I finally understand why my dad's pit was so slow

Went back to my hometown in Kansas City last month and stopped by the old BBQ joint my dad used to take me to. They still use the same brick pit he helped build back in '82, but now they've got fans and electric starters hooked up everywhere. Talked to the owner's son for a bit and he said they used to start fires at 4 AM with just charcoal and a match, no blower. I asked why they changed it and he just shrugged and said "people don't want to wait 6 hours for brisket anymore." Has anyone else seen old pits get modernized like that and felt kinda torn about it?

2 comments

2 Comments

evan_green521mo ago

I read somewhere that a lot of old BBQ joints made the switch to fans and electric starters after the health inspectors started cracking down on smoke control. That part about people not wanting to wait 6 hours for brisket rings true though. I've got a buddy who runs a place in Texas, he told me they tried going back to all charcoal for a weekend promotion and customers were complaining about the wait time by noon. Makes you wonder if the flavor difference is worth losing that old school feel or if everyone's just used to the faster stuff now.

sean_cooper581mo ago

Dude yes, that hit me right in the feels. I was down in Lockhart last year and stopped at this place that's been around since the 50s. They still have the original pit out back but it's just for show now, all the real cooking happens on these new stainless steel smokers with digital controllers. The old pit master actually told me they kept blowing fuses trying to run the fans off the same circuit. It's wild how much faster the new stuff is though, like my buddy got a whole packer brisket done in 5 hours on his Traeger and it was actually pretty good. But man, something about that 6 hour wait with a cold beer and the smoke rolling just hits different, you know?