Perrytown B-B-Q Eleven A.M. - It's Showtime!

Customers Start Arriving For Take Out And Eat In

by Dean Stephens

Saturday it was time again for the Spring Perrytown B-B-Q Chicken Festival. Take out or eat in. Either is the best B-B-Q Chicken you can get. This year there was more take out than ever, so clearly the event is catching on.


TAKE OUT

Jimmy Pierce, Rick Daniels, Phyllis Davidson, Donna Morris, Lee Lawrence, Jennifer Daniels and Charles Forward are gearing up for the take out customers.

It is so nice to pick up "take out orders" inside the new Perrytown Fire Station. Everyone stays dry, even when it is raining, as it was this year.

Jennifer Daniels grabs some B-B-Q Chicken hot off the grill to add to a take out plate.

Lee Lawrence makes some plates for take out.

Donna Morris, Lee Lawrence and Paulette Pierce keep the plates moving down the line.

Paulette Pierce with the first plate ready for the first order of the year.

And that first take out order for the year 2012 is for 9 dinners, picked up by Brandice Cullipher, greeted by Bud Lee.

The order is ready and goes in the back seat.  Brandice is helped by Jimmy Pierce.

EAT IN

All you need is your prepaid ticket. James Jordan was taking tickets this year and greeting the people who were eating in.

First "eat in" customers of the year 2012.

Bonnie Jordan, and in the background, Linda Hedgebeth, Kay Hughson, Pam Lawrence and Sue Dawson, prepare plates for the eat in customers.

Carolyn Lawrence, Sue Dawson, Kay Hughson,  Bonnie Jordan, Beth Northcott and Peggy Brown keep the plates coming.

Beth Northcott, Pam Lawrence,  Peggy Brown and Rosanna Thomas.

Another year. Another great event. See you for the Herring Dinner in the fall.

Perrytown B-B-Q Saturday - March 24th

Cooking Starts Early

by Dean Stephens

 Saturday morning starts really early. The volunteers that cook the BBQ have to prepare a number of details to make this food taste so good. For an event of this size it takes a lot of BBQ "pig cookers" which need huge amounts of charcoal to generate the heat needed, and a steady stream of fresh BBQ sauce.

Most of the volunteers work on the "pig cookers" under the cooking shelter (just added last year).

Shannon Hoggard, Brian Hughson, Steven Lawrence, Peppy Leary, Keith Hughson, Marcus Thomas, Toby King are getting the "pig cookers" ready to cook the "worlds greatest chicken".  A couple of guys in the back could not be identified because the cameraman did not do his job.

While they were getting ready to cook the chicken, Bill Perry cooked some sausage to feed the volunteers.

Shannon Hoggard, Joe Alexander, Tab Brooks, Bill Perry, Keith Hughson, and Trent Davidson are getting ready to start cooking.  Smoke blocked one of the volunteers and the last guy on the right is too hidden for me to identify also. 

Hot charcoal is critical to great BBQ.  Bill Hedgebeth, Peppy Leary, Toby King and Billy Dunlow start loading charcoal into a "pig cooker".

Lots of volunteers continue to arrive.

Bill Hedgebeth and Joe Alexander heat up more coals for another batch of B-B-Q Chicken.

It is time. Let's start cooking BBQ.  Joe Alexander, Marcus Thomas and Peppy Leary place the chicken into perfect rows.

When they are done, it makes a pretty sight.

Slow cooking is best.

These pictures are time lapsed over nearly 4 hours, which is how long it takes to make one batch of chicken.

Looks ready to flip the chicken!

One final dip in the special BBQ sauce! Stephen Lawrence and Tommy Northcott place the hot BBQ into insulated coolers to keep the chicken hot and moist.

Jody Sary, Tommy Northcott and Trent Davidson help out. 

Looks as great as it will taste.

Have to cook the potatoes too so Brian Hughson grabs another batch of the potatoes that were peeled and prepped on Friday.

Jimmy Pierce and Rick Daniels check the potatoes regularly to make sure they cook just right. 

Some work so hard they have to rest... Rick Daniels, Jimmy Pierce, Billy Smithwick, Mac Lawrence, Milton Felton and Brent Daniels discuss what they are going to do next.

Kenny and Phyllis Davidson... with Brent Daniels, making more sauce for the next batch of BBQ.

Sue Dawson, Kay Hughson, Paulette Pierce, Pam Lawrence and Phylllis Davis, with Alice Lee hidden in the background, make slaw.  Good slaw is a lot of work, and their slaw is the absolute best.

The ladies admire their work.

Great deserts finish the meal.  Carolyn Lawrence and Linda Hedgebeth add the last couple of cakes for the early customers to choose.

Work is not over, but they were ready for the first customers.

Perrytown B-B-Q Friday - March 23rd

Getting Ready For The Big Day

by Dean Stephens

 Some do not realize how much work it takes for a small community like Perrytown to put on this huge annual event. Success depends on volunteers who care about the community, who care that their homes will be protected from fire, and who appreciate the planning needed to assure that when disaster like hurricanes and tornadoes hit, there are people ready to pitch in. These same heroes are the ones who pitch in to make sure this B-B-Q Festival provides great food for those who participate so the costs of the Fire Department are covered.

 It starts early Friday morning when volunteer teams spread out across Eastern North Carolina to pick up the huge quantities of food needed, bring it to the community center and fire station, clean everything and prepare the food for cooking.

This is how their Friday went.

James Jordan and Rick Daniels arrive with tons of chicken.

James Jordan and Bill Perry start untying the tarp protecting the boxes of chickens.

James Jordan and Bud Lee keep untying the tarp.

George Hughes, Jimmy Pierce and the Cash and Carry Delivery driver prepare to unload supplies.

Jimmy Pierce and Sue Dawson clean all the coolers and sanitize them for the preparation process.

Bill Perry and Bud Lee unload the boxes with chicken, to start the cleaning process.

Jennifer Daniels, Beth Northcott and Alice Lee unload cabbage.

Rick Daniels helps with the cabbage.

Bud Lee helps also.

Now the heavy potatoes, Bud Lee, Rick Daniels, Peggy Brown and Alice Lee.

Watch your back, Rick Daniels, lift with your legs!

Jennifer Daniels, Beth Northcott, Alice Lee and Peggy Brown are as good as the guys.

Taking a break for a group picture.   (In front row) Jennifer Daniels, Girlean Hoggard, Donna Morris, Peggy Brown, (In back row) Beth Northcott, Alice Lee and Paulette Pierce.

Beth Northcott,  Paulette Pierce, Sue Dawson and Jennifer Daniels, start cleaning 1400 chicken halves.

Alice Lee, George Hughes, Bill Perry and Bud Lee start the second table assembly line.

Kenny Davidson salts the chicken half before placing in the box.

Sprinkling a little more salt.

The ladies keep the chicken coming.

When everything is cleaned and prepared, it is stored in a refrigerated truck (left with its engine running) to keep the food cold overnight.