Starting a BBQ Tradition in Clayton, NC

Unlimited beer samples were almost as popular as barbecue. Photo: Downtown Clayton NC via Facebook.

Clayton, NC, isn’t known for its barbecue traditions. However, it’s never too late to begin one. Enter the Clayton BBQ Challenge, which had its inaugural event in 2023 with promises of becoming an annual event to celebrate beer, bands, and barbecue. 

Cooking teams set up near the Civitan Center in Clayton.

Clayton Celebrates with Barbecue

With a population of fewer than 25,000, Clayton has successfully preserved a small-town atmosphere, particularly in its downtown historic district. However, it promotes itself as “the fastest growing town in the fastest growing county in North Carolina” — and brags that it’s no longer the “one-stoplight town it was 40 years ago.”

The Off the Rack team scored high in the contest and won first place in the pork category.

Overshadowed by Raleigh, the state capital about 15 miles away, the town seeks to create its own identity. Having a barbecue cookoff is one way to set it apart from its more prominent neighbors as well as to have fun.

Judging plates are ready for the first entries.

Clayton BBQ Challenge: More Than Barbecue

General admission tickets started at $35 and provided access to unlimited beer samples from more than 15 N.C. breweries. In addition to craft beer sampling, the festivities included food trucks, live music, and BBQ-related vendor booths. 

Optimus Swine, grand champion of the cookoff, posted this photo of their chicken entry on their Facebook page. Photo: Optimus Swine.

Held in the town’s municipal park, the event was sponsored by the Downtown Development Association. In the cookoff sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society, 17 teams competed for the $7,500 in prize money. Many teams were well-known and are perennial finalists for national honors each year.

The Off the Rack BBQ Competition Cooking Team took first place in the pork category. Photo: Ready Roofing Company via Facebook.

From all accounts, the inaugural cookoff sets a great example for future events to duplicate. Let’s hope that Clayton continues to develop a barbecue tradition that it can be proud of.

Looking for Smoke and Finding Barbecue

A pulled pork sandwich by pitmaster Joe Kelso.

[Note: This post, prepared originally for Sandhills Magazine and published in its April-May 2021 issue, is hosted on the magazine's website, with excerpts and a link to the website posted here.]

When family members and guests visit from out-of-state and want to taste authentic N.C. barbecue, where do you take them? The choices are more numerous than you may realize. Do you want to impress, go to a casual Sandhills spot, take a short road trip to a legacy location, search for one of the ubiquitous barbecue food trucks, or visit a competitive cookoff? 

The Impressive 

Nothing is more impressive than watching small planes land and take off on an active runway next to where you are enjoying hickory-smoked barbecue slowly cooked over hot coals. Head to Carthage where Pik-n-Pig, located at Gilliam-McConnell Airport, has created a dedicated following for its pulled pork that is smoked for up to 10 hours. Although the meat is served naturally moist, you can enhance the flavor with a homemade hot-spicy (vinegar-based) sauce or a sweet honey sauce (that is tomato-based). The sides are excellent, but make sure to save room for banana pudding. 

Because some out-of-towners want to combine barbecue with a craft beer (or two), Pinehurst Brewing Company in the century-old steam plant building is a favorite destination to impress. Smoked over hickory and oak coals, its pulled pork shoulder pairs well with its signature barbecue sauces, which include a creative blueberry habanero, as well as its distinctive beers.

Continue reading at Sandhills Magazine and also see an earlier post about pitmaster Joe Kelso and Smok'n Joe's BBQ that are mentioned later in this post ...

A Barbecue Food Truck Rolls into a Small NC Town

Up in Smoke BBQ sets up in Southern Pines, NC.

 Barbecue food trucks seem to be multiplying. They serve an increasing number of people wanting their beloved barbecue while the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the restaurant industry are brought under control. Although the restrictions that limit how many customers on-site that restaurants can serve are slowly being lifted, trucks may have found a long-term opportunity to connect with barbecue fans even after the pandemic has ended. 

Trays of pulled pork inside the truck are ready for orders. Photo: Up in Smoke via Facebook.

Up in Smoke BBQ 

In downtown Southern Pines, NC, on the premises of Hatchett Brewery Co., Up in Smoke BBQ set up one weekend to offer good-tasting barbecue to beer fans who otherwise wouldn’t have had anything substantial to eat. Also known as the BBQ Bus (although it’s really a trailer with a bus logo painted on it), Up in Smoke BBQ and other barbecue trucks that locate at a craft brewery have found a good partner, and all can benefit from mutual promotion. The menu varies with each event, but barbecue is always served. 

The menu usually includes ribs but always includes pulled pork.

Although Southern Pines restricts food trucks in its central business district, permits can be obtained in advance with a little thoughtful planning. The restrictions are designed to protect brick-and-mortar restaurants that pay property taxes from competition with trucks that have lower expenses. However, a barbecue food truck isn’t competition for restaurants and bars that generally don’t serve barbecue. If a truck doesn’t roll in, barbecue is not available. 

My pulled pork order with two servings of coleslaw.

Truck Menu

When I was at Up in Smoke BBQ, the truck was continually busy serving customers who were entering and leaving the craft brewery. Most customers probably were more focused on beer than barbecue, but for me, my concentration was totally on the pork. The popular choice was pulled pork, which is what I ordered. It was excellent, and several sauce options were available. 

The BBQ bus logo is very prominent on the trailer of Up in Smoke.

Finding good barbecue on food trucks is no longer a rare experience. Let’s hope that they keep rolling.

Smoking Barbecue on a Food Truck

Smoke coming from the truck is a good sign, not a bad one.

Finding a food truck that serves amazing pulled pork is a special discovery, particularly during a coronavirus pandemic when many people don’t want to eat indoors and are compelled to maintain “social distances” as recommended by public health authorities. 

Barbecue Food Truck 

As I was driving in the Sandhills of North Carolina, the smoke spiraling from a red food truck caught my eye even before I saw a sign with big black letters simply stating, “Bar-B-Que.” It was a place that I had to stop. 

The cooker stays busy for many hours. Source: Smok'n Joe's BBQ via Facebook.

After talking to Joe Kelso for a few moments, I knew that I had unexpectedly met an authentic pitmaster who knew the secrets of slowly smoking pork and who was rightly proud of his work. With an earlier assignment to write an article about local barbecue for Sandhills Magazine, I was in the right place at the right time to collect information for the article. 

Pork shoulders are cooked slowly for a long tie. Source: Smok'n Joe's BBQ via Facebook.

Barbecue and Baked Beans 

Kelso, who has been cooking barbecue for decades, operates The Rocking Pig, a food truck that features Smok’n Joe’s BBQ. The truck revives the name of a former barbecue place in Maxton, NC, that is now closed. Smok’n Joe’s BBQ gives a special identity to the barbecue made by Kelso and a nod to his genius at the smoker. 

My to-go plate of pulled pork barbecue with baked beans, potato salad, and coleslaw.

The menu of the truck is simple: pulled pork barbecue generously moistened with a vinegar-based sauce. A plate comes with baked beans, coleslaw, and potato salad. The beans deserve special mention because they are heartily enhanced with extra pulled pork. They were so good that I went back to the truck and ordered a large container to take home after enjoying my plate. 

A pot of baked beans is ready for customers. Source: Smok'n Joe's BBQ via Facebook.

Permanent Location 

Unlike most food trucks, The Rocking Pig is stationary and does not move from site to site. It’s always on the west side of US Hwy 1 between Aberdeen and Pinebluff, NC. Kelso says he’s avoiding “the rodeo” of moving from place to place such as breweries and shopping centers so common for other food trucks. 

If the sign says, "Bar-B-Que," perhaps you should stop. Source: Smok'n Joe's BBQ via Facebook.

Don’t be surprised when you find excellent barbecue at a food truck. It all depends on the skill of the pitmaster.

From Food Truck to Restaurant and More

The goal of some pitmasters is to begin small and grow as customers appreciate their barbecue. Sometimes when pitmasters want to venture into commercial enterprises, food trucks may be all that can be afforded initially. Such is the story of Michael Markham who began Big Mike’s in 2011 in Apex, NC.

BBQ egg rolls are popular appetizers.

What began as a food truck has since expanded to two “brick-and-mortar” locations – one in Apex and the other in nearby Cary. Known as Brew N Que, the restaurants feature pastured-raised barbecue and local craft beer. When I was at the Apex location, about ten beers and ciders were on tap. The beer is as important as the barbecue, and the bar scene confirms that some customers are more thirsty than hungry.

Chopped barbecue pairs well on a tray with smoked potato salad and cornbread (and extra servings of coleslaw).

Nevertheless, the serious side of the menu is the meat. The choices include Eastern NC-style chopped pork barbecue, beef brisket, and smoked chicken. In addition to typical sides of collards, baked beans, and mac ‘n’ cheese, the restaurants offer two unusual ones: blue cheese coleslaw and smoked potato salad. The dessert menu is limited but does include the obligatory banana pudding.

Redneck nachos (with cornbread) offer pork barbecue in an unusual format.

Brew N Que is another example of the “new” style of barbecue establishments (see my earlier visit to Buxton Hall), as described by food writer Kathleen Purvis, that offer interesting sides, creative appetizers, and craft beer with meat sourced locally. For example, several appetizers are entertaining. BBQ egg rolls come in two versions — pork barbecue with collards and chow chow, and buffalo chicken with blue sauce. Redneck nachos combine pork barbecue with baked beans, Fritos, and blue cheese coleslaw.

Several sides, including collards, are appealing.

Even with the success of its two locations, the food truck is still on the road. Its schedule and location are announced regularly by Twitter. Big Mike’s has also ventured into conducting smoking classes. In one class, each student learns how to smoke brisket and takes home a whole brisket when the class is over. Another class on smoking a pork shoulder includes a dinner in an outdoor picnic format.

Banana pudding is the favorite dessert of many.

With a food truck and two restaurant locations, Big Mike’s is well postured to satisfy the barbecue (and beer) cravings in central North Carolina. Its creative approaches will continue to attract hungry and thirsty customers.