Waitresses, Line Cook, Bussers
Ridgewood Barbecue is now hiring for the following positions:
*Kitchen
*Bussers
*Waitresses
*Line Cook
Complete with all the fixins, our southern comfort food is sure to satisfy any appetite. Our recipes have been gathered over three generations of the Proffitt family with strong roots in the south and its tradition of BBQ.
Our signature, award-winning pork and beef is smoked for 8-10 hours in our custom smokehouses, our famous beans and coleslaw are made fresh daily and our best-selling blue cheese dressing adds a dash of zest!
Smoked meat has been a part of daily life in southern Appalachia - but our smoked meat in a sweet, tomato-based sauce? is what we call "Tennessee-style". Ridgewood has been been tucked away in Bullocks Hollow since the late-1940s, off the beaten path and worth every turn.
The hams at Ridgewood come from nearby Bristol, Tennessee. After the fresh hams arrive at the restaurant, they're smoked for nine hours, then rubbed with spices and chilled overnight. The next morning, they are shaved into thin, white slices. As customers arrive for lunch and dinner, the kitchen warms piles of shaved ham on a flat-top grill out front. Handfuls of ham are coated with barbecue sauce and piled on sandwiches or plates for customers.
The recipe for the sauce is a closely-guarded secret known only by two members of the founding Proffitt family. Only written down when it comes time for one Proffitt to teach the next to make it...once the knowledge has been passed on, the paper is burned. One of the managing Proffitts has another job - patriarch Larry is a pharmacist, but daughter Lisa who was once a registered nurse now dedicates her time strictly to the restaurant.
Larry's mother, Mrs. Grace Proffitt, also dedicated herself strictly to the restuarant whereas her husband worked at a local factory to pay the bills. Also Terry, oldest son of Grace and Jim, dedicated much of his life to insure the high quality standards developed by his parents.
The practice of reheating the ham before serving it gives it a unique tender texture with crispy edges. It certainly isn't the pulled-pork eaten to the east and west, or the country ham found all over East Tennessee. Gas cooking has never played a role in this process like so many current barbecue makers. The painstaking steps required to smoke the meats over hickory wood for hours as opposed to gas cooking is an important factor in creating true smoked meats.
The flavors at Ridgewood are the flavors of southern Appalachia. The most dominant is a deep, comforting smoke that's unfettered by too much spice. Since the beans contain little bits of the meat, they also benefit from the true smoky flavor that makes Ridgewood stand apart.