From Smoke to Sauce: Why I Hit Pause on BBQ
June 1, 2024. I-5. Los Baños, California.
Day one of a 30,000-mile motorcycle ride circumnavigating North and Central America. I left Reno, Nevada at midnight June 1, riding across the pitch-black High Sierra, down into the valley, Sacramento, the Bay, and then south on I-5 Baja-bound. As the sun started to rise my eyes began to get heavy, and before I could make the decision to pull over to rest, I woke up headed directly towards a guard rail at 65 mph. When I came to, I had crashed, ruptured my spleen, and ultimately got airlifted to Modesto Memorial. Eight days in the hospital. Spleen removed. Ride over before it started.
But that's the middle of the story. Let’s start from the beginning.
It started with depression and a UniFlame
In April 2022, I was experiencing a serious bout of major depression, so I formed lmpbrskt LLC with a vision to bring Central Texas style BBQ and global flavor to Northern Nevada. All I had at that time was a small UniFlame grill good for about four burgers. I started there anyway doing lamb chops, chicken and charred peppers. Pit Barrel next — ribs, birds, pork belly. Then my uncle sent me a link for an Oklahoma Joe reverse flow offset for sale online for $300 which I named “Robb Zombie” (after the guy Robb I bought it from). That was the day my bbq took a massive leap forward.
I spent 2023 dialing in fire and smoke management (ok joe’s need a lot of babysitting), sourcing seasoned Northern California almond wood, and smoking brisket after brisket to dial in the tenderness and flavor. Then on March 1, 2024, I got the keys to a commercial kitchen in Reno's Oddie District and officially opened the doors to lmpbrskt. Brisket so good even vegans wanna know!
Then I crashed, lost my spleen, but gained a rub and more.
The ride was for Honor Flight Nevada and Bees4Vets — causes close to me worth pausing BBQ for. Unfortunately, it ended on day one. While I was home on bed rest for months, unable to stand at a smoker, I did the only thing I could: built out the rest of the menu. Sides, sauces, condiments, rubs. My daughter was staying with me to help me recover. One day she started messing around in the kitchen using Kashmiri chili as a base and came up with something incredible. We tested it on chicken and burgers. It was dynamite, so it became part of the flavor packed condiment lineup you will see very soon.
DoorDash ghosted me on Halloween 👻
I built and tested a full menu. Launched on DoorDash, on Halloween, only for them to shut my store down. Apparently it was some glitch, but i was never able to find out because DoorDash has zero support. So, I did what I always do, I built my own using the Shopify platform. It took me longer than planned though so I missed Thanksgiving, still working on the delivery system. Then I missed Christmas. Then January hit, cold and wet, and I was standing in a parking lot trying to smoke brisket in the snow on a thin-metal Oklahoma Joe that doesn't hold heat in winter. Lease up in February. Cash running low. I made the heart-wrenching decision to pull the plug on BBQ ops.
Although I was really bummed I wasn’t able to get it fully off the ground, none of it was a failure. I learned that my brisket is top-tier with nothing but rave reviews. I learned more about fire, meat, and running a kitchen and a business in that year then most people learn in a lifetime of college. My BBQ is better now because of it all. But the timing wasn't right, and I knew it.
So here we are.
Today lmpbrskt is back at it, building out its flavor line — starting with condiments, starting with Sierra Hot Sauce. I'm also teaching BBQ 101 at the local community college TMCC in Reno, which sold out the first week it was announced. BBQ ops will come back when the setup is right, but for now, flavor is king.
I started this working through depression with a grill and a vision. Crashed my bike on I-5, not exactly the plan I'd envisioned. Lost a spleen, gained a rub, and got ghosted by DoorDash on Halloween, but the story isn't over. Not by a long shot. It's just getting started — and it starts with something hot. 🔥