To Beef or Not to Beef

This past weekend was the Texas Pete Twin City Ribfest in Winston-Salem, N.C. I had a real bee in my bonnet to go ... so I did. As it turns out, it wasn't the greatest experience. This was due mainly to the high price of admission, lack of proper organization and absence of secondary vendors. The food, however, was quite good. And, I got to sample beef ribs for the first time (as opposed to pork), so I'll consider it a win.

Unfortunately, I only had ribs from one of the pit masters. The festival sells "sampler" tickets, which allow you to taste a rib sample from each booth, but apparently they ran out on the first day of the festival. And since ribs are expensive and I'm not a Rockefeller, I couldn't afford to buy 10 half racks of ribs. So, I ended up at this stop:

You gotta love their sign: "I'm from Texas. What country are y'all from?" Anyway, Texas Thunder appealed to me because, as I mentioned, they had beef ribs, which I've wanted to try. (Texans have very peculiar ideas about barbecue and ribs being beef rather than pork, which challenge my North Carolina sensibilities.) And I have to say, beef is very good. I still prefer pork, but beef will do in a pinch.

The particular beef I had from Texas Thunder was very good. It was a little fattier than I'm used to in ribs. But, frankly, the fat adds to the flavor, so I'm not complaining too much. I also thought there was a hint of an excellent rub or sauce that I felt they could have been heavier with. My taste buds wanted a little more. Overall, though, still quite good.

A few other stops I wanted to make were Carolina Rib King (Spartanburg, S.C.):

Porky Chicks (Fayeteville, Ark.):

And Big Boned BBQ (Hixson, Tenn):

Check out those trophies!

This year's winner, however, (because the ribfest is also a competition) was the local Bib's Downtown. I look forward to trying them out soon--and without having to pay an admission price!

For a more comprehensive rundown of each pit master at this year's festival/competition, check out The "Q" Review. And I'm not sure if the BBQ Jew will have a review up this year or not, but he was a judge at last year's ribfest and wrote about it here.

So, would I recommend Twin City Ribfest? No, not until they can get better organized and offer more for admission. Would I recommend beef ribs? That's a firm "yes." They're different, but they're still very good. At least Texas Thunder's were.

Reader Recommendation: Johnson's Drive-In in Siler City

In response to my hamburger hysteria post, Traci, one of our darling readers, recommended I give Johnson's Drive-In in Siler City, N.C., a try. Get this, they cover their burgers with Velveeta cheese, and they are so popular with locals that people line up there every day before they open. Sounds like my kind of joint.

Are there any other good burger places we're missing? If so, let us know!

I Believe in Peace, Love and Hominy

Many times, I've tried to like grits. But I could never get past the bland taste and grainy texture. In the South, eating grits is pretty much a religion, and I have to say the Hominy Grill has finally made me a believer.

My brother Matt, sister-in-law Teresa and I recently visited this downtown Charleston, S.C., establishment for breakfast. I took one bite of Matt's plate of shrimp and grits and thought, "That's what I should've ordered!" I had buckwheat pancakes that were mighty tasty, but nothing akin to the savory goodness of shrimp sauteed with mushrooms, scallions and bacon atop a creamy "sauce" of cheese grits.

No wonder it was so good. Turns out that Hominy Grill's Chef Robert Stehling won the James Beard Best Chef Southeast award in 2008.

I did a little research and found out that grits--or hominy--was first introduced to colonists in Jamestown, Va., by Native Americans as bowls of boiled corn. The Indians called it "rockahomine," and colonists shortened the word to "hominy."

Today, shrimp and grits is a quintessential Southern dish that's graduated from breakfast into dinner menus of swanky restaurants across the South. Readers of Garden & Gun magazine recently named shrimp and grits the winner over (gasp!) pulled pork barbecue in a Southern Food Championship.

Of course, Jenn would probably disagree. She's a lover of Lexington-style BBQ, and who can blame her? I may believe in hominy, but I don't believe in comparisons when it comes to picking a favorite Southern food. It's just too hard to do!

As for the rest of you out there who aren't exactly singing the praises of grits, check out the other delectable dishes on the breakfast menu for Hominy Grill, like the high-rise biscuit smothered in sausage gravy. It's all good!

Spring into Summer

For those in the North Carolina Triad and Triangle, here's a preview of Lucky 32 Southern Kitchen's new menu. Did I see fried pork chops? Banana pudding? Oh dear!

I Just Can't Get Them off My My Mind

And by "them," I mean hamburgers. First, I read a story about this past month being National Hamburger Month. Then there was Michelle's tale (or, should I say "tell-tale") of gourmet burgers on Sullivan's Island. And the final straw, the one that led to excruciatingly strong cravings, was this cover of Our State magazine staring at me from the checkout stand at the grocery store:

This issue celebrates hamburgers by highlighting the specialties of five Carolina dives:

• Second Street Lunch (Roanoke Rapids)
• Wimpy's Grill (Durham)
• South 21 (Charlotte)
• Art's Place (Kitty Hawk)
• Jimmy Mac's (Bryson City)

These articles bring up a few questions for me, though: How far is it acceptable to drive for a good hamburger? And, is it normal to have a burger bucket list?

Perhaps I should just find a good burger locally. I mean REALLY good. I know plenty of acceptable burger joints, but I'm looking for a mecca. In the meantime, I'm not going to be happy until I have the chili and slaw of a Carolina-style burger running down my chin. 

I love burgers of many different kinds, but there's something about a sloppy Carolina creation, like the one pictured above, that really sets my cravings in gear. The main components of such a burger, by the way, are chili, coleslaw, mustard and onions (the ingredients Carolinians often like on their hot dogs as well). Oh yum!