MSNBC’s Today Show is having a three day BBQ Challenge with each day featuring BBQ from different areas of the United States. Today was Battle of the Carolinas between Ed Mitchell (of The Pit in Raleigh) and Jimmy Hagood (Greg Hatem, owner of The Pit can be seen in the background, eating and smiling). NC vs. SC BBQ - Guess who wins?
Ingredients and Instructions HERE
Well, a true NC battle should be fought between the east and west. I hope Memphis and Texas square off. That should be a close one.
What’s up with Jimmy from SC saying “South Carolina is the only state in the union with three distinct bbq sauces?“ Any one else find that interesting? Last time I checked, NC has all three as well: mustard in the Piedmont, vinegar in the East, and tomato in the West.
Mustard?
The piedmont of where?
To put this to rest: NC has 3 flavors
SC has four: http://strangemaps.wordpress.com/2008/02/19/246-southern-sauce-sources/
Good call Doug.
Basically, from what the map suggests, SC has mustard-style, and the border regions of the state have taken on the sauces of the bordering states.
I agree with Vince though, for a national-scale BBQ challenge, it should be eastern vs. western North Carolina, because SC barbeque is not on the same map as NC, Memphis, Texas, Kansas City, etc. I think they just wanted to use the title, “Battle of the Carolinas”.
Forget Western style. The true BBQ battle is Eastern Vs. Lexington.
Give me Lexington all day. Too many joints like BBQ Lodge, Parker’s (Wilson/Greenville), and Smithfield’s have cost Eastern style some merit when they continue to serve greasy, pureed pork and call it ‘cue. If it’s Eastern and it’s not from B’s or the Skylight, I’ll proceed with caution.
I tried SC mustard style and it’s actually pretty good, but I love mustard. Their hash served on rice beats our brunswick stew hands down.
If you like Lexington, the very best there is a restaurant called “Lexington Barbeque”. Original, I know. The locals know it is Honey Monks, or just The Monk.
TC is right. Honey Monks is fantastic BBQ, and it doesn’t cost $12 a plate either. Unfortunately, Eastern Que doesn’t have the same restaurant tradition as Lexington. OCOG, if you really want good Eastern style pork, you’ve got to get from someones back yard.
or go to Wilbur’s.
Its amazing the marketing team Empire has on board. Not only is the pit average, Ed Mitchell has not been able to keep a BBQ joint open very long. Lets be real here folks, we all know you got to hit the back roads and little shacks to really appreciate good BBQ. If you have a small biz, find out who does Empires PR, and hire them!!!
kms1, you are so right! The Pit is being mentioned everywhere right now (ed mitchell was just featured in bon apetit this month) but it just isn’t that great. Yes, whoever is doing pr for empire properties is doing something right.
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