“In the late 1930s, Warner Stamey returned to Lexington from Shelby and bought the old Jess Swicegood place. In the mid 1950s, Stamey’s apprentice was a young man named Wayne Monk. Wayne learned the craft well, opened his own place in 1962. Today Wayne Monk is one of the godfathers of barbecue in North Carolina and is held in high esteem anywhere barbecuers gather. He oversees one of the most streamlined, efficient and impeccably clean barbecue operations I have ever seen.

The different parts of the shoulder – outside brown, regular, white, lean, etc. – are separated so customers can order the type of barbecue they prefer. The medium-coarse, chopped barbecue was good with lots of brown skin in tiny bits intermingled. The slight taste of fat added to the excellent flavor. The meat had smoky overtones and was not crunchy but was slightly chewy (because of the brown). It was oh so good. The coarse chopped barbecue was in big hunks and came sauced in the kitchen generously enough for me. It was ever so tender with some brown and a slightly smoky flavor. The sliced barbecue is so tender, so smoky and so good.

The red slaw is not so red as other barbecue houses; it is a wonderful blend of red and white with no mayonnaise. It has a sweet-and-sour taste. It’s very good.

The dip applied in the kitchen is thin, brown, spicy, peppery and hot but not too hot. It is 75 percent water with salt, sugar and black and red peppers. It is much milder when applied to the meat. It’s great combined with the chopped barbecue.”

Excerpts from The Best Tar Heel Barbecue Manteo to Murphy pages 108-110.