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and attracts over 100,000 visitors. Many of Memphis' barbecue restaurants have become nationally known and can ship their products anywhere in the country overnight due to the proximity of FedEx's Memphis Superhub.
After World War II, barbecue became a viable commercial venture in Memphis. Small restaurants, known as "joints", began to open with a purpose-built pit for slow-cooking the meat.
Many small neighborhood joints in low-income areas, such as Payne's, Leonard's and Interstate, have gained notoriety as they reflect the roots of Memphis barbecue. Many regional chains also developed from Memphis, including Tops, Neely's, and Corky's.
As Memphis-style barbecue became more popular across the country, restaurants such as Corky's and The Rendezvous began shipping orders overnight to customers.
Memphis
Memphis most commonly refers to:
* Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt
* Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city
Memphis may also refer to:
Places United States
* Memphis, Alabama
* Memphis, Florida
* Memphis, Indiana
* Memp ...
-style barbecue is one of the four predominant regional styles of barbecue in the United States, the other three being Carolina, Kansas City, and Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
. Like many southern varieties of barbecue, Memphis-style barbecue is mostly made using pork, usually ribs and shoulders, though many restaurants will still serve beef and chicken.
Memphis-style barbecue is slow cooked in a pit and ribs can be prepared either "dry" or "wet". "Dry" ribs are covered with a dry rub
Spice rub is any mixture of ground spices that is made to be rubbed on raw food before the food is cooked. The spice rub forms a coating on the food. The food can be marinated in the spice rub for some time for the flavors to incorporate into ...
consisting of salt and various spices before cooking and are normally eaten without sauce. "Wet" ribs are brushed with sauce before, during, and after cooking.
Memphis-style barbecue has become well known due to the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest held each May, which has been listed in ''Guinness World Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
'' as the largest pork barbecue contest in the world.
The event is regularly covered by national and international television networks such as The Food Network
Food Network is an American basic cable channel owned by Television Food Network, G.P., a joint venture and general partnership between Warner Bros. Discovery Networks (which holds a 69% ownership stake of the network) and Nexstar Media Grou ...
and the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...History
After World War II, barbecue became a viable commercial venture in Memphis. Small restaurants, known as "joints", began to open with a purpose-built pit for slow-cooking the meat.
Many small neighborhood joints in low-income areas, such as Payne's, Leonard's and Interstate, have gained notoriety as they reflect the roots of Memphis barbecue. Many regional chains also developed from Memphis, including Tops, Neely's, and Corky's.
As Memphis-style barbecue became more popular across the country, restaurants such as Corky's and The Rendezvous began shipping orders overnight to customers.
Notable establishments
Jim Neely's Interstate Bar-B-Que
Interstate Bar-B-Que was founded in 1978 by Jim Neely in a rundown grocery store in the low-income neighborhood ofSouth Memphis
South Memphis, one of the oldest portions of Memphis, Tennessee, is a community stretching from Midtown and Downtown to the Mississippi state line. In its early days, it was primarily an agrarian community. South Memphis has many well-known neig ...
. Though never a restaurateur, Neely learned how to slow cook ribs in a pit and created a secret sauce based on various local family recipes.
Interstate rose to prominence as one of the premier barbecue restaurants in the city, and was featured nationally on The Food Network
Food Network is an American basic cable channel owned by Television Food Network, G.P., a joint venture and general partnership between Warner Bros. Discovery Networks (which holds a 69% ownership stake of the network) and Nexstar Media Grou ...
and The Travel Channel
Travel Channel (stylized as Trvl Channel since 2018) is an American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, which had previously owned the channel from 1997 to 2007. The channel is headquartered in New York, New York, United S ...
. Neely's brother and sister-in-law operate another location in Gardena, California
Gardena is a city located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 58,829 at the 2010 census, up from 57,746 at the 2000 census. Until 2014, the US census cited the City of Gardena as the plac ...
. Interstate has been voted the #2 barbecue restaurant in America by ''People'' magazine.
Neely's
Jim Neely's four nephews, brothers Gaelin, Tony, Mark and Patrick, founded Neely's BBQ inDowntown Memphis
Downtown Memphis, Tennessee is the central business district of Memphis, Tennessee and is located along the Mississippi River between Interstate 40 to the north, Interstate 55 to the south and I-240 to the east, where it abuts Midtown Memphis.
It ...
in 1988, though it operates as a separate business from the other Neely's and does not carry the Interstate name. In 2008, Pat Neely
Pat Neely (born July 20, 1964) is an American restaurateur, television personality, and author. He is the co-owner of Neely's Bar-B-Que restaurant in downtown Memphis, Tennessee. He and former wife Gina hosted two Food Network television programs ...
and his wife Gina debuted a cooking show on The Food Network called '' Down Home with the Neelys'', which is a top ratings performer on the network. The couple has also released a cookbook eponymous with their first show. In 2012, the Neelys announced that they were permanently closing their Memphis-area restaurants.
Charlie Vergos' Rendezvous
Rendezvous was founded by Charlie Vergos in 1948 in a back alley of Downtown Memphis. Originally the basement of his diner, Vergos discovered a coal chute and turned it into a barbecue pit. Eventually, Vergos converted his diner to a barbecue restaurant and moved the entrance from the street to the alley. Rendezvous is one of the older and more storied barbecue joints in Memphis due to its more than sixty years of operation and "hole-in-the-wall" atmosphere. The Memphis City Council voted to name the alley where Rendezvous is located "Charlie Vergos' Rendezvous Alley", though the address remains 52 South 2nd Street. One of Rendezvous' signature dishes is a barbecue shrimp skillet which must be ordered a full day in advance.Central BBQ
Central BBQ was founded in 2002 by partners Roger Sapp and Craig Blondis. Central BBQ has four locations in Memphis, with the most recent having opened inEast Memphis
East Memphis is a region of Memphis, Tennessee with several defined and informal subdivisions and neighborhoods such as Colonial Acres, White Station- Yates, Sherwood Forest, Normal Station, High Point Terrace, Belle Meade, Normandy Meadows, St ...
in 2018. Central BBQ also has a food truck that caters to local events.
Though a newcomer to Memphis' barbecue scene, Central BBQ has placed in the top 3 for barbecue categories in the Memphis Flyer's annual "Best Of Memphis" contest, as voted for by Memphis residents, every year since its inception. In 2011, Central placed first for "Best Barbecue", 2nd for "Best Ribs", and 3rd for "Best Hot Wings."
As of 2017, Central BBQ has 150 employees across 3 locations with plans to expand outside of Memphis.
Germantown Commissary
Germantown Commissary was a traditional country store for decades until 1981, when a new owner bought it and turned it into a barbecue restaurant. Noted for pork ribs and shoulders, Germantown Commissary has a broader menu as well. It was featured on "Food Paradise" that airs on the Travel Channel.See also
*Barbecue spaghetti
Barbecue spaghetti is a dish from Memphis, Tennessee, that combines spaghetti with a sauce made from shredded smoked pork or pulled pork, vegetables, and barbecue sauce. It is served as a side dish in some Memphis barbecue restaurants. ''Souther ...
* List of regional dishes of the United States
References
{{Barbecue Culture of Memphis, Tennessee Tennessee cuisine Barbecue