BBQ Benefit Blowout
Slow Bone welcomes Texas barbecue royalty for Café Momentum benefit
Barbecue always wins, even on a very hot night. Meat lovers sweated out the latest episode of Café Momentum, the charitable pop-up dinner series, this time at the Slow Bone on July 7, with a menu of barbecue from across the state.
Café Momentum founder Chad Houser and Slow Bone owner Jack Perkins welcomed a crowd of 200 – double the usual attendance of 100 – to a spread from six barbecue joints: Pecan Lodge and Lockhart Smokehouse of Dallas, Stanley’s from Tyler, Louie Mueller BBQ in Taylor and Riverport Barbecue in Jefferson.
From Riverport, it was pulled pork. Pecan Lodge dished out beef ribs off the bone. Mueller brought pork ribs. Stanley's served sausage and brisket. Slow Bone offered pork belly tacos, and Lockhart surprised all with a shrimp lettuce wrap.
There were also doughnuts from Hypnotic Donuts topped with blueberries and ice cream, plus beer from Four Corners Brewing and wine from Oak Cliff Cellars.
The event raised more than $18,000 for Café Momentum and the young men of Youth Village Resources of Dallas, including a $5,000 check from fellow non-profit Chefs For Farmers. Houser recognized two individuals for their dedication. Board member Kenneth Pyron was named Mr. Pitmaster, complete with sash and tiara, for helping to organize the party. Eric Bahn was acknowledged for teaching a career class to the boys of Dallas County Youth Village.
Guests such as barbecue kingpin Daniel "BBQ Snob" Vaughn, plus chefs such as Matt McCallister, Andre Natera, Colleen O'Hare and Jeana Johnson, mingled beneath tents set up in Slow Bone’s parking lot. This was the first barbecue-themed Cafe Momentum dinner, but Houser aims to make it an annual event.