Local barbecue masters Joe and Christina Poteet, of J&C BBQ in Lebanon, will be one of the first teams to compete in a new, sizable barbecue competition in Las Vegas.
The Poteets and their team members will head to the “fabulous city” next Spring for a chance to win $1 million. But even if they don’t win the purse, the exposure itself is enough to put Lebanon’s restaurant on the map.
While Christina Poteet and Dawnita Groce competed in the Kansas City Barbeque Society’s “Smoke on the Sound” competition in Redmond, Wash., Joe Poteet and Ryan Brown headed to Enumclaw, Wash., on Sept. 27, to compete in the Rib Cook Off Association’s “BBQ, Brews and Brats” competition where they took home the Grand Champion title and locked in a spot for the inaugural BBQ World Cup in Las Vegas next April.
The BBQ World Cup, hosted by Caesars Entertainment behind The Linq Hotel and Resort, is considered the largest single professional prize with a purse of $1 million.
Only 100 top qualifying pitmasters get to participate after advancing from regional and international events across more than 13 countries. J&C BBQ is among that top 100 and they are the only team representing Oregon that qualified to compete at this event.
“In our industry, this is huge news,” Christina Poteet said. “As far as I understand, this will be a televised competition that will allow spectators to view the cooking area from elevated platforms.”
The event will also allow J&C BBQ to market their own products to the top buyers in the retail world.
The Poteets have competed in and won hundreds of barbecue competitions during the past 10 years, and continue to pursue their goal of making J&C BBQ a destination restaurant.