BUDDY's BAR-B-Q

In a way, locally owned and operated Buddy's Bar-B-Q seems like an unlikely candidate for being a great caterer. But don't second-guess these folks for a minute. They've got more than what it takes to offer a great catered buffet.

Sure, they've got the traditional Buddy's fixin's, like barbecue, baked beans, cole slaw, corn-on-the-cob and potato chips. But they've got a whole lot more.

Want meat? Would you prefer sliced beef, smoked turkey, ham, chicken teriyaki breast or filet mignon?

Or how about breakfast? There's bacon, scrambled eggs, sugar-cured ham, biscuits and gravy, Danish, fruit salad, coffee and orange juice.

And that's just the food. Buddy's keeps the food hot and brings along a refrigerated truck to the catering site as well as, for barbecue, a portable BBQ to give you the real experience of pit barbecue.

"We've been around almost 30 years, and we're most known mostly for our barbecue," says marketing director Suzanne Lindsey.

"But you also see our trucks all over town, catering both the casual and very elegant. More people than ever are using our catering, from very small parties to 30,000 people that we fed over the summer at the University of Tennessee. Our price is also very reasonable, which is another draw."

Now that's what we call a caterer.

Runners-up: Lord Lindsey and Rothchild Catering