Pioneer of Lexington-Style Barbecue; Founder, Stamey's Barbecue
Warner Stamey
Stamey's BarbecueLexington / Greensboro, North Carolina
“Teach a man the pit right, and the barbecue takes care of itself.”
Signature Dish:Chopped pork shoulder dressed with tomato-vinegar dip
Born in 1911, Warner Stamey learned pit cooking as a young man from Lexington's tent-barbecue men Jess Swicegood and Sid Weaver. He opened his own barbecue business in 1930 and eventually settled in Greensboro, refining the chopped-pork-shoulder-with-tomato-vinegar-dip formula now known as Lexington-style. He mentored a generation of legendary pitmasters, including Wayne Monk and Red Bridges, and was inducted into the American Royal Barbecue Hall of Fame in 2020.
Philosophy
Wood coals and a shoulder are all the flavor a plate really needs.
Technique
Slow-cooking pork shoulders over hickory coals in brick pits.
Influences
Jess SwicegoodSid Weaver