Saying Goodbye and Good Riddance to 2020
Goodbye and Good Riddance to 2020
Though the past year will not be easily forgotten, few people will look back on 2020 with any type of fondness. The news in 2020 was dominated by stories of the COVID-19 pandemic that impacted the entire globe, racial tension and civil unrest across the nation in the wake of the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, widespread economic uncertainty, and a divisive presidential election.
The barbecue world was impacted by all of these issues. Most major barbecue events and competitions were forced to cancel in the wake of the pandemic. Profits evaporated as meat prices greatly increased, while dining rooms were closed as a result of lockdowns in communities nationwide. In spite of the fact that barbecue joints were better positioned to adapt to and overcome the challenges faced by the restaurant industry, we saw the closure of a number of long standing spots across the country.
While the year was rough in many respects, we also want to acknowledge all the hard work and success we’ve continued to see in the barbecue community. We'd like to share a few of these stories and some other highlights, so without further ado, here are five of our favorite stories we wrote in 2020.
Ryan sliced and served 25 racks of smoked gochujang pork spareribs during a recent pop-up. (Photo by Wai Chan)
What It Was Like To Host My First BBQ Pop-ups
After spending the first half of the year undergoing treatment for cancer, Ryan ended the year on a high note by collaborating on a couple of highly successful barbecue pop-up events. He wrote about his experiences making pork belly burnt ends for acclaimed Omaha restaurant Block 16 and collaborating with chef Kristina Lee on a fusion of Korean cuisine and American barbecue consisting of gochujang ribs and kimchi-topped pulled pork sandwiches for an event at Archetype Coffee. Read here.
Sean Ludwig of The Smoke Sheet and NYC BBQ wrote about what events look like in the coronavirus era. (Photo by Stephanie Tackach)
What It’s Like to Attend a BBQ Event Now
Sean wrote about attending Pig Island NYC, one of the few large barbecue and food events held in 2020. The Food Karma Projects event featured tons of smoked meats from local and national talent and perhaps could be a model for food events in 2021. Read here.
Blane Hunter of Porky Butts BBQ was awarded the Grand Championship of the Back to Mayberry BBQ Competition this summer. (Photo by Ryan Cooper)
Porky Butts BBQ’s Triumphant Return to Competition Barbecue
Ryan had the chance to shadow world champion pitmaster Blane Hunter of Porky Butts BBQ at the Back to Mayberry BBQ Competition this summer. The event was one of the few competitions held this year that included numerous top-ranked teams from around the nation. After leaving the competition world behind to focus on opening a restaurant in Omaha, Blane successfully returned and was awarded overall Grand Champion at the event. Read here.
The annual Mallard Creek BBQ is one of the most important North Carolina barbecue political events, but it was canceled this year like most events. (Photo by Monk / Barbecue Bros)
Barbecue’s Role in Politics Takes a Hit in 2020
Because of the coronavirus, barbecue’s traditional outsized role in national and local politics was diminished this year. Sean spoke with barbecue writer and historian Robert Moss about the importance of barbecue events in political circles and how barbecue took a hit this year. Read here.
Henry Perry, the father of Kansas City barbecue, deserves a bigger spot in barbecue lore. (archival newspaper advertisement)
Why KC Should Continue Celebrating Henry Perry
This summer, the Kansas City Barbeque Society honored Henry Perry, the father of Kansas City barbecue with a public event. City and county government officials recognized July 3 as Henry Perry Day and several organizations and restaurants celebrated the day by donating 1,000 meals to charity. In a year filled with racial tension and strife, it was fitting to recognize an African American pitmaster who defied the social and economic conventions of his time by bringing people together to enjoy barbecue. Read here.
--
Thank you all for your support this year and we look forward to seeing you in 2021. If you’d like to see all of our published issues, check them out here.
Ryan Cooper (BBQ Tourist) and Sean Ludwig (NYC BBQ)
Co-Founders, The Smoke Sheet
—The barbecue community lost a legend with the passing of Mike Mills (left) of 17th Street Barbecue, pictured here with Carey Bringle at the Windy City Smokeout. (Photo by Sean Ludwig)—
HOT OFF THE PRESS
Legendary pitmaster Mike Mills of 17th Street Barbecue in Illinois passed away yesterday due to non-COVID related health issues. Mills had a tremendous impact on the world of barbecue, as the owner and pitmaster of two successful barbecue restaurants in southern Illinois. He was also world champion barbecue competitor and was a regular fixture at competitions and events across the nation. Along with his daughter Amy Mills, he wrote two critically acclaimed barbecue cookbooks, including the 2006 James Beard Award Winning Peace, Love, and Barbecue. In 2010, Mills was inducted into the Barbecue Hall of Fame. Read here.
2020 has been a year with no shortage of negative news. In The Cue Sheet, barbecue author and historian Robert Moss decided to focus his end-of-the-year retrospective on the year’s most heinous barbecue villains, which include “slanted search engine algorithms, craven barbecue thieves, and, most villainous of all, the compilers of barbecue lists.” .
Michelin-starred chef Bryce Shuman was profiled in the New Yorker for launching a clever delivery-only BBQ service. “Bryce, who grew up in North Carolina, built a heat-and-serve menu around [spare ribs]: half and full racks, delivered with a choice of sauce—smoked-honey barbecue, hot pepper, or sweet molasses—to glaze them in before warming them in the oven.” Read here.
Daniel Vaughn of Texas Monthly recently wrote about his most memorable barbecue bites of 2020. His highlights include some of our favorite spots in Texas, like Hurtado Barbecue in Arlington, Interstellar BBQ in Austin, Dayne’s Craft Barbecue, Goldee’s Barbecue, and Derek Allan’s Texas BBQ in Fort Worth. Read here.
Texas senator John Cornyn took a lot of heat from the barbecue community when he posted an unappealing photo of the brisket his family served for their Christmas dinner to his Twitter account. Responses to the picture were harsh. Read here.
ADDITIONAL READS
The 99 Best BBQ Books of All-Time
Rodney Scott’s BBQ is Hoping for a 'Miracle' After Mobile Rig IS Stolen
San Antonio Food Bank’s Last Distribution of 2020 Includes BBQ
How Newspapers Played an Important Role in the Rise of Texas BBQ
Tootsie Tomanetz of Snow’s BBQ Talks About Her Christmas Traditions
Popular Brooklyn Kosher Spot Izzy’s BBQ Smokehouse Set to Open Branch in Manhattan
New West Palm Beach BBQ Restaurant Has Florida Focus
Lexington Man Makes ‘Pig Pennies’ to Commemorate ‘Barbecue Festival’
New Fort Worth Ghost Kitchen Debuts with BBQ and Hot Link Queso
—Kwesi and Brent of Buzzfeed drop by six classic joints including Scott’s BBQ in Hemingway, SC.—
WATCH
We Found The Perfect BBQ Joint In America — Buzzfeed
In this classic BBQ video from 2017 (another era!), Kwesi and Brent of Buzzfeed visited six of the top barbecue joints in North and South Carolina. The two carnivores make quick stops at Buxton Hall, Lexington Barbecue, Skylight Inn, Scott’s BBQ, Sweatman’s BBQ, and Lewis Barbecue. It’s a relatively short video but still quite fun. WATCH HERE
LISTEN
Things We Are Thankful For — Tales From the Pits
In a Thanksgiving and year-end themed episode, Tales from the Pits podcast hosts Bryan and Andrew talk about what they are thankful for this year. While we are far past Thanksgiving, we found it appropriate to end the year on a high note and thinking about the positives of 2020. LISTEN HERE
READ
Project Smoke: Seven Steps to Smoked Food Nirvana, Plus 100 Irresistible Recipes — Steven Raichlen
In case you haven’t yet, check out this complete, “step-by-step guide to mastering the art and craft of smoking, plus 100 recipes for smoked food that roars off your plate with flavor.” Here’s how to choose the right smoker (or turn the grill you have into an effective smoking machine). Understand the different tools, fuels, and smoking woods. Master all the essential techniques: hot-smoking, cold-smoking, rotisserie-smoking, even smoking with tea and hay — try it with fresh mozzarella. Time to go forth and smoke. BUY IT HERE
—We love pork belly burnt ends so of course we had to feature a recipe for them.—
Smoked Pork Belly Burnt Ends
By Bartlow's BBQ
Have you tried pork belly burnt ends? This meat candy is so delicious, and it melts in your mouth. Bartlow’s BBQ takes a 5-pound pork belly and slices it into cubes using Hardcore Carnivore Red rub, which gives it a strong bright color and incredible flavor. Then they show you how to smoke pork belly burnt ends on the Kamado Joe Classic 2 with a total cook time of 3 hours and 20 minutes. The final product is then finished using Blues Hog Nation Chipotle Raspberry BBQ Sauce.
—Many of the largest barbecue events of 2020 have been canceled or postponed.—
In light of the constantly changing coronavirus crisis, we are leaving our events section blank for some time. We’ll be updating our events section on our website with the most up-to-date information as we have it.
Thanks for reading our newsletter!
Want to be featured in or sponsor The Smoke Sheet?
Email us here!