www.kcbs.us/event/62 24/morton-bbq-throwd ownwww.pjstar.com/news/ 20160207/bbq-throwdo wn-outgrows-morton-l ocation-eyes-peTry the Mark Twain Hotel; it is within walking distance** 1/4 - 1/2 mileThis event was started by Bill Turney, who at the time, owned From The Field Cooking School at the Field Shopping Center in Morton where the first cook-off was held. It was then moved to downtown Morton in subsequent years. Various rumors to why it was moved to Peoria have circulated. Anyway, it is going to be held at Festival Park.There have been two different attempts to have BBQ competitions at the Peoria Riverfront and both have failed. Since this is a KCBS sponsored competition, hopefully it will be "third times a charm".No, I'm not entering. It wouldn't be fair

Awesome information! Thanks Chef, I'll make my reservation today.TJDasen

Have fun! Are you competing or an interested spectator?Side note: I think it would be fun to compete, but I have a pretty good idea to what the pros spend just on meat for these events and that alone is out of my budget for fun (an 18 pound Wagyu brisket will set you back +/- $200). I don't know if that type of cash is spent at local or regional events.

I'm just a fan of great food. I was also told there's great antique stores to be found.I booked into the Mark Twain like you suggested. I'm bringing my fork and cole slaw along with my prodigious appetite. LOL! Now, where's a great bakery? See ya there.Tim

Panaderia Ortiz 1404 NE Monroe St, Peoria, IL 61603 Phone: (309) 643-1300It is about 1/2 - 3/4 mile north of the hotel you are at. Neighborhood is a little rough, but you should be good in the morning.

@TJDasen :Yikes! Not my forte. The big one down on the river closed several years ago and I don't know where there are any except the Pleasant Hill Antique Mall (about 5 miles east of downtown Peoria). Someone else is going to have to help you with this one!

Urban Artifacts at Main & Sheridan.

Y'all are awesome with this info. I can't thank you enough. A round of drinks on me at the hotel!Tim

There's a new place at 817 SW Adams called Retro Recycle and Guitar Picker. One of the things they sell is old guitars with artwork on them. Very nice and very nicely priced. I haven't been there yet but hope to make it soon.

@skutfarcus And the Guitar picker is the most awesome guy on earth. My favorite dirty ol hippie.

There is a backyard competition along with the KCBS competitors if you don't want to spend the money on meat or equipment.Even though it is a cooking competition, there isn't too much to eat unless you know people on a team. This isn't like the Naperville Ribfest where the teams are cooking a bunch of food to be sold. They are cooking for the judges and themselves.There was a people's choice award for pulled pork last year in Morton. It was interesting to sample how many different ways people cooked the same item.

@gordo :This is most distressing! I understood this to be a BBQ festival of food available to the public. I'm bummed! I'm going to have to rethink spending hundreds and hundreds of dollars just to look at food I can't have. Boo! to whoever thought this was a good idea.

I never understood having a "Best BBQ" contest and not making the results available for public consumption. I don't know a lot about it so is it because there just isn't enough? You would think the participants would like to sell it to recoup some costs. Or is it a health department/licensing issue?

@bgbird68 :DING! DING! DING! YOU sir are the winner!! A good sum of these contestants are professional contestants; they *might* have a food service sanitation license in their home town, state, etc. However, I'm sure the Tazewell or Peoria County Health Department would require a two day permit to cook and serve the public and would have to inspect your refrigeration, cooking equipment, handwashing and warewashing capabilities AND could show up at any time to re-inspect. (Hold on, I need more wine so I can continue typing.......... Ok, I'm back) I'm sure some of the larger competitors at larger competitions are willing to cough up the bucks to do this. But what gets my goat is that you can sell muffins, cake, etc. you cook in your home kitchen at Farmers Markets and that is OK (of course following IDPH guidelines), but hell, smoked goods are cooked on site due to KCBS regulations, so I reaaalllly don't understand why this is a pain in the ***.Hoooowwwweeeevvvvveeeerrrrr....... Let's say Chef Kevin enters. I'm a little guy; I have a small smoker that I do personal and some small catering stuff with, but I'll compete against anyone; hell bring on Myron Mixon. But there is no way in hell I could sample 10,000 people although I might be able to kick every other contestants *** and win the whole thing. (TBT, I know a guy who would loan me one of the biggest Southern Pride smokers made, but not everyone has that luxury.) Another thing is "do I cook one grade of meats for the judges and one for the public? Top end meats for the judging is like $200+ for an 18 pound brisket and $30 for a rack of spare ribs. Imagine the cost to feed samples to 10,000 people. So how much are you willing to spend for a sample, Mr. Consumer? And if I'm from Colorado, there is no way in hell you are ever going to say "DuuuhAMMMMMM these ribs are soo good I'm driving to Colorado". But if I win the judging using top end meats and serve the public "off the shelf" box meats, the public would say "what the hell were the judges eating; this shiit SUCKS!! And if you are a little guy like me that doesn't have a restaurant or store front, what incentive do I have to sample my product? I'm just in it for the prestige to kick Myron Mixon's *** Damn, I'm out of wine....hold on.....As for the public, backyard competition, I probably couldn't enter that due to my "professional chef" status; I'm sure the other contestants would complain. However, just because one is a "professional chef", doesn't mean you automatically can smoke meats; you wouldn't see me entering an ice carving or doughnut making competition.This thing drew huge in Morton almost rivaling the Pumpkin Festival in attendance and that says a lot. A lot of speculation why it didn't stay there and moved to Peoria.There are some good "Q" joints in the area, but I don't know if they will be food vendors for the event.

@ChefKevin :How many people would that amount of product feed for a sample size portion?