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The 3rd Annual Placer County Fair Rib Cookoff happened at the Placer County fair on Sunday, June 25, 2023, with the advertisement stating "Over 20 teams competing for the trophy of the People's Choice." Unlike last year, this event turned out to be quite different, and it ended up as a disappointment. 20 teams??? I counted around 10 rib teams cooking, which was quite a significant decrease from the number of teams advertised. Hey, I'd already paid my $30.00, so it was time to enjoy some ribs...
Photo: The promotional photo for the 3rd Annual Rib Cookoff, held at the Placer County Fair on Sunday, June 25, 2023. I purchased my ticket back in March, and I'd been looking forward to this event. I had pre-ordered my "Rib Kit" back in March, so I received four kits for the price of three, which netted me a total of 40 ribs to enjoy, or so the Facebook post and the advertisement stated. However, this event was to be quite different than the previous year, and very different than what the publicity posted it to me. When I arrived at the gate, I received a yellow wrist band, which allowed me to go to each rib booth and enjoy ribs. Or should I say "rib" as after waiting in line, I was awarded with exactly ONE rib per visit. You want more ribs? Go back to the end of the line, wait, stand in line, wait patiently and when you arrive at the serving station, you'll enjoy another rib. Yeah... I paid $30.00 for this three months ago... At each rib cooker, with the exception of GCSmokin'BBQ, I, and everybody else, was rewarded with exactly ONE rib, after waiting in line. One rib per visit, after waiting in line. Hmmm.....
Photo: It's 01:30 PM in the afternoon on Sunday, June 25, 2023, and it's time to enjoy ribs at the 3rd Annual Rib Cook-Off at the 83rd annual Placer County Fair.
Photo: The fair opened at noon, so before pigging out on ribs, it was time to enjoy a beer. Budweiser and it's parent company is "WOKE," but they had a monopoly on this years event, so I had no choice but to swallow their product.
Photo: Meet friendly Allie, who served my beer to me with a friendly smile, and Roseville hospitality.
Photo: I'm a happy guy, as I look forward to enjoying a beer before I pig-out on pork ribs.
Photo: As I sipped my beer, I enjoyed the fine folk/modern country music this gentleman was playing. His producer seems to be working quite hard to make this fine entertainment happen.
Photo: The rib event was just around the corner from the main stage and the fides, which signs pointing the way. The even began at 1:30 PM in the afternoon, as advertised.
Photo: My first stop today was Bounty Hunters Cafe, which has a restaurant in downtown Roseville, and the team always provides great food at special events.
Photo: Chef Verley discusses ribs and other topics of interest with a couple of the guests at the 3rd Annual Placer County Fair Rib Cook off.
Photo: I had the opportunity to enjoy the company of this amazing lady, as we chatted over ribs and chili about the day's events at the Placer County fair. This lady was very gracious and a great person to chat with.
Photo: Chef Verley stokes his rib cooker, which is fired by oak wood, which grows locally in Placer County.
Photo: Ribs are being cooked on Bounty Hunter's pit at the fair. The pit is fired by locally grown oak wood, with is similar to taste with hickory.
Photo: Ribs taken out of the grill at Bounty Hunter Cafe. The restaurant is noted for great food and friendly service.
Photo: My friendly server hands me my one rib that I enjoyed today from this great restaurant.
Photo: One rib is an outstanding rib at Bounty Hunters Cafe, located in downtown Roseville. Like most of the restaurants at today's event, after waiting in line, I was rewarded with a single rib.
Photo: Chef Verley, and is team at Bounty Hunter Cafe know how to grill pork ribs, as the rib I enjoyed today was simply amazing. The rib was juicy, flavorful, tender and just like the way you want a pork rib to be cooked. I have to admit that all the ribs I enjoyed today were simply delicious and amazing. I have no idea how anybody could judge which rib was the best, as the ribs I enjoyed from each cooking team were simply delicious, and tasted deliciously identical. On the other hand, Chef Verley and his team make amazing ribs, perhaps some of the best ribs in Roseville. I highly recommend a visit to Bounty Hunter Cafe, located in downtown Roseville.
Photo: My next stop was Full Plate BBQ, which offered more delicious ribs cooked Kansas City style. California has a distinctive variety of barbecue, but Kansas City is the most popular on the west coast. I'm a fan of Kansas City style barbecue, as it's my go-to when it comes to barbecue.
Photo: These friendly ladies were great hostesses when it came to ribs at Full Plate BBQ, and treated me like a rock star.
Photo: Cheers! I hold my one rib that I got after waiting in line. Thank goodness I "opened up" the event, as most of the ribs ran out by 2:30 PM, and the event was scheduled to last until 3:30 PM.
Photo: My one rib was simply delicious, as it was juicy, smoked and falling off the bone tender. The "Kansas City" style barbecue sauce added to the deliciousness of the rib. The rib was simply delicious, grilled to perfection and was as good as a rib could get.
Photo: Sac Hitterz BBQ was a new venue for me, as before today, I'd never had a chance to enjoy their fine cuisine. They cater to special events all over the greater Sacramento area, including the Placer County fair.
Photo: At 01:45 PM on this Sunday afternoon, the rib cookoff area is a busy place at the fair.
Photo: My amazingly friendly hostess handed me a rib with a friendly smile.
Photo: I'm a happy guy, as I will be enjoying a delicious, perfectly cooked rib today at the 3rd Annual Placer County Fair Rib Cook Off. This year every guest received a yellow band to attach to the wrist and received one rib per visit. I was not at all happy with the new format.
Photo: Sac Hitterz BBQ knows how to grill ribs, as the rib I enjoyed from them was falling-off-the-bone tender and simply delicious.
Photo: Holy Smokes BBQ, which is a local catering restaurant, offered amazing ribs from their friendly team.
Photo: Ribs with a smile! Holy Smokes BBQ, located locally in Auburn, CA.
Photo: The friendly staff at Holy Smokes snaps a photo of me, on my request, as I get ready to enjoy my delicious rib.
Photo: Holy smokes! You can say that again, as the rib I enjoyed, thanks to the friendly staff at Holy Smokes BBQ was simply delicious! Marinated, juicy, smoked and falling off the bone tender to enjoy. Honestly... how can a person judge which rib is best as all of the ribs I enjoyed were simply amazing!
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Photo: Sacramento Kings gears, and all that is related to basketball is at the booth.
Photo: Ribs are served by the friendly staff at GCSmokin'BBQ. Unlike other restaurants, these friendly folks provided a full plate of ribs rather than just one rib. That is why they got my vote for the "Best Ribs."
Photo: I'm a happy guy, as I'm ready to enjoy some of the best ribs in Roseville! Unlike the other restaurants, GCSmokin'BBQ gave me three ribs as opposed to a single rib, so they won my vote.
Photo: Three pork ribs of maybe the best pork ribs ever! Smoked, tender, marinated, meaty and with just the right amount of barbecue sauce. GCSmokin'BBQ knows barbecue, and they know how to cook ribs to perfection. How do you vote for "best" when all of the ribs at the event are cooked to perfection? I don't have a clue, as I'm simply an aimless "foodie" lacking in direction when it comes to what is "best." Every rib I enjoyed today was simply delicious and every rib tasted identical. Blindfold me, and I couldn't taste one rib from another, as they were all "to die for" delicious. I gave GCSmokin'BBQ my vote for the "best ribs," as I actually received three ribs, as opposed to one rib at each of the other rib cooking teams I visited. GCSmokin'BBQ's ribs were simply delicious, but were on par with the other teams, but GC won my vote for "Best in the Cookoff" for ignoring the "one-rib-per-visit" protocol that seemed to be happening at all of the other teams.
Photo: GCSmokin'BBQ was serving Asian style rice, complete with ham and egg after every grilling team had run out of rice. It is noteworthy to say that I'm enjoying a helping of Asian style rice at 2:42 PM, after all the ribs had run out of the event, that was supposed to last until 3:30 PM in the afternoon. The gentleman behind me looks serious, as I guess he's hoping there will be enough rice left over for him to enjoy his lunch.
Photo: It's 2:42 PM in the afternoon - according to the clock on my camera - and instead of ribs, I've received a great helping of fried Asian-style rice, complete with ham and eggs. The side dish was simply delicious, but it wasn't ribs! GCSmokin'BBQ was actually serving food - not ribs - after ever other team at the event ran out of ribs, well before the 3:30 PM advertised closing time of the event. Each rib that I enjoyed from every rib team was simply amazing! I have no idea how anyone could vote for their favorite, as each rig I ate today was simply as good as it gets. Kudos from me go out to every team, as every rib I ate was delicious and every staff member on every team was simply friendly and wonderful. Every rib I enjoyed from every rib team was in a single word... DELICIOUS! And, every rib team member I visited was simply friendly and welcoming. I have nothing but good things to say about the delicious ribs and the friendly folks at every rib team. As an aside, I saved every rib bone that I enjoyed today and brought them home with me, thanks to my handy backpack. The rib bones made for great broth for potato soup for the next day. But... the management of this event was simply unacceptable, as most rib cooking teams were out of ribs after only an hour into the event, and were left with apologies and "No Ribs" signs posted on their booths. I "opened" up the event at the 1:30 PM opening time, and I enjoyed my fair share of ribs, but I noted lots of folks who arrived later in the event were out of luck... and ribs... after paying $30.00 or more to enjoy the event. Management needs to address the supply issue for next year, as the rib shortage was simply unacceptable. Placer County Fair Rib Cookoff Copyright(c) 2023 eRench Productions. All rights reserved. We've been on the web since December 22, 2002.
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