By Kelli Goel
Alexandria, VA – The “Winningest Man in BBQ,” Myron Mixon, has won his 5th World BBQ title championship in Memphis this May, a record 20-year run of winning the BBQ Championship title. He first won in 2001 and now 20 years later he is still winning. He was also named champion in 2004 and 2007.
He was working the crowd at his “Whole Hog Night” Wednesday evening at his restaurant, Myron Mixon’s Pitmaster Barbeque Restaurant in Old Town. His loyal fans came to congratulate him on his latest win as well as have him sign their copy of his newest book. Not only did he just win his 5th World BBQ Title, but on May 11 he also released a new cookbook, “Keto BBQ.” He graciously chatted with his customers and signed books. He lost 100 pounds in 9 months eating this way and he is eager to share what worked for him to lose weight.
Myron was born and raised in Georgia and still lives there today; he is actually the Mayor of his town, Unadilla. Growing up his father owned a take-out BBQ business and Mixon started out at just 9 years old, not really by choice, learning how to barbeque. Mixon said, “He started me out not to be a Pitmaster, but to basically tote, fetch and go get.” He says everything he learned came from his dad. In 1996 he started competing and winning barbeque competitions, and these accomplishments led to tv shows, which in turn encouraged him to write cookbooks.
In 2017 he opened his first restaurant, and he chose Alexandria as its location. He recently opened an establishment in Miami, Florida, and this July his third Myron Mixon Pitmaster Barbeque will open in Hoboken, New Jersey. His recipes are all his or from his family members.
When asked why he chose Alexandria, his response was “this is a cool place.” He originally opened with a partner who was from this area, but Mixon now owns 100% of the restaurant. He says he’s a history buff and there’s history all around you in Old Town. Mixon declared, “I’ll do whatever it takes in my power to make sure that Alexandria has a great barbeque place.” He has very loyal employees and even though the restaurant was shut down from May until October due to COVID, 100% of his kitchen staff returned. He says they were lucky, and they didn’t have to retrain; they picked up right where they had left off.
Mixon also builds his own name-brand smokers, selling consumer models, small models and commercial units. He sells his own bbq sauces and rubs too. He will be coming out with a keto-friendly line where all of the rubs and sauces are made with monk fruit (a natural sweetener) instead of sugar or artificial sweeteners.
Teaching smoker classes since 2005, he has a compound, as he calls it, in Georgia, where he hosts three-day cooking classes. He teaches one class a month for 65 students that’s always full, and he’s currently booking classes for January 2022. People from all over the world join him in his classes. Mixon states, “Every culture has their own barbeque, but they all want to learn the Americanized barbeque.” He trains his kitchen staff there also.
Mixon has been on numerous television shows and was a big part of the BBQ Pitmasters TLC reality TV show which aired for several seasons starting in 2009. These reruns are now playing in Europe, South America and Asia. This exposure is increasing his popularity in many different countries since they are trying to emulate the American style barbeque. Food Network’s series Chopped does Smoking Secrets every year, so Mixon knows he will get to guest judge for that as soon as the show restarts.
Myron Mixon’s Pitmaster Barbeque is located at 220 N Lee Street, Alexandria. Hours are Monday-Thursday 11:30 am to 10:00 pm; Friday and Saturday 11:30 am to 11:00 pm; and Sunday 11:00 am to 9:00 pm. Call 703-565-9808 to place pick-up orders.
