Features Issue #20.22 :: 05/30/2007 - 06/05/2007 Who's No. 1? Free Times Holds Barbecue Competition |
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| Maurice Bessinger’s iconic sign at his Charleston Highway location. Photo by Jonathan Sharpe |
We’ve all wondered it before, racking our brains to determine the precise formula that defines the perfect bite of barbecue.
As Southerners, we typically hold to partisan geography, preferring sauces native to our region: mustard-based sauces in the Lowcountry and Midlands thanks to the Germans and Dutch; light-tomato sauces in the Pee Dee; vinegar-and-pepper blends — the state’s oldest — along the coast north and south of Charleston; and last in the historical timeline, the heavy tomato variety popularized after World War II that defines sauces from the Upstate westward on through to Memphis, Tenn., and Kansas City, Mo.
As someone who gets asked with regularity who has the best barbecue in town, I only can attest to what I like based on the sauces I’ve grown up with. That also is why, in the past, I have refrained from grading or ranking barbecue personally. Given my own prejudices, it simply wouldn’t be fair to those who perfect styles I don’t prefer.
So what, I asked myself, would be a fair method and also be of service to readers? That’s when the idea for a judging began. The only way to truly rank an area’s barbecue was to do a blind judging, but the problem with such a test is that more often than not the judges event organizers typically select are unreliable — everybody wants to do it, and no one is qualified. They rate best what they already like, and if there are enough locals preferring a particular style, you have a winner.
Fighting that formula for judging barbecue is the South Carolina Barbecue Association, which boasts the country’s most rigorous certification standards (see sidebar). Here was a group of determined, accredited and independent judges who would be perfect for such a challenge. A quick call to South Carolina Barbeque president Lake High later, and our inaugural blind competition was set.
What’s more, High said, not only would we be doing something in Columbia that’s never been done, such a competition has never been done anywhere.
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| A judge’s plate, showing only numbers corresponding to the different barbecues to ensure a blind tasting. Photo by Jonathan Sharpe |
“This event is most certainly a first for the nation,” High says. “That’s why it’s so exciting for us to participate with Free Times.
“Never before have certified barbeque judges gathered to judge area-specific restaurants side-by-side just as they would a professional, competition-level cook-off. It just hasn’t happened anywhere before. No one’s thought to do it.
“It’s a first for us, too.”
High and SCBA co-founder Walter Rolandi came to the Free Times office on May 24, bringing with them 14 hungry judges, two table captains and two runners. Only myself, High and Rolandi knew where the barbecue came from, with Free Times having picked it up from across Richland and Lexington counties not an hour prior.
Fourteen area barbecue restaurants — from family owned establishments to chains — were selected beforehand (a 15th had unexpectedly closed) based on internal and external polling. Our minimum criteria were that the establishment had to be open at least four days a week to be fair to those open five, six or seven days.
We went as far as Blythewood and Chapin to find the Columbia area’s best, and if your establishment was not scored this year, let us know and we’ll try to include more restaurants our next go-round for what should be an annual event. For that reason alone, each restaurant selected to be judged for this competition already is ahead of the pack and deserves commendation. And though the rankings hold, the difference between the places was unbelievably slight, with ties as high up as Nos. 4 and 5 (the tie-breaker was the individual “taste” scores. More on that later).
Judges came from as far away as Rock Hill and Allendale, eager to participate. Because this was an historic judging, High and Rolandi chose only the most experienced, proven judges to ensure the greatest impartiality possible. Two pounds of barbecue were purchased from each location, none of which was aware of the competition to make sure it was the same served to anyone else and not specially prepared. In fact, the restaurants themselves won’t even know they were in a competition until they read this story — not even the winner.
Given the seriousness of the business, SCBA rules were strictly adhered to. Upon entering Free Times and throughout the process, no judge could speak to another judge about their impressions, nor were they allowed to demonstrate how they felt about each taste so as not to influence others at the table. Two tables were seated, with each table comprised of seven judges and a table captain tasting seven entries that Rolandi, High and myself had previously ticketed (the three of us did not participate in the judging). Each entry was prepared in similar Styrofoam containers so that each entry came to judging tables presented exactly the same way. To ensure even heating, each container was pre-heated for the same amount of time prior to serving.
As for sauces, if an order came with sauce in it, it was judged that way. If it came with sauce on the side, it was judged without the sauce. These are competition rules, and they exist to be fair to everyone. What should be judged first and foremost is the quality of the barbecue itself, and High says often those who sauce beforehand place poorly because certain people just don’t like certain types of sauces, which can affect the crucial “taste” score used to break tie scores.
When choosing which sauce to order from a particular restaurant that offers more than one, our determining question was simple: “What is your most popular?” That was the only reasonable way to treat the issue; otherwise you get an individual’s preference, which might not be the preference of most folks who swear by the place.
The scores listed below are ranked on a scale of 1-17, and all scores fell between 15.01 and 12.87. Winning competition barbecue often is in the 13-15 range, according to High, which means that all the places below are very, very good.
The top 10 rankings below hold for one year because places close, cooks come and go and new places open. For the inaugural rankings, we boiled the list down to the area heavyweights. Next year, we may expand the list, perhaps even doubling it. But for now, there’s room for only one No. 1 in Columbia. The tasting is closed, the judges have judged and what follows is the country’s first independent and professionally scored list of who, at day’s end, truly makes the best barbecue in Columbia.
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| Judges carefully tally scores. No discussion of barbecue is permitted before or during judging. Photo by Jonathan Sharpe |
1. Maurice’s Barbecue
1600 Charleston Highway
Score: 15.01
Without a doubt, Maurice Bessinger, aka “Your Old Barbecue Buddy,” is as polarizing a symbol as the Confederate flags (there are more than one) he flies proudly at his Charleston Highway location. His outspoken views on the Confederacy have led individuals to boycott his restaurants and chain grocery stores to boycott his popular mustard-based sauce.
And yet, in a truly blind tasting by the most experienced barbecue judges from around the state, Maurice’s took top honors, getting a high score of 16.1 and a low of 14.2. At some point, no matter your politics you have to accept that the man knows how to make great barbecue, whether you like him personally or not.
2. Shane’s Rib Shack
2001 Beltline Blvd.
Score: 14.85
If there was a bigger surprise than who was No. 1, it was who came in second. Shane’s Rib Shack, a Georgia-based franchise that’s only been in Columbia for a short time, wowed judges across the board for its consistency.
Shane’s took No. 2 with a high score of 16.2 (tied for the second-highest individual score in the entire competition) and a low of 13.9. Say what you will about chain stores, but for these judges accustomed to superior competition-level barbecue, to score this high means Shane’s is doing something extremely right.
3. Hudson’s Smokehouse
4952 Sunset Blvd., Lexington
Score: 14.6
Begun just a couple of years ago as a catering business, all Hudson’s has done since is expand and attract regional attention, most recently appearing in a segment of “Blue Ribbon Barbecue Joints” for Turner South. Thus, it should come as no surprise that Hudson’s is in the top three, with the competitors above it benefiting from decades more experience.
Hudson’s top score was a 16.2 (matching Shane’s as the second-highest score from an individual judge), with a low of 12.6. With a couple of more years under their belts, the sky is the limit for Hudson’s.
4. Doc’s Barbeque and Southern Buffet
1601 Shop Road
Score: 14.4
Like Hudson’s and Shanes, Doc’s also is a relative newcomer to the Columbia barbecue game. I know people who go to Doc’s only for their catfish bites, and I know folks, myself included, who go there primarily for their fried chicken. However, apparently we should be paying a lot more attention to the quality of the barbecue, which the judges clearly applauded. Doc’s tallied a high score of 15.4, with a low of 12.7.
5. Little Pigs Barbecue
4927 Alpine Road
Score: 14.4
As you can tell by the above score, Little Pigs and Doc’s tied initially. That’s when tiebreakers go into effect, whereby judges tally scores under the “taste” category individually for a winner (Doc’s totaled 36.6, Little Pigs got 35.45 — it was that close).
Little Pigs has been around practically forever, and the restaurant is a Northeast tradition for good reason (love their lightly fried catfish filets). Little Pigs received a high score of 15.3 and a low of 13.8.
6. Sticky Fingers
380 Columbiana Drive
Score: 14.1
Another immigrant to Columbia, this time from the Lowcountry, Sticky Fingers has proven its popularity across the state (just ask Smokey Bones, which used to operate next door to Sticky Fingers). The judges agreed, giving Sticky Fingers a high score of 15.95 and a low of 13.
7. Porky D’s
931 Two Notch Road
Score: 14.09
Porky D’s hickory-smoked barbecue was good enough to warrant several high scores, including a 15.0, with a low of 12.5. Just solid, steady barbecue at a score that could easily win or place in a statewide competition. Only one-tenth of a point behind No. 6 Sticky Fingers.
8. Big T’s
7535 Garner’s Ferry Road
Score: 14.0
A V.A.-Hospital-area favorite with locations in Gadsden and the Northeast, Big T’s is clearly great barbecue, missing a top-five finish by four tenths of a point. Big T’s earned a high score of 15.3 with a low of 12.5.
9. Piggy Shack
5609 Farrow Road
Score: 13.9
A terrific, everything-made-from-scratch (including the yeast rolls) place that also is chocked together within percentage points of a much higher finish. Still, I’d think a top 10 finish in a metropolitan area of 700,000 isn’t too shabby at all. What’s also impressive is that Piggy Shack got the entire competition’s highest individual score, an amazing (and nearly unprecedented, I’m told) 16.5, with a low of 12.5.
10. Granny’s Carolina Bar-B-Que
2261 N. Lake Blvd.
Score: 13.8
An award-winning Aiken-based barbecue (est. 1968) that only recently opened its first franchise here. Located a mile or so from Lake Murray Dam on state Highway 6, Granny’s has been bustling with lunchtime traffic ever since it opened, thanks in no small part to all the hungry construction crews in the Irmo/Ballentine/Chapin area. They know what the judges know: This is top 10 barbecue. Granny’s earned a high score of 15.3 and a low of 10.3.
Honorable Mentions, in alphabetical order: Farm Boys (1250 Chapin Road), Green’s BBQ (5310 Farrow Road), Myer’s Barbecue (10324 Wilson Road) and Palmetto Pig (530 Devine St.).
Who We Selected:
Downtown:
Doc’s Barbecue and Southern Buffet: 1601 Shop Road, 799-1532
Maurice’s: 1600 Charleston Highway (the original location), 796-0220
Palmetto Pig: 530 Devine St. (near the Coliseum), 733-2556
Shane’s: 2001 Beltline Blvd., 738-1131
Big T Barbeque: 7535 Garner’s Ferry Road (near V.A. Hospital), 776-7132
North Columbia:
Green’s BBQ: 5310 Farrow Road, 333-0077
The Piggie Shack: 5609 Farrow Road, 691-4406
Myer’s BBQ: 10324 Wilson Road, 754-7400
Northeast:
Little Pigs: 4927 Alpine Road, 788-8238
Irmo:
Granny’s Kitchen: State Highway 6 (near dam, 2261 N. Lake Blvd.), Irmo, 781-1616
Sticky Fingers: 380 Columbiana Drive, Harbison, 781-7427
Lexington:
Porky D’s: 931 Two Notch Road (Lexington), 359-5556
Hudson’s Smoke House: 4952 Sunset Blvd., 356-1070
Chapin:
Farm Boy’s Barbecue:
1250 Chapin Road, 345-7600 | |
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