Ed Mitchell, NC’s most famous pitmaster, is ready to open a new barbecue restaurant
If North Carolina barbecue has a face, that face is Ed Mitchell.
The state’s most famous pitmaster is set to open a new restaurant in Raleigh, teaming up with Carolina Ale House owners LM Restaurants.
The currently unnamed project will move into the former Carolina Ale House at 512 Creekside Drive, just off Wake Forest Road, near the new Wegmans grocery store. Owners are projecting an opening next spring, after renovating the existing space and building pit smokers out back.
“Pulled pork is the soul of North Carolina cooking, and we are beyond excited at the chance to work with legendary pitmaster Ed Mitchell to bring heritage BBQ pork to the Triangle,” said LM Restaurant president Amber Moshakos in a release. “Ed’s special connection to North Carolina farmers and the betterment of pork livestock will make this menu distinct.”
Through his restaurants and television and documentary appearances, Mitchell became North Carolina’s best-known pitmaster, championing whole hog barbecue and overalls.
But Mitchell has been a pitmaster without a restaurant for some time now. He was a founder of The Pit in Raleigh and later opened Ed Mitchell’s QUE in Durham’s American Tobacco Campus, but closed it in 2015 after less than a year. Fans of Mitchell and his food were excited by plans to open a new restaurant in Brier Creek, but that project never came to fruition.
NC’s barbecue history
In a news release, Mitchell and LM Restaurants said the new project will focus on North Carolina’s barbecue history.
“I worked with Southern Food Alliance at The University of Mississippi where we connected farmers to the old-time guys, like myself,” said Mitchell in a release. “Now we are taking these protocols for breeding to NC A&T and NC State. The breed we will use for this restaurant will follow the specific diet I have developed for my recipes.”
For years, Mitchell’s son, Ryan, has served as a business partner for his father. Ryan Mitchell said the new restaurant will serve pigs raised on a specific diet tailored for barbecue.
“People are interested in knowing what they are eating and where their food is coming from,” Ryan Mitchell said in a release. “This is central to our food philosophy. Not only will our pork have a very carefully planned diet, but our sauces are based in NC produce such as sweet potatoes, fresh greens, and butternut squash.”
Mitchell’s return to restaurants comes at a time when Raleigh looks to be a barbecue capital in the making. Sam Jones BBQ, Longleaf Swine, Wyatt’s Whole Hog and Prime BBQ are all opening next year.
“While this venture will be spearheaded by two generations of our families, our recipes are rooted in more than four generations of Mitchell tradition,” said Ryan in a release. “We can’t wait to introduce this goodness to our neighbors in Raleigh.”
This story was originally published December 2, 2019 at 12:36 PM.
