Good Food Ain't Cheap and Cheap Food Ain't Good

There's been a lot of planning, thinking, experimenting and soul searching when it comes to opening a BBQ joint, especially in this economic tsunami we find ourselves in now days.

Ever since I had the spark for good BBQ handed to me by my granddad, I have been trying to perfect my cooking skills; some through self-taught trial and error and the other from BBQ folks who travel the cook-off circuit from coast-to-coast. When I first began, I was armed with a small Weber "bullet" smoker and a lone cookbook authored by Rich Davis (the KC Masterpiece guy) and a food writer for the Kansas City Star, Shifra Stein. In the early 1980's, there was no KCBS, no Internet and no access to many of the spices, chili's and peppers that we have today, so much was truly experimenting without a safety net.

I had my granddad's passion for 'cue. I also had my passion and I fused the two of them together. For example, I love to make my own seasonings; instead of buying Chipotle powder at the store, I'll smoke 40-50 jalapeno peppers and then throw them on a dehydrator for two days or so and then grind them to powder. Some might say, that's a lot of work, but what they don't understand is this style and dedication will give my BBQ a flavor profile no other BBQ joint can match. It separates the mediocre from the extraordinary. That's what passion is, plain and simple.

Passion doesn't end there. I make my own sauce, not just one flavor but four. All made from scratch. Every rub seasoning is homemade as are the baked beans, 7 cheese mac n' cheese, cole slaw, sweet n tangy pickles and our hot link sausages. My single goal in starting this business is to bring you the best BBQ I possibly can because Springfield has never been known as a BBQ mecca as say Kansas City has been known for. As an example, KC's BBQ joints are known for "Burnt Ends," and we're gonna have them every day because these little morsels of meat scream BBQ; real BBQ.

I have searched high and low for good, consistent fresh meats to put on the pit because good meat means good BBQ and no offense to local grocers, but good meat cannot be found. My solution? A family owned and operated business with over 100 years experience in raising, processing and proudly offering  beef, pork and chickens with their family name on the label. I found them in Kansas City and I have sampled their meats off my Pit and the quality is unmatched. I guarantee, you will notice a difference because businesses like theirs is a dying breed being squeezed out by big box stores selling big named products that just don't equal the quality my guys offer.

Look for us soon in Nixa. We'll be located in the Bridge Church parking lot on Highway 14 across the street from Walgreen's and McDonald's. Our family looks forward to serving your family.