Memphis in May

Memphis in May, the largest BBQ event in the United States. I knew I had to visit this epic event! I, along with my friend Neal of The Flat Top King, jumped in my truck and made the six-hour drive to Memphis!

Upon planning, I found out that there were actually two BBQ events going on at the same time. Memphis in May and Smoke Slam. You know, we had to hit them both up!

Memphis in May has been around since 1977. It is mainly a place for industry professionals to compete for bragging rights to who has the best BBQ in the different categories. These categories include ribs, chicken, pork, seafood, and whole hog, along with a few others.

Memphis in May Highlights

A highlight of my time at Memphis in May was getting to do a short interview with Heath Riles BBQ. It was awesome to hear later that he was the Grand Champion again this year, making it his second time to win in three years. You can listen to that interview here!!

Photo of Tim and Heath Riles from Heath Riles BBQ

Memphis in May had so many vendors, different BBQ brands, and equipment for display. Demos were going on all day. I was able to connect with anything and everything that relates to BBQ. From grills, to charcoal, to accessories, and food products! It was BBQ heaven!!

Home Depot had the biggest display tent set up at Memphis in May. There were so many brands inside the tent. They gave out samples, gave demos, and also had many not-yet-released products to view. Some of my favorites were Nexgrill, Traeger Grills, Masterbuilt, Even Embers, Pit Boss, Oklahoma Joe's, Big Green Egg, Jealous Devil Charcoal (my favorite charcoal), Scrub Daddy BBQ cleaner, and we can't forget Scrub Momma's as well!

Photo of Tim with the Jealous Devil Charcoal team

Smoke Slam Highlights

Smoke Slam is the newest of the BBQ events. This is only the second year for this event! This event wants to be more of a festival to include music and activities for the entire family! Smoke Slam had two bigger-name BBQ guys conducting demos and showcasing smoked foods. They also had some live fire demos that included tastings. The live fire cooking demos were by far my favorite part of this event.

Tim with Down Right Delicious at Smoke Slam

Comparisons

Live Music: Found at both events in the evening

Samples: Smoke Slam was more limited on samples, but still tasty!

BBQ Competitions: Both events had these

Vendors: If you're looking for vendors and products, Memphis in May is the place for you 😉

Both had food and drink for purchase and the live cooking from Smoke Slam was phenomenal to watch! Don't miss that if you go in the future.

Slab of ribs on the smoker at Smoke Slam

Day 1 Events

We spent around 5 hours in Memphis in May. Talking to different vendors and checking out the different brands. It was fun to connect with friends and personalities that we respect! From the parking lot to pits, everyone was so friendly and welcoming!

Then, we headed to Smoke Slam, where we mainly saw Al Frugoni doing a live fire cooking demo. This is where they cook pigs, baby goats, pork loins, beef ribs, and other types of beef over a live fire. Once it was cooked, they started chopping it up into bite-sized pieces to offer as samples! These were a hit and would be gone quickly. They did this from 4 pm - 8 pm with something being ready 1 -2 times an hour. There were also brisket and pork samples available.

Jealous Devil booth and display with all of their products

The funniest thing about this day is that after spending 12 hours walking around BBQ competitions, as we were headed back to our hotel, we realized we were starving. Everything was closed in the area where we were staying, except fast food. So we hit up Arby's and ate our fill!! We laughed that after the largest BBQ events in America, we had to go out to eat!!

Day 2 Events

This day was about the same. I continued to spread out and meet new people and brands. I also wanted to connect with brands that I love. We spent most of this day at Memphis in May, with only about an hour and a half at Smoke Slam. I walked all of the competitors' aisles to check out what they were cooking.

I can't forget to mention that I got a bobble head made of me!! It came from State Farm, and it is fun to say that I have my own bobblehead.

All in all, we had a blast, and the 6-hour drive each way was well worth it. I took home some new goodies, met some really cool people, and got to enjoy watching the art of BBQ.