Welcome to Meat Week

Charlotte joins cities across the U.S. in celebrating barbecue.

If you're a lover of barbecue, get ready to eat. Charlotte is one of 13 cities celebrating Meat Week, eight days of gathering at barbecue restaurants, starting the last Sunday of January.

In Meat Week tradition, a "captain" schedules visits to eight places, where meat-lovers gather to eat and talk barbecue. Charlotte's captain, Richard Gruica, kicked off the Queen City celebration at Mac's Speed Shop on Sunday. Monday's outing is to Midwood Smokehouse, with the Improper Pig on Tuesday, Queen City Q on Wednesday, City Smoke on Thursday, Food Truck Fridays on Friday, and finishing the week are Elwoods Barbecue and Burger Bar on Saturday and a Super Bowl potluck on Sunday. Find more information on the events and buy tickets here.

The week-long event honoring smoked meats was started by a duo out of Tallahassee, Florida, and has since spread across the country.

Other cities involved in the event are Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Cincinnati, Columbus, Greenville, S.C., Los Angeles, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, San Antonio, and Washington, D.C.