The scent of burning wood and smoking meat wafted over the city this past weekend as 75 teams fired up the pits for Taylor’s 45th International Barbecue Cook-off at Murphy Park.
Competitors set up Friday afternoon to smoke their entries low and slow through the night and be ready for judging Saturday morning.
“They come out from everywhere: Thorndale, Thrall, Taylor, Granger, Austin, Dallas – Fort Worth. It’s a family event. They come out to enjoy the atmosphere and see friends they haven’t seen in a while,” said Ronnie Michna, president and operating officer of the nonprofit Taylor International Barbecue Cook-off board.
His family has been competing in the event since 1979.
Taylor’s barbecue competition has always been a social affair, according to Michna, and this year was no different. Some teams had as many as 20 people gathered around the pits Friday evening, with some manning the smoker and others setting up tables of refreshments.
“My cousin is our pit master. We all come and help her out,” said Jill Marek, part of the Serious Smoke crew. “We’ve been coming here for years and years. It’s one of our favorite places to be since all of our friends and family are here and we get to hang out with people we haven’t seen in a long time.”
Cory Keith, a Taylor native serving at Sheppard Air Force Base, brought two of his fellow airmen to the competition. Keith was carrying on the barbecue legacy from his father, who first competed in the Taylor cook-off in 1980. “I used to come here when I was yea big. We’ve been in the same exact spot for over 20 years,” Keith said.
Keith’s father, brothers and other friends and family were on hand to hang out and give advice. The three airmen are being deployed to separate bases soon, so the opportunity to cook together was bittersweet.
“This is the last time for us all to cook together, and the last time for me to cook with my dad for a while. It’s kind of our last hoorah,” Keith said.
While the adults socialized and readied their smoking rigs, the children ran around enjoying the park. Taylor’s Parks and Recreation Department partnered with the cook-off this year; Friday evening there were inflatables for the kids to play on and a movie scheduled after dark.
“It’s a great use of the park, and we’re thrilled to partner with them with our back-to-school bash and movie in the park this year and hope to do it for many more years to come,” said Parks Director Tyler Bybee.
In addition to the barbecue contest, the cook-off featured a grilled-cheese contest for children and a margarita contest on Friday.
Tim Mikeska, chairman of the organization, said people new to the area find it confusing the event does not offer tasting of the finished products. He said it has to do with Health Department rules for food safety.
“They would all have to get permits to do that, and it would just be too much. This is not an eating event, this is a judging event, but we do have vendors selling foods here,” Mikeska said.
“I was fortunate to be here at the beginning in 1978, and I’ve seen all kind of unique things at this cook-off but we’re really glad that we’re keeping the party going,” he added.
The event has become a family tradition for many, Mikeska said.
“Some of these people here today in these teams are third generation,” he added. “Their grandparents did it, their parents and aunts and uncles and cousins did it. Probably one of the most honorable things you can do is learn how to cook and do it with your family.”
Officials said prizesmoney awarded to the cooks totaled $7,790.
