Former Fayetteville firefighter Bobby Brinson can take the heat.
The pitmaster has more than 150 barbecue competitions under his belt, a slew of trophies in his shed, and he owns and operates Vicious Pig , one of the busiest food trucks in Cumberland County.
Customers in the know line up at his serving window well before he opens in hopes of snagging a plate.
Brinson said he sells out fast — in less than an hour, he serves 60 pounds of pork, 14 racks of ribs, 12 pounds of burnt ends, 20 pieces of chicken,15 pounds of potato salad and 10 pounds of baked beans — while his wife, Morgan, rings up customers.
“You open a window, sell out, and you feel like you've been in a damn kickboxing match,” he said at his Stedman home Thursday.
Brinson, 49, who played on the golf team at South View High School in the ‘90s, cooks meat over a wood-fired smoker and makes his barbecue seasonings and sauces from scratch.
The Hope Mills native said he’s best known for his pork ribs, which are coated with a proprietary rub, smoked for about two hours, glazed with a mixture of honey, brown sugar and maple syrup, wrapped in foil, and smoked for about another two hours.
The pitmaster said he doesn’t cook by time or temperature but by feel.
“Everybody wants fall-off-the-bone ribs, but in the culinary world, that’s way overcooked,” he said. “The consistency you want in ribs is like a room-temperature stick of butter.”
While meat and potatoes have been Brinson's bread and butter since he opened the truck in early 2022, he also makes collard greens, cole slaw, barbecue tacos and smoked apple caramel cake.
The self-taught chef recently rolled out a festival menu with barbecue nachos, smoked street corn, sausage dogs, Bright Leaf hot dogs and a barbecue “sundae” of pork, beans and cole slaw layered in a cup.
Vicious Pig started with barbecue competitions
Brinson said he often grilled burgers and steaks for fellow firefighters during his 30 years of service with the Fayetteville Fire Department.
Later, he got into barbecue, learning through YouTube videos and culinary classes. In 2013, he started competing under the Vicious Pig name in barbecue competitions up to 25 times a year, mainly in the southeast, but sometimes as far as Texas, he said.
These days, he does about 10 competitions a year, hosts his own Southern Barbecue Network-sanctioned Vicious Pig BBQ Throwdown each fall on his 5-acre Stedman property, and serves on the committee for Fayetteville’s Black BBQ Cook-Off .
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It’s easy to see that Brinson cares about his craft. The Vicious Pig trailer, which has a perfect sanitation score, is immaculate. Recipes and detailed timelines, with instructions that start as early as 3:30 a.m. are neatly compiled in a binder.
He admits, however, that when he steps out of the red and black trailer, the last thing he wants to eat is barbecue.
“I leave a competition, the first place I hit is McDonald’s for a fish filet sandwich,” he said with a chuckle.
Brinson is a chef, caterer, food truck owner and father
Other than competing and operating the food truck, Brinson caters weddings, corporate events and parties. He is a chef for the Veterans Golfers Association in Pinehurst, and parents his three kids, ages 4, 17 and 18.
“I wear three hats,” he said. “Four, really, because I’m also a cool dad.”
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A hospitable and plainspoken guy, Brinson said that to his core, he’s a pitmaster with a passion for barbecue.
"I've got a history of doing it, and I'm a barbecue guy,” he said.
The details
Phone: 910-635-7617
Contact: viciouspigbbq@gmail.com
On the web: facebook.com/fearthepig
Hours: Vicious Pig can usually be found at First Bank at 2818 Raeford Road on Wednesday from noon to 2 p.m. Check Facebook and Instagram for updates.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Barbecue buffs swarm this Fayetteville food truck wherever it goes
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