Sullivan’s Island and West Ashley locations) is also expanding to downtown Charleston

– Billy Durney, pitmaster of Hometown Barbecue in New York, to consult on a Los Angeles barbecue restaurant for Mendocino Farms

– Boone’s Bar-B-Que sauces are now available at Savory Spice Shop in Charlotte

– Ohio-based barbecue chain City Barbeque plans to open another triangle location; in addition to their Cary location they are opening a location at Southpoint Mall in Durham

– Jim ‘N Nicks and Dinosaur Bar-B-Que are forming a partnership for the purest of barbecue ideals – “to leverage their buying power, consolidate labor costs and grow both companies”

– A flattering review of the Flat Rock Wood Room, just outside of Asheville

As for what comes out of that 250-degree wood-fired pit, well, I can only gush. Ordering a half rack of their St. Louis style ribs, I carefully narrowed my sides down to wood-smoked mac and cheese and collard greens. While the mac and cheese was plenty cheesy, it proved to be fairly standard with minimal wood smoke. The collards, on the other hand, had plenty of flavor and a slight sweetness.

– Barbecue Rankings recounts his “barbecue odyssey” in Feast Magazine

I began my barbecue odyssey on October 22, 2013, at Pappy’s Smokehouse in St. Louis.  I was nervous as I met owner Mike Emerson and tried to act as if I knew something about barbecue.  I have always considered myself a casual barbecue fan, but the truth is that I knew very little about regional nuances, barbecue history, smoking practices and the way restaurants work before setting out on this project.  I didn’t prepare much before setting off on my journey – I wanted to learn from the people working the pits day in and day out, not the so-called experts.

– Christmas is right around the corner