It’s a rough time to be a North Carolina barbecue fan.
McCall’s Bar-B-Que in Clayton, Jack Cobb BBQ and Son in Farmville and legendary Chapel Hill establishment Allen & Son Barbecue all closed down in 2018, and now, Bill Ellis Barbecue in Wilson is shutting its doors as well.
Old-school barbecue barons have periodically described authentic, wood-cooked North Carolina barbecue as a dying art. A generation of artisans is reaching retirement age.
The reality probably isn’t quite so dire. There’s a new generation of pitmasters coming in behind them — but it’s smaller, and today’s chopped pork faces a slew of city inspectors who often make it harder to get an authentic-style restaurant off the ground.
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Government bought by the corporations. This is happening as we watch. Giant companies are paying politicians and bureaucrats to destroy any competition. Here in Iowa, I watched it happen first hand with local butchers and lockers.
ReplyDeleteIowa Beef Processors just built a huge multi-million dollar plant in the late 60s. At that time every little town in the state had a local butcher and locker that supplied meat to the community. Usually the local grocery would get they fresh meat there. Local product from local farmers. That was a problem for IBP. They just couldn’t dominate.
So they “lobbied”/bribed politicians to pass safety and health laws. The politicians had not idea, so in the generous spirit of the corporation, IBP volunteered to help write the regulations. Politicians happily agreed. Now I am sure it was just a coincidence, but the IBP plant meet all the new regulations. And surprisingly none of the local lockers met the new regulations.
The local lockers were a small business. They made the man running it a living, but not wealthy. They were jobs. Now with all the new health and safety regulations. Which by the way fixed a problem that did not exist. Anyone remember all those million pound recalls for E-coli before our food was taken-over corporations? Ya, me neither. Most local butchers faced over $100,000 in upgrades, just to stay in business. And that was a $100,000 in 1960s money, easily over a million today. Some of the required upgrades. The big killer was EVERYTHING had to be stainless steel. Walls which for decades were painted had to be covered in stainless steel. Facing that kind of expense the local locker plants across the state and eventually the country closed.
This has been happening in every industry. Giant companies paying politicians to legislate their smaller competition out of business. Because of this we are losing and have lost our local and regional diversity. I used to love driving across the country. The taste of America was unique to every region. I drank literally HUNDREDS of different pops or sodas again depending on your region. Every area had local pop brands. Small bottling plants that produced local product. Hundreds of different Colas, Root Beers, and fruit sodas. All different, some better than others but all good. They are all gone now. All that is left is Pepsi, Coke, or Dew. Beyond those there isn’t much left.
The federal government is trying to require EVERY restaurant to post the “nutritional” values of all their dishes. I don’t see any local restaurant surviving that regulation. Sure for McDonalds it is easy but my local diner it will mean death.
Your local BBQs are feeling that regulation pressure. Sons and grandsons are watching the inspectors. They are not stupid, they can see there is no light at the end. Methods of cooking and preparing foods that have been used for decades are being regulated away for safety. Even thought there has NEVER been a problem. But surprise, the huge corporate BBQs meet all the regulations. Never mind it tastes like shit, it meets the regulations.
Badger
Thanks and sad tale. The health inspectors for the street vendors in Vietnam are their customers. They usually sell in the same area and they can't afford for a customer to get sick as all will know. Novel thought these days, I know......:)
Deletecity inspectors cause problems for a lot of people. try moving across the street from the city lines.
ReplyDeletePain in the butt
DeleteFriggin Progress, or DAMN PROGRESSIVES?
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DeleteQ's is still open right, tell me Q's in Greenville is still serving, I promise to return.
ReplyDeleteLooks like Q's and Parker's are both still open.
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