Troy's 10th Annual Veterans Salute, Brew & Que is Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026. The town holds it every year on the Saturday before Veterans Day. The schedule looks like an easy day downtown: a craft market, an opening ceremony, a parade, a free concert. One detail makes it harder. Pickup for the Bigfoot BBQ sample plates starts at 11 a.m., the same time the Veterans Day Parade starts on North Main Street. Only 200 plates will be sold.
That makes 9:30 the hour that matters. That's when plate bracelets go on sale, and if you have one before the parade, you don't have to pick between the two at 11.
The Day as the Town Has Posted It
These times come from the Town of Troy's event page, which is the place to check if anything moves before the day.
| Time | What | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. | Artisan Craft Vendors Market | Liberty Street |
| 9:30 a.m. | Sample Plate Sale bracelets go on sale | Cookoff |
| 10 a.m. | Opening ceremony | Troy Town Hall |
| 11 a.m. | Veterans Day Parade | North Main Street |
| 11 a.m. | Sample plate pickup and purchase begins | Cookoff |
| Noon | Veterans Salute Concert with Southbound 49, free | Troy TownStage Amphitheater |
The craft market stays open all day, so it gives you some slack. The other events come one after another: bracelets, the ceremony half an hour later, then the parade and plates together, then music at noon. Each starts as or soon after the one before it, so the morning only works if you get the order right.
Why the Bracelet Matters More Than the Plate
The Bigfoot BBQ Brisket & Ribs Cookoff is a competition. Pitmasters enter brisket, ribs or both. There's also a People's Choice Award: the cookoff provides pork butts, teams cook them, and festival-goers taste and vote. If you want to taste the cookoff and not just smell it from the sidewalk, the sample plate is how you get in.
Here's how the town words it: bracelets are sold starting at 9:30 a.m., plates are "available to pick-up/purchase starting at 11 a.m.," and "Supply is limited. Only 200 plates will be sold." The page lists two separate times, 9:30 for bracelets and 11 for plates. The page doesn't say how fast the 200 plates have sold in past years. Even so, a fixed number of plates and a parade at 11 are good reasons to have your bracelet before you head for a curb on North Main.
With a bracelet in hand, the 11 a.m. overlap is easier to handle. Without one, you have to choose between a spot along the parade route and a place in line for whatever plates are left.
Where the Plate Money Goes
The town says proceeds from sample plate sales go to the Troy Police Department's Shop with a Cop program.
The Montgomery Herald described one December 9 Shop with a Cop day. Troy PD registered 22 families with 51 children, who met officers at Walmart in Biscoe. According to Troy Police Chief James Atkins, each registered child got a $100 gift card and went shopping with an officer. The Herald also reported that Troy PD worked with Food Lion in Troy to deliver a Christmas meal to each family shortly before Christmas.
The Herald labeled that event "Shop with a Cop 2024," and the town hasn't posted a date for this year's shopping day. The cap is the part that's certain: 200 plates is a fixed amount of fundraising, and each one sold counts toward it.
Three Ways to Run the Morning
All three plans follow the same posted schedule. They differ in what you want most out of the day.
Plate first. Arrive around 9 and browse the Liberty Street market while you wait. Buy your bracelet at 9:30, then walk to Troy Town Hall for the 10 a.m. opening ceremony. Watch the parade from North Main at 11 and pick up your plate after the parade passes. Then take it to TownStage for Southbound 49 at noon. This plan asks the most of your morning and is the only one that fits in everything.
Parade first. If you're there for the veterans, the marching bands, the floats and the civic groups, skip the bracelet. Get to Town Hall by 10 and stay on North Main through the parade. Go to the market and the concert afterward. The market runs until 3, so you won't miss it.
Late start. Show up around noon for the free concert and spend the afternoon at the market. You'll probably miss the plates. The "If You Miss a Plate" section below covers lunch nearby.
If you want to march, ride or bring a group in the parade, the town sends parade questions to Gracia Pack, director of Montgomery County Veteran Services, at (910) 576-4711. For general event questions, call Troy Town Hall at (910) 572-3661.
What's Not on the Page Yet
As of mid-October, the town's event page doesn't list a grand marshal, street closures or parking instructions. It describes the parade only in general terms: veterans, marching bands, floats and civic groups. The town's web calendar isn't a reliable backup either. Its October 2026 page said "There are no upcoming events" while the event page was already promoting Nov. 7. If you need to know where to park or which blocks will close, call Town Hall the week of the event.
If You Miss a Plate
With only 200 plates, plenty of people at the festival won't get one. These spots are listed as open Saturdays:
- Penny's Pizza & Hot Sub's, 523 N Main St., is listed as open 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturdays. That's on North Main, the parade street, with a listed opening time of 11, when the parade starts.
- SIR Pizza of Troy, 703 Albemarle Rd., is listed as open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturdays.
- Zeno's Italian Restaurant, 908 Albemarle Rd., opens at 11 a.m. on Saturdays. Online listings give closing times of 10 p.m. and 11 p.m.
These hours come from directory listings, not from the restaurants, so call ahead before you plan around one of them on a festival Saturday.
The Next Dates on Troy's Calendar
The Veterans Salute starts Troy's holiday calendar. The town's annual events page says the tree lighting happens the Wednesday before Thanksgiving at 5:30 p.m. This year that falls on Nov. 25, though the page doesn't post a 2026 date. The same page describes a Christmas Day fellowship dinner at the Troy/Montgomery Senior Center, held every year on Christmas Day. Check the town page or call Town Hall for the confirmed 2026 times before you go.
That puts three community dates on the calendar in seven weeks. Only the first one requires you to get somewhere by 9:30 a.m.
Patty Edwards has more than two decades of experience in this part of North Carolina, and Saturdays like Nov. 7 are a big part of what local life looks like here. If you're thinking about a home within walking distance of North Main, or you'd like a local view on what Troy's calendar is like the rest of the year, Patty Edwards Realty is available seven days a week. Schedule a Free Consultation.
