On reconsidering NC barbecue’s continental divide

“For some years, I’m now prepared to admit, I somehow labored under the impression that Rocky Mount is the line of demarcation that separates the two principal schools of North Carolina barbecue. Wrong. The line of demarcation is….”

— From “In Defense of the True ’Cue: Keeping pork pure in North Carolina” by Calvin Trillin in The New Yorker (Nov. 2)

Who but the peripatetic Trillin could quote in a single (if lengthy) article not only such regional stalwarts as John Shelton Reed, Doug Marlette,  Dennis Rogers and Jerry Bledsoe, but also Ada Louise Huxtable?

Kim Severson, Atlanta-based food reporter for the New York Times, calls it “a deceptively simple story about heat and meat…. I defy anyone but the staunchest vegetarians and kosher keepers to not want a pork sandwich after they read it.”

 

One thought on “On reconsidering NC barbecue’s continental divide”

  1. Not everyone was so enthusiastic about Trillin’s piece. From the New Yorker Minute, a bristly weekly review of the magazine’s content:

    “Two truths: Calvin Trillin is a national treasure; and this is one of those articles about the South that has a weird hole where race ought to be. How satisfying you find this piece will depend on whether you’re the sort of person who can let the first sweep you away from the second.”

    http://tinyletter.com/NYerMinute/letters/the-new-yorker-minute-issue-of-november-2-2015

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *