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Comedian and serious grilling enthusiast Dave Williamson has officially finished his America, Meat Dave tour. From May to July, Dave drove across the country putting on stand-up comedy shows at BBQ joints from San Diego, California to Birmingham, Alabama.
“This tour was a great chance to mix my two passions: comedy and BBQ,” he says. “I think it was super successful. It was such a different idea that people wanted it to succeed, and they were excited to come out. Plus, I think BBQ just puts people in a good mood.”
Dave spent a good chunk of time driving from location to location. In some cities, he and his film crew would crash at the BBQ joint for the night after his performance.
“It felt like I was living in a BBQ restaurant, which was awesome,” he says. “I’d hang out with the pitmaster, who got in around 2 a.m. to start smoking. Then, around 5 a.m., the cooks would come in to start prepping sides. It was great.”
Dave loved all the stops along the tour, but he said one of the most notable was when he performed at Memphis in May’s World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest. Known as one of the most prestigious contests in the country, this competition takes place over four days in downtown Memphis, Tennessee. Dave says he’s pretty sure he made history as the first stand-up comedy event ever to take place at the festival.
“Everyone said this was the first time they could remember stand-up comedy happening at the festival,” he says. “I was worried it would be too chaotic for stand-up comedy, but it ended up working really well.”
Bear Mountain BBQ partnered with Dave for the two-month tour.
“When Dave came to us with this idea, we were so excited to be a part of it,” says Bear Mountain Product Manager Ben Madden. “There’s no better way to share and spread the love of BBQ than over a few beers and some laughs.”
Can we expect to see more of Dave at BBQ joints across the country in the future?
“I think we definitely proved the concept,” he says. “I may not do such a long tour on the road away from my family, but I will definitely do some smaller trips.”
For more from Dave, make sure to check out his website and his podcast Meat Dave.