Paul Ryburn’s Journal

I added another 107 photos to the BBQ Fest album yesterday.  Here are some of the best:

Here’s a pic of the Nuh-Uh Girl eating.

The booth was a shambles after Thursday’s wind and storms.

Terry and Otto’s dad hard at work repairing the booth.

Sam and Melissa, two of my favorite people from Itta Bena.

Melissa tries on Mikey’s […]

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For those of you in Memphis for BBQ Fest, and who don’t know what to get into after the festival closes for the night, here are some suggestions.  These will show you the REAL Memphis:

The Dempseys at Blues City Cafe.  Most high-energy rockabilly band you’ll ever see.  By far my choice for Memphis’ best band. […]

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Made it home from BBQ Fest Thursday, the first day open to the public.  Here’s a look at some of the highlights:

This is a turducken, a chicken stuffed inside a duck stuffed inside a turkey.
While at BBQ Fest I had several people express interest in being my new BFF (BFF of the Month to be […]

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This year, our team booth was built to include a window bar.  Here’s a pic of team members Gary and Boo enjoying the window seating:

I’ve been told that the window bar was designed with me in mind.  The window seats at the Flying Saucer tend to be my home away from home, so the team […]

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Tonight I headed to Tom Lee Park for Friends & Family Night, a special preview of BBQ Fest for team members and close friends and relatives only. Shot a lot of pics. Usually Mikey the Camera Nazi handles photo duties, but he’s busy being Mikey the Bartender and Mikey the Door Gestapo this […]

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It’s not Thursday yet, but I have a couple of hours to kill before heading to the river, so let’s go ahead and get the Thursday night party list out of the way.

First and foremost… Memphis in May BBQ Fest. Tom Lee Park, $8 cover to get in. Park stays open until midnight. […]

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Tickets for the July 8 Robert Plant/Allison Krauss concert at the Mud Island Ampitheatre go on sale Friday through Ticketmaster.  I got e-mail from someone who caught them in Birmingham, and he said the show was so amazing that he traveled to other cities to see them again.  There aren’t a whole lot of concerts […]

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My allergies were just about killing me last night.  They were so bad that I couldn’t make it Calhoun’s to drop off BBQ wristbands… luckily Otto was able to do it for me, since he lives nearby.  I came home after trivia and went to bed.  Woke up at 3 AM, and coughed and sneezed […]

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(Members of my team:  Scroll down to the last paragraph)
I know a lot of people who read the blog aren’t familiar with BBQ Fest, so I wanted to post and give everyone an orientation to it.
BBQ Fest is the unofficial nickname of the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest.  Almost 300 teams compete […]

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Suhair from the Little Tea Shop on Monroe is on the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives” this week.  Click here for the schedule of shows, and remember we’re on Central Time, so adjust backward one hour.
A reader e-mailed me the names of the piano player and singer from Itta Bena… I met both of […]

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