Want to meet ‘Famous’ Dave? He’s judging a barbecue competition in Modesto
One of the most awarded barbecue pitmasters is coming to Modesto to judge a local competition and name who has the best ribs, chicken and more.
No pressure, right?
Famous Dave’s restaurant near Vintage Faire Mall will host the last competition in the national All-Star BBQ Series on Saturday. Competitors will need to impress judges — including “Famous” Dave himself — for a chance to move on to the World Food Championships.
“I’m America’s rib king,” said Dave Anderson, Famous Dave’s founder. “I gotta be there.”
As a sponsor of the barbecue contest in the World Food Championships, Famous Dave’s restaurants throughout the country have been hosting qualifier competitions all summer. The first was on May 3 in Indianapolis, Indiana, and the last will be in Modesto.
Of the more than 100 Famous Dave’s restaurants in the United States, Modesto was chosen as one of the 10 locations of the All-Star BBQ Series. The two other California stops were in Fresno on May 31 and in Rancho Cucamonga on June 21.
“I think (the marketing teams) picked restaurants that were in key areas of the country, and Modesto, I guess, seems like a natural fit for that area,” Anderson said.
Competition is free for the public to attend and includes barbecue samples
Area pitmasters will meet in Modesto and compete in three categories for a monetary prize and a “golden ticket” to the barbecue competition of the 2025 World Food Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana, in mid-October.
Competitors are:
- Carlos Lopez with Los Mexi”Q”tioners, a catering and competition team out of Hollister
- Jorge Avila with El Mero Mero Taquero, a caterer out of Gilroy
- Frank Portera with Porktera BBQ, a competition team out of Morgan Hill
- Barbara McCombs with B&E BBQ, a competition team out of Turlock
- Kevin Ortega with KO BBQ, a catering and competition team out of Turlock
- David Forsberg with Cowabunga BBQ & Catering, a catering and competition team out of Citrus Heights
The categories are chicken, ribs and wild card. The wild card round, as Anderson described it, is “anything goes. Whatever you can imagine.” He said it could be any kind of meat, it can be a side dish, a dessert or even a barbecued meat with a side dish.
“They can get really creative,” Anderson said. “Some of the presentations just knock your socks off.”
The schedule for the day is as follows:
10 a.m. - Event begins. Entry to the event is free to the public.
11 a.m. - Barbecue sampling begins. Competitors submit their chicken to the judges.
Noon - Competitors submit their ribs to the judges.
1 p.m. - Competitors give their wild card item(s) to the judges.
2 p.m. - Competitors receive 100 to 200 chicken wings from Famous Dave’s to cook and enter into the people’s choice wing competition. This is when public judging begins.
3 p.m. - Awards ceremony
There will be free Pepsi products, free “swag” and other giveaways, a DJ, games, activities and an opportunity to meet “Famous” Dave.
“A lot of fun things,” Anderson said. “It’s free, so the family can come on out and enjoy a really fun day.”
The grand champion of the event will take home $1,000 and qualify for the WFC barbecue competition. The reserve grand champion gets $400 plus qualification, and the people’s choice winner doesn’t receive a monetary prize but qualification into the world competition.
The first-place winners in each category will receive $500, the second-place winners will receive $400, and the third-place winners will get $300.
The judging system is called. E.A.T., Anderson said. It stands for execution, appearance and taste.
The panel of judges includes bloggers, influencers and, sometimes, celebrity chefs.
For more information, visit famousdaves.com/allstarbbqseries.
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