Why can’t Raleigh have a decent BBQ joint instead of mediocrity?

What makes a great BBQ joint?

1. Honest Q.  The sauce is important, but should never overwhelm the meat.  Chunks and “brown bits” also define greatness.
2. Limited, genuine sides.  Deviled eggs, while being the greatest church potluck dinner item ever, should not be on the menu if you want to be great.  A BBQ plate should be ‘Q, Slaw, Potato Salad and hushpuppies.  That is not to say that substitutions shouldn’t be allowed – to not allow substitutions is to deny all that is Eastern North Carolina hospitality.  As a corollary, a good fried chicken is not necessary, but does not hurt.
3. The ability to provide easy take out options.  Never underestimate the the power of the tailgate.
4. Good sweet tea.

What Raleigh BBQ isn’t mediocre? The adage “when it’s good, it’s great, but when it’s not…” We don’t need more mediocre BBQ (as BBQ Jew claims – I have yet to try Dickey’s), we need just one great place.

I am a fan of The Pit, but they have placed themselves in a niche that isn’t BBQ friendly – they are too expensive for it to be a regular stop on the rotation. They have done a great job as marketing themselves as “tourist BBQ” – when foreigners (anyone whose daddy didn’t put peanuts in their Pepsi) come to Raleigh, and want Eastern NC ‘Q, The Pit is it. Further, they don’t lend themselves to stopping in for take out, which on occasion, would be nice.

Coopers and Barbecue Lodge (I know there are folks that shudder when those two are mentioned in the same sentence, but I do lump them there) are the very definition of the adage above.   I’ve had really good BBQ at both, but that is the exception rather than the rule.

For the McDonalds of Eastern North Carolina BBQ, Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N BBQ (note that they put the chicken first – not a good sign) is very good (I’m a big fan), but it feels too sterile and manufactured. Further, Smithfield BBQ isn’t IN Raleigh itself – you have to go to the suburbs of Cary, Wake Forest, and Garner.

There are others – the Q-Shack, Ole Time BBQ – that just never make my radar. I’ve not been that impressed by either.

Where does that leave us? Sadly, a road trip to Goldsboro or Wilson is necessary. The capital of North Carolina ought to be the capital of Q, not Ayden. Or Willow Springs. Until it is, Dickey’s fits in perfectly.  Raleigh needs GREAT BBQ, not more mediocrity.

His initial reaction was not favorable.  His secondary reaction was not much better.

I love you Brad…

As the years have passed, those holes have begun to fill themselves in, much as Brad’s personality and maturity has grown and filled in.  We still have our struggles, and will continue to do so (he and I share way too many attributes for us to not battle some – it is a long family tradition), but I am very proud of the person he is becoming and look forward to knowing the person he will be.

A perfect example of this happened yesterday.  We were at Camp Cheerio, dropping off Jay (our youngest) for his first time at sleep-away camp.  Brad was already there, as he had been at the Camp Cheerio Extreme the week before and was going to spend a some time at Camp Cheerio proper.  A clerical error had placed Brad in a cabin full of 12 year old 7th graders, instead of the older boys he should have been with.  This normally would not have been a crisis, except that he has to live with one of those creatures, and the prospect of 10 of them for a week was more than he could stand.  The camp director quickly solved the problem, moving Brad to a more appropriate spot.

His mother and I were standing on the other side of the gym, dealing with something for our youngest, when Anne looked over and saw Brad walk up to the camp director, shake his hand, and thank him for taking care of the problem.

I miss the holes, but am looking forward to the filling in.

Back at the beginning of October, they posted a really neat video Tilt-Shift Photography

Dear Friends and Family,

It’s that time of year again and I must say that the fall completely got away from me. The JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes is coming up in 2 weeks. We’ve had a very busy month and I asked Scott if he wanted to skip the Walk this year. Maybe he is getting too old, things are too crazy. He said “Why would I want to skip the Walk. I STILL have diabetes and there is no cure yet, so OF COURSE I want to walk. Besides, it’s the best day of the year.” So…. Here we are once again writing for your continued support in our quest for a cure.

Scott continues to do well with his OmniPod insulin pump. He would not trade that for anything in the world. They came out with a new, updated version of the PDM (Personal Diabetes Manager which controls his pod and is also his glucose meter) and he was as excited about that coming in the mail as he was his xBox. Now we are trying to get our insurance company to approve another bit of new technology, the CGM or Continuous Glucose Monitor. This is another device that he will wear attached to his body that reads his blood glucose levels every 5 minutes. It will cut the need to prick his finger from 8-10 per day to just 2. More importantly, it will alarm when his blood sugars are rising or falling at a dangerous rate. This will hopefully prevent some of the dangerous “lows” where he has difficulty standing or seeing. It will also prevent his blood sugars going too high if he forgets to “bolus” or take his insulin. Research has shown that good blood sugar control is a key factor in reducing the risk of the devastating long-term complications of the disease, such as blindness and kidney disease — but that the fear of low blood sugar emergencies often prevents many people from achieving tight control, and remains a constant concern for those who manage their diabetes well. JDRF studies have shown that, with a CGM, hypoglycemia can be reduced while maintaining excellent blood sugar control over an extended period of time.

So, long story short, the studies that that JDRF is funding are having a direct impact on the care that Scott is receiving. THIS is why we continue to support the JDRF by walking each year and we hope that you will continue to support them as well.

Here is a video Jimmy made about Scott’s journey with diabetes: Scott’s Story

You can join our team to walk, or just donate at: The Rogers Family Walk Team Remember, any amount is appreciated!

Love,

Jimmy, Anne, Scott, Brad and Jay

This one won’t mean anything to you unless you go to Hayes Barton United Methodist Church, or have been to Camp Seafarer, but it’s a good slideshow.  I’m particularly pleased with the music choices – they really work for what is essentially an ad for Family Camp.

That being said, this trip is for my youngest son, Jay.  We were here 4 years ago, and his older brothers have great memories of that trip.  Jay doesn’t have any memories of that trip.

So this trip is about him.

Our first day here was spent in the Magic Kingdom.  “It’s a Small World” gets a bad rap in my book.  Sure the song can be irritating, but riding it with Jay, and seeing it through his innocent eyes, however, restored my faith in the ride and warmed my heart.  This may be the highlight of the trip that will be remembered for the coming years.

Yesterday, we were in the Animal Kingdom, which is our favorite of the four parks. We had enjoyed everything in the park (including riding Expedition Everest twice – a spectacular roller coaster) when it came time to confront “Dinosaur.”

We rode this ride four years ago, and it scared Scott (at that time, the same age as Jay is now) to tears.  He was hesitant, but rode it this time.  The issue we had to confront was Jay.  We had talked with him about the ride, and had explained to him that it was scary, and told him about everything in the ride – we tried to talk him out of riding.

The problem was, his big brothers and cousins were riding the ride.  I cannot imagine the pressure this 6 year old feels to be “one of the guys” – older and wiser than his short life should enable him to be.  We rode the ride – he was sitting beside me, and I was holding his hand, trying to warn him of what was to come.

As the lights came up, I saw him very quickly wipe his eyes dry, and proclaim the ride “AWESOME”!  The poor kid wouldn’t allow himself to cry.

His dad sure wanted to.