It’s hard not to conjure up Don Quixote when considering Joe Haynes. Like the famous fictional character who went into the Spanish countryside on a quest to right wrongs, Haynes has traveled the hills and valleys of Virginia to right the wrong he believes has been done to the state’s barbecue.
“Virginia doesn’t get its due,” says Haynes. “Virginia, not that long ago, was one of the nation’s great barbecue destinations.”
A mild-mannered technology consultant by day, Haynes, 54, is on a mission to save Virginia barbecue from obscurity. In 2016, he got the Virginia General Assembly to designate May through October as Virginia Barbecue Season. He runs a blog called Obsessive Compulsive Barbecue that’s heavy on Virginia tidbits. He’s trying to market three Virginia-style sauces that he developed. And this week saw the arrival of his book, “Virginia Barbecue: A History” (Arcadia Publishing).
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DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
2 comments:
I have to agree with this fellow. The BBQ in North Carolina, especially the pulled pork, is like a cheap copy of the Virginia stuff with too much vinegar added. The area around from the Northern Neck to just south of Richmond has lots of hole-in-the-wall places that sell real barbecue, including brisket, ribs and especially chicken. There is a place in Urbanna called Something Different that has real neanderthal food made for real men and women and not the Hillary types who eat salad, tofu and quiche.
The hole-in-the-wall places are the best. I me member one place from 40 years ago just outside Tuscaloosa that was pretty much a 12x12 shed in a field with a brick BBQ attached to the back. Most of the times I was there the line out the door was 30-50 people long. This was before cell phones, so orders were put in at the counter. The barbeque was incredible. It's funny that there's nothing like the place anywhere around here.
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