Any trip to Charleston, S.C., has the potential to be a culinary adventure, but for fans of barbecue, The Holy City will become the mecca of meat this November. Holy Smokes Lowcountry Barbecue Festival will take place on Saturday, Nov. 9, from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. at Riverfront Park in North Charleston, and it will represent the most impressive assemblage of pitmaster talent I’ve ever seen!
The grounds of Riverfront Park will be divided up into distinct villages representing traditional barbecue, Texas barbecue, “new school” pitmasters, coastal-style cooking and a special VIP area featuring vaunted chefs cooking for a smaller group of attendees.
Among the traditional pitmasters are several people with Nashville connections. Carey Bringle will represent his Memphis/Nashville hybrid style of cooking at Peg Leg Porker, and Pat Martin will be serving up his own version of West Tennessee smoked meats from Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint. Recent Nashville transplant Rodney Scott will showcase his Eastern Carolina style of low-and-slow cooking.
Other pitmasters I’m looking forward to seeing in Charleston are Amy Mills of 17th Street Barbecue in Illinois, Chris Lilly and his sons from Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q, Stephen Franklin of DAS BBQ in Atlanta, Justin and Jonathan Fox (better known as the Fox Brothers Bar-B-Q), and my friends from Southern Soul Barbecue, Harrison Sapp and Griffin Bufkin. I’m also excited to check out two old favorites who have recently moved to new venues, Elliott Moss and his new upcoming venture in Florence, S.C., and Madison Ruckel’s Airstream trailer barbecue shack, Mama Jean’s BBQ in Roanoke, Va.
This list just scratches the surface of the amazing lineup of culinary talent that will be on offer at Holy Smokes, but if you need to see the whole list to be convinced, here it is:
Traditional Village
Amy Mills | 17th Street Barbecue | Murphysboro, IL
Anthony DiBernardo | Swig & Swine | Charleston, SC
Carey Bringle | Peg Leg Porker | Nashville, TN
Chris, Jacob & Andrew Lilly | Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q | Decatur, AL
Hector Garate | Palmira Barbecue | Charleston, SC
Jordan Wright | Wright’s Barbecue | Fayetteville, AR
Michael Bessinger | Bessinger's BBQ | Charleston, SC
Pat Martin | Martin's Bar-B-Que Joint | Nashville, TN
Rodney Scott | Rodney Scott's BBQ | Charleston, SC
Sam Jones & Michael Letchworth | Sam Jones BBQ | Winterville, NC & Raleigh, NC
Texas Village
Arnis & Mallory Robbins | Evie Mae's Pit Barbecue | Wolfforth, TX & Miramar Beach, FL
Chris Fultz | ZZQ Texas Craft Barbeque | Richmond, VA
Cody Sperry | Hoodoo Brown Barbeque | Ridgefield, CT
Leonard Botello IV | TRUTH BBQ | Houston, TX
Patrick Feges & Erin Smith | Feges BBQ | Houston, TX
Stephen Franklin | DAS BBQ | Atlanta, GA
New School Village
Aaron Siegel & Taylor Garrigan | Home Team BBQ | Charleston, SC
Jonathan & Justin Fox | Fox Bros Bar-B-Q | Atlanta, GA
Madison Ruckel | Mama Jean's Barbecue | Roanoke, VA
Matt Abdoo & Shane McBride | Pig Beach BBQ | Queens, NY
Shuai & Corrie Wang | KING BBQ | North Charleston, SC
Tank Jackson | Holy City Hogs & Lawrence’s Seafood Co. | Charleston, SC
Coastal Village
Capt. Jamie Hough | Zero Forks Given | Charleston, SC
Elliott Moss | Elliott’s | Florence, SC
Evan LeRoy | LeRoy and Lewis Barbecue | Austin, TX
Harrison Sapp & Griffin Bufkin | Southern Soul Barbeque | St. Simons Island, GA
Leslie Roark Scott | Ubon's Restaurant | Yazoo City, MS
Ronnie Evans & Philip Moseley | Blue Oak BBQ | New Orleans, LA
VIP
Dano Heinze | Vern’s | Charleston SC
Jacques Larson | Wild Olive & The Obstinate Daughter | Johns Island, SC
James London | Chubby Fish | Charleston, SC
Kevin Johnson | Lola Rose & The Grocery | Charleston, SC
Michael Toscano | Fugazzi, Porchetta Shop, Le Farfalle & da Toscano | Charleston, SC & New York, NY
Village Experiences
Ryan Prewitt & Stephen Stryjewski | Pêche & Cochon | New Orleans, LA
If you ever wanted to sample food from this list of august cooks, it would take you months of traveling and thousands of dollars. Instead, why not check off your barbecue bucket list in one afternoon for just $75 (until July 14 when the presale ends) or $250 for the full VIP experience? Kids 7 to 13 can attend for just $25, and kids 6 and younger get in for free.
You’re just a nonstop Southwest flight away from barbecue nirvana, so grab your tickets at the event website starting on July 10 and double down at the gym for the next few months!
