Today, M&M smokers are found across the country, from Massachusetts to Florida, Pennsylvania to California. And naturally, all over Texas, including DFW spots such as 225º BBQ, Hurtado, Hutchins BBQ and Heim.
The renaissance of Texas barbecue over the last decade has increased demand for every element surrounding a three-meat plate, whether it’s the protein, wood, or yes, smokers. With that, it’s not as easy as just calling up M&M and getting a new pit in a month or two.
“Right now, our offset smokers are about 14 months lead time,” says co-owner Matt Miller. “Our rotisseries, we’re really efficient on those, and we’re getting those out in five to six months.”
In times past, barbecue’s provenance was linked to where you lived, and there was no traveling to seek out other barbecue. But when barbecue hounds started trekking to historic spots to seek out peak brisket, suddenly everyone looked to draw locals and visitors alike.
Originally the draw was the meat and your local joint’s prowess in smoking it, perhaps with a side of history or legacy if it was available. Mondays were a traditional day to close, to clean the pits and give the cooks a rest. And after the meat sold out, everybody went home, which was often early afternoon.
A trio of 1,000-gallon tanks that will be converted to offset smokers at M&M BBQ Company.
Chris Wolfgang
M&M's waitlist is confirmation that the barbecue business is strong, despite what the rest of the economy appears to be doing. But that vitality isn't just about fancy smokers: barbecue restaurants are open longer hours, more days of the week, with shiny features (and some gimmicks) as each tries to separate themselves from a crowded marketplace. Over the past few years, this barbecue renaissance has felt like an arms race to open the most impressive barbecue joint.
At M&M BBQ Company, several projects are in the works. A trio of tanks will be new smokers for Hutchins BBQ. Two massive rotisserie smokers are part of an order for Heim BBQ. And there's no escaping the fact that this equipment is expensive; an M&M offset smoker costs between $10,000 and $20,000 dollars. A rotisserie can be twice as much.
The reasons why will sound familiar to any business owner, and according to Miller, he faces many of the problems that his restaurant clients deal with: expensive materials, shipping and supply chain challenges, and finding the staff talented enough to execute the end product.
With every facet of the restaurant business getting more expensive, a custom-built smoker may seem like an extravagance. But M&M co-owner Matt Sutton touts the size and efficiency of their largest rotisserie smoker as its biggest selling point.
“We think our rotisseries check every box,” Sutton says. “We really try to sell it as improving the return on investment for a restaurant. If we can save a restaurant thousands of dollars a year with a better product, that could be the money that keeps them alive.”
The New Side Items
Terry Black’s was bustling on a recent Monday at three in the afternoon — a time when most restaurants would be dead. The dining room was two-thirds full with just one open seat left at the bar. There were even a few patrons braving the summer heat under the shade of Terry Black’s massive patio.Nowadays, it’s not terribly difficult to find barbecue for lunch or dinner almost any day of the week, and though the demand is there, there’s a natural urge from owners to recoup some of the large investment that goes into the smoked meat business. Like, those impressive smokers, or real estate, which is pricing some restaurants out of the market entirely.
At Oak’d, owner and chef Michael Lane knew that in order to stand out, he would need a barbecue restaurant that offered more than just stellar Texas barbecue. Oak’d has live music, a daily happy hour at their full-service bar, and will gladly host your private party. At the new Oak’d location in Addison, there’s an even bigger bar, Skee-Ball and foosball to keep the guests entertained. A pair of brand-new M&M rotisserie smokers handle the cooking for now, and Lane says he has plans and space carved out to add three more smokers as the business grows.
For Travis Heim of Heim BBQ, while the money he'll spend on smokers for his newest location is significant, he doesn’t think about it.
"The reality is having great smokers is as important as having great people on your team, or great ingredients for your menu,” Heim says. “We want to make sure that every restaurant we open can uphold the standards we have at our other locations and the smokers are just one important aspect of that.”
Sure, Heim has the shiny smokers, a full bar and a seven day a week operation, but those things are just means to an end.
"We are different because of our values and ethos as a business," Heim says. He's not concerned with winning awards or making the "best-of" lists, because he's completely focused on his customers.
"We have a saying in-house, 'We don't want to be the best, we want to be your favorite,' and I think that helps separate us as a business."
Reading the Smoke Signs
With all of the money being spent on barbecue, both by newcomers and established joints, it's natural to worry if the market is becoming saturated and when this decade-long boom comes to an end. By and large, those in the business don't see it happening any time soon."I don't think Texas barbecue will ever lose steam in Texas," Heim says. "Maybe the trendy type places that have become popular in other areas will eventually peter out but barbecue in Texas is a way of life. Growing up in Fort Worth as a sixth-generation Texan it's just sort of ingrained in my DNA."
Heim even has ideas about why Texas barbecue continues to have appeal.
"The explosion in the last 10 years or so was so successful, in my opinion, because most Texans already had a base knowledge and familiarity with barbecue," Heim says.
"The tradition was elevated and looked at from a new perspective that I think resonated with a lot of people, not just in Texas but globally people were enamored by the process and the history of barbecue as a foodway."
Out in Tool, Miller agrees. While he's seeing so much growth in barbecue in Texas, both in new restaurants and new backyard pit builders, there are still parts of the country that are just now learning about the craft.
"We've got smokers literally across the country," Miller says. "But the number of places outside of Texas that do Texas-style barbecue is still growing in places that have never seen our style of barbecue before."
Miller says he thinks Texas barbecue may soon take off in other countries as they learn about the history and tradition of our barbecue. There could be as many as there or four decades of growth available. Meanwhile, M&M is currently the only Texas company that designs, builds and services wood-fired rotisseries.
So Miller pours more of his own money into his business, buying new tooling, hiring more people and coming up with new designs for pits and smokers. It's the only business he's ever known, and he doesn't see it stopping any time soon.
"I'm literally betting my life on it."
