Ed Mitchell’s passion for barbecue goes all the way back to his childhood in Wilson, North Carolina. Back then, when a pig was cooked it was a time of celebration. In 1990, after serving in Vietnam and working at Ford Motor Company, Ed took that celebratory spirit (and his parent’s 150-year old recipe) and started selling barbecue at his mother’s grocery store. The barbecue proved so popular that the family store transformed into a family restaurant!

Mitchell’s reputation has since spread around the country. He's been featured in The New York Times, Gourmet Magazine, in television documentaries on North Carolina barbecue by Bob Garner and Gourmet, and won his Throwdown against Iron Chef Bobby Flay for his legendary Carolina Ribs. Each June, folks line up for more than 10 New York City blocks to savor Ed’s barbecue at the Big Apple BBQ Block Party. He’s also a regular among food aficionados at the Southern Foodways Alliance Symposium in Oxford, Miss., and the Charleston Food + Wine Festival.

“For those in search of authentic North Carolina barbecue, Ed Mitchell has become the go-to guy.” — Gourmet Magazine