Rodeo BBQ Contest Wrapup

Behind the scenes at Houston's hottest BBQ contest: What it's like to judge Rodeo ribs

For the vast majority of the 215,476 people who attended the Rodeo this weekend, the experience is a party that never ends: free flowing drinks, live music, dancing, and great food. Some of the “tents” are bigger than most of Houston’s restaurants — and only exist for three days a year.

Saturday morning is different. Quieter. More serious.

For 252 teams, the partying takes a break to focus on the World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contes t. Months of recipe testing and development culminates in several hours of slow smoking as teams prepare chicken, pork ribs, and beef brisket for a panel of judges.

For the first time, contest organizers invited CultureMap to participate in the judging process by sampling ribs. For each type of meat, 85 judges evaluate the submissions. All judging is done blind. The meat appears in a styrofoam box without any identification other than a number.

In keeping with the seriousness of the effort the teams put in, judging is a solemn, mostly silent process. Seated five to a table, we receive strict instructions not to influence the other judges by discussing what we’ve eaten or even making faces. The criteria are sight (rated 1 to 5), smell (rated 1 to 10), tenderness (rated 1 to 15), and taste (rated 1 to 20).

Over the course of an hour or so, each table of judges eats about 15 submissions. Each entry is scored on their own merits, which can be tricky. What if that first or second rib turns out to be the best of the day?

Looks may be deceiving, but on this day they offer a pretty consistent indication as to quality. Ribs that have been trimmed to the same size and covered in a glaze score higher in taste than those that are cut unevenly (at least on my sheets — judges are prohibited from discussing their scores with each other).

Somewhat surprisingly, tenderness seems to be the trickiest category for most ribs. A majority of the submissions I sample are too chewy. Flavor profiles run sweet, with little of the Central Texas-style peppery bark that’s become the norm at barbecue restaurants. I award a couple of 18s for flavor, but I’m fairly certain I didn’t taste any of the winners.

For 2018, the rodeo made a significant change to the contest’s structure. Instead of two rounds of judging, preliminary and final, each type of meat is only judged once. Also, a team can only submit one entry per category; previously, a team could submit up to four entries in one category and not submit in the other two. Highest combined score produces a grand champion.

Randy Pauly, chief cook for Holy Cow Cookers, tells CultureMap he prefers the new format, because it seems likely to produce a winner who’s more well-rounded. A team can no longer submit four different styles of brisket and hope to capture a winner’s belt buckle.

While that certainly may be true, the new judging format produced a familiar result. Fort Wort pitmaster Jamie Geer, the 2014 champion, led the Houston-based Buns-N-Roses Cook Team to the Grand Champion Overall title. Geer, the designer of the Jambo pits that are a staple of serious barbecue competitors, tells ABC13 that salt, pepper, and garlic are the keys to his success.

Why didn’t anybody else think of that?

Here's the full list of winners (via rodeohouston.com):

Grand Champion Overall — Buns-N-Roses Cook Team
Reserve Grand Champion Overall — Jasper County Go Texan

Brisket

Champion — Buckshot BBQ
Second Place — Manning Valley Natural Smokers
Third Place — Steve’s Cooking Team

Ribs

Champion — Buns-N-Roses Cook Team
Second Place — British Bulldog BBQ
Third Place — Operation BBQ Relief

Chicken

Champion — The Tumble Inn
Second Place — Madison County Go Texan
Third Place — San Patricio County Go Texan

Go Texan

Grand Champion — Jasper County
Reserve Champion — Bee County

Dutch Oven Dessert

Champion — Lingon & Dill BBQ Team
Second Place — Comcast Business
Third Place — Smokin’ Stokers

Specialty Awards

Most Colorful Team — Floyd Morrow & Larkin
Runner Up Most Colorful Team — Over the Hill Gang
Go Texan Most Colorful Team — Grid Iron Cookers
Runner Up Go Texan Most Colorful Team — Nueces County
Most Unique Pit — Pit Boss
Runner Up Most Unique Pit — Clifton Chevy Cookers
Best Team Skit — Brazos County
Runner Up Best Team Skit — Bad Girls Gone Wild
Cleanest Team Area — Houston First
Runner Up Cleanest Team Area — Floyd Morrow & Larkin

See more of the contest by watching this video from our content partners at ABC13:

Holy Cow Cookers takes a break from partying to participate in the contest.

Rodeo barbecue cook-off Holy Cow Cookers

Photo by Eric Sandler

Holy Cow Cookers takes a break from partying to participate in the contest.

rodeo barbecue

Oh, Donna

New Houston cocktail bar serves up a house party fueled by music and martinis

Courtesy of Donna's

People are flocking to Donna's.

It hasn’t taken long for Houston cocktail fans to discover Donna’s. Ever since it opened Thanksgiving weekend, the new cocktail bar in the Heights has been packed with people eager to check out the new project from Anvil owner Bobby Heugel and veteran Houston bartender Jacki Schromm.

Named for Schromm’s grandmother, both partners use the word “house party” to describe the kind of atmosphere they want to create at Donna’s. That party can be very energetic on busy weekend nights and a little quieter and more intimate during the week — allowing patrons to choose what kind of experience they want to have.

Heugel and Schromm worked with collaborators on the design, music, and art for Donna’s. So far, people seem to be enjoying themselves.

“It’s really f---ing awesome,” Schromm tells CultureMap. “It has been really remarkable to have people in this building. To see the room full is a rewarding experience. The feedback we’ve received has just been really positive.”

To transform the former Ready Room into Donna’s, the partners collaborated with Brittany Vaughn of Garnish Design. Known for her work at establishments such as Tiny Champions, Maximo, and Milton’s, Vaughn helped divide the retro-styled cocktail bar into two distinct interior spaces. The main bar area is defined by high-top, organically-shaped tables that allow large groups to congregate or smaller groups to share without being on top of each other. The more intimate living room section features a large couch and a spacious booth.

“There’s a lot of smart utility in the space,” Heugel explains. “We kept talking about how it’s a small space. We want to find a seat for everybody as much as possible.”

To honor the space’s history of hosting live music, the partners worked with Chicago-based firm Uncanned on a powerful vintage stereo that includes both a reel-to-reel tape deck and a turntable. Known locally for their work at restaurants such as Nancy’s Hustle and Nobie’s, the Uncanned team gave Donna’s the ability to kick out the jams with ultra-clear sound while not being so loud that people can’t talk to each other. It also opens up the possibility of people playing their favorite albums on select nights.

“Jacki and I both had the bold opinion when we started talking about Donna’s that cocktail bars were boring. We wanted to add more layers to the onion,” Heugel says. “Having music be here as an additional component to the bar makes the room feel really good. That’s important to us, and we’ll have some programming related to that.”

Keli Hogsett of Austin’s CoCollect helped Schromm and Heugel select the room’s distinctive art on its walls. Heugel describes the works as museum-quality, contemporary pieces from regional artists that are a cut above what’s usually seen in bars. Hogsett will also source the art for the new restaurant Heugel and chef Justin Yu are opening next year in the former Vibrant space.

Schromm, who partnered with Heugel after working at Anvil and Reserve 101, created the opening cocktail menu herself. One highlight is the Jacki’s Martini, a nod to the “Bobby’s Martini” served at Refuge and the “Terry’s Martini” served at Squable. It’s a 50-50 mix of gin with Cocchi Americano and Dolin Blanc vermouth. She describes it as more “sessionable” than a traditional martini.

“I think this cocktail menu has a lot of personality,” she says. “Some of my flair, whether it’s a spirit I chose or a flavor I like.”

Although parking on the property is limited, Heugel notes that street parking on White Oak is relatively plentiful. A nearby pay lot is available, or people can skip the issue altogether by using their favorite rideshare service.

Of course, the adjacent restaurant space won’t stay empty for long. As CultureMap has previously reported, Austin-based pizzeria Home Slice has claimed the building for its second Houston location that will open in fall 2026.

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Donna's, 2626 White Oak Drive. Open daily from 2 pm-2 am

Courtesy of Donna's

People are flocking to Donna's.

openings nightlife cocktails the-heights

Rodeo BBQ Contest Wrapup

Behind the scenes at Houston's hottest BBQ contest: What it's like to judge Rodeo ribs

Holy Cow Cookers takes a break from partying to participate in the contest.

Oh, Donna

New Houston cocktail bar serves up a house party fueled by music and martinis

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