Williamston’s first big event of the season, the Pig in the Park Barbecue Cookoff and Festival will be held in Williamston’s Mineral Spring Park this weekend.
Sponsored by the Williamton Masonic Lodge, the two day event will feature 24 cooking teams from all over SC and one from NC who will be set up and cooking their barbecue specialties in the park.
Surrounding the festivities of the cookoff competition, there will be craft and business vendors, a farmers market, live entertainment and food including all-you-can-eat barbecue tasting.
Activities will begin Friday at noon and continue on Saturday beginning at 10 a.m. with barbecue judging, awards and other activities.
Beginning at noon on Saturday, festival goers can purchase wrist bands for $10 for All-You-Can-Eat samples of competitors’ barbecue. Presentation of the Barbecue Cookoff Championship awards will be at 1 p.m.
Entertainment will be provided by The Out of Towners Band. Visitors are invited to “Bring a lawn chair and enjoy a fun-filled day of entertainment, food and good family fun,” a spokesperson said.
Barbecue Cookoff participants include:
Smokin’ Stacks, Jeff Smith, Aiken;
County Line Que, Tim Cooke, Greer
The Smokin’ Grill, Kenneth Scales, Williamston
Ledyard Bar B Que Company, Cheyenne Ledyard, Summerville
R & R BBQ, Ronnie Neely, Pelzer
Fatboys Barbeque LLC, Rick Wynn, Greenville
Bates Lodge Cooking Team, Andy Fletcher, Easley
Bobby’s Backyard Bar-B-Que, Robert C. Wittko, Ash
Huckleberry BBQ, Gary Hatchell, Piedmont
Swig-n-Pig, Andrew Massey, Williamston
On the Spot BBQ, Ronnie Bishop, Greenwood
The Trough Boys, Bryan Lewis, Mauldin
HAWG KOOKIN, Ronnie Bradberry, Pelzer
Country Life Cookin, Joel Hammonds, Williamston
Southern Smoke, Martin Cox, Williamston
Get Your Swine On, Brian Simmons, Anderson
Blind Swine BBQ, Mike Sanders, Greenwood
Big GQ, Garland Hudgins, Columbia
Charcoholics, Michael Gravely, Williamston
St. Louis Pit-Que, Morgan Loch, Moore
Palmetto Smokehouse, Michael Harmon, Beaufort
Backwoods Bar-B-Que, Gene A. Culbertson II, Trenton
Ultimate Tailgaters BBQ, Chris Fulmer, Aiken
Berry Patch BBQ, Branden Turner, Newberry
This is the third year for the event. Additional information can be found on their web site at williamstonpiginpark.com.
