SMOKIN' UP THE CITY FIRST ANNUAL BBQ/STEAK COOK OFF COMPETITON
CONTESTANT - A contestant is any individual or group (no more than two people) that will prepare and cook an entry or entries for the purpose of being judged. Contestant and team member must be amateur competitors. The contest organizer may not cook in any category in this contest. Contestant will be referred to as “Griller.”
2. INTERPRETATION of RULES - The interpretation of the rules and regulations are those of the contest organizer and his or her decisions are final.
3. REFUND OF ENTRY FEES – There will be no refund of entry fees unless approved by the organizing committee.
4. EQUIPMENT – Each Griller will supply all of the equipment necessary for the preparation and cooking of their entry including a cooker. COOKER can ONLY be one of the following: Charcoal, wood (NO open/pit fires) or pellet cooker. Propane may be used in cooking sides ONLY. The health and safety of contestants and event goers should be a primary consideration when selecting appropriate cooking fuels.
5. MEAT INSPECTION – All meats must be USDA or state DA inspected and passed. All meat must be maintained at a maximum temperature of 40 degrees F prior to inspection. Prior to cooking, all meat
that is resting in preparation for cooking must be covered at all times. All contest meat, once inspected, may not leave the Griller’s site until turned in for judging. After inspection the meat may be marinated, salted, seasoned or cooked by the Griller.
6. CONTESTANT’S SITE – Each Griller is required to keep all equipment including cooker, canopy, etc. contained within assigned space.
7. CLEANLINESS AND SANITATION – All Grillers are expected to maintain their cook sites in an orderly and clean manner and to use good sanitary practices during the preparation, cooking and judging
process. The use of sanitary gloves is required at all times while handling food. Failure to use sanitary gloves may result in disqualification. Grillers are responsible for cleanup of their site once the competition has ended. All food safety rules and regulations must be adhered to at all times. A
sanitation/water supply will be provided for all teams use during this event.
8. MEAT CATEGORIES – The following categories are included in competition: a. Boston Butt – weighing a minimum of 4 lbs. or more must be cooked as a single piece of meat. b. Chicken – may cook chicken
whole, halved, quartered or single pieces (with enough for 4 judges plates) c. Pork Ribs – minimum of four (4) ribs per turn in box d. Steak – your choice of cut with enough meat for 4 judges. e. SIDES BONUS
POINT CHALLENGE! Grillers will be invited to participate in a One-Point Challenge. Grillers must turn their side in a two-ounce container-one container per judge. The Griller who wins the challenge round
will be awarded one (1) bonus point toward their overall score for the competition.
9. JUDGING – Entries will be submitted in the containers supplied by event organizer at check-in by the Griller. NO GARNISH. Only the entry to be judged is allowed in the container. Each entry will be judged
on APPEARANCE, TASTE/FLAVOR, TENDERNESS and TEXTURE. Meat may be sauced or un-sauced. A minimum of four (4) separate and identifiable portions per category in containers supplied to Griller at check-in must be submitted for judging.
10. SCORING – Each entry will be scored by four (4) judges in the areas of APPEARANCE, TASTE/FLAVOR, TENDERNESS and TEXTURE. Scoring ranges from a low of 1 to a high of 5 in increments of 1 point for each category. Any entry that is disqualified as per SECTION 11 will receive no score for all four categories from all judges at the table.
11. DISQUALIFICATION – An entry can be disqualified by the event organizer/designee only. An entry can be disqualified for any of the following reasons: a. There is anything foreign other than meat/sauce in
container submitted for judging b. The entry is turned in after the officially designated time c. Gloves are not used while handling food products d. Not cooking the meat that was inspected e. There is not a
minimum of four (4) separate and identifiable containers for each category entered. f. There is evidence of blood such that the meat is uncooked.
12. TURN-IN TIMES – per competition item as follows: a. Side –
12:15 PM CST b. Steak – 1:15 CST c. Chicken – 2:15 PM CST d. Ribs – 3:15 PM CST e. Boston Butt-4:15 CST.
13. JUDGING PROCEDURE – The event organizer brings all approved containers to the table. He/She announces the number of containers to be judged, opens each container and checks for rule violations
as stated above. The containers will be passed around to the judges for sampling. The judge will then score each entry for APPEARANCE, TASTE/FLAVOR/TENDERNESS and TEXTURE. The event organizer
makes sure that all scores for the containers are recorded in the proper place. This procedure is repeated for all containers. After each container has been scored the event organizer will return the container(s) to the designated area. The event organizer will then collect the judging slips.
14. WINNERS – Grillers in each of the five (5) categories will have the opportunity to win First (1st), Second (2nd), or Third (3rd) Place. The winners in each category will be determined by adding all the
scores together for the following divisions – (A) BOSTON BUTT, (B) PORK RIBS (C) CHICKEN, (D) STEAK, (E) SIDE. THE GRAND CHAMPION Title will be the Griller with the most total points and be declared the
1st Place Trophy Winner. THE RESERVE GRAND Title will be the Griller with the next highest total points and will be declared the 2nd Place Trophy Winner. In the event of a tie, the lowest score of each will be
thrown out and the points recalculated. In the event of another tie, a specific division will be drawn from a hat and the highest scorer in that division will be declared the winner. The process will continue until
there is a winner. Should a winner not be declared after exhausting all possible tie breakers, each Griller and the designee of the event organizer will be handed a blank slip of paper. Each Griller will write down
a number between 1 and 10. The designee of the event will write down a number between 1 and 10. The Griller closest to the designee (without going over) will be declared the winner. Prize monies will also be awarded.
15. GRILLERS may not sell any food items.