Full Results Released for Hawaii State BBQ Championships

Despite taking home the top prize in three of six categories, Big Island native John Penner was edged out by Oahu resident Matt King in a 29-29 tie breaker at the Hawai`i State Bar-B-Que Championships on July 4 in Hilo.

The International Bar-b-Que Cookers Association released the full results of the cook-off recently, which saw 13 teams from the Big Island, Oahu, and Texas compete head-to-head for the state championship title, and an instant spot at the Jack Daniel’s Invitational later on this year in Tennessee.

Matt King of Oahu claims the Hawaii State Bar-b-Que Championships top trophy. Photo by Nate Gaddis.

Spanning two days, the competition tested cook’s skills in preparing poke, chili, chicken, pork spare ribs, and beef brisket.

Each dish had to arrive within a brief window of time in front of judges, who would then “blind” taste-test and score each dish.

Penner took top honors in chili, pulled pork, and pork spare ribs. King, by contrast, failed to claim first place in a single category, but delivered a consistent performance throughout.  King made it into the “top ten” for all six categories, and placed in the “top five” for four of them.

This smoked chicken, from Paul Kealoha of the Big Island, scored him a 4th place finish in the category. Photo by Nate Gaddis.

David Davenport of Big I Que took the top prize for brisket, while Jamie Nahl of Plant it Hawai`i turned out the most impressive showing in the chicken category.

Rounding out the top six dishes was Paul Kealoha of “Kahaleuahi”, who took top honors for his poke preparation.

King, an Air Force veteran, donated all of his winnings (more than $600) back to the organizers of the event, Hawaiian Arts of Downtown Hilo.

The full results of the Hawai`i State Bar-b-Que Championships can be found at the IBCA’s website.

The overall “top ten” rankings for the Hawaii State Bar-b-Que Championships. Image courtesy IBCA.