> Is there an actual distinction between "barbecue" and "barbeque"? No. that was just me accidentally using them both as I typed. > I thought it was all part

> Is there an actual distinction between "barbecue" and "barbeque"? No. that was just me accidentally using them both as I typed. > I thought it was all part of the same umbrella I think the issue comes from the food barbecue became associated with the popular family and friends get together to eat that barbecue, and once it did, was and is used for gatherings that do not contain any “barbecued” food at all. Depending on where you are in the states, “a barbecue” could be used interchangeably with picnic or pot luck. Now, it absolutely can be argued that hot dogs and burgers are barbecue, since they are meat that is cooked by grilling. But much like the Spanish barbacoa, from which the name derives, American barbecue is usually slow cooked (typically by smoking) meat. I guess that would be the core of what barbecue is. But then you have grilled meats like burgers, sides like baked beans and potato salad that would be eaten alongside barbecue, at a barbecue. So, I guess it depends on the umbrella. If Brazilian barbecue is “a large variety of cuts of meats” I would say American barbecue is “various smoked meats, usually cooked or served with barbecue sauce” but when I think of Brazilian barbecue, I think of “chunks of meat skewered and roasted”.