One of the world’s foremast authorities joins us on Episode 305 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast. Steven Raichlen is a multi-award winning writer and television host and we visit with Steven about his latest book, Project Griddle. It’s filled all you need to know about cooking on a flat-top, from expertly cooking meat, veggies and even desserts. We…

On Episode 304 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, one of the world’s open-fire cooking experts joins us. It’s Heath Riles, who’s headed to Memphis in May next week looking to bring home his first overall MIM Grand Championship after winning the Ribs championship two of the last 3 years. Heath will tell us how he’s been prepping for the world’s most-…

We've been without power going on 36 hours following severe thunderstorms in our neck of the woods and were unable to complete recording for this week's show. But we do have an abbreviated Episode 303 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast with Charlie Wallace of The Grill Guys of Missouri, previewing a backyard Ribs and Brisket class coming to the store…

Operating a successful BBQ restaurant in 2025 can be a difficult endeavor with rising food costs and fielding a dependable work force, not to mention producing consistently, quality food. To overcome the many challenges, Jeff Fitter has transformed one of the long-time BBQ institutions of the St. Louis area into a new model with a combination of of…

On Episode 301 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we learn the background of Steve Smith, a Florida pitmaster who’s had two portions of a competition career. Smith’s current team, Mad Dog BBQ, is ranked second in the 2025 KCBS Team of the Year standings behind the runaway freight train that is Brad Leighninger and Gettin’ Basted. Steve tells us abou…

Helping us celebrate Episode 300 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast is one of busiest and move-innovative people in the open-fire cooking world. Tim Scheer, owner of Blues Hog and Marble Ridge Farms joins us to discuss Blues Hogs’ sponsorship of a NASCAR team owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr., plus five new sauces unveiled this week to bring the lineup to …

As we kick off the month of April, we discuss two of our favorite past times with the guys from the Baseball & BBQ Podcast. Jeff Cohen and Leonard Aberman have channeled a love for two of their favorite passions into a show that’s mirrored our time in the podcast world and on Episode 299 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we have a fun conversation …

Episode 298 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast features a conversation with Rod Gray, CEO of the Kansas City Barbeque Society. During his nearly three years in leading the world’s largest competition BBQ organization, there have been ups and downs and we cover some of those with Rod after he gives us a preview of the 7th annual KCBS World Championshi…

One of the most-popular and enjoyable recurring segments of the show the last couple of years have been the “Under the Radar” looks at up-and-coming competition teams. This week on Episode 297 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we go Under the Radar with Dan Wright of Take it Easy BBQ from the St. Louis area. Take it Easy BBQ is making big strides a…

We talk spice rubs on Episode 296 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast with one of the best in the business. Josh DeWitt began experimenting with spice combinations in his kitchen several years ago to begin a path that led to winning one of the industry’s biggest awards when his JDQ Spicy was named Best Rub on the Planet in 2023 by the American Royal W…

On Episode 295 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we talk it over with BBQ’s new world champions. That’s Josh Hale from Sure Shot BBQ out of Leander, Texas, who teamed up with wife Stacy and Reagan “No Shoes” Broesche - cooking on behalf of Always Able But Confused Cookers - to win Grand Championship honors at the 248-team Houston Livestock Rodeo an…

On Episode 294 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we learn the story of Stephen Nieto - or “Stevo” as he’s known on the competition trail. Stephen and his Stevo’s BBQ Team out of Henderson, Nevada is coming off his third career Grand Championship as the Best in the Southwest in Yuma, Ariz., beating out a star-studded lineup. Stevo is a military vete…

We’ve had the honor of talking to numerous BBQ champions on a regular basis over the years. Sometimes, we also have brought you champions before they emerged. On Episode 293 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we offer up a double-dose of “Under the Radar” with the stories of a pair of up-and-coming competition pitmasters - Tommy Blackmon of Blue Smo…

On Episode 292 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, the guys review the big football game (which turned into a Super Dud) and how the food was the definite star of the day. We also talk it over with Nicholas Owensby from Sailor Nick’s BBQ about happenings in the Great Lakes BBQ Association, with a big Competition BBQ 101 class coming up soon. We check…

The biggest football game of the season is this week and with it comes the biggest food day of the year for many. On Episode 291 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we try to help make Super Bowl Sunday a Super Food Sunday by bringing in the powerhouse duo from Smoke ’n Magic BBQ, Breana Via and Brad Colter, with some suggestions on how to plan for -…

Nebraska in January to cook BBQ? It doesn’t sound like a dream scenario - especially after blowing out a trailer tire early during a projected 11-hour drive. But everything came up paradise for Buddy Hammett of Shiggin’ Ain’t Easy BBQ from Westland, Mich., who captured Grand Championship honors at the SVJ Winter Rub in Omaha. On Episode 290 of the …

We kick off Season 7 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast with a friend of the show going back to our early days on local radio in 2016. Not only is he a hometown hero, but Brad Leighninger is arguably the best to light a pit - and he’s never been better than currently. Brad and Gettin’ Basted already has three Grand Championships since the KCBS points…

First of all, the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast wishes all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! We are grateful to all our listeners, sponsors and marketing partners who dialed up the show in 2024 and we finish off Season 6 with a Hall of Fame featured guest. Mike Wozniak and Quau BBQ out of Brimfield, Ill., is one of the many great inductees in the i…

We’re back from a break - some of it by choice for Thanksgiving, some not due to some personal issues that needed attention - for Episode 287 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast. One of our favorites, “The BBQ Ninja” Craig Verhage, joins us for an always-fun conversation. Craig, who’s been involved heavily in BBQ competition and marketing for more tha…

They have more than just a cool team name. We’re talking about the guys from Burnt Skull BBQ. Joe Ricklefs, Adam Burch and Brandon Rose are friends from the Kansas City area who began their competition BBQ journey in 2023 and have had their walking shoes on ever since. Recently at the 44th American Royal World Series of Barbecue, in just its 15th K…

On Episode 285 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we talk it over with the newest major champion of the BBQ world. Kyle Kuhn of Hot Daddy’s BBQ out of Grasston, Minn., reviews the competition BBQ journey of he and wife Amy from humble beginnings on a home-built offset smoker to winning the American Royal World Series of BBQ Invitational. It was the …

Swing and a long drive, deep left field … back, back, back … GONE! To borrow a baseball analogy, John Shirey II of Chunky BBQ hit the ultimate open-fire walk-off over the weekend at Kansas Speedway. Shirey and wife Stephanie won the 44th annual American Royal World Series of BBQ Open Grand Championship - a field of 444 teams from around the globe. …

We’re off to the American Royal World Series of BBQ, but before departure we visited with some folks who are going to be a big part of the weekend. First up is Danielle Bennett, better known in the BBQ world as Diva Q. A championship competition pitmaster before launching a career as a television personality, cookbook author and brand ambassador, D…

We bring you double star power on Episode 282 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast. First up is Jess Pryles, the Hardcore Carnivore. She’s not only an expert on all things meat and open-fire cooking, Jess now has her own television show. We visit with the native of Australia and transplanted Texan about her show “Hardcore Carnivore” now airing Season 1…

Scuffletown Smokers has been a successful competition team for several years, but because the family team from Boonville, Indiana, cooks a limited amount of events perhaps many aren’t familiar with them. Well, that all changed last weekend when head cook Alby Ransom and Scuffletown Smokers became the sports newest “major” champ by winning the Jack …

The world’s largest BBQ competition is coming up in a few weeks. The American Royal World Series of BBQ at Kansas Speedway brings together more than 400 teams, from all over the world, and on Episode 280 we have a roundtable discussion with three first-time Royal teams - Nicholas Owensby of Sailor Nick’s BBQ from Wadsworth, Ohio; Jamie Mintz from C…

Episode 279 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast features “Fast Eddy” Ed Maurin, a member of the BBQ Hall of Fame Class of 2024. Ed is one of seven inductees joining the Hall on Nov. 2 during ceremonies held at the American Royal World Series of BBQ at Kansas Speedway. One of the heavy hitters on the competition circuit back in the late 1980s and 1990s…

On Episode 278 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we visit with one of the all-time greats of competition cooking about his latest business venture. Travis Clark recently opened a new Clark Crew BBQ restaurant in Tulsa to go with his flagship location in Oklahoma City. Travis discusses the myriad of issues that crop up when opening a new venue and h…

Long-time competition cook Joel Fleetwood never dreamed of having his Meat Rushmore BBQ team’s name on a BBQ restaurant. But after winning last weekend’s Made for KC event, that’s exactly what will happen in the fall of 2025. On Episode 277 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, Joel talks about what the opportunity to have naming rights, with menu cons…

“The Doctor” is in on Episode 276 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast. Ray “Dr. BBQ” Lampe, one of the all-time greats of open-fire cooking, joins us this week and we begin by talking about his time on the Food Network Show BBQ Brawl, Season 5, which aired over the summer. Ray talks about what it was like being “the old guy” on a show with a lineup of…

On Episode 275 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we shine the light on a recent first-time KCBS Grand Championship winner. Chris Leikam and Devin Schwartz from the Kansas competition team Finger Leikam Good were college friends at Kansas State and enjoyed cooking before Wildcats football games at Snyder Family Stadium. They eventually took their lo…

He’s lived the American Dream, a United States Navy veteran who worked the overnight shift at the Des Moines, Iowa, water treatment plant. During his spare time, Moe Cason fired up the smoker and dabbled in competition BBQ. On a suggestion from the legendary Johnny Trigg, “Big Moe” sent in an audition video for the groundbreaking BBQ television pro…

On Episode 273 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we learn about a new competition and festival in mid-Missouri that will include three sanctioning bodies. It’s the Buds, Blues & BBQ in Columbia, Sept. 13-14, with opportunities to enter the KCBS Master’s Series regular comp plus one-meat chicken cook, a Steak Cookoff Association comp and the new Rib…

Whether it’s cooking in the backyard or the highest level of competition, Christie Vanover is someone who has been instrumental in helping open-fire cooks worldwide up their games since she launched her GirlsCanGrill.com website in 2015. With recipes, tips, product reviews and much more, it’s a one of the top resources available. Christie joins us …

Episode 271 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast has arrived and it has a variety of guests as we welcome the month of August. At the 7:58 mark, Emmy-award-winning television news producer turned author and now podcast host David Page returns to discuss his latest project. Page’s new podcast “Culinary Characters Unlocked” debuts Aug. 27 as he goes in-d…

It’s become one of the jewels on the late-season KCBS calendar, a doubleheader to cap the points season. But only a few days ago, the 4th annual Boo-B-Que was on the verge of cancellation. No worries. The Oct. 25-27 event in Oak Grove, Mo., will go on after Greg Hastie, who began the event three years ago but had too much on his plate to run it aga…

After running hard in 2023, cooking 44 contests as he successfully chased KCBS Team of the Year honors, Jordan Kirkpatrick and Janky Leg BBQ has slowed the pace a bit this season. But after an addition to the family and a home remodel project, Janky Leg is back and ready for a big second half, evidenced by the team’s first GC of the year last weeke…

On Episode 268 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we visit with one of the top teams on the West Coast - and one of the best in the USA. Dave and Shirin Mara from Meat Candy Q out of El Cajon, Calif., is enjoying a terrific 2024 season with one KCBS Grand Championship and and three RGCs in just 10 competitions. Meat Candy is sixth in the Team of the…

Happy 4th of July to all! To celebrate, Episode 267 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast features two great guests. Leading off is one of the best to ever light a pit, BBQ Hall of Famer Darren Warth from Iowa Smokey D’s. While he’s won more than 100 grand championships during his career, including multiple majors, Darren accomplished a first last weeke…

Mike and Nichole Mulkey of Mulkey’s BBQ from St. Louis are one of the many successful husband-wife competition BBQ teams in the country. On Episode 266 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we learn how they work together after Mulkey’s won the Grand Championship at the 172-team Great Lenexa BBQ Battle. The back-to-back St. Louis BBQ Society Team of th…

We asked for nominations for up-and-coming competition BBQ pitmasters or teams and our listeners delivered with lots of great suggestions. This week on Episode 265 of the Tailgate Guys BBGQ Podcast, we bring you an extended “Under the Radar” segment with Joe Wilson and B.J. Searcy from the northern California team Cherry Anchor BBQ. Despite only do…

On Episode 264 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, our “Under the Radar” segment returns by popular demand. This week, our look at an up-and-coming pitmaster focuses on Kansas City’s Lane York of Aww Shucks BBQ. York’s primary focus has been on KCBS Backyard competition so far, but he’s done well in limited Masters’ Series attempts and does so withou…

It’s an action packed Episode 263 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast with an assortment of guests with good info and stories to tell. First up at the 9:26 mark is Charles Simpson, with a preview of the National High School BBQ Championships coming up this weekend (June 7-9) in Branson, Missouri. As director of the Missouri High School BBQ Association…

The 6th annual KCBS World Invitational was held over Memorial Day Weekend in Lebanon, Tenn., and on Episode 262 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast we talk it over with both of the big winners. Drew Davis of Razorracks BBQ out of Pleasant Plains, Ark., has won 28 KCBS Grand Championships during his career. But Drew and wife Chelsey picked up their big…

We’re all about celebrating the iconic BBQ teams on the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, but we also love to shine the spotlight on those up-and-coming teams who achieve big things. This week on Episode 261, we focus on Barking Dog BBQ out of Kansas City, a team of childhood friends Dave Lillis, Kevin Bunting and Brian Tuttle. Barking Dog BBQ (we explore…

Episode 260 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast takes us to the Phoenix area to visit with Kyle Matuszewski, owner-operator of Your Behind BBQ restaurant in Florence. Kyle is a long-time competitor on the Steak Cookoff Association and KCBS trails and he’s parlayed that success into a red-hot start in the restaurant business. Kyle breaks down his story…

When we’re asked about BBQ restaurant recommendations in the St. Louis area, Heavy Smoke BBQ always is at the top of our list. On Episode 259 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we talk it over with Chris Schafer, the owner-operator of Heavy Smoke BBQ about the constantly overlapping thrills and challenges of the restaurant industry. Chris also is on…

One of the greatest to light a pit - and a great friend of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Show since the beginning on local, low-powered radio - joins us for an extended conversation on Episode 258. Brad Leighninger just passed the 11-year anniversary of his first BBQ Grand Championship. Now, 70 GCs later, Gettin’ Basted is a three-time KCBS Team of the Yea…

On Episode 257 of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast, we talk it over with one of world’s hottest pitmasters. Eric Coley from Alabama’s Poppa Pig BBQ is leading the KCBS Team of the Year standings with three Grand Championships and seven top-10 finishes in eight 2024 competitions. It’s a start that’s signaled a breakthrough after Eric went through a two…

Jon and Jason Wade of Optimus Swine BBQ out of Williamsburg, Virginia have one of the hottest competition BBQ teams around. Since moving into the KCBS Master’s division a couple of years ago, the Wades have seven Grand Championships and seven RGCs in 63 competitions. They also own and operate two BBQ restaurants in the Williamsburg area, Two Drumme…