The Biggest Cookoff of All

The tunnel entrance to the infield proclaims, "World's Largest Barbecue."

Would you drive halfway across the country to judge at a barbecue contest? Perhaps you would for the American Royal World Series of Barbecue, which has been held annually since 1980 and bills itself as “the world’s largest barbecue and Kansas City’s biggest party.”

Cooking teams set up in the infield of the speedway.

Many cooking teams drive that far, so it’s only reasonable that judges would make the trip too. What began modestly with 10 cooking teams has far surpassed the greatest expectations of the initial organizers. Now held in the infield of Kansas Speedway, the contest attracts more than 450 cooking teams and needs more judges than any other contest to conduct the competition.

Finding one of the 458 cooking teams is difficult without using the festival map.

The four-day event marks the end of summer with live music, food vendors, a car show, a vendor fair, and kid activities in addition to two very competitive cookoffs on consecutive days. Teams from ten countries compete for the largest prize fund on the BBQ circuit. The 135 teams in the invitational cookoff competed for $37,965 in prizes. On the next day, the open contest offered an additional $68,425 for the 468 teams competing in it. In addition to the four categories—chicken, ribs, pork, and brisket—judged in a competition sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbeque Society, the open contest had two more meat categories: smoked turkey and sausage.

Judges check in for their table assignments.

Mudville BBQ won the
invitational contest.

To be eligible for the invitational contest, a team has to win a grand championship in a qualifying event. (An alternate cannot represent a grand champion.) Teams that compete in the invitational also compete in the open contest. The winner of the invitational was Mudville BBQ of Stockton, California, that begin competing in 2015. Rio Valley Meat BBQ of Weslaco, Texas, was grand champion of the open contest.

The judges assembled in Garage D in the infield of the speedway. I’d never seen so many slender judges at a BBQ contest. Of course, with so many judges, a few had to be slender. Of the 450+ judges (77 tables of 7 each were needed), I recognized only three familiar faces—two from Virginia and one from North Carolina.

Such a large contest required a lot of advance planning.

Most judges seemed to be from the Midwest (although the cooking teams came from across the country). I was surprised by how many “local” judges were at the table where I was seated—more than half were from the Kansas City area as was my table captain, age 82, who was certified in the second training class of judges decades ago when KCBS was first organized. Being from North Carolina made me a “novelty,” and a few judges from other tables even came over to ask me where I lived.

Judges settle into their assigned seats in Garage D before their meeting begins.

The American Royal Association, the organizer, is a nonprofit organization that supports agricultural education programs and provides competition opportunities and scholarships. It began in 1899 as the National Hereford Show, the first nationwide show for purebred cattle. Not surprising, about 55,000 attended that event, which was held in the agricultural hub of the Midwest, the Kansas City Stockyards. That effort expanded to include horse shows and rodeos, and then the first barbecue contest, which now is American Royal’s largest annual fundraiser, was held in 1980, five years before KCBS itself was formed.

The turn-in area is quiet before the teams bring their first entries. 

Seeing so many teams in head-to-head competition was incredible. The winners and top finishers clearly go home with great satisfaction and confirmation of their cooking skills. Judging at this event also gives me bragging rights with other judges who haven’t attended. The American Royal is the place to be in September.

The crew of a Southwest Airlines flight takes a picture of the competition at the speedway as they approach the Kansas City airport. Via KCBS Twitter account.