Wayne Monk
“You can't hurry good barbecue; the wood and the shoulder set the pace.”
Wayne 'the Honey Monk' Monk started as a teenage carhop and trained under pitmaster Warner Stamey before opening Lexington Barbecue in 1962 at age 26. He built it into the nationally known standard-bearer of Lexington-style barbecue, earning a James Beard Foundation 'America's Classics' award in 2003. In 1983 he served his barbecue to President Reagan and other world leaders at the Summit of Industrialized Nations in Williamsburg. He was inducted into the North Carolina Bar-B-Q Hall of Fame in 2024, and his son Rick and extended family continue the business.
Philosophy
Cook pork shoulders slowly over wood coals and never chase shortcuts.
Technique
Whole pork shoulders cooked low and slow over hardwood coals in brick pits.