This started as a daft little idea in the UK BBQ Community WhatsApp group.
The plan was simple: get the regional groups talking, get people meeting up, get some food on the fire, and cook something that represents where they’re from.
It was meant to be a full regional cook-off, with crews from across the UK getting involved.
In the end, only two regions properly stepped up.
The South and the North.
And to be fair, this is probably the BBQ war we were all secretly hoping for anyway.
This was never really about polished competition food, perfect plating, or pretending someone’s patio had suddenly become a Michelin-starred smokehouse.
It was about getting people together, cooking outside, sharing ideas, making new mates, and giving the other regions a bit of grief.
On that front, both teams absolutely nailed it.
If you’re not in the UK BBQ Community yet and fancy getting involved next time, you can find out more here:
South BBQ Group
Status: Entered. Set the bar. Coastal swagger deployed.
The South were first out of the blocks, and they didn’t exactly ease into it.
They got together, lit the fires, and put on an absolute feast — the kind of cook-up that makes you stop scrolling, zoom in on the photos, and quietly mutter “fair play” at your phone.
This was proper land, sea and fire stuff.
Venison haunch wrapped in nori. Reverse-seared smoked lamb. Lobster. Scallops. Shell-on prawns. Black sea bream. Sussex mackerel. Monkfish. Grilled veg. Focaccia. Fresh green sauce. And a Sussex Smokie finished with a breadcrumb crust.
Basically, they didn’t just submit a dish.
They staged a hostile takeover.
What made it even better is that this is exactly what the challenge was meant to be about. A group of BBQ people getting together, cooking outdoors, sharing ideas, having a laugh, and turning “lunch” into a full-blown event.
The South set the bar properly high.
North BBQ Group
Status: Entered. Came armed. Made it a proper fight.
Then came the North.
Their entry was built around the line: “Born from the mills and the moors to the docks and the coast.”
And honestly, they weren’t messing about.
The platter celebrated everything that makes Northern food special: honest ingredients, generous portions, bold flavours, and the sort of hospitality where nobody leaves hungry unless they’ve made some very poor life choices.
Inspired by the communal spirit of South American asado, they pulled together the best of Yorkshire, Lancashire, Merseyside, Cumbria and the North East, then cooked it the way it deserved to be cooked — over open flames.
Every element told a bit of the Northern story, from mills and moors to docks and coast.
Rack of northern lamb with garden herbs. Black pudding burnt ends glazed with Newcastle Brown Ale sauce. Sticky pork ribs. Cumberland sausage. Smoked chuck scouse with pickled red cabbage and local sourdough. Beer battered local fish and chips. Roast beef sirloin. Ribeye steaks with chimichurri. Venison burgers with Mrs Kirkham’s Blue. Grilled salad potato skewers. Sweet Yorkshire pudding with bone marrow crème pâtissière. Smoked sticky toffee pudding with bourbon infused ice cream.
Subtle? Absolutely not.
Effective? Very much so.
This was proper Northern hospitality on a platter. Big, bold, generous and very clearly not messing about.
The South set the bar.
The North answered.
And now we’ve got ourselves a proper BBQ scrap.
How to vote
Two regions entered.
Two completely different approaches.
One winner.
The South brought coastal swagger, seafood, smoke and finesse.
The North brought firepower, bold flavours, big portions and proper regional graft.
Now it goes to the people.
Voting will happen on the Smoke & Sear Facebook and Instagram posts. To vote, simply pick your platform, hit the button, and vote on the post by commenting either SOUTH or NORTH.
I’ll give it a week or so, then somehow attempt to collate the comments across both platforms without losing my mind.
Highly scientific? Absolutely not.
Community chaos? Very much so.
The winning region gets bragging rights, full permission to be unbearable in the WhatsApp group, and whatever prize bits I manage to blag together.
The other regions?
Well, they did nothing, so they can sit quietly and think about what they’ve done.
And the winner is… North
After a week of voting across Instagram and Facebook, the North have taken the win with 81% of the vote, leaving the South on 19%.
It turns out northern firepower, black pudding burnt ends, ale-glazed ribs, Cumberland sausage, scouse, fish and chips, venison burgers and sticky toffee pudding were enough to win over the BBQ crowd.
Huge congratulations to the North BBQ Group, who now take the 2026 regional glory, full bragging rights, and permission to be absolutely unbearable in the WhatsApp group.
Massive respect to the South too, who set the bar early with an incredible land, sea and fire feast. This whole thing only worked because both teams properly showed up, cooked together, and reminded everyone what the UK BBQ Community is really about.
