Monk: Before “No Reservations” and “Parts Unknown”, Anthony Bourdain’s first food travelogue show was “A Cook’s Tour” on the Food Network. In the second season, he visited Texas, Kansas City, and NC – which he refers to as “the barbecue triangle” – and explored barbecue culture for what may have been his first time (at least on recorded camera). The NC section (starts at 15:29) visits with Ed Mitchell at his old joint in Wilson to explore eastern NC whole hog barbecue, one of his first barbecue loves.
Description: BBQ is the classic American food that’s featured in Kansas City, Houston, and North Carolina. The #1 food writer and television presenter in the world, and star of Travel Channel and CNN, Anthony Bourdain reinvented the food travel genre. In his groundbreaking first television series, Bourdain travels around the world indulging his taste for local cuisine and eccentric characters. You never know what he’ll say, who he will meet, or what they will have for dinner.
When news of Richard’s Bar-B-Q in Salisbury closing later this month, he also spun some words reflecting on the pending loss of yet another True ‘Cue joint
Native News
Congrats to Grady’s BBQ on 36 years open
Elliot Moss has parted ways with Buxton Hall Barbecue, according to his Instagram post, but will be staying in Asheville and has another restaurant in the works; as for barbecue: “I’m NOT done with BBQ. My passion for BBQ will live on forever. I’ll be doing some bbq traveling & cooking. Stay tuned”
The Barbecue Festival in Lexington announces its 2022 date: October 22, 2022. For the second year in a row, it was cancelled due to staff shortages and safety concerns due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In normal times, The Barbecue Festival is the region’s largest one-day street festival and draws near 100,000 people every year.
The Mallard Creek Barbecue, which usually takes place the Thursday before The Barbecue Festival, also cancelled for the second year in a row earlier this year. It 91st edition will hopefully take place the fourth Thursday of October in 2022.
Other festivals are able to take place, such as euphoria Greenville last weekend and the inaugural Holy Smokes Barbecue Festival in November. Just a reminder that while things are in some ways better than 2020, we may still be between 6-12 months away from true normalcy.
Lawrence Ellis, son of legendary Bill Ellis and owner of longtime Wilson restaurant Marty’s BBQ, passed away last week
Non-Native News
JL’s Southwest Brisket Burgers, the newish trailer at Lewis Barbecue in Charleston that replaced Juan Luis, gets a pop-in from Southeastern Dispatch
Quick Bite: the green Hatch chile cheeseburger from the new JL’s Southwest Brisket Burgers at Lewis Barbecue delivers a big burst of flavor from a small adobe trailer. https://t.co/ggVVjM6GHJ
Shortly after my first visit to Mr. Barbecue in Winston-Salem in March of 2019 (which I greatly enjoyed), a spark caught fire in the pit house and nearly burned the entire restaurant down. Last I had heard, it was on track for a May 2020 opening and brick was being laid in the smokehouse but clearly that didn’t happen as scheduled (which can be excused during a pandemic, of course). Thankfully, the silence was not a bad omen as WXII is reporting that Mr. Barbecue will reopen later this month.
This will be one in the win column for classic, wood-fired NC barbecue joints, a sometimes rare occurrence these days. Of course, Wilber’s Barbecue in Goldsboro came back from the dead last year under new ownership and there are a host of new or announced restaurants that are smoking barbecue the old fashioned way (most of which seem to be in the greater Raleigh area). But more often than not, these older joints are closing (see Allen & Son, Bill Spoon’s, Bill Ellis Barbecue, The Original Q Shack, among others). But not today, Satan. Not today.
Now, just cross your fingers and toes until late February…
Native News
Sam Jones BBQ has finally opened in Raleigh and is currently in a “soft open” mode
Smokejack in Alpharetta, GA is a “must-visit” according to The BBQ Review
SMOKEJACK – Alpharetta, GA- Perfect bark and presentation. Lightly pre-sauced. Carolina mustard is thinner (with more vinegar) than traditional, but is excellent. Pulled pork (8.7) is the reason to go but burnt ends and collards are always great too. A must-visit in the area pic.twitter.com/KMicIRlEke
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