Why Ray? In 1985, Chef Larry, perfected the family recipe and entered his all-natural, sweet and tangy barbecue sauce into the country’s largest rib cookoff. He called it "Sweet Baby Ray’s," a name his brother, David, got shootin’ hoops on the west side of Chicago. The sauce is so fine, it beat nearly 700 entries. That was enough proof for the brothers. Larry, David and a high school friend, Mike O’Brien, forged a company with a simple philosophy about barbecue. Make it great. So, the rest, as they say, is history. What Happened After winning second prize in the 1985 Mike Royko Riboff they thought, "why not sell this stuff." Sales came from word-of-mouth and cold calls. SBR’s experienced steady growth through the years and 1994 took them to the moon. Well, not literally the moon, but all over the Midwest at least. During 1996 through 1999 they were the BBQ Guru’s to the Taste of Chicago, (that’s 4 million visitors and a ton of napkins). By 1999 sales totaled 500,000 cases. Stacked on top of each other, that’s tall. Due to its superior taste, Sweet Baby Ray’s has become the fastest growing barbecue sauce in the United States. They are currently looking to expand to Atlanta, Arizona and Southern California. And maybe, someday the moon.
I use Sweet Baby Rays or Sticky Fingers.