What It Takes to Win the World's Largest BBQ Competition - Smoke Point: The Competition

[@thomashernandez1738]

Where do I sign up to be a judge 😅

[@eater]

You'll have to come back next week to watch as we dive further into the judging process of the American Royal World Series of Barbecue!

[@Giveme100ksubs]

@@eater ok

[@Mactastic25]

Some of those judges don't look so healthy. Guessing many spots open each year.

[@grahamsong4585]

😂

[@jesselund360]

You're 20 years away from being a year away...

[@OskeeWowWowIllinois]

I'm a KC local and my realtor competes in it and invites all his clients every year to eat at his tent for all the meat he doesn't send in for judging. Even the cast offs are delicious! He did a wagyu brisket last year that was like smoked meat butter it was so juicy. I think he placed in the Top 100.

[@andyhunter5869]

How was your post competition bbq poop?

[@OskeeWowWowIllinois]

@@andyhunter5869 Like a tub of Crisco and liquid smoke.

[@dustinsmith9212]

I bet even the 100th place finisher tastes delicious

[@andyhunter5869]

@@dustinsmith9212 not when it's a bukaki

[@johnmarkmike]

20:38 "So what I do is I come, and I just hit it with some of my liquids" BBQ videos never disappoint when taken out of context

[@lilchiefer0308]

23:16

[@ZUCChinishrIMP]

Anyone else feels like there's no way they can accurately rank 500 teams just from 6 bites of each category...

[@dhvmpyr]

Way too many contestants… any human would get taste blind

[@jerryjerrylahngenhairy4724]

Butter sugar meat

[@skizztrizz4453]

Seems like it's a good excuse for doing what they love and great BBQ is a tasty byproduct. 🤔😂🤣

[@phillipcarroll6625]

There is no way. The competitions are pointless.

[@icebrg.]

Idk, I think that there are ways of making sure palettes are cleansed every once in a while for food judges. The way food looks is also a major factor, which is probably the greater factor for the larger food competitions. Flavor is so important, but the way it looks is also important.

[@um931]

Judges are looking for a specific flavour. Heavy on sauce and spices. Aaron Franklin did a competition and summed it up perfectly. They are looking for a very specific definition for brisket etc not neccessarily what the best BBQ spots sell.

[@devonm5037]

I've tried comp BBQ and its disgusting. Like they said its more a 1 bite and look thing. You cant eat comp BBQ youll get sick with how bold and rich it all is. But its a competition so I get it you're catering to what wins.

[@Mactastic25]

Butter, Sugar and Maple Syrup. You would think they're making a cake, not BBQ.

[@anothertarnishedone5960]

So, they look for the meat to don´t taste like meat at all.

[@PlaySA]

Honestly that looked way, WAY overseasoned. I mean ridiculously so. Barbecue doesn't have to have a million different flavors and ten layers of sugar, apple juice, maple syrup etc. I'd prefer a much cleaner meat.

[@Frogbjb]

They’re trying so hard to be perfect that they lost touch with what makes good bbq so good. All this food looks like it was made by a machine not a human.

[@AS__77]

BBQ competition videos are a hidden gem for out of context sayings. “It’s all about concentration on the best bone” 😂

[@maikepunkt1442]

multiple meats to worry about

[@TakeaSwigofTheJuice]

Huge pause

[@ClearGalaxies]

Those butts are feelin' good.

[@Gatebreakerglitcher]

20:38 😳😳😳😳

[@usamaepekonis]

That venue must have the best smell in the world

[@Ais4Drew]

I’ve been seeing a lot of comments about “how can they really judge the competitors offer a few bites” and wanted to mention some things I’ve heard from my short time in the industry that reinforces that exact idea. Trophies are nice. I don’t have any for my cooking/BBQ. But I do have a ton of friends and family who have smiled and told me that my brisket is “better than their dad’s” or “some of the best I’ve ever had”. Most seasoned cooks and chefs have told be the same thing. Competition is a young man’s game. They can be fun, stressful, and more work than it’s worth sometimes. A good award can really start your career off strong too. It can also give your carer a big boost as well - And props to superstar chefs (young and old) who grind it out and can perform at that level. But there’s a lot of politics, vanity, and inconsistency (as we saw in the video) that comes with these competitions and that coveted award - whatever it may be. A trophy will never replace the joy of nourishing and sharing a meal with those you care about. People get into this industry because they want to feed, entertain, and bring joy to their community. You don’t need a ton of bling to do that. 😎

[@justaguy328]

That's with any human competition. But there are a group of people that consistently perform better than others like Myron Mixon and Tuffy, and people like that, so you can't simply chalk it up to politics, vanity, etc. There are people who are just better at BBQ competitions than others.

[@v.tantov.14v]

world BBQ competition,,,??? really 😂 how many countrys on this competition??? even the sistem is not tournament n jugdes don't deferent taste all around the world BBQ 🤭

[@derbsmcbergs]

How many of these peoples restaurants are closed now?

[@Bongz187]

I just want to be a taster, no judging, just tasting 😂

[@Ducktility]

Do you like dog meat?

[@markchristopher4165]

Appreciated how gracious both of these guys were when they didn't place this year

[@ChefBurns1]

Thanks for the spoiler 😂

[@Mutiny960]

Idiot. They are business owners ON CAMERA. You think they're going to cuss out the judges??? LMFAO. How dumb are you? They do that behind closed doors where no one can post their rant on the internet.

[@katheebmuzammil9197]

The CEO of the BBQ society looks exactly like how I've imagined a CEO of a BBQ society would look like.

[@bakunawa3191]

Tuffy Stone is really a great guy.

[@willie123567]

All that effort to place that low, brutal!

[@rosameltrozo5889]

That low? almost 500 teams, not so bad seen like that.

[@willie123567]

@@rosameltrozo5889 I guess, coming off winning both titles last year 88th or whatever is pretty brutal

[@cococock2418]

yes that low. they hyped up the cool smoke guy as a 6 time 1st place champion, thjen he finisheds like 300th or something lmao@@rosameltrozo5889

[@kamotetops1572]

17:23 The competitors are stressed out on handing over their final product, meanwhile... 17:53 The facilitators of the competition nonchalantly handling them. The competitors needs to take this into account.

[@LinkOmega1]

Oh man, what did the first place stuff look like?

[@avoidingtrees6692]

Humble respect from France !!!!

[@dustinsmith9212]

Imagine how precise and next-level you have to be to beat out 500 other expert barbecuers

[@v.tantov.14v]

scum competition BBQ 🤭,,, the funny is they claim World competition BBQ,, 😂 how many countrys on this competition??? even the sistem n jugdes don't know how many deferent taste BBQ around the world 🤣

[@CharlieSmurffy]

As somebody who makes backyard BBQ, this looks nauseating to eat. Idk how the judges handle all that flavor.

[@anothertarnishedone5960]

Yeah, looks like they don´t want the meat to taste like meat at all.

[@Frogbjb]

They’re trying so hard to be perfect that they lost touch with what makes good bbq so good. All this food looks like it was made by a machine not a human.

[@jones68442]

Makes me miss BBQ Pitmasters and Pit Wars!

[@LawrenceNguru-w4b]

This is very educational.I love it.

[@charlesorr5038]

Rod Gray CEO OF KCBS..didnt know, wow!! Love his rubs..most powerful...zero to hero..won me money in back yard kcbs!! Still use these rubs today at home.

[@DaraVODs]

if i had to guess, the skin splitting is probably the result of wrapping it too tightly when you tuck some of the skin under the meat of the thigh. having it sit a little looser would help with that

[@SheaT789]

not to mention it took 5.5+ minutes just to terrrine each thigh…I respect this guy’s efforts and passion, but he didn’t even temp the thigh without poking more holes in the skin

[@mikemurdoch9653]

YOU COULDN'T BE MORE WRONG, JUST STOP, STOP I SAY

[@tomypreach]

Wow... A good healthy bunch of people.

[@Descentperson4213]

I'm watching this at 3AM and I'm freakn hungry

[@davekragness4725]

Some seriously delicious looking leftovers that some lucky group of friends is going to get to dive into for each of these teams!

[@Jiiiiiiiytityiii]

What do they do with the rest of the food? Theres tonnes left over after judging

[@scuze__]

PETA gonna cry watching this lmfao

[@mandelbomb99]

The skill, effort and attention to detail these people put into excellent barbecue rivals that of Michelin star chefs in many ways. Its really impressive

[@Ted_P]

There are some questions and misconceptions in the comments. Competition BBQ really isn’t the same as restaurant or home cooked BBQ. It is prepared to a specific standard based on (in this case) KCBS judging. It’s judged on appearance, taste and texture with taste weighted 4 times more than appearance in the score calculations. This is a World championship as the KCBS is an international organization sanctioning contents in a good number of countries. For example, Australia, Italy, Netherlands…. Of course, travel to the US and securing equipment and food would likely be prohibitively expensive. Not as much food is wasted as it appears. Judges are allowed to take home what they judged and left overs are collected and shared with staff and volunteers and in some cases donated. Anyone can be a judge. You will need to join the Kansas City BBQ Association and sign up for a Certified BBQ Judging course. My experience is with KCBS, there are many other organizations that sanction events.

[@simmonsgoats]

Those are some TINY pits. Come on down to the HLSR late February to see some real barbecuing.

[@Garylhairston]

Great to see what goes into competition bbq.

[@bbqbourbonblues3257]

Awesome video! It's nothing like competition BBQ!!!

[@frequentlycynical642]

Huh? That's what it is.

[@bbqbourbonblues3257]

I know bro. That should say it's nothing better than competition BBQ!@@frequentlycynical642

[@oldgruntbbq]

Y’all were just across the aisle from us at the Royal when you were recording Tuffy.

[@billzjr222]

It's been a while since I've seen Tuffy on tv. He was in the BBQ Pitmasters tournament with the legendary Myron Mixon, Johnny Trigg, and Moe Cason.

[@jimbrickles9336]

Why are all the comments so critical but they all watch. They have a passion and love what they do bet your asses most on here cant do better like any event or competition you play by there rules out of 500 teams you finish in top 100 you done well.

[@spider2544]

At 8:28 what brand of bbq pits are those?

[@alexmartin8003]

Gateway Drum

[@GrillSergeant]

I will do 1 pushup for every like this comment gets. I need to burn off all the BBQ I eat. 🍻

[@samtirelli]

@emilianocastillo8709pause????

[@mailman2332]

Good one!

[@drilled4798]

Spread your cheeks boy

[@jordanbabcock9349]

Pushups aren't burning that off. Nice generic comment though.

[@CoreyC68]

How f'n original....🙄

[@dylant8110]

Pockets are definitely getting greased here I bet

[@ClearGalaxies]

These men are amazing

[@Panster7]

"It's a one bite competition"

[@RataStuey]

This is fascinating. I’m totally going to try to make a chicken thigh in that style, it’s unreal! Also the judge sounds just like John Goodman doesn’t he?!

[@vashlash6870]

Springer Mountain chicken is great! I made some lemon pepper wings using that brand, and i could not recreate it until i realized it was the chicken.

[@saturnv2419]

So en...... Are they still open for judge application?

[@colbyfaucett3372]

great video! maybe consider changing the thumbnail tho, the red border at the bottom makes it look like a previously watched video at a quick glance.

[@shane864]

I will never not be entertained by watching people at the top of their game doing what they love. I don't care what the thing is. This is a show about humanity, not food.

[@Honkiavelli]

I learned a lot in this video! :)

[@chilangochongo6487]

Waaaay too many people to be accurately judged. There needs to be preliminary competitions. You can't possibly judge 6 dishes from 500 contestants.

[@Chris-pd9hp]

Ever just watch something and smile… that’s what this is for me right now 😂

[@LittleKey93]

Amazing that they didn't even score well after all that haha

[@dmc3079]

Been there. It sucks.

[@jordanbabcock9349]

​@@dmc3079LOL. 400-500 competition teams and you couldn't find something good? You are the problem.

[@dmc3079]

@@jordanbabcock9349 I was referring to being in competitions and not scoring well even though I thought I did everything right.

[@dmc3079]

@@jordanbabcock9349 "You are the problem." - not sure what you are talking about.

[@whip8]

Makes you realize it’s about the table of judges you get, as opposed to just the meat.

[@TravelTime1991]

I’ve never been to one of these. How much to enter just to eat? Not to compete but to just eat lol

[@tepsan]

Where do I sign up to be a judge? :D

[@grahambunton377]

Where do I apply to be a judge !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!?

[@Frogbjb]

Is it just me or does all the perfection and making it look pretty really destroy the appeal to all this. I love bbq for all the little imperfections. I want my bbq to be stacked up on a tray and I want each bite to make me think “wow, I’d do anything to have that bite again”. Once you achieve perfection, it’s gone, and it’s no longer perfect. These people are trying so hard to be perfect that they’ve lost touch with what makes bbq so amazing to begin with.

[@mariodelgado9729]

Well the problem with being judged on flavor by a bunch of so called judges is SUBJECTIVENESS!

[@BLACKS4BBB]

So make a video of the top contenders.

[@billybaddewd1986]

The real winners are the judges.

[@oldahe]

These guys are so advanced on technique. wondering what all of that sugar would do to my European palette..

[@Sajuuk]

Tuffy looks like he doesn't eat the food he prepares, unlike the judges 😂

[@NigelTufnel612]

Rod Gray has a great job.

[@Zalkard]

Dude sounds like John Goodman

[@eagledirect]

More importantly, is this an event open to the public? Can people come in to access or try some of that BBQ food?

[@dinckelman]

Some Americans do this, and get absolutely incredible results, and some others... put bbq sauce on a slab of boiled meat...

[@jtorola]

I’ve been traveling to over 40 states for work for almost 2 decades and I never once even heard of anyone putting bbq sauce on boiled meat

[@jerryadams2539]

Thank you for explaining that fall off the bone is over cooked the most misused term in BBQ!

[@raheemabdul1066]

that pork was swwet as a desert and placed 400+ in competition and he thinks he needs to improve presentation lol

[@ACT1O1]

So how do I become a judge ?

[@chuckwhaler]

You can become a judge by taking a one day judging course. It is offered at many of the competitions and cost about $100.

[@brownhues]

Kansas has the worst bbq of the major styles. Carolina whole hog and Texas brisket are the kings. I just prefer pork bbq, personally.

[@ThomasBurlando-i3d]

Schiller Route

[@mytake1465]

Well I don’t think the judging is really fair . And that brisket did not have the right smoke ring. I’m hooked on TX bbq .

[@TearitoffE]

You know your the real deal when you got 1st place bbq trophies throughout your whole bbq restaurant

[@BornAgain717]

I had to pause it about halfway through and pull me a pack of chicken thighs out of the freezer...

[@justinmcslappy]

That tabulation error at the end is a major buzz kill.

[@Fotosynthesis858]

I will never understand why anyone would choose to bbq with propane

[@Sku11Ski11]

There's a Pizza contest in Italy right? Would amazing if you cover that too. Thanks for the video.

[@bensmith7536]

Without a control, who knows which judge values and recognises a particular taste / flavour / texture, what could be perfect for one may be too salty / not salty enough / too soft / not enough bite etc for others. Rolling the dice really.

[@v.tantov.14v]

scum competition 😂

[@BlaineReul-y8g]

Rosalind Cliff

[@GladstoneRebecca]

592 Boyle Forks

[@jazzfall9493]

Who won then?

[@kiranvajjha9731]

looks like a meaty paradise. Wish i was around

[@Productions-nt4zv]

So who was #1??

[@baptixm]

You’re not BBQing if presentation is your number one priority ~ you’re posing.

[@jigglepuff1218]

You've never been in a bbq competition.

[@captks940]

seasonings almost half of the meet lol

[@juansequitur]

so who won?

[@catlee8064]

World series....only US teams in the comp.

[@HandleThisBichh]

Can we maybe see this from an actual winner’s perspective rather than someone who doesn’t even place in the Top 10?

[@Chris.starfleet]

And also .... why are there two sections of pork ... but no mutton or better, lamb .... or hind sections of beef only brisket.

[@dylant8110]

This is America. Love it

[@BoredAndBrowsing]

There is a huge problem with this competition. Too many judges.

[@v.tantov.14v]

scum competition 😂

[@martinarcher1503]

should have shown the winners

[@77Brainfreeze]

If only they knew who was going to win before they started filming.

[@tanishv6890]

How do the judges know which one are who's tho

[@chuckwhaler]

They do not. It is blind judging with only a numerical code on each box.

[@ProfessorFatMan]

In my opinion, there's too many contestants. 500? How can you accurately rate every dish when some are probably cold while others are warm and more importantly how can you distinguish your 6th dish from the 3rd? I feel like there comes a point where you've had so much meat that your mouth is plagued with butter, oils and sugar and I don't know that you can properly rate your next dish. ehh

[@chuckwhaler]

It is a very organized and well oiled machine conducted by the Kansas City BBQ Society of which I am a judge. There is approximately one judge for each BBQ team, meaning there is plenty of coverage.

[@jackhinnenkamp4720]

butter

[@lester8403]

Is it competitors from all around the world or just the US? Because if its only the US its just a national championship!

[@chuckwhaler]

The competitors are truly from all over the world. I have competed there and met them.

[@gokuformanvsfood]

27 different countries

[@sactownism]

Until the Texas barbecue joints (Goldees/Franklin Bbq) pull up...

[@77Brainfreeze]

That's restaurant style bbq and they would come in dead last in this competition serving what they have at the restaurants in this competition. Grant is cooking two SRF Gold briskets that costs about $240 each and cutting 70% off it off and just throwing it away so his slices will fit perfectly in the box with bark all around. It's also packed with so much salt and flavor you wouldn't actually want to eat more than one slice. The judges pallets get so shot the competitors have to keep packing in more and more flavor.

[@Aztecian_prick]

Franklin did pull up and lost 😂.

[@Frogbjb]

@@77Brainfreezedisgusting.. idk how people got the idea that this was peak bbq. This doesn’t even look manmade anymore.

[@Frogbjb]

@@Aztecian_prickthey just want bbq that looks like it was made in a lab and 50 lbs of spices on top bc they have no tastebuds left anymore. No true good bbq here

[@77Brainfreeze]

@@Frogbjb No idea. I thought about doing competition bbq for a while but came to the same conclusion. Competition chili is the same way. It's perfectly cubed meat in a smooth sauce. No one wants to eat that.

[@ElectraPhil-k3j]

988 Roob Crossing

[@porkchop3918]

this competition is so pretentious it’s ridiculous…

[@en-v1069]

those judges are lucky

[@turnerpettway6905]

You need to try turkey thighs.

[@Djamieson713]

i'm going to join and turn in some burnt/nasty bbq just to wake up the judges

[@FlemmingErnst]

They're all great "chefs" that can present a perfectly cooked piece of meat, so it looks like it's all down to the seasoning... or?

[@BirdVic-f4m]

West Loop