Pitmasters

Mitch Benjamin

Meat Mitch
Lee’s Summit, MO

Meat Mitch is a world championship winning competition barbecue team from Kansas City. After more than a decade of honing his craft, Mitch and his smoking posse dove head first into creating their own unique blend of spices and sauces specifically designed to win championships and trophies….and win they did! Now Meat Mitch products are used in BBQ competitions throughout the U.S. and world - loved in Paris, Australia, Switzerland, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Brazil, Canada, Nova Scotia...and the hits keep rolling!

Menu:

TBD

Tyler Florence

Master’s Of Fire
San Francisco, CA

Renowned Celebrity Chef Tyler Florence will ignite the KC culinary scene at the 2024 Q BBQ Fest with the debut of Master’s of Fire! Indulge in a world-class 18-hour smoked barbecue prepared by Chef Tyler Florence and his acclaimed restaurant, Miller & Lux, as local chefs go head-to-head for the esteemed local title of Master of Fire.

Menu:

TBD

Chris Stuewe

Arthur Bryant’s
Kansas City, MO

Charlie Bryant started the Kansas City barbecue tradition, or some say it was Henry Perry for whom Charlie worked. Arthur visited his brother Charlie in Kansas City and never left. Upon his brother's death, Arthur took over the operation and moved the restaurant to where it stands today at 18th & Brooklyn. At the time, that was just four blocks away from Municipal Stadium, home of the Kansas City Blues and then the Kansas City Athletics. It was also the first home to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Menu:

TBD

Teddy Liberda

Buck Tui BBQ
Overland Park, KS

As a Kansas City native and local restaurateur, Ted Liberda is well-known around town. He grew up eating both Kansas City-style barbecue as well as his mother’s home-cooked Isaan Thai classics. Ted trained at the Florida Culinary Institute before coming back to town. He’s married to Pam Liberda, Executive Chef at Waldo Thai. Buck Tui is Ted’s dream of the fusion of Thai cuisine and BBQ.

Menu:

TBD

Jason Morse

Chef J’s BBQ
Kansas City, MO

On any given day you are likely to smell the aroma of BBQ in KC. The very fabric of the community is saturated with the intoxicating scent. Breaking the barrier to become a successful BBQ restaurant in this town is no easy feat. Chef J has learned this lesson as the new kid in town. Working out of one of the historic warehouses in the West Bottoms, his days are spent tending a smoker. Moving beyond the traditional First Friday weekend, you will find him serving up delectable dishes every weekend.

Menu:

TBD

Tim Scheer

Blues Hog Barbecue
Washington, MO

From start to finish, Tim has engineered his own barbecue process. The pitmaster of the successful competition BBQ team Shake and Bake, the owner of Blues Hog Barbecue, and the inventor of the Gateway Drum Smoker. He knows what it takes to make next-level barbecue!

Menu:

TBD

Mark Lambert

Sweet Swine o’ Mine
St. Louis, MO

We got into this business as a means to support our competition BBQ habit, so we take great pride in the products that we use and sell.  Everything that we bring into our house is tested before its offered for sale.  We have been in the competition BBQ game since 1996.  Since then we have developed our own competition BBQ profile that we happily share with others every day nationwide. During our time on the competition circuit, we have accumulated numerous state and local championships as well as four World Shoulder Champion Titles at Memphis in May, third place ribs at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and first place ribs at the American Royal.

Menu: TBD

David Hawthorne & Eric Hansen

Not Just Q

Dallas, TX

Chef Eric, founder of Not Just Q and David, 9-year NFL Veteran, teamed up in 2016 to create the #1 rated BBQ Food Truck in Dallas-Fort Worth. Since then they’ve been named the best BBQ food truck by the Dallas Observer, and are currently the highest rated BBQ restaurant in Dallas according to Yelp.

They’ve had the privelage of serving NFL and NCAA National Championship teams, along with Grammy award-winning recording artists. Best known for their Texas Craft BBQ and scratch-made sides, it’s Eric’s creativity and culinary flair that helped them land on the name Not Just Q.

Menu: TBD

Scott Umscheid

Scott's Kitchen and Catering
Kansas City, MO

Since opening Scott’s Kitchen in summer 2017, it has become a hub for competition and craft-style barbecue, cooked with plenty of hands-on attention and extra, labor-intensive steps that can make it challenging to pull off in a restaurant setting. Umscheid learned the style first-hand on the competitive barbecue circuit, entering his first competition back in 2009 and taking first place in the chicken category.

Menu: TBD

Joey Machado

VIP ONLY

Texas Original
Texas

Over 20 years in BBQ Industry, currently owner of Texas Original and Texas Original Brands. Specialized in Central Texas Style BBQ with a Latin Twist and live fire cooking.  As a competitive cook for the last several decades and still today, understands the industry from the inside out. Over the years has been responsible for the growth and success for many major brands and now manufacturers for or consulting for many in the segment. High quality products for exclusive markets is his focus in current lines. 

Menu:
TBD

Cade Colson

VIP ONLY

SMOAK Craft Barbecue+
Olathe, KS

SMOAK Craft Barbecue+ provides quality Hand Crafted Smoked Meats and Elevated versions of classic sides with unrelenting standards of quality and flavor. The + covers all the other things SMOAK related that reflect our passion for connecting people through food. Our mission is to serve the highest quality Craft Barbecue to our Friends and Family of Kansas city, who make up the heart of our  incredibly passionate Barbecue community.

Menu:
TBD