The Moveable Feast: BBQ Season In North America

Seasonal Driving

Pack a large bib and grab a seat at the table from a food-lover’s dreams. Pit-master clubs and BBQ associations are hosting fork fests across the country where smoky-cooking contestants serve up feasts and entertainment to indulge hungry visitors.

Spring and summer’s County Fair celebrations and Autumn’s advancing chill traditionally have been the time for chefs to prepare delicious, slow-cooked and smoky meats. Fairs, festivals, rodeos and local crafts markets offer exciting gatherings; many include barbecue cook-off contests with mouth-watering meals as part of the fun.

The urge to show-off outdoor grilling skills has cooked up many feeding frenzies around the US and Canada. Sample the piquant flavors and regional specialities at these deliciously indulgent events, smoking hot and served up right near you.

A Hot Topic

What qualifies as a “barbecue” has become a fiercely-contested question depending upon country of origin, region and history.

Webster’s Dictionary defines the verb “to barbecue” as “to roast or broil on a rack over hot coals, or on a revolving spit before or over a source of heat.” It describes one meaning for the noun “barbecue” as “a social gathering, especially in the open air where barbecued food is eaten.”

Those definitions are where agreement stops.

Fire. Smoke. Direct heat. Indirect heat. Pit-cooked open. Pit-cooked smothered. Grilled. Smoked. Dry rub, Wet marinade. Sauces. Bee basting. Grill distance. Number of food turns. Experts abound and are passionately definite about the best way to barbecue.

Marshall Cooper, in his article “Pit Talk: The 7 essentials of damn good barbecue” on the Texas BBQ Posse website, stirs it all together:

“What makes good BBQ? I consider successful barbecue to be the combination of seven basic characteristics happening at once: tenderness, juiciness, smokiness, proper fat rendering, enhanced rub, good exterior bark, all with a firm texture.”

Barbecue cooking gatherings may have their origins when Colonial settlements in North America “put food by” with the onset of colder temperatures in the fall. Settler families and communities gathered to build barns, reap the crops and share in the harvest time abundance. Working outdoors, they salted down and smoked some meat to preserve it, serving up a big feast of roasted or slow-cooked cuts that would not keep.

Whatever the origins, we can enjoy the results. The variety of foods produced at BBQ festivals today include vegetarian and vegan offerings as well as traditional meats. Most events feature a barbecue cooking contest, cooking classes, a showcase of the latest grilling equipment, live music and plenty of food for visitors to chow down.

Taking It Slow: Styles of barbecue

Each of the barbecue types listed here have committed fans, websites, cookbooks, online articles, pitmaster associations and contests dedicated to just these varieties of the smoky cooking art.

• Saint Louis BBQ is known for long-cooking times, using a thick sauce or a spice mixture dry-rubbed into the marinating meat before cooking. Some sources attest this style of BBQ was brought to the region by freed slaves from down the Mississippi River.

• Kansas City BBQ developed a western-style of slow-roasted cooking incorporating a dry-rub of spices on a wide variety of meats, and served with a thick, tomato-based sauce sweetened with molasses.

• Memphis BBQ is slow-roasted in a pit over coals, after being rubbed with a salty, dry spice mix. It is served either “dry” with no sauce, or “wet” with a vinegary sauce brushed on many times during cooking.
• Carolina BBQ moved throughout the eastern and southern states. It typically features pork cooked slowly over hardwood coals, often served with vinegar-infused sauces of varying sweetness. “Pulled pork” BBQ sandwiches are relished in block parties and city celebrations up and down the east coast.
• Texas BBQ, is similar to that of Carolina or Memphis, but adds the influence of Mexican history and culture. It often relies on thick, tomato and sweet/sour vinegar sauces, slow-roasted in a pit, suspended on an iron rack over coals or smothered under coals in the Mexican tradition. The zing of chili in some recipes adds a Texan cowboy yell of spicy heat.

• Western BBQ, or chuckwagon style from cowboy traditions, reflects the history of pit-roasted or dutch-oven seared meats prepared at camp for meals on the trail. Cowboy lingo permeates the language of barbecue cooking with Spanish imports like rancho, rodeo, la riata, poncho and chapas. Cowboys are also credited with the tradition of using Mesquite coals, gathered right along the western trails for the finest smoke flavors. Cowboy rodeos and stampedes from Arizona to Alberta often feature trail-cooking and barbecue contests.
• Santa Maria BBQ, from the central California coast, has become famous for barbecued tri-tip steak and beef rump slowly seared over fires of native red oak coals and simply flavored with spices and garlic. This left-over of the Mexican colonial era is a centuries-old tradition of California culture and cattle ranching on California’s Central Coast.

Celebrate smoke

Expand your smoky food explorations and savor grilled grub at festivals and competitions across Canada and the US. Barbecue cooking events generally begin to heat up after Memorial Day and simmer through the end of fall.

The websites of Barbecue Associations and “pit master’s” groups in the Midwest, Pacific Northwest, Oregon, California and Texas of the US and provinces of Canada are easy to locate in your region with a simple web search.

Most of these BBQ Association websites are packed with resources: recipes, tips for grilling at home, newsletters to subscribe to, opportunities for classes, product and equipment reviews, articles and cooking instructions. You could even become a BBQ competitor at next year’s events!

Coastal BBQ festivals often feature local seafood barbecuing traditions.

For example, salmon smoke-cooked on cedar planks is a technique borrowed from the native tribes of the Pacific northwest. Coastal communities along both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans adapted a direct-cooking technique right on the beach, using driftwood and heated sand pits to serve up a seasonal catch.

BBQ events on the eastern and western seaboards of the US and Canada are a seaside culinary feature of fall and spring. Load your plate at oyster and shrimp barbecues, scallop roasts, fish harvests, crab or lobster feeds and clambakes.

Canada has its own take on slow-cooking with its cowboy traditions in the central prairies and Rockies, or seafood bakes popular along the St. Lawrence and Atlantic shores and along the Inland Passage on the west coast. Canadian barbecue organizations, such as the Canadian BBQ Society and BBQ On The Bow Society, host an increasing number of slow-cooked food gatherings.

Spring & Summer BBQ Events

Listed below are a small sampler of BBQ events in the US and Canada, arranged by date.


For a plate-full of more events, check out online ‘cueing magazines (such as BarbecueNews.com, FindBBQComps.com and BBQChefs.com, among many others) that list cooking events by region, date, and BBQ Style.

Mixed grill: US Barbecue Events

  • Smokin on Blackshear BBQ & Music Festival, Cordele, Georgia. May 4, 2024
  • Pendleton Cattle Baron’s Buckaroo BBQ Challenge, Pendleton, Oregon - May 4, 2024
  • 5th Annual IBEW Social BBQ & Chili Cookoff, San Diego, California - May 4, 2024
  • Show Low Steak Throwdown, Show Low, Arizona - May 4, 2024
  • City Of Alamo Watermelon Festival and Cook Off,- Alamo, Texas - May 10-11, 2024
  • Show Me State Steak Cook Off, Kennett, Missouri - May 10, 2024
  • Butterfield Stage Days, Bridgeport, Texas - May 10-11, 2024
  • Twin Valley Fire and Smoke, Morgantown, Pennsylvania. - May 17, 2024
  • Donate Life/ Cystic Fibrosis Ancillary Cookoff, Jacksonville, FL - May 24, 2024
  • Celebrate Big Apple BBQ, Madison Square Park, New York, NY - May 20
  • Kansas City BBQ Society World Invitational, Lebanon, Tennessee -May 24-26
  • BBQ, Blues & Brews On The Bay 2024, North Bend, Oregon - May 26, 2024.
  • Pitmaster’s SCA Competition, Connelly Springs, North Carolina - June 1, 2024
  • Annual Redneck Cook-Off, Dayton, Texas - June 8, 2024
  • K C BBQ Smoke Off 4-Life, Kansas City, Kansas - June 14, 2024
  • Smoke on the Hill, Brady, Texas - June 14, 2024
  • Almost Heaven BBQ Bash, Buckhannon, West Virginia - June 14, 2024
  • Berry Dairy Days Smoke & Grill Competition, Burlington, Washington - Jun 16, 2024
  • BBQ & Brew, Rutland, Vermont - June 22, 2024
  • Burnt Offerings BBQ Contest, Riverside, California - June 28, 2024
  • Hog Days of Summer BBQ Cook-Off, Bloomington, Indiana - July 26, 2024
  • Rhode Island BBQ Championship, Warwick, Rhode Island - July 5, 2024
  • Smokin' Grass Bluegrass & BBQ Festival, Manteo, North Carolina - July 6, 2024
  • Ballard Seafood Fest, Ballard, Washington - July 12-14, 2024.
  • Connecticut BBQ Challenge, Somers, Connecticut - July 12, 2024
  • Smoke & Soul Fest BBQ Competition, Casper, Wyoming - July 13. 2024
  • Operation Up in Smoke, Epping, New Hampshire - July 27, 2024
  • Maine Lobster Festival, Rockland, Maine - August 2-6, 2024
  • All American BBQ Throwdown, Wheatland, Michigan - August 2, 2024
  • Death's Door Barbeque, Washington Island, Wisconsin - August 22-23, 2024
  • World Championship Cow Chip Throw and BBQ Cook Off, Beaver, Texas - August 23, 2024
  • Fire In The Foothills, King, North Carolina - August 30, 2024
  • Hampton Beach Seafood Festival, Hampton Beach, New Hampshire - September 6-8, 2024

Canadian BBQ events: Summer

  • Embers & Ice Competition, Calmar, Alberta - May 25-26, 2024
  • Smooth Smokin’ The Jack 9 Memorial, La Salette, Ontario, - May 25-26, 2024
  • Columbia Valley Smoke Show, Invermere, British Columbia - June 1, 2024
  • BBQ Fest at Bonjour Quebec, Quebec - June 1-30. A month-long celebration of this city with concerts, performances and entertainment for the whole family along the St. Lawrence river. BBQ Fest will feature demonstrations, cooking classes, tastings, workshops and feasts as part of the festival
  • Backyard BBQ Pop-Up Pitmaster, Fallsview Food & Drink Fest, Niagara Falls (Canada) June 6-9, 2024
  • Small Town Smoke Down, Bassano, Alberta - June 8, 2024
  • Smoky Skies BBQ Competition, Kipling, Saskatchewan- June 22-23, 2024
  • Country & Coals, Dauphine, Manitoba - June 29-30, 2024
  • Calgary Stampede BBQs: “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth” is July 5-14 this year and features several BBQ events with games, entertainment, music, film, and other attractions. Lasso some fun and get a gallon-hatful of grub at this grandaddy of the rodeos.
  • Silverado Stampede BBQ, sponsored by local businesses, July 9, 12-2pm
  • Shaw Yeehaw, a multi-cultural food fest - July 9, 3-8pm
  • Cowboys BBQ Invitational Cook-Off - Cowboy Music Festival meets smokers - a Stampede highlight for foodies. July 15, 12-twilight
  • Stampede BBQ & John Ware Reclaimed honors a famed local black cowboy. July 13, 5-8:pm
  • Banff Trail Community Association BBQ Fest - Craft Breweries, live music, family fun and yummy eats highlight this smoker of an event. July 15, 4-10pm
  • Canada’s Largest Ribfest, Burlington, Ontario. August 30-September 2, 2024

Fall BBQ Contests and Gatherings:

Autumn has several famous, family fun-filled harvest-time barbecue events, worth a special road trip to visit.

• American Royal World Series of BBQ - Kansas City, Kansas

Oct. 30 - Nov. 3, 2024.

This whopper of a festival in the heart of the US Midwest expects over 50,000 visitors annually at the Kansas City Speedway. Hundreds of teams of BBQ chefs come from all over the world, hoping for the title crown in two colossal meat cooking events: the Over-All Competition and the Invitational Competition.

What is barbecue without the traditional side dishes? There is a contest for best dish fillers in the Sides Competition. This big celebration has its plate loaded with tasting events, food booths, vendors and events for the kids where all ages can enjoy six days centered around barbecue.

•Jack Daniels Championship Invitational Barbecue - Lynchburg, Tennessee

Oct. 11-12th, 2024.

Familiarly known as “The Jack”, this annual contest takes over this whiskey-making city, hosting over 80 world BBQ teams that vie for the Grand Champion title. Separate competitions in seven categories give chances for chefs to shine: Beef Brisket, Chicken, Pork Ribs, Pork Shoulders/Butts, Jack Daniel’s Sauce, Cook’s Choice and Desserts. The event features free live music, a parade, kid’s activities, County Dog Show, Fun Fair and rides, tours as well as athletic running events to enter.

Tennessee is a wonder of autumn color this time of year; be sure to plan your road trip to take advantage of the seasonal show at beautiful parks and roadways deservedly famed for their vibrant scenery.

•Three California BBQ Association listed events - August - October 2024

The cbbqa.com website includes event information and opportunities to participate.

  • Aug. 24 - two BBQ events are listed for this day: Hot August Bites 10th Anniversary in Rio Linda, Calif. and the All-American Rib Cook-Off 2024 in Auburn, CA.
  • Oct. 5 -The Silicon Valley Pig Jig in San Jose, Calif. This is a team event in the “Backyard BBQ” style.
  • Oct. 12 - San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Foundation Mounted Patrol 4th Annual Rib Cook Off is a competition filled with Wild West associations in Clements, Calif. The event is held at the Buckaroo Rodeo Grounds. The festival has activities for kids, rides, raffles, live music and free entry to the events. Get more information on the CBBQA website links to the festivals.

•The Barbecue Festival - Lexington, North Carolina. October 26-28, 2024.

PIG OUT! is the theme at this hog-sized celebration of BBQ indulgence. Visitors can sample a whole town full of grilled food accompanied by musical performers and family attractions in this gala that occupies the entire downtown area.

This year extra events are scheduled to celebrate the 40th anniversary for this feed fest: decades of tradition make this one of the “big meets for meat” in the world of BBQ competitions. Sand-sculpture contests and other attractions for the whole family are listed on the website with a calendar of events, places to stay and tickets to the festival.

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