KC’s Harp Barbecue Goes Whole Hog
Acclaimed Kansas City pitmaster Tyler Harp of Harp Barbecue has had a busy year and shows no signs of slowing down any time soon. In 2021, Harp traveled to Chicago to join Connecticut’s Hoodoo Brown BBQ for the Windy City Smokeout BBQ and Music Festival, then turned around and threw his own Harp Barbecue Festival with friends from across the nation before heading to California to cook during the celebration of the one year anniversary of Heritage Barbecue.
Tyler Harp continues to build on his success in Kansas City with fantastic food. (Photo by Ryan Cooper)
When Harp Barbecue was named Kansas City’s best BBQ restaurant for the second year in a row by Kansas City Magazine, Harp wanted to find a unique way to celebrate. So he decided to recruit his friends Scotty Barvir of Scotty’s Whole Hog Barbecue in Minnesota and Blake Stoker of Blake’s BBQ in Tennessee to come to Kansas City to cook for a special whole hog BBQ event.
Tyler Harp was joined by Blake Stoker of Blake’s BBQ and Scott Barvir of Scotty’s Whole Hog Barbecue for a special event in Kansas City. (Photo by Tarik Sykes)
I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to spend the weekend in Kansas City with Harp, Barvir, and Stoker, sampling delicious food, drinking craft beer from Crane Brewing Company, and talking about all things barbecue. On Friday night, Harp served BBQ tacos, while Barvir and Stoker began setting up and preparing for the whole hog cook.
The trays of food from Harp Barbecue keep getting more delicious and picture perfect as time goes on. (Photo by Ryan Cooper)
The regular Saturday lunch service included a dazzling array of delicious dishes, including melt-in-your-mouth brisket, pork ribs, pulled pork, pork belly, boudin, and perhaps best of all, sweet potato burnt ends. Harp’s version of the “Bubba Cole” sandwich made famous by Blake Stoker’s restaurant in Martin, Tennessee, was also on the menu. The sandwich consists of smoked brisket and poultry served on a bun with pimento cheese.
Stoker and Barvir took a break from cooking to join me in sharing what might be one of the best trays of barbecue I have ever had. Harp continues to improve his craft and is producing better food with each subsequent visit.
Scotty Barvir of Scotty’s Whole Hog Barbecue paid tribute to the Eastern North Carolina tradition made famous by Skylight Inn BBQ. (Photo by Ryan Cooper)
After lunch service had ended, the Harp crew switched gears to focus on not one but two special events that evening. Tony Kemp and Jacob Boman departed to serve Harp Barbecue at a special charity event, while Harp and his father and the rest of the team got ready to serve whole hog.
For years, writers have signaled the slow death of whole hog barbecue, one of America’s oldest culinary traditions. However, in recent years a new generation of pitmasters has helped bring about a resurgence in whole hog cooking.
In the Eastern North Carolina whole hog tradition, leaner and fattier portions are combined and served together along with a tangy, vinegar-based sauce. (Photo by Ryan Cooper)
Harp is himself no stranger to whole hog barbecue, having traveled to Lexington, Tennessee to work alongside pitmaster Zach Parker at the famed B.E. Scott’s Bar-B-Que. Parker also participated in a special event with Harp in Kansas City, sharing his West Tennessee style of whole hog cooking, whereby the shoulder, ham, loin, and belly are left separate so that customers can choose exactly what cut they want to order.
This time around, Scotty Barvir was enlisted to cook whole hog barbecue in the Eastern North Carolina style Skylight Inn BBQ that has been popularized in recent years by pitmaster Sam Jones. Though himself from Northfield, Minnesota, Barvir’s family has roots in North Carolina and he has spent the last few years learning all he can about the tradition. With this style of whole hog cooking, meat from different parts of the hog are mixed together and chopped up along with crispy bits of the skin.
A number of pitmasters and chefs from around Kansas City attended the whole hog event at Harp Barbecue. (Photo courtesy of Ted Liberda)
The 200+ pound heritage breed hog was flipped, sauced, finished, and chopped in time for dinner service at 6 pm on Saturday. A huge line of people filed into Crane Brewing in anticipation of the event. The menu consisted of whole hog sandwiches, whole hog tacos, Jamaican jerk chicken, cheesy corn, beans, and pimento cheese and crackers.
Perhaps the most inspiring part of the evening was seeing the number of pitmasters and chefs from around Kansas City who came to the event to show their support for Harp Barbecue. They included Vaughn Good from Night Goat, John Atwell from Jousting Pigs, Justin Easterwood from Chef J BBQ, Ted Liberda from Buck Tui, and Cade Colson from Smoak Craft BBQ. Their presence at the event showed that these days Kansas City has a thriving barbecue community where members support one another.
At the end of the evening, Tyler Harp was already talking about where he would be going next (down to Texas for the third anniversary of Brett’s Backyard Bar-B-Que). For Harp, there is always a new opportunity to help support and grow the BBQ community.
Ryan Cooper (BBQ Tourist)
Co-Founder, The Smoke Sheet
Thank you to our sponsor DennyMike's, which offers outstanding seasonings and rubs for every situation. Learn more about DennyMike's here
—The annual Sauce King NYC competition has revealed its big winners.—
HOT OFF THE PRESS
Sauce King NYC, an annual competition dedicated to finding the best sauces, dips, and marinades, has announced its top winners. Sauces are judged by a variety of food media and experts. The Grand Champion prize was awarded to Juke Sauce from Low Country Sauce Company. Juke Sauce can be paired with just about anything and is used as a “finish, meat glaze, marinade, wing toss, or dipping sauce.”
Here are the top winners of the Sauce King NYC, revealed first in The Smoke Sheet:
Grand Champion: Juke Food Dressing and Dipping Sauce, Low Country Sauce Company, Houston, TX
Top Barbecue Sauce: Memphis Mop BBQ Sauce, BBQ Buddha, Asbury, NJ
Top Vinegar-Based Barbecue Sauce: Jalapeño Business, B.T. Leigh’s, Bowling Green, KY
Top Mustard-Based Sauce: The Clevelander, B.T. Leigh’s, Bowling Green, KY
Best Sauce for a Cause: Veterans Q Gold Barbecue Sauce, Veterans Q, Huntley, IL
Top Hot Sauce: Green Bastard Hot Sauce, Coney Island Saucery, Brooklyn, NY
A little less than a year after opening, Husk Barbeque in Greenville, SC has closed its doors. Husk’s Greenville location opened in November 2017 and then rebranded as Husk Barbeque in late 2020 with a new menu. Parent company Neighborhood Dining Group (NDG) announced the closure this week. “We love our community, but efforts in Greenville have not yielded the success that we had hoped,” NDG president David Howard said in a statement. “We simply never regained the demand necessary to be viable. We are so grateful to our team and the community for their support over the last 5+ years.” READ MORE.
Before Aaron Franklin of Austin’s Franklin Barbecue spread the gospel of Texas brisket to the masses, finding top-notch brisket in every corner of Texas was a challenge. Not so much these days, writes barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn in Texas Monthly. “This year, briskets across Texas were so delicious—and so similar—that we trained ourselves to look for small flaws just to differentiate among the competitors,” Vaughn writes. “After 411 joints tested, I can confidently report that our favorite smoked meat is so reliably excellent in all parts of Texas that it no longer feels like an achievement. Texas brisket has peaked.” READ MORE.
ADDITIONAL READS
Dozier’s BBQ will host a barbecue festival in Fulshear featuring wild game on Saturday, October 9.
The crew from the Tales from the Pits podcast has updated its website with its picks for the top BBQ joints in Texas, which includes some surprises. (More info in our READ section below.)
D Magazine writes that chef Kent Rathbun’s Curbside BBQ is the “best tailgate takeout” and creates a party wherever the trailer is set up.
Epicurious spoke with several top pitmasters about how to pick the best smoker.
The annual Q in the Lou barbecue festival in St. Louis returned this past weekend, attracting hundreds of barbecue fans.
South San Antonio’s Snoga Bar-B-Q has closed permanently after 44 years in business.
The Barbecue Bros. visited Brick’s Smoked Meats in Sarasota, Florida, awarding the joint 3 out of 5 hogs.
The Creative Factor interviewed Sunny Moberg about his process of turning propane tanks into in-demand BBQ smokers.
Ayden, NC’s Historical and Art Society Museum unveiled a new barbecue tribute to the Dennis and Jones families from Bum’s Restaurant and Skylight Inn.
—For chef Nick Guidry of Pelican and Pig in Nashville, there is nothing quite like cooking over an open fire.—
WATCH
How a Nashville Chef Uses Open Fire to Create Modern Barbecue Masterpieces — Smoke Point
Utilizing seasonal vegetables, local meats, and a wood-burning hearth, the chefs at Nashville’s Pelican and Pig cook and grill most of their dishes directly over an open flame. According to chef Nick Guidry, “Cooking this way really forces you to be a better cook.” WATCH HERE.
LISTEN
The 10 Best BBQ Places in Texas — Tales from the Pits
Bryan and Andrew, hosts of the Tales from the Pits podcast, have been eating barbecue all over Texas for years. During the past few weeks, they’ve been revealing their picks for the top barbecue joints in all of Texas. The last two episodes showcase picks 10 through 6 and 5 through 1. Bryan and Andrew walk through why each barbecue restaurant made the cut. If you want to know about some of the most essential barbecue destinations in Texas, you should give these episodes a listen. LISTEN TO THE FIRST EPISODE HERE AND THE SECOND EPISODE HERE.
READ
The Complete Barbecue Cookbook: Expert Advice and Foolproof Recipes for BBQ Perfection — Sterling Smith
This comprehensive barbecue and grilling cookbook gives you the tricks, tips, and recipes to create finger-licking goodness in your backyard—from American classics to international favorites. You’ll get insider info on how to maximize the flavor of different cuts of meat, vegetables, rubs, and marinades, with “Secret Sauce” tips for every recipe. With this barbecue cookbook, you’ll be grilling and smoking like a pro in no time. PRE-ORDER HERE.
ef Billy Parisi walks you through making homemade barbecue sauce four different ways.—
How to Make Four Different Homemade BBQ Sauces
By Chef Billy Parisi
BBQ sauce can be an excellent way to finish off food that is cooked on the smoker or simply served up as a sauce for other grilled foods. The sauce generally has a long, rich history and BBQ sauce originally was more of a butter sauce that included cayenne and fresh herbs. But today, there are four major sauce types commonly seen in the barbecue world — Sweet, Vinegar, Mustard, and White. Chef Billy Parisi walks you through making each of these homemade.
—Lots of must-attend barbecue events are scheduled for the rest of 2021.—
October 8-9, 2021: Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational — Lynchburg, Tennessee
The Jack Daniel’s Annual World Championship Invitational Barbeque – or simply The Jack as it’s known in the world of competition barbecue – is widely considered the world’s most prestigious barbeque competition where teams from around the globe smoke, season and sear their way to a chance to be named the Grand Champion and a $25,000 prize. Annually featuring more than 100 teams representing all 50 states and countries across the globe, The Jack transforms Lynchburg, home of the Jack Daniel Distillery, into the barbecue capital of the world. It’s also important to note that KCBS has changed the date The Jack is usually held in hopes of getting more favorable weather, so check your calendars. Read our to learn more about the experience. MORE INFO HERE.
October 9-17, 2021: Texas Monthly BBQ Fest: Road Trip Edition — Texas
As we get ready for the release of Texas Monthly’s latest edition of the Top 50 barbecue joints lists, we’re taking our beloved annual barbecue festival on the road. Texas Monthly BBQ Fest: Road Trip Edition will feature a series of three Pit Stop events from the Rio Grande Valley to the Panhandle, while celebrating barbecue joints in every corner of the state with Texas Monthly BBQ Week, which features special prices and menu items at more than 60 joints statewide. MORE INFO HERE.
October 24, 2021: Brett’s Backyard Bar-B-Que Third Anniversary — Rockdale, Texas
The Brett’s Backyard Bar-B-Que Third Anniversary celebration is set to be held on October 24th in Rockdale, Texas. Kerry Bexley, owner of Snow’s BBQ in Lexington, will be the Grand Marshall for the event. The celebration will feature over 40 BBQ joints from across Texas and beyond, including 2M Smokehouse, Blood Bros BBQ, Harp Barbecue, Heritage Barbecue, and many more. MORE INFO HERE.
November 5-7, 2021: Austin Food and Wine Festival — Austin, Texas
The Austin Food + Wine Festival returns in April to spoil your palate with a handful of global and nationally renowned talent. This 3-day weekend in the culinary capital of Texas is the epitome of high spirits, with a packed schedule of hands-on grilling demos, tastings with top pitmasters, chefs, and sommeliers. Plus, there will be interactive demos and panels. MORE INFO HERE.
November 6, 2021: Troubadour Festival — Celina, Texas
The first-ever Troubadour Festival will feature an all-star lineup of musical acts and BBQ joints from all over Texas. More than 40 of the best BBQ joints in Texas (many on the Texas Monthly Top 50 list) will be there slinging smoked meats, so don't miss out. MORE INFO HERE.
November 13, 2021: Holy Smokes: Lowcountry BBQ Festival — Charleston, South Carolina
The Holy Smokes BBQ Festival from Home Team BBQ, Swig & Swine, and Robert Moss will be held November 13 in Charleston. The big new event will include pitmasters from around the country including Chris Lilly of Big Bob Gibson BBQ, Patrick Feges and Erin Smith, Feges BBQ, Billy Durney of Hometown BBQ, Matt Horn of Horn Barbecue, and Rodney Scott of Rodney Scott’s BBQ. MORE INFO HERE.
November 20, 2021: Tex Mex BBQ Festival — San Antonio, Texas
This event will be full of the best food, education, and entertainment ever assembled in one spot. The menu will be masterminded by Miguel Vidal of Valentina’s Tex-Mex from Austin, Tx. The food will be executed by some of the most talented pitmasters, chefs, and cooks coming in from all over the nation. Mark your calendar for an amazing experience! MORE INFO HERE.
December 10-12, 2021: Jacksonville BBQ Fest — Jacksonville, Florida
The inaugural Jacksonville BBQ Fest is happening this December at TIAA Bank Field, home of the Jaguars. Don’t miss this chance to grab an ice-cold brew and sample pure smoked bliss from award-winning pitmasters from across the country. MORE INFO HERE.
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