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We are always hearing about North Carolina BBQ, Texas BBQ, St Louis BBQ and Memphis BBQ. Granted they are all good but what about Kentucky BBQ?? Kentucky has a long tradition of barbecue and without a doubt some of the best bbq in to be found anywhere. Kentucky’s specialty is mutton and nowhere else makes barbecued mutton like the bluegrass state.

What is barbecue mutton you ask? Female sheep cooked low and slow

An older female sheep to be more exact. You see back in the 1800’s part of Kentucky had a large population of sheep, almost twice as much as cattle. I am not a history expert but something about a tariff in the early 1800’s led sheep herders to settle this area and wool production was a profitable business. But what happened when all these sheep got old? Well, people started eating them. Aged sheep was tough to eat though and a soon it was discovered that a low heat and a long cook time made the sheep very tender.  A dip was made of vinegar and hot peppers and over time it evolved into a specialty “sauce.” As time progressed selection of meat become more pronounced and the shoulder roasts emerged as the best part.

How is mutton served? There are actually two ways to serve mutton. First once it has been thoroughly cooked and is nice and tender it is shredded and placed on a piece of white bread and covered in “dip” and eaten like a sandwich. The other method is to pull the shoulder roast off the cooker and slice it and serve with a bowl of dip. The mutton is perfectly cooked when you stick your fork into it to lift off the grill and it starts to tear apart from it’s own weight. A slight carmeling of the ends makes for perfect mutton.

And if you want mutton where do you go? Some say Owensboro, Kentucky is the mecca of mutton. A place called Moonlite Bar-B-Que Inn has been serving mutton for as long as many can remember. Owensboro is also the home of the International BBQ Festival in May and mutton is king with 20,000 pounds of female mutton being cooked. You can smell it miles away and the smoke haze can be seen for at least 10 miles.

So…. in my opinion and the opinion of others Kentucky needs to be added to the big four and make it the big five. Oh yeah……Kentucky has great pulled pork too. Better than than that N.C. stuff……………

Let’s start this blog off on the right foot. I have eaten a lot of BBQ over the years but there is one place that stands out above the rest when it comes to as they say in Kentucky, good eatin’   Last summer my wife and I were watching a program on the Food Network about the best barbecue places in the U.S. and Interstate Barbecue in Memphis, TN looked like our kind of place so off we went. 24 hours and 600 miles later we were back home in western Kentucky completely satisfied.

Interstate BBQ serves traditional southern wet barbecue and in my opinion is second to none. I had a platter with a little of everything that took me the better part of an hour to work over (see photos below). Located just off of I-55 at exit 7, on the south side of Memphis, the restaurant is easy to locate. The owner, Jim Neely is an outgoing “old school” bbq man who definitely lets you know about his love of barbecue. The restaurant itself is nothing fancy. A converted grocery store with bars on the windows and a spacious dining room, Interstate Barbecue can hold a lot of hungry people and it is not unusual to find it full.

Jim showed us where the magic takes place. He cooks his meat in a closed pit that keeps the mositure in the meat with vapors that can’t escape. With 2 pits running from the early morning hours, he can cook as many as 500 slabs of ribs at one time. That’s a lot of ribs!! While Jim shows where the cooking is done, one thing he won’t talk about is the recipe for his sauce. There is always an ongoing debate, especially in Memphis, about wet or dry barbecue. Jim believes in wet and when your plate arrives it is covered with a sauce that make your taste buds jump off your tongue. My mouth is watering now just thinking about it.

So, the next time you find yourself in Memphis, or like us, within 300 miles (one way) take some time out and stop by Interstate Barbecue and visit with Jim and have a feast of traditional Memphis bbq. You won’t regret it one bit.

Interstate Barbecue
2265 S. 3rd St.
Memphis, TN

You can find out more about Jim Neely’s Interstate Barbecue by visiting their website. If you are in the Memphis area be sure to make this one of your stops. You won’t regret it. Here are a couple of photos from my visit.

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Hello everyone….  this is Eric from BBQ-Festivals.com. This is our new blog - all about bbq. Look for news on bbq products, grills, smokers, sauces, festivals, restaurants, recipes and a whole lot more. So be sure to check in and relax and enjoy