NC Barbecue Championship

    MOUNT AIRY, N.C. - The annual North Carolina State Championship Barbecue Cookoff takes place Saturday, Sept. 25, during Mount Airy's Mayberry Days festival.

 

    The cookoff is sponsored by the North Carolina Pork Council, in conjunction with the Surry Arts Council, and showcases the best barbecue in the Old North State. Twenty-four chefs have entered, and fans are invited to witness the judging and taste the barbecue for themselves.

 

    The winning chef takes home $2,000 from a total purse of $4,900 in this 26th annual event, which rotates locations each year. The Pork Council chose Mount 
Airy to coincide with a milestone year for Mayberry Days. The three-day festival (Sept. 23-26) celebrates the 50th anniversary of The Andy Griffith Show's debut in 
1960.

 

    "What could be a more genuine North Carolina experience than mixing pork barbecue with Andy, Opie and Barney?" said Tanya Jones, director of Mayberry Days. "And we'll have actors from the show presenting trophies, including Elinor Donahue, who played Miss Ellie."

 

    Trophies and cash prizes will be awarded in two divisions: culinary and showmanship. All competitors earned a spot in the state championship by placing in a 
sanctioned barbecue contest held in North Carolina.

 

    The main contest is Saturday morning in the parking lot of the Andy Griffith Playhouse on Rockford Street. Judging will be done by a panel of certified and celebrity judges. It begins at 8:00 a.m., with prizes awarded at 11:45 a.m. There's also a showmanship contest on Friday, the day before the main contest, at 7:30 p.m. in the Griffith Playhouse parking lot.

 

    There's no cost to attend the cookoff, and fans can purchase barbecue sandwiches from the chefs beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday.

 

    For info, call the Surry Arts Council at (336) 786-7998 or visit: www.MayberryDays.org.

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