Houston Barbecue Events

Ann Criswell. Photo courtesy Houston Chronicle.

How Ann Criswell helped launch rodeo cook-off

February 26, 2026

For many Houstonians, the World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contest at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo (aka cook-off) has been part of our early spring calendars for as long as we can remember.
The rodeo and livestock show debuted in 1932, but the first cook-off occurred in 1974. The beginnings were humble; only 17 teams participated. Fortunately, the judging team provided some much-needed star-power for the inaugural event. In addition to the obligatory local celebrities, a real-deal Hollywood star, Ben Johnson, was a judge. A veteran of many classic Western movies, Johnson had recently won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his part in the film “The Last Picture Show.” Ann Criswell, the Houston Chronicle’s food editor from 1966 to 2000, also evaluated the smoked meat offerings.

Space City BBQ serves great craft ‘Q to Baytown

February 23, 2026

For barbecue entrepreneurs getting their start in a trailer, tending the coals and wrapping briskets in the 100-degree heat of a Texas summer is literally trial-by-fire. It’s the ultimate meritocracy – pitmasters who can make world-class barbecue in this extreme environment will often go on to open a successful brick-and-mortar restaurant where, if they’ve planned ahead, may include an air-conditioned pit room. Such is the trajectory of Logan Glenn, owner and pitmaster at the Space City BBQ trailer located on a dusty, sunbaked stretch of a farm-to-market road east of the Grand Parkway in Baytown. Glenn, 33, has been quietly building toward this moment for more than a decade.

Anthony Bourdain’s favorite sandwich is a barbecue classic

January 31, 2026

The late chef and food writer Anthony Bourdain is famously credited with the quote, “Barbecue may not be the road to world peace, but it’s a start – undoubtedly an accurate representation of his point of view on how food, and especially barbecue, can unite people and cultures. Another story attributed to Bourdain is his love for a particular sandwich made from a traditional deli meat and cheese. He first mentioned this sandwich in his 2016 cookbook, “Appetites.” Here, he provides a recipe inspired by a sandwich he encountered while travelling in Brazil, featuring a pile of fried mortadella (the Italian progenitor of American bologna) and melted Provolone cheese, with mayonnaise and mustard on a buttered and toasted roll. Undoubtedly a mouth-watering and crowd-pleasing dish.