BBQ results

The results of Waxhaw's Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff are available at the town website here. Unfortunately, it's a mish-mash of downloadable PDF and Excel files. Not very convenient for looking at the results.

So here they are in all their slightly-more-convenient glory:

Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society PRO Results

Place Overall
1 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC
2 Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC
3 Serial Griller, Yorktown, VA
4 Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC
5 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC
6 Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC
7 Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC
8 Bad Mother Smoker, Concord, NC
9 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC
10 Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC
11 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC
12 Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC
13 Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC
14 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC
15 Jo's Jo's Backyard BBQ, Monroe, NC
16 Just Good, Inc., Monroe, NC


Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society PRO Results Chicken

Place Chicken
1 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC
2 Bad Mother Smoker, Concord, NC
3 Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC
4 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC
5 Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC
6 Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC
7 Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC
8 Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC
9 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC
10 Serial Griller, Yorktown, VA
11 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC
12 Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC
13 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC
14 Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC
15 Jo's Jo's Backyard BBQ, Monroe, NC
16 Just Good, Inc., Monroe, NC


Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society PRO Results Pork Ribs

Place Pork Ribs
1 Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC
2 Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC
3 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC
4 Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC
5 Serial Griller, Yorktown, VA
6 Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC
7 Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC
8 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC
9 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC
10 Bad Mother Smoker, Concord, NC
11 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC
12 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC
13 Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC
14 Jo's Jo's Backyard BBQ, Monroe, NC
15 Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC
16 Just Good, Inc., Monroe, NC


Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society PRO Results Pork

Place Pork
1 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC
2 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC
3 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC
4 Serial Griller, Yorktown, VA
5 Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC
6 Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC
7 Bad Mother Smoker, Concord, NC
8 Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC
9 Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC
10 Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC
11 Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC
12 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC
13 Just Good, Inc., Monroe, NC
14 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC
15 Jo's Jo's Backyard BBQ, Monroe, NC
16 Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC


Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society PRO Results Overall Brisket

Place Brisket
1 Serial Griller, Yorktown, VA
2 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC
3 Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC
4 Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC
5 Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC
6 Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC
7 Bad Mother Smoker, Concord, NC
8 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC
9 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC
10 Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC
11 Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC
12 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC
13 Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC
14 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC
15 Just Good, Inc., Monroe, NC
16 Jo's Jo's Backyard BBQ, Monroe, NC


Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
People's Choice Award

Place Butts Team #
1 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC 9
2 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC 15
3 Backwoods BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 1
4 The Sizzlin' Pigs, Monroe, NC 6
5 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC 7
6 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC 8
7 King B BBQ, Charlotte, NC 4
8 Butt Burners BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 3
Billy Bob Beamer BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 2
Meat and Heat, Waxhaw, NC 5
Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC 10
Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC 11
Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC 12
Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC 13
Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC 14
Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC 16
Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC 17


Place Ribs Team #
1 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC 9
2 Butt Burners BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 3
3 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC 8
4* The Sizzlin' Pigs, Monroe, NC 6
4* 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC 7
4* Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC 10
4* Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC 13
Backwoods BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 1
Billy Bob Beamer BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 2
King B BBQ, Charlotte, NC 4
Meat and Heat, Waxhaw, NC 5
Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC 11
Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC 12
Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC 14
Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC 15
Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC 16

*Four way tie for 4th place



Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society Backyard Results

Place Overall
1 The Sizzlin' Pigs, Monroe, NC
2 Butt Burners BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
3 Meat and Heat, Waxhaw, NC
4 Backwoods BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
5 King B BBQ, Charlotte, NC
6 Billy Bob Beamer BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
7 Somerset Smokers, Waxhaw, NC

Place Pork Ribs
1 The Sizzlin' Pigs, Monroe, NC
2 King B BBQ, Charlotte, NC
3 Butt Burners BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
4 Meat and Heat, Waxhaw, NC
5 Backwoods BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
6 Billy Bob Beamer BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
7 Somerset Smokers, Waxhaw, NC

Place Pork
1 Somerset Smokers, Waxhaw, NC
2 Backwoods BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
3 Butt Burners BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
4 Meat and Heat, Waxhaw, NC
5 The Sizzlin Pigs, Monroe, NC
6 King B BBQ, Charlotte, NC
7 Billy Bob Beamer BBQ, Waxhaw, NC

I wish I could've been there.

Another BBQ fundraiser

There will be another fundraiser at 521 BBQ and Grill supporting the local scouts of Pack 53. The last fundraiser at 521 BBQ was quite beneficial to the pack, so if you've got a hankering for BBQ, please try to hold off until Monday and find your way to 521 BBQ between 5-8pm.

Here's the flyer with the details.

As the flyer says, hope to see you there!

Like BBQ?

Looking for a way to support local Cub Scout Pack 53 in Waxhaw?

Well, then listen to me when I say there's a way to kill two birds with one stone.

On Monday June 20th, 10% of the proceeds between 5-8pm at 521 BBQ and Grill support Pack 53.
So I urge you to make Monday your BBQ night to help support the local scouts.

I'm a big fan of 521 BBQ, mentioning them few times on this blog before. I'm usually not moving too fast when I leave that restaurant.

Dairy Barn takeout

A couple weekends ago, my wife went out for groceries and came back with BBQ takeout from the Dairy Barn. This was my first experience with anything other than ice cream from the Dairy Barn, so I figured it's worth mentioning.

She brought home a pound of BBQ, buns, slaw, and four brownies. She was told typically the brownies are heated and served with ice cream, but I believe my wife passed on the ice cream since it was a takeout order. It all cost around $20 if I'm not mistaken, a fair price to feed a family.

As for the BBQ, I'm no connoisseur, but it seemed to be of the eastern North Carolina vinegar variety. I thought it was pretty good, but I don't think it matched the BBQ that I tasted up at Lexington BBQ many years ago.

The slaw was fine, but I'm not a big fan of slaw in the first place. Even if I "like" a slaw, I rarely eat more than a couple bites, enough to try while also claiming I ate some vegetables. That's how I roll.

The brownies were a hit with the kids. I picked last and therefore ended up with the smallest brownie, but since I stuffed all the extra BBQ onto a rather large sandwich, I was in no position to eat a larger brownie and honestly should've forgone the one I ate.

As far as comparing it to other local BBQ, I prefer 521 BBQ, but this seems a wholly different style of BBQ. If there are any BBQ aficionados out there who can explain the differences between the two, I'd appreciate it.

Looking back at this post, it's clear I could never pass myself off as a food critic since everything was either "pretty good, "fine," or "good."

New BBQ place in town

You can never have too much good BBQ.

I heard today that a Rock Store BBQ has opened in Waxhaw. Who knew?

I haven't seen it with my own two eyes, but I suspect it's located in the new BP that was constructed between Lowe's and McDonalds.

Anyone have any thoughts on how it compares to 521 BBQ & Grill?

Entertainment Coupon book & Waxhaw

My wife ordered the Entertainment 2011 coupon book for the Charlotte area. The cost at the time was $20 with free shipping. I put a lot of effort into saving money at home (for obvious reasons), but figured I would share what I found regarding the money-saving potential in the Waxhaw area of this coupon book.

After looking in the index, the Waxhaw businesses represented seemed a little sparse. They included the following coupons:

* Carriage Fine Dry Cleaning - 25% off certain services; $10 off $40; $5 off $25

* Domino's Pizza - B1G1 large pizza; B1 large pizza, get free oven sandwich; B1 large pizza, free BreadBowl pasta; free dessert (online orders only)

* Donato's - B1G1 large pizza

* El Vallarta - B1G1 combo dinner

* Fox's Pizza Den - $5 off $20 order; free breadsticks

* Ming Fu - B1G1 lunch or dinner entree

* Museum of the Waxhaws - 50% off up to 4 admissions

But after reading a little more, I discovered there's a bevy of additional coupons on their website that you can print, for places such as The Stuffed Olive, 521 BBQ, Di Dee's, etc.

Some of the more notable printable coupons include:

* 521 BBQ - 2-for-1 lunch or dinner with a $6 max value.

* The Stuffed Olive - There's a 2-for-1 lunch coupon with an $8 max value. Plus monthly 10% off coupons that unfortunately excludes alcohol purchases. Boo!

* Just Wing It - Three 2-for-1 coupons. One for 3-piece chicken finger order, one for a 7-piece wing order, and one for a 10-piece nugget order. Valued between $5-6 each. Also, there's a printable 10% off coupon for each month.

* El Vallarta - There's one 2-for-1 discount with $5 max value. There's also monthly 10% coupons that unfortunately excludes alcohol purchases. Boo!

* La Strada - $5 off $25 purchase, plus monthly 10% off coupons.

* Java's Brewing Bakery & Cafe - If you get up there frequently, there's a 2-for-1 ice cream, plus monthly 10% off coupons.

* Di Dee's Diner - There's a 2-for-1 entree with a$8 max value. Plus monthly 20% off coupons.

Other printable coupons from Reed's Karate, Carriage Fine Dry Cleaning and nearby Rack Room Shoes, plus plenty more the farther out you go.

All in all, I think buying one of these books is well worth the current price (under $20) assuming your eat-out habits are similar to ours. And of course, it helps if you're able to remember that you have the coupons. That's our biggest problem when it comes to taking full advantage of these coupon books.

But if you're thinking about getting one, just be aware that the current Entertainment coupon book expires in November, so at this point, you're essentially getting it for half a year.

Ribbon cuttings

John Anderson in the Charlotte Observer touches on all the ribbon cuttings occurring this weekend, including Kim's Curtains (near Snap Fitness), BP Fill Good Gas Station (near Lowe's), and last but not least, Rock Store BBQ (near Lowe's with BP Fill Good Gas Station).

To end this on a BBQ-related note, how does Rock Store BBQ compare to 521 BBQ & Grill? I haven't been there yet. Do they serve mac & cheese? How are the hush puppies?

Don't forget it's a BBQ night in Waxhaw

Well, not in Waxhaw proper, but on the outskirts of Waxhaw at 521 BBQ.

If you've got a hunger for BBQ, eating there tonight between 5 - 8pm will help support local Cub Scouts, who by the way, took best overall in Waxhaw's recent Independence Day parade.

New Waxhaw Gazette

Another issue of The Waxhaw Gazette has been released like clockwork.

The highlights:

* An article on the new Walmart on 521 with specific reference to Walmart's failed bid to construct a Walmart outside historic downtown Waxhaw. My boys and I stopped by on Friday after a birthday dinner to pick up some plastic dart tips. I was loving it ,but I imagine I'm one of the few wishing Waxhaw got its Walmart. While the 521 Walmart is particularly convenient for commuters taking 521 into Charlotte, it's still approximately the same distance from the other area Walmarts in Indian Trail, Arboretum, Monroe, and so forth. So it's probably

The benefit of this particular Walmart (for commuters like me at least) is that while you still have to travel 10-15 miles to get there, at least you're not traveling out of your way.

* He provides all the links for those interested in the BBQ cook-off during the weekend of Oct 8-9 during the Autumn Treasures festival. My family showed up later in the afternoon to the BBQ cookoff to benefit the late Waxhaw police Officer Richard Belk, so we'll try to arrive earlier at this one as I've grown quite fond of smoked Boston butt since I moved down here.

Read the whole thing.

Still no word from John on the plans for the recently proposed historic district; I for one would like to hear his thoughts on the machinations that are underway. Maybe in the next issue.

First Friday coming up this Friday...

..and there appears to be limited noticed once again.

Dorothy Maloney's column in The Waxhaw Exchange fails to mention it (column can be found here). John Tiley at The Waxhaw Gazette has not mentioned it as far as I can tell & per his schedule, it appears it won't be published again until too late - this Friday.

But if you're a loyal reader of this blog and its comments and remember every little thing that comes across my wires, you wouldn't be caught unaware. Hopefully the businesses have been informed plenty in advance this time around.

Per Gavin of the STMSPC (heh):

The next First Friday is May 7 and our theme is "Movie Madness". We plan to show movies on a large exterior wall and encourage merchants to host events that are tied to this movie theme (or show movies at their locations).

I wrote up a travelogue of my family's last First Friday, complete with pictures, & figured now would be a good time to share it for what it's worth.

===

I figured walking into town to check out First Friday would be an enjoyable evening and that is exactly what it was. I thought I'd write something up so that maybe those fence-sitters considered checking it out, although I didn't realize it'd take me so long to do it.

While we originally toyed with eating in town, I'm a fan of 521 BBQ & Grill (mentioned here), so when it was offered up as an alternative for dinner by my family, I jumped at the opportunity. I didn't think it would clash with our Waxhaw-themed evening since it's close to Waxhaw, right? (I also heard a rumor that the proprietor was looking into moving into the possibility of moving into Waxhaw, but have no idea if that's accurate. BBQ lovers can only hope.)

We stopped briefly at the house to drop off the car (and to loosen my belt) & then headed into Waxhaw. The first shop open was The Quilting Nook. We stopped in briefly to check out the quilts; the boys asked for a cookie & I said 'No.'

The next shop open was the Waxhaw Antique Mart (disregarding Rippington's since we'd already eaten). Typically, I stay outside with the boys when we visit this store to ensure we're not footing a large bill of broken glass. But this time I went in & saw lots of neat stuff, spying a pair of Civil War-era sharpshooter glasses I wanted to get for no particular reason. While perusing the wares, I heard loud dance music coming from outside. After a minute or so, I realized what this meant, informed my wife what was going on, and headed outside to check out the... Waxhaw Fiesta Band.

They were just starting so there was only a few of them but the Stormtrooper was already there acting as their vanguard, as evidenced by this picture:

My boys were outside with Grandpa enjoying the dancing & tunes. I came out to check out the show. A photographer & reporter were present, which turned out to be none other than Elisabeth Arriero, dare I say Waxhaw's one-time ace reporter. Since I was one of the few (only?) bystanders present at that time, she came over to ask me some questions (detailed previously here). If you were ever curious about the business of obtaining hard news in Waxhaw, prepare to be awed by this never-before-seen illustration of Elisabeth in action.

I like to say I stayed cool under her barrage of pointed questions.

[One side note on the Fiesta Band: I'm not sure how appreciated they will be by nearby businesses on First Friday evenings, particularly the Waxhaw Antique Mart. I suspect there will be a significant-enough group of potential patrons that will not be interested in running the Fiesta Band gauntlet to examine the Antique Mart's wares. Maybe the town can begin blocking off the southern side of Broome Street on First Friday evening to accommodate the ever-growing Fiesta Band, which would give them plenty of room to perform the Thriller dance. That is...if they think they can manage it. (yes, consider that a shot across their bow)]

After crossing Broome Street, one of my boys partook of the lemonade being offered by Waxhaw UMC. Due to increased whining about getting ice cream, we skipped the Bead Merchants & were heading straight for the Library Association's used book store when we got sidetracked by The Broom Shop (mentioned here). I had been looking for this shop for weeks as I drove by & for the life of me, I couldn't figure out where it was. But there it was tucked in between the used book store & the Bead Merchants. A very small shop (does anyone know what was there before Mark began making old-fashioned brooms?), but large enough to handle his antique broom-making machine.

Regardless, my parents interest in seeing a broom made outlived my boys interest so we took the little ones to the used book shop. They picked out a couple of books each, while I scored a Dashiell Hammett hardback containing five of his novels, including "The Maltese Falcon" and "Red Harvest" -- the latter being worth the price of admission alone. I lent my copy to my brother years ago & haven't seen it since. I highly recommend it if you're into hard-boiled detective fiction. However, if you're only interested in speaking like a hard-boiled detective, then I suggest you visit this site.

After the book shop, we met up with grandpa, broom in hand. We headed down Broome Street heading toward Pizza Works, the only game in town if you want ice cream now. I noticed The Antique Clock Shop was open, but we decided to skip since the kids were running on empty.

As we headed home with our ice cream, we stopped in to see a live pottery demonstration at Stewart's Village Gallery before heading home for the evening. As we walked along North Main Street, we could hear the the tail end of the Fiesta Band's "performance." The boys wanted to check them out once again, but it was past bed time.

My visit to SouthSiders

The hustle & bustle of Christmas combined with a trip north afterward has knocked me out of my blogging rut. I've been away from this blog for a while, but it's time I get back in the swing of things.

I finally made it into SouthSiders on Saturday for a beer. Given my past cheerleading of the referendum, you might've figured I'd be camped out there, but, alas, no.

I stopped in Saturday evening to check out their first official dart tournament. A lowkey affair, but a excellent number of participants for their first foray into competitive darts. I arrived fashionably late so did not compete, but I'd been gorging myself silly at 521 BBQ & Grill in Lancaster County.

Now, as for the beer, it looked like a nice selection, but I zeroed in on the Lager, so I didn't get a good look at what else was available.

It appears taps and a bar are to be installed around the beginning of February; it'll be nice to sit down for a pint of Guinness or Harp.

Unfortunately, I neglected to ask Mark if there are any specials. Hopefully that'll be my next big scoop because what's a bar without drink specials.