Index Journal
July 6, 2010
Greenwood, SC - Reputation goes a long way in the world of food competitions, and the South Carolina Festival of Discovery’s barbecue cook off has earned high marks in its first nine years. When the Festival of Discovery barbecue competition, sanctioned by Kansas City Barbeque Society, opens Friday in Uptown Greenwood, there will be a mix of the old and the new, first-timers and seasoned veterans for the 10th anniversary. “We have some teams that have joined for several years and a few have been with us from the beginning,” said Uptown manager Angie Jones. “I have been told that our hospitality and the fact that restaurants, shopping and music venues are within walking distance of the cook sites make our festival so appealing. Teams can come in, set up and have a great weekend without ever leaving Uptown.” Working off the list of participants provided by Jones, the majority of teams for this year’s cook off are from South Carolina. Georgia and North Carolina are second and third, respectively. There are also teams from Virginia, Tennessee, Florida, Oklahoma and Louisiana. “Greenwood’s hospitality has given the Festival of Discovery a good reputation,” Jones said. “The majority of the participants are visitors to Greenwood, and we do what we can to accommodate them while they are here. We want everyone to come in and enjoy our great city so much that they want to come back next year. There is always room for improvement. We try to learn from the previous year and see what can be done better.” Things have gone right in the past. Food Network’s “Great American Barbecue Showdown” was filmed here during last year’s Festival of Discovery. That went a long way to adding to the credibility of the Festival of Discovery.
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From left, Dennis Dill, David Hord and Debbie Dill, of Greenwood’s own Divine Smoke, work during last year’s barbecue cook-off.
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The show aired on Food Network earlier this year and featured Greenwood’s own Divine Smoke. “This was just great for Greenwood,” Divine Smoke leader Dennis Dill said earlier this year. And Food Network vice president of programming and special projects Brian Lando said, “We were delighted with the food and personalities we encountered there.”
Of the teams from South Carolina, there are 12 from Greenwood, one from Ninety Six, one from Plum Branch, one from Laurens, one from Iva and one fromNewberry. “We have great teams in the Carolinas and some of them are right here in Greenwood,” Jones said. “Of course, we think they are some of the best in the nation.”
The first team from Louisiana is a feather in the Festival of Discovery’s hat, and it gives organizers reason to hope other teams will come from farther away in the future.
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“As we continue to grow we are proving ourself on the KCBS circuit,” Jones said. “By doing that, we are able to catch the attention of teams from other parts of the country.”
Tee Wayne’s Smokin’ Lipps hails from St. Amant, La., and is led by Tee Wayne Abshire and his partner and friend Brian Lipps. They’ve competed in barbecue and jambalaya contests since 2006. They learned a trophy case of awards, including five grand championships. Jones said when she talked to Abshire, he wanted to know if hash, one of the cooking categories, was anything like jambalaya. Jones definitively told him no. Abshire told Index-Journal staff writer St. Claire Donaghy he would like to meet Chatham Artillery BBQ. The Savannah, Ga., based team was grand champ in 2009 at the Festival of Discovery and the team Abshire credits with getting him started in competition. “Back in 2007, not long after I started cooking competitively, I purchased a book online by Chatham Artillery,” said the four-time Champion of Champions winner of the Jambalaya Festival. Chatham Artillery will be at this year’s competition.
When a barbecue team pulls into a town for competition, they also bring their names that are often prominently featured on a banner or on the side of their rigs. “The team names are as unique as the teams themselves,” Jones said. Among the teams this year are Lip Smackin Oinkers, Grog N Hogs, Bayou Barq, Big Mo from Ano, Butt Naked and Smoking, Byte my Butt Bar-B-Que, Pigture Perfect BBQ, Serial Griller, Queology, We B Que’n, Sue E Pigg, Lotta Bull BBQ, Checkered Pig, Rubbing Butts and Red White and Que BBQ Team. “Each one has their own style of cooking and their name and logos help them express it,” she said. “Perhaps the team name that sticks out to me the most is from my very first competition — the name — Your Butts on Fire.”
Economic setbacks have been felt all across America, including in the world of competitive cooking. “The economy has affected barbecue teams as it has everyone else in the nation,” Jones said. “We have all tightened our purse strings and for some that means cutting back on hobbies such as cooking. We are fortunate as many competitions are being canceled, we will have our largest event to date.” For information about Festival of Discovery visit www.uptowngreenwood.com.