Any restaurateurs / caterers out there?

[Meathead]

You might consider joining the National BBQ Assn in the US. Most of the members are restaurateurs and caterers and some competitors. We just held our annual convention in Jacksonville, FL and I was a speaker. There are several sessions focusing on the BBQ business.

You might also check out OnCue Consulting run by Amy Mills. They hold classes and seminars on catering, etc. http://www.nowoncue.com Tell her I sent you!

[MBMorgan]

"I'd go more for UK sides"

Mushy baked beans ... might want to hold off on that ...

[Uncle Banjo]

especially the ones on the backroads of the South.

Sounds just like Kent!

Hickory Pitt.
"BBQ from the deep south"
of England

You can have that one on me

I think you can go one of two ways with Englishness:

Either you somehow mess with the recipes - like adding in English ingredients like horseradish or English mustard (risky!) or are there any quintessentially British cuts? Pitt Cue Co like to use slightly unusual chunks of animal...
or
Add some UK angles to the sides

Personally, I think you might be messing with what people love about BBQ if you tinker too much with the recipes. I think BBQ should be full-on Yank, at least until people round here appreciate how good BBQ can be. So I'd go more for UK sides - but that's just me. And I haven't thought about it that much...

Oh, and loving Karon's idea about pictures of the queen in hunting gear!

[MattBilling]

Thanks everyone, I'll reply properly when I've got some time, busy week!!

[gcdmd]

Another book you might want to try is Elizabeth Karmel's "Taming the Flame." She also has a web site, http://elizabethkarmel.com/ . She is a trained chef from North Carolina but didn't get into grilling and Q until she was out working and developed a relationship with Weber Grills. Much of her book is about her learning process. She is currently the executive chef at Hill Country Market in NYC. Her book has plenty of good old American recipes for sides and deserts, as well as for different styles of grilling and BBQ.

Good luck, and keep us posted.

George

[Karon Adams]

I will begin by saying I have never been to the UK despite being an Anglophile my entire life. Look to your regular pubs around town. are you modeling your style on the working man's sports pub? or something more upscale? I don't know how well an American style down home BBQ Pit would go over. then again, an American Style BBQ pit restaurant might be huge just because of the novelty. so, now I have recommended anything from a very vary English Pub that serves BBQ instead of Meat Pies or leave behind all things English and go full on Yank.

If you decide to go full on Yank, come over and look at some of the pits here, especially the ones on the backroads of the South. the Atmosphere is what you need.

Pocnic tables, mason jars for drinks, Iced Tea, Potato Salad, cole slaw and baked beans. and never forget plain thick sliced white bread (toasted or not). look at the kind of décor for wall hangings. See if you can find some photos of Her Majesty in hunting gear (much of Q is intertwined with hunting and self sufficiency. Look to the origins of Q in America and use it to inform your place.

Now, on small scale, with shoestring budget, some of THE best BBQ I have ever tasted have been the ones where someone sets up a trailer in a small spot on a business street. their little trailer sitting on the parking lot between two stores. they cooked right there (a small chain link fenced area behind the trailer was where they kept the smoker). Out front were two - four picnic tables. everything was served in to go containers. some folks would eat at the picnic tables but most took it home to the family.

if course, like any business, the keys to success lie in a good cook, a good location, hard work and a whole lot of luck. I wish you all you could need!

[Uncle Banjo]

Hey Matt,

I wish you all the best with the Hickory Pitt - website looks excellent, and I’m now craving BBQ having seen your pics.

I’m a total newbie at all this – but planning to cook a BBQ evening in a local café (I’m based in London) this summer. Assuming they let me…

Would be good to talk further if you’re ever up this way â€" I’ve been toying with what British BBQ could be like (& like you say â€" not the burnt/raw combo we usually do!)

All the best
Ben

[CurlingDog]

Keep Calm and BBQ on? Good Luck MattBilling !!

[Gooner-que]

MattBilling having lived in England from 2011-2014 I can say BBQ is a much needed food there. I introduced many of my local friends to it and even had a local pub request a couple of butts for their beer festival. Good luke on the venture. COYG!!!

[MattBilling]

Thanks Nate. I have Chris Lilly's book, I have just ordered Peace, Love and Barbecue. I love the title.

Thanks for the suggestions, I agree, simple menu done right is key!

[MattBilling]

Cheers, I can't really take all the credit, it's a squarespace site, I just write and take pics.

[MattBilling]

Woah. Good find. They sure are detailed over at the bbq brethren. I read the UDS thread before I built my first one, almost longer to read than to build all my smokers!

[MattBilling]

Thanks very much, there are quite a few BBQ restaurants in the UK now, of varying levels of quality, one of the big things that gets me here is that most of them aren't BBQ restaurants, they run electric smokers, not a log or flame in sight!

[MattBilling]

Cheers Huskee

[MattBilling]

Thanks, It's been in my Amazon cart for a while now, I've bought it now.