I was having lunch with Elvis at a Tops Bar-B-Q on Summer Avenue when I noticed a sign announcing the restaurant’s new “Smoked BBQ Bologna.”
First of all, I wasn’t actually eating with Elvis, of course. I was dining at a booth beneath a photo of the King, who was wearing a shiny (silk?) jacket, black pants, loafers, and light-colored socks while kneeling in front of a pink Cadillac. The car actually had the letters “TCB,” which look like chrome, on the front. The license plate sign says “1957.”
When I eat at Tops, I think of growing up in the 1950s and smelling barbecue cooking in the pit when my family drove by a Tops location.
Over the years, Tops, which opened in 1952, has served its fantastic barbecue with sauce and slaw and its incredibly-good hamburgers. I remember when they began selling brisket sandwiches and ribs 17 years ago. They began selling turkey burgers, one of my all-time favorite fast food items, 10 years ago. I have it dressed like the hamburger with mayonnaise, ketchup, and mustard.
But a new food item at Tops is rare. Smoked BBQ Bologna is the first new Tops item in 10 years.
I talked to Tops Operations LLC vice-president Hunter Brown and CEO Randy Hough about the new Smoked BBQ Bologna sandwich, which launched in April — just in time for Tops’ 70th birthday..
A barbecue bologna sandwich is “a Memphis staple,” Brown says. So, they decided Tops should have one. “We saw the need from our guests. And we heard their voice. When you hear so many guests give their thoughts and ask, ‘Why don’t you have something,’ you’ve got to pay attention. That’s why Tops has been successful for 70 years.”
“New items have been few and far between here at Tops,” Hough says. And, he adds, “We’ve been hesitant to add new things to our menu line.”
Their “focus is on barbecue and hamburgers” and they want to “stay true” to those items.
They cook their barbecue over a direct fire pit. “A lot of barbecue companies don’t do that. They use smokers instead.”
Tops also uses charcoal and hickory wood. “Everything you think about in your backyard with your charcoal grill.”
And, he says, “It takes a lot more dedication than to put it in the smoker, set the timer, and walk away.
“We still use a smaller smoker for other items, but not for our core barbecue. It’s cooked in our open fire pit. It takes time and skill to do that.”
They always wanted to do barbecue bologna, Brown says. “We decided to go ahead and test it with some people in the area. Some of our guests.”
They invited a focus group of their customers to try the barbecue bologna last February. People said, “Wow. This is one of the best we’ve had in the city.”
“We score it and season it with our rib rub and then we smoke it. After smoking it, we grill each one to order.”
They then put it on a bun and add their “famous slaw and our signature Tops barbecue sauce.”
They introduced the Smoked BBQ Bologna at their Southaven location. “It was a resounding success across the board.”
I visited Tops the next day and tried a Smoked BBQ Bologna sandwich. It’s delicious.
I told Brown and Hough about smelling the barbecue when I drive past Tops. “It’s kind of like a billboard for us,” Brown says. “Cooking daily to have that smoke coming out. To have that rolling smoke. Even if you’re not on your way to Tops, it just lures you in.”
The aroma, which emanates from the chimney tops, “just gets you hungry,” Hough says. And, he adds, “You’re cooking them over an open fire with hickory wood and charcoal. And you’re going to get that kind of smell. Just like you would in the backyard.”
As for upcoming new items, Brown says, “We do have some thoughts.” But they don’t want to “take away from the burger and pork sandwiches.”
They’ve tried some items, which they tested internally or at other locations, that never made it out, Hough says. For example, they had a fried pie, made by a small business in Arkansas. But the pies caused operational issues.
Tops still carries its popular apple turnovers. “That’s a staple. Been with us for a long time. That is a guest favorite.”
Getting back to that guy named Elvis, Brown says the King was a customer at the Tops on Union. “We still today have the Elvis room in there.”
Elvis also ate at “Summer and National and Thomas as well, but Union was where he spent most of his time.”
George Montague, who was Tops general manager for 45 years, is a “big fan of Elvis.”
While they’ve got some photos of Elvis at Tops, none picture him holding a barbecue or hamburger, Brown says. “Every time I see him, he’s got a soda in his hand.” But he knows Elvis ate the food at Tops, too.
The late J. W. Lawson was founder and the late George Messick was the second generation owner of Tops, which now has 16 locations, and continues to grow.
All locations sell the new Smoked BBQ Bologna sandwich.
Says Brown: “It was originally intended to be a limited time offer, but the city of Memphis has voted with their feedback — and their stomachs. Smoked BBQ Bologna is here to stay.”
