Saw’s BBQ is No. 1 with Paula Deen, y’all. The popular Homewood barbecue joint tops the list of “The Best Barbecue across America” that appears in the July-August issue of Cooking with Paula Deen magazine, which is available on newsstands now.

Saw’s BBQ founder Mike Wilson said Wednesday afternoon he was pleasantly surprised when he learned his place was first on Deen’s list.

“To be named No. 1 in something like that is kind of what you do it for,” Wilson said. “I couldn’t believe it at first. It pays off, all of your hard work.”

Here’s what Deen’s magazine had to say about Saw’s BBQ:

“The focus of Saw’s BBQ is simple – good ole Southern soul food. Pioneered by Mike Wilson, Saw’s has taken Birmingham by a smoky storm. First opening in the residential area of Homewood, the venue has expanded to three locations where they serve classic pulled pork, chicken smothered in a distinctive white sauce, and barbecue-topped baked potatoes. Dubbed an ‘upscale dive,’ this barbecue joint is one both family and friends will enjoy.”

Since opening the original Saw’s BBQ in Homewood’s Edgewood neighborhood in 2009, Wilson has teamed with other partners to open two more Saw’s locations in Birmingham – Saw’s Soul Kitchen in Avondale and Saw’s Juke Joint in Crestline Park – and this spring, he started a Saw’s Street Kitchen food truck.

Last summer, Parade magazine included Saw’s Soul Kitchen on its list of the 17 top new barbecue places in America.

Cooking with Paula Deen is published by Hoffman Media, which is based in Birmingham. Deen, the Savannah, Ga., celebrity chef and cookbook author, is the magazine’s editor-in-chief.

For Cooking with Paula Deen magazine’s Top 10 list and to read the article online, go to: http://www.al.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2014/06/saws_bbq_in_homewood_is_no_1_o.html

Every great barbecue joint has an interesting creation story, but the story of Moe’s is stranger than most. Mike Fernandez was a student at University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, and inspired by the awesome local barbecue scene at places like the superlative Dreamland, he partnered with Moses Day, an experienced pitmaster, to open Moe’s Original Barbecue in Tuscaloosa. After his mentor and partner passed away, Moe’s closed and Fernandez went to culinary school (Johnson & Wales) to learn a more professional approach to the restaurant business.

Afterwards, he found himself living the ski-bum dream with two good college friends in Vail, Colo., a town bereft of real barbecue, so the three partners started cooking from a home built pit in nearby Edwards in 2001, which immediately became locally popular and morphed into a mobile trailer. The success of the trailer grew into a small eatery followed quickly in 2005 by a move to larger nearby location, still in operation today, in the Lionshead base area of Vail, just steps from the ski lifts. Tucked upstairs in a less obvious shopping plaza, this oldest location of Moe’s Original Bar B Que remains a hidden gem, at least as much as is possible in Vail. If you find yourself at America’s most popular ski resort, winter or summer, it is well worth seeking out. But there is more to the tale.

Because of the trio’s history in Tuscaloosa, they soon began partnering with driven and equally barbecue-obsessed graduates of their alma mater to open outposts of Moe’s wherever the U of A alums found themselves, from Alabama to Maine. Today, less than a decade after moving into their first space, there are nearly 30 Moe’s in eight states (Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Ohio, Nevada and Tennessee), with more outposts opening soon in California and South Carolina. It’s an interesting twist on franchising where prospective owners typically prove their mettle interning in one of the existing Moe’s and then often open with interest-free or low-interest loans and deferred fees from the founders, who often come and help work the new openings to get them up and running.

To read the entire article, go to: http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/columnist/greatamericanbites/2014/06/05/moes-barbecue-vail/9967553/

McWane Science Center recently announced its participation in Blue Star Museums, a collaboration among the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense, and more than 2,000 museums across America to offer free admission to the nation’s active duty military personnel including National Guard and Reserve and their families from Memorial Day through Labor Day 2014. Leadership support has been provided by MetLife Foundation through Blue Star Families. The program provides families an opportunity to enjoy the nation’s cultural heritage and learn more about their new communities after a military move. The complete list of participating museums is available at ts.gov/national/blue?star?museums.

“Blue Star Museums has grown into a nationally recognized program that service members and their families look forward to each year,” said Blue Star Families Chief Executive Officer Kathy Roth?Douquet. “It helps bring our local military and civilian communities together, and offers families fun and enriching activities in their home towns. We are thrilled with the continued growth of the program and the unparalleled opportunities it offers.”

“McWane Science Center is happy to be a part of this program for another year. The opportunity to welcome our military and their families is one we as an organization feel is important and we look forward to it, “said Amy Templeton, President and CEO of McWane Science Center.

To find participating museums and plan your trip, visit: www.arts.gov/national/blue?star?museums.

Birmingham chef Chris Hastings hasn’t even started building his new restaurant, but it’s already made Food & Wine magazine’s list of 8 Amazing New Grill Restaurants in America.

The list appears in the June issue of the magazine, which is on newsstands now.

Hastings, who co-owns Hot and Hot Fish Club with his wife, Idie, told AL.com that they are in the early stages of building a casual, rustic, 60-seat restaurant that will adjoin Charlie Thigpen’s Garden Gallery at Pepper Place.

The restaurant, which will feature a wood-fired oven, will be called Ovenbird, named after the national bird of Argentina and Uruguay.

The menu will reflect Hastings’ farm-to-table philosophy, incorporating local and seasonal Southern ingredients with the flame-grilled cooking styles of South America, Hastings said.

Hastings said Food & Wine contacted him about his new restaurant several months ago, and at the time, he thought it would be open this summer. Now, though, it looks more like November, he said.

He is still awaiting a building permit, and once that is approved, the restaurant should open in another 16 to 18 weeks, he said.

“Ovenbird is a reality,” Hastings said. “It is not an ‘if’ question. It is a ‘when’ question.”

The menu will feature small-plate meals that will encourage diners to pick and choose from a number of selections, he said.

“It will be a place to go for a quick bite to eat and a glass of wine — no reservations,” he said. “It’s going to be very unique, certainly for Birmingham.”

The restaurant will be nestled in the gardens and bordered by the wrought-iron fence outside Charlie Thigpen’s Garden Gallery.

To see the complete Food & Wine list of 8 Amazing New Grill Restaurants, go here.

Following its debut in New York City and stops in New Orleans and Nashville, The Art of Alabama Food continues the tour with a stop in Atlanta.

The Art of Alabama Food: Gallery Tour
May 26 – June 1: Lenox Square Mall; Atlanta

The Alabama Tourism Department sponsors The Art of Alabama Food, which is inspired by the “100 Dishes To Eat in Alabama Before You Die” brochure.

Thirty-six images selected from the Alabama Tourism Department’s brochure “100 Dishes To Eat in Alabama Before You Die” will entice guests and inform them about some of Alabama’s best local restaurants. Guests will also be invited to download the free mobile app in order to browse the complete list of 100 Dishes. The mobile app takes consumers on a culinary road trip through the state and features Alabama’s most memorable and iconic dishes, restaurants and overall food experiences.

“With a large pool of culinary talent and innovative restaurants, it’s an exciting time for Alabama food,” says Alabama Tourism Department director Lee Sentell. “We want to share a taste of that with our neighbors in the South and invite them to take a road trip to Alabama where they can experience our unique food culture for themselves.”

The gallery features images from photographer Becky Luigart-Stayner. For more information on The Art of Alabama Food, go to: www.visitartofalabamafood.com or follow the hashtag #AlabamaFood on social media.

Luc Melendez smiled as he pulled into the Houston Welcome Center on Highway 231 on Friday morning.

“I said, ‘There’s a guy in a duck suit! What the heck is going on?’” said Melendez, who had stopped at the rest stop while traveling from Fort Walton Beach, Fla., to Atlanta with his mother, aunt and their dogs, Libby and Torii.

Melendez and his family had stumbled on the welcome center’s annual event to celebrate National Tourism Week. Travelers were greeted with popcorn, cookies and candy, as well as beauty queens in sequined gowns and a giant yellow duck mascot sporting a Water World logo.

Many also heard a hearty, “Hey, Y’all! Welcome to Dothan! Y’all doin’ OK today?” from greeters.

Deborah Tillis, the welcome center’s manager, said the event increases awareness of the economic, social and cultural impact of tourism. More than 100 restaurants, hotels and attractions in the region were part of the event by donating pamphlets and treats, or setting up booths, Tillis said.

If it sounds like a big deal, it is.

According to the Alabama Tourism Department’s preliminary estimates, more than 24 million people visited the state last year, with travelers spending about $11 billion. Travelers were responsible for more than 163,000 jobs in the state in 2013.

“I can tell you that between the eight welcome centers, we see from eight to 10 million people a year,” she said. “It would cause (Alabama residents) to pay an extra $400 a year in additional taxes, if they did not stay and spend money in our state.”

Roberta Burnhart, who lives in Panama City Beach and owns a home in Georgia, said she always stopped at the Houston Welcome Center on her trips back-and-forth.

But she’d never seen it like this.

“I was just excited to see it,” she said, smiling.

Sandy Stacy and Johnnye McEver agreed. The longtime friends often travel between Panama City Beach and their homes in a town just north of Atlanta.

“It’s a very pleasant surprise,” Stacy said. “It gives you a flavor of the culture of the state and the friendliness of the South.”

To read the article online, go to: http://www.dothaneagle.com/news/article_8eecb2ce-d7c8-11e3-ae5c-0017a43b2370.html