https://www.newsobserver.com/living/food-drink/article237469464.html
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I have a proposal:
Carolina Toast. A slice of toast with a sunny-side up egg fried onto it with a layer of ultra-sharp cheddar, nc-style pork bbq, and red coleslaw topping it off.
I would also consider adding the pork bbq to poutine. Brisket poutine is common enough. Seems like a no-brainer.
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Would love to try some “Carolina Poutine”. Maybe with sweet potato fries…
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Mmmm, nice idea. My favorite cue is a place called Bunn’s in Windsor, NC. Their slaw is that delicious yellow slaw that’s equal parts tangy and sweet—not savory (no mayo). Instead of hush puppies, they serve a thin, crispy cornbread.
So, my routine is in line with what you’re thinking. I go slice of cornbread (always hope for a corner piece), topped with the cue, then the slaw. Every bite gives you the crunch of the cornbread, then a combo of tangy/sweet with the cue and slaw. 
They serve sandwiches this way too, substituting cornbread for the bun, kind of like Kings’ pig-in-a-puppy.
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Thanks for posting that article! Great read, especially the bit about the BBQ renaissance happening here. Seriously, who do we need to get involved to push this as Raleigh’s “thing” nationally? DTR Alliance? The Goodness Grows in NC org? Troxler? Isn’t this in their wheelhouse?
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I am with you on this. Although I’ve been a vegetarian at times as an adult, being from here originally I was raised with whole hog pit bbq at family parties, church functions, etc. It is very much a hallmark of Eastern NC, and Raleigh should claim capital to it.
This seems like a no brainer starting place: IBMA is wildly successful and the numbers are growing year by year. The Whole Hog championship takes place during the festival. This looks like it’s organically growing in prominence, but there could be a strategic push for this competition to be the BBQ event of state, and eventually the nation. I don’t recognize any names on the list of participants like Sam Jones, etc., so maybe the push could be to incentivize the big names to participate.
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Love it! Going back to a previous poster’s idea (sorry I forget who), I wonder if they’d do an east/west cook off on the east and west sides of Fayetteville St during IBMA? LOL.
Also, I’d always thought it’d be cool to tie in a BBQ festival with the ACC Tournament somehow—kind of bringing all things NC into a single event—maybe the tournament Saturday with big screens. I know they’re always looking for a reason to close down Fayetteville for a party!
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Fact: Best barbeque in Raleigh is Ole Time. It would instantly create a barbeque district if they grabbed a spot in Kane’s Cabarrus Warehouse project.
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Dream: Barbecue museum, cafe, brewery, restaurant in City Market. Marketed as the center of barbecue in the south.
Just go for it! 
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FWIW, I’ve always understood that a line drawn from N/S through Chapel Hill was the dividing line between eastern and western style. In addition to the tomato of the west, there’s also the difference between smoking the whole hog vs. just the shoulder.
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With High Horse opening and Moore Square complete I feel like this could be the turning point for City Market. While market hall is an event venue with good reviews it’s still a waste of space. Would make such a cool food hall/brewery or museum. Think the eataly of Barbecue! Plan B an Eataly location 
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YESSSSS (extra characters)
Some of the coolest event venues are museums during the 9-5. My wife’s company rents the NC Museum of Natural Science for their Christmas party, and it’s awesome for an event like that.
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Although not downtown, our BBQ notoriety continues to grow.
It’s been a longtime goal to bring my Eastern North Carolina whole hog barbecue to our State’s Capitol,” Dickson said. “At Wyatt’s, I’m excited to bring pastured whole hog barbecue to the city and explore ‘non-native’ barbecue in a larger scale project."
“There’s something primal about a community coming together to cook and consume a whole animal,” he says. “When I was a kid, pig pickins’ were magical affairs that drew folks from all over and from all walks of life. North Carolina barbecue is a big tent! It’s a tall order, but that’s the feeling I want to create at Wyatt’s.”
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How crazy awesome would an Eataly location be? That would be a game changer foot traffic-wise.
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Ya’ll, I might have taken this a bit too far too soon, but I emailed the NC Pork Council, which hosts the Whole Hog championship, and suggested that they create the “Raleigh BBQ Trail” map and campaign with these new pitmaster restaurant additions. Would make a fun tourist activity and encourage new restaurants/pitmasters to “join the movement”, and could culminate with the annual whole hog championship. Let’s build this brand LOL. BLUEGRASS AND BBQ
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LOL! Oh to be 8 again…Although when I was that lad’s age, I was well versed in the ways of the pig pickin’. Looks like future generations are being steeped in the North Carolina tradition, and with this whole hog BBQ renaissance, hopefully it will be increasingly held in high regard from a culinary perspective.
Really digging how Tanabe Katsuji alludes to the culinary traditions here as a reason for choosing Raleigh:
“There are few places in America that have a (food culture), and the South has had a good connection with agriculture, with pork, it has regional flavors.”
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This isn’t exactly DTR, but continues the BBQ in the region conversation.
Barbecue legend to open new restaurant in Raleigh
Essentially it’s Ed Mitchell, known as “The Pitmaster” in barbecue circles opening a new restaurant “The Preserve” on Creekside Drive in the former location of the first Carolina Ale House.
As suggested before (maybe in this thread?) Raleigh could start a self-proclaimed “BBQ Capital of the World” or “BBQ Crossing” or something to gain some notoriety. There could be BBQ tours/trails, a map of all the BBQ spots, etc. Just some thinking out loud here.
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Lexington has a head start on these ideas but it’s size may inhibit widespread recognition
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