Chef Noodles - Wixom Michigan BBQ Man

Chef Noodles: MyFoxDETROIT.com

This morning the Detroit Fox Affiliate ran a feature story about Chef Noodles, a bbq man that sets up his bbq booth in a Wixom shopping center. 

I found another article about Chef Noodles from the Detroit CBS affiliate.  I used to read about a lot of parking lot bbq entrepreneurs a few years ago on various bbq discussion forums, but it seems like the desire to start a bbq business from a grass roots or boot strap effort is on the decline. 

As someone who has been toying with the idea of a drive thru - carry out style of bbq restaurant for several years after I caught the bbq bug 10 years ago, I admire his effort. I favor a lower and slower style of rib cooking, but a parking lot chef has to improvise, right?

He's been at for four years and he's not giving up yet. Way to go Chef Noodles! Good luck to you. If I'm ever in Wixom, I'm definitely going to stop by for some ribs or pulled pork. 

Here's another video about Chef Noodles:

Chef Noodles - Detroit Rib Man by tedcantu

Redneck Wine Glass

A wine glass made from a Mason jar complete with a screw on lid.

We were walking around a local antique mall last weekend and ran across a unique redneck gift item that I've never seen before. It's called a redneck wineglass. I didn't have a camera with me to snap a picture, but thanks to Amazon.com, there are plenty of listings that show you what I'm talking about.

FRANKLIN'S BATTLE OF THE BBQ: Experience an MBN Sanctioned Event

FRANKLIN, Tenn. - Franklin's Battle of the BBQ will feature 30 competition and backyard barbecue teams on Friday Oct. 28 and Saturday, Oct. 29, and the public can experience the Memphis BBQ Network-sanctioned event from behind the scenes. Presented by Heineken, the Battle of the BBQ is designed to give barbecue lovers a chance to taste the product, shadow the judges and vote for the People's Choice Awards.

"Last year, we were overwhelmed with people who wanted to taste the barbecue and learn more about how these competitions work, so we've added some opportunities for the public to participate," said Andy Marshall, owner of Puckett's Grocery & Restaurant and president of the Downtown Franklin Association. "From weekend VIP passes to the Friday Night Sauce Fight and Smoked Meat Feast party to Saturday's tasting in the Heineken tent, everyone can be a part of the action."

The weekend kicks off at 6 p.m. Friday night, when tomato, mustard and vinegar-based sauces will be judged by a panel of celebrities - Tennessee Titans Senior Assistant Coach Dave McGinnis is the latest to join the slate of judges. For $50, the public can observe the competition, enjoy free beer from Heineken and live music from the ConSoulers, and indulge in a Smoked Meat Feast from Puckett's Grocery and Restaurant that features barbecued lamb shank, smoked salmon Memphis Style, chicken sausage jambalaya, red beans and rice with smoked sausage, beef brisket chimichangas and more, along with a wonderful selection of side dishes.

A limited number of weekend VIP passes are available for $125, as part of the BBQ Lovers Dream Weekend package. In addition to Friday night's festivities, VIP ticket holders will have an opportunity to spend the day Saturday with the MBN competition judges, observing the process, touring the professional barbecue trailers, and getting a behind-the-scenes look at the scoring process while sampling the product of the nation's best competitive barbecue smokers. Unlimited access to the Heineys and Butts tent on Fourth Avenue South is included.

On Saturday afternoon, the competitors will submit their entries to the MBN judges, with $10,000 in cash and prizes to be awarded to the professional and backyard teams. Pro categories include ribs, pork shoulders and whole hog, and the backyard grill masters will compete in ribs, chicken and beef.

Afterward, as Pumpkinfest winds down, the party will kick off on Main Street, with bands from the '50s, '60s, '70s and '80s playing on the Five Points Stage until 9 p.m.

The public will have the opportunity to taste five samples of pulled pork for $5, and may purchase competition ribs for $1 per bone, on Saturday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. in the Heineys and Butts tent on Fourth Avenue South.

Anyone who tastes can cast a vote in the People's Choice Awards. The awards ceremony for all categories will be held at 6 p.m.

To purchase VIP tickets for Friday night or the weekend, visit
http://www.franklinsbattleofthebbq.com/.

Franklin's Battle of the BBQ is produced by the Downtown Franklin Association, a nationally certified Main Street Program of the National
Trust and a division of the Heritage Foundation of Franklin and Williamson County. Proceeds from the BBQ competition go to the continued revitalization

and promotion of Historic Downtown Franklin. To learn more, visit
http://www.downtownfranklintn.com/.

Plant City Pig Jam - Plant City Florida

PLANT CITY, Fla. – October 10, 2011 – Saturday, November 19, top teams from throughout the country will compete at the ninth annual Plant City Pig Jam State BBQ Championship. The event is 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Randy L. Larson Softball Four-Plex, 1500 S. Park Rd. in Plant City.

About 70 teams will compete in this Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS) sanctioned event, to win big money, ribbons and trophies, and bragging rights.

For the rest of us, it’s a chance to enjoy some of the country’s best barbecue ribs, pork, brisket and chicken. There will also be plenty of opportunity during the event to ask cooks about their pits, the wood they use, how they prepare their meat, and the cooking temperatures they prefer. Guests can also check out some of the barbecue-related items that will be for sale such as rubs and sauces, books and videos, pins and paraphernalia relating to individual teams. Sno-cones, lemonade, beer and other refreshments will also be available.

Kids will be entertained in the children’s play area where there will be a rock climbing wall, moon walk and other activities. And, live telecasts of all football rivalries will be broadcast in the beer tent. Ace Jackson and the Jump Kings Band will perform live music in the afternoon.

There is also a raffle, thanks to The Hay Exchange that donated a Big Green Egg grill package, and a YETI® cooler. Tickets are $10 each and may be purchased at the Plant City Chamber or at any Chamber event. All proceeds benefit the Chamber Foundation's Scholarship Fund.

Admission to Pig Jam is free, and parking is $5 per vehicle.

Pig Jam is hosted by the Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce. For more information, contact the Chamber at 813-754-3707, or log on to http://www.plantcity.org/. Follow Pig Jam on Twitter at www.twitter.com/PlantCityPigJam, or become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PigJam.

Great Lakes Regional Chili Cookoff

Linda and I attended the Great Lakes Regional Chili Cookoff today in Plymouth, MI.  It's been a long standing tradition in downtown Plymouth for more than a decade.

From the GLRC website:

Winners of the Great Lakes Regional Chili, Inc cook-offs qualify to compete at the International Chili Society (ICS) World's Championship Chili Cook-off.  The ICS is the largest food contest, festival organization in the world.

We sampled five different samples from various cooks. We tried a mild chili with ground beef and beans that was obviously made for sampling only since it didn't follow the rules for ICS. It was similar to what we make at home.  There was a medium hot traditional red chili with tri tip and a relatively hot (for me anyway) traditional red chili with tri tip. We also sampled two chili verde offerings with a lot of green peppers and chicken for meat.

My favorite chili from a contest perspective was the traditional red sample of hot chili, but if I was going to eat a big bowl for supper, I would lean toward the chili verde with chicken.  A contest sample isn't the kind of thing you can sit down and eat a bowl of.

For People's Choice I voted for MM Chili.

And if you want to try your hand at contest chili, Chili.org has a listing of recipes from the winners of the last several Terlingua International Chili Championship events.