Barbecue Meet Up at Lexington #1 Including a Visit to the Smoke House

Today, I got together with a couple of North Carolina Barbecue buddies (John and Wayne) as well as the Masterbuilt BBQ Smoker winner, Fred from Canada, at Lexington # 1 Barbecue in Lexington, NC.

Yesterday, I had a chance to meet Fred and hand off the smoker that he won here on my blog when Masterbuilt sponsored a nice contest for readers in the fall. We worked it out for him to swing by here on the way to see his parents in Florida.

Here's the barbecue crew in Lexington #1 where the man at the next booth was kind enough to snap a photo for us. I'm easy to pick out, since I'm the only female. Fred is to the left with Eli (my son) sitting beside him. Wayne is close the front with me standing behind him. Then John and his son Johnathan are at the table across, because they would not fit in the booster chairs, and a big church group took up all the large tables.

We all had, of course, chopped barbecue. And, it's Lexington style served on buns with slaw and vinegar based barbecue sauce. Though it could be argued as to has the best barbecue in Lexington, the lines at Lexington #1 would certainly give a clue that they do know how to rock Carolina BBQ.

Today was no exception. The barbecue was yummy as usual. But, I think the really stand out thing at Lexington # 1 is the sauce. That's the mop sauce, and you have to order extra for the table. There's a hotter version they have bottled on the table as well, but that fresh steaming mop sauce from the kitchen is . . . yum . . . all that.

The guys even had room for cobbler with ice cream. I never can eat dessert after a barbecue meal. I should have been born taller I think.

We asked about seeing the pit, and the nice lady at the cash register sent us around back to find Rick and Rick. Yes. That does sound like a radio DJ team, but they are the pitmasters.

We followed one Rick around back. The fire feeds from both sides. And, we found out that he's been the pitmaster at Lexington # 1 for 23 years, and that was his mother at the front register who sent us out back to find the Ricks.

Rick gave us a peek at the barbecue shoulders. Pretty amazing. We'd just eaten, but that meat smelled so good, we were all tempted to eat again.

Here we are with pitmasters Rick and Rick. Yes. This does look like a police line up huh? Everyone can decide who looks like the guilty party (-:

On the way out, I snapped a shot of the smoke stacks. Yes. That's smoke. The sky was a solid beautiful blue. The air was filled with the scent of wood burning and shoulders slowly smoking. Hard to beat that!

North Carolina Smoked Shoulder Benefit to Help Out Neighbors

Mom picked up a NC pork barbecue shoulder this weekend. I smoke shoulders or Boston butts sometimes, but they are a lot of work. And, this was a benefit for Mrs. Watson who has both a daughter and grand-daughter (age 16) with cancer.

This is a small town, and folks come together and help out. So CJs Barbecue Restaurant here in Cleveland, NC hosted. The guys came in and smoked shoulders. The bluegrassers came. Mrs. Watson is, by the way, one of the best of the bunch in this area when it comes to bluegrass. And, some of the men brought in some old time tractors and show cars too.

Yesterday I had lunch with Mom and Harry with our traditional NC vinegar based with red barbecue sauce. It's a thin bbq sauce with a little heat and known as Lexington style. That's Lexington, NC - of course. There's some debate about whether this style of barbecue actually started in Lexington. More likely, it started along the rail lines here in Rowan County. But, you'll not hear it called Rowan County or Salisbury style barbecue.

In any case, our barbecue is delicious and very different from other styles across the country. If you're ever in North Carolina and in the beach or piedmont areas, ask someone directions to one of the wood burning barbecue joints. They will know what you mean. There's a big difference between electric or gas and the wood burning barbecue, so be sure to find the real deal in NC.

Lexington Barbecue Festival

If you love barbecue, then be sure to check out the Lexington, NC Barbecue Festival on Saturday, October 27, 2007. This is the 24th year, and this festival just gets better every time.

Lexington BBQ is a chopped pork que served on a bun with a vinegar based sauce. It seems to be an acquired taste, but once you're hooked you will drive miles for this stuff. YUM!

The Festival has been named one of the top 10 festivals in the United States by Travel & Leisure magazine. I'm not surprised. It is fabulous.

In addition to the barbecue tents, there all kinds of food vendors and craft booths. Be sure to try out a fried apple pie. Get one early, since the line for those gets really long.

I do some of my Christmas shopping at the festival every year. There is a guy who has ties, and I get my boss Christmas themed ties which are hard to find. He is a public speaker and does Christmas programs, so he enjoys having new holiday ties. Last year I bought a really neat snake made out of a chain and an airplance made out of beer cans. I also pick up new barbecue sauces. There are always loads of those, and most offer samples.

Cyndi Allison