By: Charity Meier | Novi Note | Published May 20, 2026
NOVI — The sound and smell of summer will soon embrace the city of Novi as multiple tribute bands and barbecue food trucks are set to converge upon Twelve Mile Crossing at Fountain Walk this Memorial Day weekend for the third annual BBQ Fest.
Event organizer Bart Loeb said the barbecue trucks will compete to be crowned the best BBQ Truck and awarded bragging rights for a year and a trophy.
The trucks offer a wide variety of barbecue foods from around the world, and the people will judge just how good it is, as the food truck competition has a people’s choice awards format. Attendees will determine who has the best ribs, brisket, sides and overall barbecue.
“We still have 12 of the best competing, and this time we have one that does Korean and Thai ribs,” Loeb said.
Among the competitors is Yetti’s Old World Cuisine of Gladwin, the 2025 champion. Owners Jon and Tracy Curtis and their son, Greg, are slated to defend their title.
Jon Curtis said that the competition is really all in fun. He said the winner will always vary depending on people’s taste at the moment, as all the food is good.
“We’re here just to have fun, and that’s what I really liked about it,” he said.
Jon Curtis recalled what an older gentleman in Tennessee once shared with him.
“This old guy looked at me and he goes, ‘You know, there’s no such thing as bad pork.’ And I’m like, ‘Well, OK.’ And he goes, ‘Have you ate pork that you wouldn’t eat?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, you’re right there. He goes ‘Yeah, there’s just some that might be down here and there’s some that’s up here, but overall it’s still the same; you’re going to still eat it.’ And you know, the guy was right. You’re still going to eat it. And then the guy goes, “Yeah, if you’re eating it, there’s no such thing as bad pork,’ and he’s got a point, you know.. So, we kind of go by that when we taste everybody else’s food. ”
Barbecue vendors will not be the only ones competing for a prize. Show attendees will be in a unique position where they have the chance to not only judge, but to be judged in return.
Attendees will have the chance to participate in several competitions throughout the event.
“The crazy one is we have a barbecue eating competition where people have to eat the barbecue the fastest, and they can’t use their hands, so they have to get their face right into it,” Loeb said. “And it’s really funny. People really laugh at that. People love that.”
Throughout the weekend, there will be a designated children’s area with plenty of entertainment for them.
“We have a great kids area,” Loeb said.
Johnny New York will be bringing magic to life twice a day with shows at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Local merchant Kid Chemist will offer science shows on Saturday and Sunday and science projects throughout the four-day weekend. The kids area will also offer face painting, bounce houses and a giant slide.
The festival draws around 20,000 people annually over four days, according to Loeb.
He said that although they offer much more than barbecue, the food remains the festival’s main attraction.
“The food. It’s the food,” Loeb said. “We have 20 bands, but the people don’t sit by the bands like you would think.”
He said that unlike Pine Knob, where people get their food and go hang out where they can listen to the bands, he said at BBQ Fest, attendees generally go eat their food and talk.
However, Loeb said that may change this year as he and his business partner, John Bandanjek. have invested much more heavily in the entertainment.
“This year we have more expensive entertainment, so maybe we will (see a shift),” Loeb said.
He said that local cover bands supplied the music in the past, but his business partner wanted to bring in tribute bands.
Friday night’s lineup includes the Geff Phillips & Friends Band paying tribute to Billy Joel and Elton John at 8:30 p.m. On Saturday, Street Angel will give a tribute to Stevie Nicks at 6 p.m. and Infinity & Beyond will pay respects to the ageless music of Journey at 8:30 p.m.
Icons of Country is scheduled to present a tribute to “three of the biggest stars in country music,” at 7 p.m. on Sunday. The band will pay tribute to Morgan Wallen, Lainey Wilson and Luke Bryan.
The show will wrap up on Monday with tributes to Barry White and Michael Jackson starting at 5:45 p.m.
Loeb said that the festival definitely keeps him busy, but that for someone who comes from an artistic family, where even his wife is an artist, creating live events is how he expresses his creativity.
“I think of live events as my art,” said Loeb. “My family is full of artists, but I wasn’t really an artist like that. So, I think of my art as creating live events. It’s sort of an art.”
Daily admission costs $!0 per person at the gate. Presale tickets cost $7, and children 10 and younger will be admitted for free this year. A family four-pack of tickets is also available during presale, which ends at midnight on May 21. For more information or to purchase tickets, go to novibbqfestival.com.