BBQ on the Bow - Sunday Sept 2.

[Locke]

Well ladies and gentlemen some friends and I are contemplating taking in the BBQ on the Bow tomorrow at Eau Claire.

I could hardly be considered a connoisseur, but I am an enthusiast, but I've never been to this thing so I'd appreciate any info from people who have.

What cant be missed? Best place to park? Is there beer? Anyone else going?Etc...

Your input is greatly appreciated.

[Regulator75]

I'd rather BBQ on the roof of Encana's Bow.

[Mccree]

Originally Posted by Locke

Well ladies and gentlemen some friends and I are contemplating taking in the BBQ on the Bow tomorrow at Eau Claire.

I could hardly be considered a connoisseur, but I am an enthusiast, but I've never been to this thing so I'd appreciate any info from people who have.

What cant be missed? Best place to park? Is there beer? Anyone else going?Etc...

Your input is greatly appreciated.

We may have gone too early last year but there was o samples, no beer etc...

[Northendzone]

Any chane little bow wow is at the BBQ on the bow?

[Eric Vail]

I went last year and it was brutal. It was an event for those who were doing the BBQing. We thought there would be tickets and you could sample food and grab a beer in a festive atmosphere, but there was nothing. Mostly I got the impression we weren't welcome.

[MrMastodonFarm]

Originally Posted by Eric Vail

I went last year and it was brutal. It was an event for those who were doing the BBQing. We thought there would be tickets and you could sample food and grab a beer in a festive atmosphere, but there was nothing. Mostly I got the impression we weren't welcome.

It's supposed to be different this year. Apparently there will be more sampling etc. My cousin had a group enter last year and again this year, and apparently it will be more friendly to people stopping by.

[Wormius]

It seems like a difficult event to please the public who goes. I agree about last year, it was pretty uninteresting, and I am not sure how it could be made anymore entertaining to attend as a spectator, unless they limited the number of people allowed in, so you're not waiting hours only to get a dixie cup of meat. As great as BBQ'd meat is, the process to get there is slow with not much interesting happening inbetween brushings and bastings. Would be great if some booths were setup exclusively for selling food to the public.

[Ducay]

The problem is that we as a city have nothing to compare such an event against, except your traditional food festivals (Taste of Calgary, etc.), so people go expecting the same sort of thing, which competition BBQ is not. The "social cues" and etiquette are totally foreign to us, and rightly so.

Take a look at the American Royal or any BBQ comp in the US. They manage to take the long/painful process and turn it into a big party with lots of good eating. The difference is, it's not setup with a bunch of corporate booths waiting to take your tokens and give you a shooter size portion of a dish. BBQ competitions are just a bunch of regular Joes trying to make some tasty food for the judges and have a good time in the process. In Calgary, the BBQ teams are going there expecting a BBQ competition, while the public is going there expecting a sampling frenzy.

It will take time and years for the BBQ "culture" to become more well known and understood in this city. Until then, yes, it will seem awkward, since most people are just walking around clueless and bugging a bunch of BBQ nerds on their days off, because, well, that's all we know how to do. Until then, all we can hope is the promoters make the transition process as painless as possible, which, it seems like they are trying to do.

[InglewoodFan]

I've met a few of the competitors over the years, and it is first and foremost a competition. They are pretty focussed on what they are doing, but they don't mind chatting when they have time.

One main impediment to having samples is the city licensing. The competitors aren't set up to be a "food service" with all the hoops that that requires. Other competitions have less stringent local laws on such things so they can give samples. But in Calgary, they just can't make it happen. (I think it has something to do with sanitation and prep space. These guys run a very tight ship for food safety, etc. but the bar is set so much higher if you want to serve to the pubic.)