From Mosh Pits to BBQ Hits – an Inside Look at Circle Pit BBQ

For Chris Tolbert of Circle Pit BBQ, cooking has always been a family affair. Growing up in Fayetteville, he spent his formative years immersed in the world of classic Southern barbecue catering.

“My grandmother and grandfather used to cater weddings and community events, so I was always kind of around that,” Tolbert recalled.

At age 18, Tolbert pivoted from a construction job to a busboy position at a newly opened Red Robin franchise in Fayetteville.

“I had just walked off a construction site because I got in a fight with a huge guy like three times my size,” Tolbert laughed. “That’s where I cut my teeth in restaurants, starting as a busboy and working to prep and expediting. Then I started bartending the day I turned 21.”

Chris relocated to Wilmington in his early 20s and spent nearly a decade at Caprice Bistro where he developed a close relationship with the restaurant’s chef Thierry Moity. Tolbert worked both in the front and back of house, picking up expediting shifts whenever possible to watch and learn from Moity.

Caprice is also where Tolbert met his now wife, Katie. The two bonded over their shared love of food and travel and spent several months exploring Europe and Southeast Asia while taking a break from restaurant life.

Tolbert said they ate mostly street food throughout their journey, and those foods and flavors inspired many of the recipes he’s created for Circle Pit.

The name Circle Pit harkens to Tolbert’s love of metal and punk music and the many long hours he has spent traveling to shows with his friend and now business partner, Seth Penner.

Tolbert and Penner met at Cape Fear Spirits & Beer where they both currently work when they’re not in the pit (moshing or cooking).

In addition to his passion for music, Tolbert is a rugby player with the Cape Fear Rugby Club. He explained that it’s customary for the teams to gather for a post-match social with food and beer. While that often consists of ordering pizza, he decided to step up and share his passion for barbecue with his fellow players.

“We ended up building a huge barbecue pit, and before I knew it, we were known across the North Carolina rugby community for how epic our socials were,” he said.

Requests for backyard parties soon followed, planting the seed for Circle Pit BBQ.

Tolbert and Penner launched Circle Pit BBQ with a distinct vision – blending traditional barbecue with global street food influences.

“I love classic barbecue, but it doesn’t excite me all the time,” Tolbert said. “We wanted to spice things up, incorporating street food like Yakitori, Korean-style barbecue and fried chicken while still respecting traditional techniques.”

To test the waters, Circle Pit opted for pop-ups, a concept Tolbert gleaned from big-city food scenes. Some of their most successful pop-ups have been at the Concept Kitchen at End of Days Distillery where they have often sold out in hours.

Circle Pit BBQ will soon be operating out of the Out of the Weeds Commissary Kitchen on South Third Street in downtown Wilmington where they’ll be experimenting with new offerings, including late-night service from the kitchen’s walk-up window.

There is a private event space at Out of the Weeds which they hope to use for ticketed events. Tolbert and Penner will continue collaborating with other local chefs and restaurants for future pop-ups at the Concept Kitchen and beyond.

Reflecting on the Circle Pit journey thus far, Tolbert credits Penner with helping him bring this dream to life.

“This would not be what it is without him,” Tolbert said. “We’ve been friends for 15 years, road-tripping to metal and punk shows, dreaming and scheming about ideas like this.”

With deep community roots and a passion for pushing culinary boundaries, Circle Pit BBQ is quickly becoming a standout in Wilmington’s food scene. To find future pop-ups and events, follow them on Instagram at @circlepitbbqnc.