What We’re Looking Forward to in 2023

We’re looking forward to spending more time with great pitmasters like Houston’s Russell Roegels in 2023. (Photo by Wai Chan)

Last week, we said farewell to 2022 — a year of highlights, including travel, events, and the arrival of Sean’s first child. Now we begin to look ahead to 2023, which we hope will be just as eventful. We’re looking forward to learning from pitmasters we admire, visiting exciting new restaurants, partying at events with friends, and eating delicious barbecue around the country. 

This year, we’ll be keeping tabs on the barbecue scene as we usually do, but we also want to think bigger. Our community is more than just one state or one country. We’re hoping to incorporate more stories from the international barbecue scene (like our recent feature on Canadian BBQ influencers), tell stories about pitmasters you’ve never heard of (but should know), and dig deeper into the wide world of live-fire cooking.

Sean Ludwig (NYC BBQ) and Ryan Cooper (BBQ Tourist)
Co-Founders, The Smoke Sheet

—Michelle Wallace will be leaving Gatlin’s Barbecue in Houston to start her own restaurant focused on serving sandwiches. (Photo by Wai Chan)—

HOT OFF THE PRESS

Houston’s Michelle Wallace, executive chef of Gatlin’s Barbecue and Gatlin’s Fins and Feathers, is embarking on a new culinary venture of her own called b’tween Sandwich Co. According to a post on social media, the new spot “will feature Michelle’s famously delicious sandwiches as a pop-up starting later this month, with sights set on a permanent brick and mortar in the future.” The Gatlin family offered their support for the new endeavor, with Greg Gatlin saying, “Michelle is just a really humble and genuine human being. Professionally, she’s grown so much. She was already in a good place when she got here, but this gave her more space to become the chef and business person she’s now ready to be. I couldn’t have asked for a better six years.” READ MORE.

Last week, pitmaster Brandon Simpson announced the Grand Opening of Jazzy B’s at the new location in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. The restaurant, which The Smoke Sheet has dubbed one of the most perennially underrated barbecue spots in the country, temporarily closed last year. Simpson continued to serve his barbecue out of the food truck that he first started out in while looking for a new location. Jazzy B’s Kitchen will continue to serve barbecue, tacos, wings, Cajun food, and more. READ MORE.

ADDITIONAL READS

Both Texas Monthly’s Daniel Vaughn and the Houston Chronicle’s J.C. Reid shared their top Texas BBQ bites of 2022.

Here’s a list of the 64 best barbecue joints in North Carolina, from east to west, according to the News & Observer.

Legendary 100-year old restaurant Leonard’s Pit Barbecue in Memphis will be expanding with a new Bartlett location on Germantown Parkway.

St. Petersburg, Florida's Dr. BBQ restaurant, which opened in 2018, closed its doors for good last week.

—Buxton Hall Barbecue is one of the most acclaimed barbecue restaurants in North Carolina. (Photo by Ryan Cooper)—

WATCH

Buxton Hall Barbecue — North Carolina Weekend
Buxton Hall Barbecue in Asheville specializes in local meats butchered and smoked on-site. According to co-owner Meherwan Irani, Buxton Hall is a “love story to the way food used to be made.” Located in a historic building that was once a skating rink in the South Slope community of Asheville, Buxton Hall serves whole hog barbecue cooked from 12 to 14 hours. WATCH HERE.
 

LISTEN

Blane Hunter of Porky Butts BBQ — BBQ Radio Network
Blane Hunter (a.k.a. Mr. Porky Butts) grew up barbecuing in south Texas from a very young age. He was tending fires and checking temps as soon as he could help with his dad’s passion for the magic that happens in the world of “low and slow” pit smoking. With over 27 years of experience combined with a Culinary education from Johnson and Wales and FVTC culinary schools, Blane started competing professionally in the world of BBQ in 2013. In the seven short years that followed, he has accumulated one of the most impressive resumes on the BBQ circuit across America. LISTEN HERE.
 

READ

Badass Backyard Cooking — Johan Magnusson
Anything you can cook in the kitchen, you can cook outdoors in your backyard. Food will always taste better after getting kissed by smoke, heat, and fire. And you won't set off your fire alarm either. It is also way more fun to cook food outdoors. Few things in life are better than gathering around a grill, smoker, or an open fire together with friends, a few beers, and plenty of food to cook. As the smoke from the fire slowly floats to the sky, and the crackling from the embers creates a soothing ambiance, stories flow more freely, and laughter erupts more frequently. ORDER HERE.

—The West Tennessee Dry Ribs at Peg Leg Porker in Nashville are some of the best around. (Photo by Ryan Cooper)—

West Tennessee Dry Ribs

By Peg Leg Porker
 

In this video recipe, pitmaster Tuffy Stone visits his good friend Carey Bringle of Peg Leg Porker in Nashville, Tennessee. Bringle shows Tuffy how he prepares his West Tennessee Dry Ribs. He also discusses the origins of this recipe at the Rendezvous in Memphis and what makes the ribs at Peg Leg Porker different. If you are looking to change things up and want to learn a new way to cook pork ribs, give this recipe a try.

Learn more about Southside Market Barbeque.

—It's time to start mapping out BBQ events to attend this spring.—

February 15-18, 2023: National Barbecue & Grilling Association National Conference — Kissimmee, Florida
The National Barbecue & Grilling Association (NBBQA) will be hosting its annual national conference in early 2023. Expect great classes, speakers, food, competitions, and much more at this event. MORE INFO HERE.

March 31-April 1, 2023: Hogs For the Cause — New Orleans, Louisiana
The Hogs For the Cause barbecue competition and festival is back in 2023 for its 15th anniversary. The event will be held at the UNO Lakefront Arena festival grounds. Proceeds go to fight pediatric brain cancer. MORE INFO HERE.

May 17-20, 2023: Memphis in May — Memphis, Tennessee
Recognized as one of the world’s most prestigious barbecue contests, the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest is a four-day competition held in Memphis. Teams representing the best of barbecue that have been honing their craft for years compete for the title of World Champion and a share of the more than $145,000 in prize money. The event will be held again at Tom’s River Park after a hiatus. However, based on the reduction in space in the new Tom Lee Park the event organizers expect the contest will be limited to 150 teams. MORE INFO HERE.

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