smokin' section
Locals compete for best barbecue, good causes
Linda Sappington
Bill Barrett of Dude’s Place prepares a street taco.
Linda Sappington
Mark Trim hold his prize-winning sauce.
Linda Sappington
Lisa Stover and her son, Trevor, taste ribs.
Linda Sappington
Skewers of pork, pineapple, pepper and peaches await the barbecue at the Holy Smokes booth.
Linda Sappington
Linda Sappington
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Trevor Stover licked his lips after tasting a smoked rib at Saturday’s eighth annual Smokin’ on the Water event, held on the KwaTaqNuk Resort’s grassy lawn near the Salish Point docks.
“My plan for the day is to eat as much food as I possibly can,” Stover said.
The Polson Chamber of Commerce fundraiser enticed five cooks to compete in five categories: Sauce, Beef, Chicken, Pork, and Open. “They’re mostly backyard barbecuers,” chamber member Rich Forbis said.
“The food is fantastic,” Forbis noted, holding a plate of ribs barbecued by Polson Elks Club pit boss Max Nash. Nash, who also owns Hog Boss Catering, was smoking ribs, chicken and brisket to continue funding six $1,000 scholarships the Elks award to local students each year.
“This keeps us going,” Nash said. This was the first year the Elks participated, and they took second place for their pork ribs.
Members of the 501c3 non-profit Mission Valley Ice Arena Association were selling tri-tip tacos to help fund construction of a yearround recreational indoor facility to be built within two years. By providing a space for hockey, figure skating and curling, the group’s goal is to stimulate the economy during the winter months while providing healthy youth activities, according to committee member Linda Greenwood. The group earned second place spots for their beef and sauce.
Pork skewered with grilled pineapple, peaches and red pepper were topped with a sweet pineapple-habanero sauce and selling like hot cakes at the Holy Smokes booth from St. Ignatius. Cook John Robine said he started with a basic sauce and then made it his own by adding honey and other secret ingredients. Although he didn’t sell beef, he did cook up ribeye and it earned the team first place in beef.
In 2014, Mission Mountain Grill Marks took first place in pork, and owners Mark and Janet Trim were shooting for another prize this year. Although there’s no award for booth presentation, the team laid out white linens, candles and greenery as they sold ribs, chicken, rice and their own bottled barbecue sauce — which took the top prize this year — and dried onion flakes.
“Everything she does is first class,” Mark said of his wife.
Dude’s Place owners Cynthia and Bill Barrett were encouraging people to taste their street-style tacos before voting for the People’s Choice award. The tacos won in three classes: People’s Choice, Pork and Open Class. The meat and sauces are the couple’s own creations, all made from scratch, Bill said. The couple once ran a food cart at Glacier Brewing in Polson.
“It would be fun to resurrect it again,” he said.
Picnic tables filled as the lunch hour rolled around, the air heavy with the aroma of smoking meats and sizzling fry bread. Visitors sipped beer while perusing craft booths and children bungee-bounced high above the sparkling backdrop of Flathead Lake and the Mission Mountains.
The event is one of two major fundraisers for the Chamber of Commerce. The other is the Chamber Blast Sporting Clays event held each spring. Results Sauce 1-Mission Mountain Grill Marks 2-Mission Valley Ice Arena 3-Dude’s Place Chicken 1-Mission Mountain Grill Marks 2-Dude’s Place 3-Holy Smokes Pork 1-Dude’s Place 2-Mission Valley Elks 3-Mission Mountain Grill Marks Beef 1-Holy Smokes 2-Mission Valley Ice Arena 3-Mission Valley Elks Open 1-Dude’s Place 2-Grandma Nancy’s Frybread 3-Mission Valley Elks People’s Choice Dude’s Place
