A local icon: Gene Porter, purveyor of The Man

[scarlettina]

Have you met The Man? This phrase is well-known in the Seattle area. It translates to "Have you tasted (and survived) the hottest hot sauce in the region?" It's a hot sauce purveyed by Gene Porter, owner of Dixie's Barbecue in Bellevue, WA, and the stuff is a genius marketing tool that's made Dixie's one of the most well-known eateries in the area.

Today we observe the passing of Mr. Porter, local icon and brilliant marketer.

Dixie's barbecue is in fact some of the best I've ever had. "The Man" was merely the thing that drew everyone in town--and people from across the country--to the restaurant and catering business. You never actually put it on food. You went to the restaurant and ordered whatever you were having. Gene would come around, table by table, asking "Have you met The Man?" and offering a taste. jackwilliambell, connoisseur of heat, always said that The Man had no socially redeeming value, that it was hot for hot's sake. But it did put Dixie's on the map, and Mr. Porter became a beloved local figure as a result.

News coverage indicates that Dixie's will go on without Gene Porter, which is a goodness. But his passing is indeed a sadness.

And in case you're curious, yes, I've met The Man. But only once. It was enough.

Comments

[botgrrrl.livejournal.com]

The Man was very hot. I don't mind hot foods, but The Man was designed purely to be hot for hotness sake and didn't have much flavor. You aren't missing much.

Having just dissed The Man, I must now confess my love of Dixie's other foods.

I am sad at his passing.