The owners of Sam’s BBQ in Austin announced they were staying put even though they’d been offered $3 million from developers for the restaurant. They’ve asked for community support to stay open.

The Austin community has descended on Sam’s BBQ in response:

The New Braunfels police get some well-deserved ribbing over their Facebook post about the brisket bandit.

Reid Guess of Waco’s Guess Family BBQ talked with Waco Business News about where the business is headed.

Kenneth Laird has announced his retirement. Sunday will be the last day of Laird’s Bar-B-Q in Llano.

I talked to Esquire about how Anthony Bourdain’s visit to Austin helped spark the worldwide popularity of barbecue.

Get to know pit builder Sonny Moberg:

Moberg_Smokers from Barron Gutierrez on Vimeo.

A group of Lanier High School students in Austin formed a barbecue team and built their very own barbecue pit. The design was borrowed from Franklin Barbecue’s pit named Bethesda.

Expedi, a Houston company servicing oil rigs with replacement parts, has diversified the business with a barbecue delivery service to rigs.

Food & Wine magazine is focusing on the women in Texas barbecue, including some familiar and not-so-familiar names.

The ever-expanding job description of pitmasters:

 

South Carolina pitmaster Rodney Scott, who just announced plans for a new Birmingham location, said “the only reason he hasn’t opened up in NYC already is that he hasn’t found the right building yet,” according to Eater.

Rodney Scott won’t share his secret barbecue sauce recipe, but he does offer some tips on making your own sauce.

Some Texas BBQ in South Carolina:

 

The oldest black-owned business in America is a barbecue joint in Arkansas, according to BlackBusiness.org.

Camp Brisket at Texas A&M is teaching pitmasters across the country, even this barbecue joint owner in New York.

NASA engineer and whole hog pitmaster Howard Conyers will host a PBS digital show called Nourish, where he’ll explore Southern food.

Here’s the first episode of Nourish on South Carolina-style whole hog:

Fort Worth’s Panther City BBQ gets some praise from the Dallas Observer for its smoked meats and its prices.

The Switch in Dripping Springs, a new joint from the folks who brought you Stiles Switch BBQ in Austin, just opened.

The Austin Chronicle celebrates some of Austin’s old-school barbecue joints like House Park, Green Mesquite, and Iron Works.

An Austin BBQ icon before Austin BBQ was cool:

 

Madison Square Park in NYC has been the host of the Big Apple BBQ Block Party for sixteen years. That will change next year.

The Houston BBQ Throwdown is back for another year in September, and tickets are now on sale.

Austin’s BBQ Revolution “is hellbent on providing the local meat-free community with the best damn barbecue they’ve ever had.”

Proof that “based on Yelp’s algorithm” is a poor metric: