Raising the steaks: Memphis in May barbecue contest adds beef competition
Team members celebrate as winners are announced at the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest at Liberty Park on Saturday, May 18, 2024. (Ziggy Mack/The Daily Memphian file)
The Memphis in May International Festival is adding a steak cookout competition to its annual barbecue cooking contest this coming May.
The addition to the 47-year old barbecue contest was announced Thursday, Jan. 23, by MIM president and CEO Mack Weaver.
Barbecue teams in the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest at Liberty Park will be eligible to compete in the one-day event to be held May 15 amid the longer barbecue weekend that runs May 14-17.
The competition is also affiliated with the Steak Cookoff Association and includes a chance to compete in SCA’s World Championship in Fort Worth, Texas in March 2026. The affiliation also includes a $6,000 total prize purse with $3,000 for the first-place team.
“It’s long been a goal of ours to have an SCA Cookoff at Memphis in May,” Steak Cookoff Association founder Ken Phillips said in the press release announcing the new competition. “The cooks and judges are very excited about the opportunity. I look forward to a long and successful collaboration.”
The association isn’t exclusive to steak. It sanctions burger, wing and rib cookoffs as well.
For the steak competition, SCA events require the event promoter to provide the steaks to the teams “to create a level playing field,” according to the association’s website.
“No outside ribeye steaks are allowed,” it reads.
Weaver said the addition of the steak cookoff continues the barbecue contest’s history of continuing to bring “excitement and immense competition” during the month of activities.
Topics
Memphis in May International Festival Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest Steak Cookoff AssociationBill Dries on demand
Never miss an article. Sign up to receive Bill Dries' stories as they’re published.
Enter your e-mail address
Bill Dries
Bill Dries covers city and county government and politics. He is a native Memphian and has been a reporter for almost 50 years covering a wide variety of stories from the 1977 death of Elvis Presley and the 1978 police and fire strikes to numerous political campaigns, every county mayor and every Memphis Mayor starting with Wyeth Chandler.
Want to comment on our stories or respond to others? Join the conversation by subscribing now. Only paid subscribers can add their thoughts or upvote/downvote comments. Our commenting policy can be viewed here.