Andrew Caskey, the 29-year-old pitmaster behind Ruston’s immensely popular Bad Wolf BBQ, calls the style of slow-smoked, Instagram-friendly barbecue that he serves “craft barbecue.” Caskey will serve barbecue in Shreveport-Bossier for the first time during the East Bank Block Party with Wayne Toups on July 4 beginning at 4:30 p.m. This young man becoming better acquainted with Shreveport-Bossier could be a very, very good thing for local carnivores.

“Some of our meats are a 20-hour process,” Caskey said. “A lot of people think it’s crazy to spend 20 hours on a piece of meat, but, for me, it’s a labor of love. Seeing people take that first bite of our brisket, hearing them say ‘I didn’t know brisket could be like this’…that’s what I’m in it for.”

A platter of barbecue and sides from Bad Wold BBQ. Courtesy photo.

For the July 4 event, Bad Wolf BBQ will be serving slow-smoked USDA Prime brisket, pulled pork, brisket-stuffed sweet potatoes, and a variety of sandwiches. The menu will be smaller than the menu they typically serve in Ruston and Jonesboro, in an effort to streamline service. The brisket-stuffed sweet potato – with scratch-made white sauce (not to be confused with Alabama’s “comeback sauce,” per Caskey), chopped green onions and paprika – sounds like the move to me.

There are several great-sounding food events in the works on July 4, which will make for some tough choices for local diners. I am hoping to split my time between Great Raft Brewing‘s Amber Waves of Pain event – with live pro wrestling and food from Chef Jacob Mouser – and the East Bank Block Party.

“It’s all about exposure for me, I’m not trying to compete,” Caskey said. “I just enjoy this and want to bring it to more people.”

No word on exactly where the Bad Wolf BBQ truck will be set up on July 4, but the East Bank District and Plaza – the area that stretches from BeauxJax Crafthouse to Flying Heart Brewing and Pub – isn’t a huge space, so they should be easy enough to locate. See you in line?

Like Bad Wolf BBQ on Facebook.
RSVP to the East Bank Block Party on Facebook.
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