Barbecue-pro dads pass love of pits on to sons
Two Texas families see multiple generations bond over the smoke
Under a scorching South Texas sun, it would be easy to make it a lazy Sunday playing video games in air-conditioned comfort. But the three Kempker boys — ages 5, 10 and 14 — are spending it at Pickrell Park in Schertz, firing up their grills for a test run of pork chops while their father supervises the process.
For some dads, Father’s Day is a special day to bond over the grill with their kids. For Brian Kempker, a regular on the barbecue-competition circuit, and Ed Ashford, who owns a barbecue restaurant, the bonding alchemy of fire, food and family is almost an everyday thing.
During the workweek, Kempker spends his time as a Bexar County constable, but his weekends are all about family, ribs, brisket, chicken and smoke. Kempker has been a regular on the competition circuit since 2004 with his wife, Heather, and as the years have progressed, more and more Kempkers have picked up the trade as the family expanded.
Brandon, 14, was the first to join the fray. He remembers entering his first kids cooking competition when he was 4 or 5 years old, and the thrill of finishing eighth in a steak contest was enough to set the barbecue hook.
“If I’m home, playing XBox or doing who knows what and Dad says, ‘Hey, do you want to go out and cook?’ I’m ready to go,” Brandon said. “I’m all about getting out of the house (for the competitions). It’s fun.”
Then came Aaron, 10, who did the same. And now Jacob, 5, is entering contests with a little cooking assistance from Aaron when it comes to turning the meat on a hot grill.
The competition circuit’s “kids Q” contests focus on pork chops, and the Kempker boys have been so successful (all three often finish in the top 10), they’ve won multiple new grilling setups and even managed to snag a sponsorship from Daigle’s BBQ Sauces, a company based in Louisiana.
Aaron and Jacob won the 2018 grand championship at the San Antonio Rodeo Buckaroo Que competition.
“We won this,” Jacob said, holding up a big, shiny belt buckle.
They inject their thick chops with the secret recipe their dad uses for his competition ribs, they apply their own dry rubs, and they grill those chops over hot charcoal in an intricate flip-and-sauce system that’s timed out in 2-minute increments.
Still, in the heat of competition, sauce can be thicker than blood, and it can be a brother versus brother free-for-all.
“It can get serious between me and Brandon,” Aaron said. “I want to finish ahead of him, and he wants to beat me. But the most important thing is that we are spending time as a family.”
When the kids competition is over, they switch hats and help out their dad in a variety of capacities as sous ’cues. The Kempkers compete as “The Leftovers” team and recently acquired a fancy trailer that has an air-conditioned prep area, couch and a TV to keep everybody entertained during the lag times.
“We love doing it,” Brian said. “I think they are learning life lessons out there with me — cooking and getting out there making friends with the other kids in the competitions. We’ll support them as far as they want to go. They seem to be interested in it right now, and I hope they stay with it.”
Ed Ashford and his youngest son, Chris Ashford, got a much later start with their barbecue duo, but they quickly made up for lost time after Ed retired from the Army about a decade ago. The two are thought to be the only father and son in the San Antonio area to each own and operate his own barbecue restaurant, and their properties — Ed’s Smoke-N-Q and Chris’ BBQ Life — are located within 2 miles of one another.
“I decided that after I retired, this was what I wanted to do,” Ed said. “We originally started on the road with a trailer and a truck before moving into the old building. My boys (Chris, John and Edward) and my daughter saw how my wife and I ran things and were having fun with it. The rest is pretty much history.”
As a military man, Ed had a system with his smoked meats that Chris picked up on as he worked in the pit for about eight years by his dad’s side. Before joining his dad, Chris drove an 18-wheeler for a living, but a major accident took him off the road.
“He’s a guard dog and likes his stuff the way he likes it — Ed’s way or no way,” Chris said. “But he trusted me enough to let me do my own thing, and eventually I started running my own days (Sundays and Mondays), and managed the catering. That turned into cooking every day.”
They are both big believers in the smoking power of mesquite wood, they share the same potato salad recipe, and both put massive baked potatoes on their menus. But they do put their own spins on the barbecue and other sides.
“We prepare our briskets differently, in regards to how we trim and things of that nature,” Chris said. “He certainly started me off in the right direction though, and gave me everything he had.”
Chris has been so successful, he opened a second BBQ Life restaurant in December.
“I talk to my dad every day. We talk business and about everything else that life throws at you,” Chris said. “We compete because we are competitive people, but he’s my dad; I’ll do everything for him. We’re closer now than ever before.”
Smoke N-Q and BBQ Life will often share meat, supplies and even employees when staffing issues arise because of vacation or illness. The restaurants’ employees also battle it out in the bowling alley every 90 days or so for bragging rights and camaraderie.
“Chris came up with his way of doing things,” Ed said. “And he’s making a heck of a go at it. I’m very proud of him.”
And there’s a third-generation Ashford in training. Chris said his son Christian, 15, already knows how to start up the pits, work the cash register, make up some of the food and stands to be the next in line for a barbecue life.