May 24, 2025

logo
google_play
app_store
Login Subscribe
  • News
    • Obituaries
    • Lifestyle
    • Opinions
  • Sports
  • E-edition
    • Special Sections
  • Calendar
  • Archives
  • Contact
    • Contact Us
    • Advertisers
    • Form Submission
    • About Us
    • News
      • Obituaries
      • Lifestyle
      • Opinions
    • Sports
    • E-edition
      • Special Sections
    • Calendar
    • Archives
    • Contact
      • Contact Us
      • Advertisers
      • Form Submission
      • About Us
Slots
A: Main, Main, News
April 11, 2024

Slots still open for ‘barbecue artisans’ at Diamond Daze

By Lynn Adams Staff Writer 

First-year Sallisaw Main Street president Lance Montgomery admits that when it comes to the myriad details associated with hosting and sponsoring the Hot-Pickin’, Finger-Lickin’ Barbecue Cook Off, he relies heavily on long-time administrative assistant Carol Brown.

First-year Sallisaw Main Street president Lance Montgomery admits that when it comes to the myriad details associated with hosting and sponsoring the Hot-Pickin’, Finger-Lickin’ Barbecue Cook Off, he relies heavily on long-time administrative assistant Carol Brown.

“This is my first rodeo,” Montgomery says. “I’ve been on the eating side of it, but in terms of the organizational side …” Recognized as one of the signature attractions for the 18th Diamond Daze, the barbecue cook off is not only a competition, but the succulent smoked pork is a festival favorite, with taster kits selling for $10 each and the proceeds funding Sallisaw Main Street and its annual pursuits.

“We’re very excited about the Hot Pickin’, Finger-Lickin’ Barbecue Cook Off that will be coming up on Saturday, May 4, as part of the Diamond Daze festival,” Montgomery says. “Of course, Diamond Daze has become a very, very prestigious festival locally, and we’re very privileged to be a part of that and to help the chamber and everyone get that launched, and just kind of be a small part of that.”

Barbecue, not unlike apple pie and baseball, is quintessential Americana, which makes it a staple for the annual get-together in downtown Sallisaw. This year, the two-day festival is May 3-4.

Montgomery

“Barbecue is one of those dishes that is very deeply rooted in American culture, and there are so many different ways that it can be done,” he says. “That’s why we’re excited to offer the barbecue cook off as a feature of Diamond Daze, because the public can come and try the barbecue and vote on who they feel is the best. One of the things that we really enjoy is the fact that the public votes on this. This is a People’s Choice competition. So anyone who wants to come purchase a taster kit for $10 can come, try all the barbecue that’s there — barbecue or appetizers — and cast their vote. And their vote decides who wins the barbecue cook off.

“When you purchase a taster kit, you get your plate, your utensils and a drink, and you can go to every barbecue tent and try what they have to offer. So if you love barbecue, that’s a great opportunity to taste a lot of different, diverse meats, to get some diversity in the ways that barbecue is interpreted and prepared, and have that opportunity to cast your vote and let them know who you think is No. 1,” Montgomery explains.

Competitors — they’re called grill masters — are normally capped at 12, “just to keep it manageable.” Montgomery says Main Street currently has nine participants committed for the Diamond Daze competition. “So we’re looking to fill a couple of spots, and we think that’ll happen pretty quickly. This has become a pretty popular feature of Diamond Daze, and we think that the public will have an opportunity to meet a lot of different grill masters and get a lot of new flavors.”

The grill masters come from all over. “They come from throughout the area. It’s not necessarily just Sallisaw or just Sequoyah County. For people who take pride in barbecue, when they find out there’s a competition, they want to be in it, they want to put their secret recipe up against the next person’s. So it’s usually pretty easy to convince someone who’s dedicated to that sort of culinary craft to make a trip over to participate,” Montgomery says.

“You’ll see everything from seasoned, if you’ll pardon the pun, grill masters who have participated in a number of competitions, or someone who prepares barbecue for their friends and family and they’ve spent a lot of time doing that, so they think it’s their time to step up and see how theirs compares to other people’s.

“So you’ll see a range in terms of experience that people have in cooking barbecue. You’ll see a range of different experience levels,” he says. “I would tell people, don’t be surprised to see a number of different barbecue styles represented at the barbecue cook off. Carolina, K.C., you name it, there are different styles that’ll be available.”

Montgomery has enjoyed the success of another Sallisaw Main Street featured event, the chili cook off at Cruizin’ 64, and wants the barbecue competition to keep pace with the autumn attraction.

“That’ll be a big goal for us this year is to see the barbecue cook off grow a little bit more. That’s something that we’ve discussed in our meetings is being able to find ways to differentiate it. Of course there are the unique flavors and things of that nature that are available there. But kind of providing a new experience, which that’ll take time to develop over a course of a few years. The barbecue competition has been around for years now, so it’s not going anywhere.

“The Diamond Daze festival has so many different things to offer — live entertainment, vendors from all throughout the area — and we want to provide Diamond Daze with an event with the barbecue competition, the barbecue cook off. That is also something that the festival can be proud of and that people want to come seek out and engage with. So we’re really looking forward to May 4, and we’re really looking forward to giving people the opportunity, giving competitors the opportunity to win prizes, and giving the public an opportunity to try a wide array of barbecue,” Montgomery says.

There have been some consistent winners in the past, and the Main Street committee is reaching out to them to invite them to come back “to sort of defend their barbecue honor. Brandy Dobbs, the county assessor, is one. She’s collected a number of trophies in her past from the barbecue cook off competition, and we’re hoping to see her back this year.”

Meet the meat

To keep the barbecue cook off an apples-to-apples comparison, all grill masters cook the same meat: Pork shoulder.

“The meats that will be offered at the barbecue cook off will be pork shoulder. Having everyone use the same meat we feel provides a level playing field because then it’s more of an apples-to-apples comparison. You don’t have ribs over here, brisket over there, pork shoulder over here and so forth, and chicken over at another station. So it’s leveling that playing field, it’s having everyone cooking on-site and leveling that playing field the best that we can to give everyone a fair shot at being judged,” Montgomery says.

Participants pick up the pork shoulder at J&D’s Steakhouse by 5 p.m. Friday, May 3, and it is then cooked on site in the vicinity of the Stanley Tubbs Memorial Library, depending on the number of grill masters.

“If there’s not enough space in front of the library to accommodate all of the grill masters, they may line up down Oak Street. But we’ll make sure to find room for any that want to show up and participate.

“Barbecue is something that takes a lot of patience, which that’s just part of the craft of making it is the time commitment to doing it a certain way, providing that certain flavor, using those certain ingredients. It’s how barbecue artisans create their very specific flavors. So they’ll be working for a while to get everything prepared,” Montgomery says.

Then after cooking all night long, on Saturday morning, the taster kits will be available to the public starting at 11 a.m.

“We usually shoot for putting together 750 taster kits to have those available to the public. We can always do more if the demand is higher, but 750 is the baseline number that we prepare for each year, so that’s how many we’ll have ready to go this year.

“For Diamond Daze, there’s a pretty high demand for those taster kits. So I would encourage anyone that if you want to come in and vote, you want to try the different styles of barbecue, get there as close to 11 a.m. as you can just to make sure that you get your taster kits. Whole families come to enjoy the event. You’ll have a group of friends who will come. You’ll have a family with children who will come. So there’s a really good turnout for the barbecue cook off, so I would recommend getting there as early as you can to get those taster kits.”

How to enter

With three more slots still available, those wanting to get in on the barbecue cook off can sign up by either calling Montgomery at 918-2089688, or can go by the Sallisaw Chamber of Commerce office. Signup forms are available at the chamber office, or can be downloaded from the Diamond Daze Information Central page on the chamber website.

“The entry fee for the barbecue cook off is $50 for competitors. The deadline to enter is Monday, April 22. So everyone will want to make sure that they have those forms in by the end of day Monday, April 22,” Montgomery says. “Pork shoulders can be picked up at J&D’s Steakhouse at 230 North Oak Street here in Sallisaw. That’ll be May 3, the night before. They’ll want to pick those up by 5 p.m. They can pick those up earlier on Friday if they need to — 5 p.m. is just the cutoff deadline.”

While a meal of just barbecued pork shoulder is divine, Montgomery says grill masters can also pair their barbecue with veggies and appetizers.

There is also an appetizer contest, separate from the barbecue competition. Only teams that are participating in the barbecue cook off can compete in the optional appetizer contest. Barbecue grill masters don’t have to offer appetizers, but if they want to compete in the appetizer competition, they have to also be part of the barbecue cook off. Appetizers must be from original recipes, “so no store-bought appetizers, of course.” A panel of judges will judge the appetizers, so the appetizer competition is not a People’s Choice. Judges will come by at noon to pick up samples of the appetizers for judging.

Prizes

“Some very exciting prizes will be available for the barbecue cook off,” Montgomery says. “First place gets 250 bucks plus an absolutely glorious trophy. Second place takes home $200, and they get a lovely shiny trophy. Third place will pocket $150 and they’ll get a sensational sparkling trophy. And fourth place will get $100 and a dazzling trophy.

“For the appetizer competition, the winner of that will be awarded with $150 plus a glittering trophy, and the runnerup will get $100.”

this is a test{"epopulate_editorials":"Epopulate"}{"newsletter":"Newsletter", "sequoyah-county-times":"Sequoyah County Times"}
OSU Rural Scholars bring passion and purpose to Sallisaw
A: Main, Main, News
OSU Rural Scholars bring passion and purpose to Sallisaw
By JADE PHILLIPS TIMES INTERN 
May 22, 2025
Amy Rodriguez and Emma Buchanan have come to study and help the local community. They are partnered with the Oklahoma State University (OSU) Rural Scholar program, in which they stay in Sallisaw while...
this is a test{"epopulate_editorials":"Epopulate"}{"sequoyah-county-times":"Sequoyah County Times"}
Ward applies for sentence modification for 2021 kidnapping of Sallisaw woman
A: Main, Main, News
Ward applies for sentence modification for 2021 kidnapping of Sallisaw woman
By Amie Cato-Remer Editor 
May 22, 2025
A Vian man who has already been sentenced by a federal jury to serve prison time for drug charges has now applied for a sentence modification on another case he is facing in Sequoyah County District C...
this is a test{"epopulate_editorials":"Epopulate"}{"sequoyah-county-times":"Sequoyah County Times"}
Authorities investigate misuse of elderly woman’s retirement funds
A: Main, Main, News
Authorities investigate misuse of elderly woman’s retirement funds
By Amie Cato-Remer Editor 
May 22, 2025
A Muldrow woman is under investigation for alleged elder neglect and financial exploitation after authorities say she failed to pay for a family member’s care while using their funds for personal expe...
this is a test{"epopulate_editorials":"Epopulate"}{"sequoyah-county-times":"Sequoyah County Times"}
Casey Eubanks
A: Main, Just Folks, Main, ...
JUST FOLKS
Casey Eubanks
By JACIE EUBANKS TIMES INTERN 
May 22, 2025
Casey Eubanks originally hailed from the hills of Adair County, where he was born and raised in Stilwell. Growing up, he was familiar with Sallisaw from youth, coming to the town to rival against the ...
this is a test{"epopulate_editorials":"Epopulate"}{"sequoyah-county-times":"Sequoyah County Times"}
Sign of the times?
Columns & Opinions
Sign of the times?
May 22, 2025
Gone gas station gone Gone sign that marked home Fallen memories
this is a test{"epopulate_editorials":"Epopulate"}{"sequoyah-county-times":"Sequoyah County Times"}
Roland School Board welcomes new member, approves contracts
News, School News
Roland School Board welcomes new member, approves contracts
By Amie Cato-Remer Editor 
May 22, 2025
At the last regular meeting of the Roland Board of Education, significant administrative changes and personnel decisions headlined a packed agenda. The meeting, held at 6 p.m. on May 12, saw the board...
this is a test{"epopulate_editorials":"Epopulate"}{"sequoyah-county-times":"Sequoyah County Times"}



SEQUOYAH COUNTY TIMES
111 N. Oak
Sallisaw OK
74955

918.775.4433

This site complies with ADA requirements

© 2023 Sequoyah County Times

  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Accessibility Policy