Monday, August 10, 2009
Barbecue / Events My Alphabet Starts at "Q"
Posted by Chris Chamberlain on Mon, Aug 10, 2009 at 2:18 PM
Last week, I asked Bites readers to suggest some place worth driving out of the way for on the trip from Nashville to Memphis. Particularly in search of a new whole hog bbq joint to replace our normal Hays Smokehouse stop. Helpful commenter Pogo suggested Siler's Old Fashioned BBQ in Jack's Creek, a suburb of the metropolis of Henderson, TN south of Jackson.
We made the 40 minute detour off I-40 with rumbling stomachs and hearts full of hope. Word that Pat Martin had studied his craft there and that meat had been smoked at that location for over a hundred years set our expectations high. Too high, unfortunately.
The owner and his wife were extremely personable and took us on a tour of the smokehouse while explaining the whole operation. Our path took us through the pantry where we confirmed our fears with the discovery of huge cans of Hunt's beans which I had regrettably ordered as one of my side items. The "red slaw" which we had been told not to miss was simply chopped cabbage with the house bbq sauce squirted on the plate. But good bbq can still make up for bad sides.
The pitmaster admitted that they no longer practiced whole hog smoking because the economy had converted all the hog farmers in the area to raising corn instead. Now Siler's smokes hams and shoulders along with pork ribs and chickens. Losing the ability to select the cuts from the original pig sadly led to really mediocre pork on our plates. A shortage of smoke in the meat did not help the situation.
We were there late on Friday afternoon, so I'm hoping we got the bottom of the barrel. Again, the owner and his whole family were great folks and we need to encourage more people to smoke more meat. If you find yourself in the neighborhood, well...you're probably lost. But if it does happen, let us know if you have a better experience at Siler's. Best of luck!
The good news is that you don't have to go nearly that far to get some great bbq later this month. On August 28th and 29th, Nashville's Riverfront Park will host the First Annual Music City BBQ Festival benefiting Monroe Carell Jr. Childrens Hospital at Vanderbilt and Shriners Hospitals for Children. The event is rare in that it has won dual sanctioning by both the Memphis Barbeque Network and Kansas City Barbeque Society which is akin to getting thumbs up from both Siskel and Ebert.
Over 70 cook teams will compete on what Governor Bredesen has declared "Music City BBQ Fest Day" and the winner will be crowned by executive decree "Tennessee State Barbeque Champion." Obviously Phil has embraced his lame duck status and isn't too worried about ticking off our Bluff City neighbors to the west anymore. The competition is being held on the last weekend teams can qualify for the 21st Annual Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue in Lynchburg in October, so that should bring out the best in the beasts.
Local bands will be showcased throughout the event, plus lots of kid-friendly events are also being planned. For more details, point your pig here to visit the Festival website.
Comments (5)
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Sorry to hear that. Last time I was there they were still doing whole hog and would gladly pull the meat from the part of the hog you wanted.
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'splain me something, plizz - I'm never clear on how I, as a member of the public with no connection to the event (such as a judge, competitor, best friend to teh organizer, governor, etc.) get to really enjoy (i.e., sample to my heart's content)the whole bbq contest thing. Am I just the most unresourceful person around that wanders around smelling nirvana while having to settle for the commercial vendors that are actually selling and not competing, or is there some trick to scoring some bites, if you'll pardon the pun? It always seems like a nose and mouth twist on look but don't touch deal - smell but don't eat - like your nose is pressed to the window at Prince's and all you can get is KFC...
SL,
you are right. most of the time a bbq contest is 'falsely' advertised. the best thing to do is go on a friday night and meet some of the teams. most teams like it when the public stops by and shows an interest in what they are doing. then on saturday around 2:00 when everything has been turned in, you can usually get some samples from the people you met the night before.
Barbecue contests are like strip clubs. Unless you know somebody, you're not gonna be sampling the merchandise.
