Rodney Scott (pitmaster) facts for kids
Rodney Scott (born in 1971) is a famous American chef. He is known for his amazing whole-hog barbecue. He comes from Hemingway, South Carolina. In 2018, he won a big award called 'Best Chef: Southeast' from the James Beard Foundation. He was only the second barbecue expert, also known as a pitmaster, to ever win this special award!
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Early Life and Barbecue Beginnings
Rodney Scott was born in 1971 in Philadelphia. His parents, Roosevelt and Ella Scott, moved to the Pee Dee area of South Carolina in 1972. His family ran many businesses there. These included a gas station, a variety store, a farm, and a barbecue restaurant.
When Rodney was about 11 years old, he started helping with the barbecue. His family owned Scott's Variety Store + Bar-B-Q. At first, they cooked one whole pig each week. As more people wanted their food, they started cooking seven or eight pigs a day! By the time he was 17, he worked there full-time.
Rodney Scott's Barbecue Career
In 2009, a food historian named John T. Edge wrote about his family's business. This helped more people learn about their delicious barbecue.
In 2011, Rodney took charge of the barbecue part of the business. A customer named Nick Pihakis told him he was selling his food too cheaply. In 2016, Rodney decided to leave the family business. He partnered with Nick Pihakis to start his own restaurants.
Rodney Scott opened his first restaurant, Rodney Scott's BBQ, in Charleston, SC in 2017. He opened another location in Birmingham in 2019. By 2021, a third restaurant was planned for Atlanta. A fourth location opened in Alabama in December 2021.
Awards and Recognition
In 2018, Rodney Scott received a very important award. He was named 'Best Chef: Southeast' by the James Beard Foundation. This is a huge honor in the cooking world. He was only the second pitmaster to ever win such a chef award.
In 2020, Rodney was featured on a TV show called Chef's Table: BBQ. The Washington Post newspaper even called him a "barbecue celebrity." He was also nominated to the Barbecue Hall of Fame in 2020. Texas Monthly magazine called him a "whole hog legend." Daniel Vaughn, a writer for Texas Monthly, said Rodney was "an undeniable master of the pit."
Books by Rodney Scott
- Rodney Scott’s World of BBQ: Recipes and Perspectives from the Legendary Pitmaster
