staffing a BBQ restaurant kitchen

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bbqplaceatl

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I am opening a BBQ restaurant in a small strip center. Almost done with construction and should get the final inspections and C.O. soon and hoping for a March opening. I have already started interviewing GM candidates. Counter service only with about 100 seats. Staffing cashier's, runners and bussers is pretty straight forward. But my dilemma is the kitchen. Opening hours are from 11 AM to 8 or 9 PM, closed Mondays. With beef brisket requiring 14 hours or more cooking, how do you plan for staffing the kitchen? For lunch service at 11, briskets have to go in the commercial smokers (Southern Pride) around 7 or 8 PM max, taken out and wrapped around 11 PM,and then left overnight to finish cooking. I do not like to hold the same overnight cooked brisket for 8 hours or more for dinner service, so probably have to start another batch around 3 or 4 AM for dinner service.

How do I staff for that? I was thinking about hiring a pit master from 7 PM to 3 AM. He can start the lunch batch in the smokers, work on prepping and seasoning the dinner batch, take the lunch batch out at 11 pm, wrap and put back in smokers, do more prep work for next day, put the dinner batch in at 3 AM and then go home. Morning crew to come in at 6 or 7 AM to take out the dinner batch wrap and put back in smokers, and then get ready for lunch service. Does that sound like viable plan?

Any BBQ restaurant owners here that can share their kitchen scheduling?
 
Where in GA? Around Marietta?

I helped a buddy open a place and ran the kitchen/pitmaster. Was also around 100 seats though we had table service. Used a southern pride, but not on the timelines you talk about. We had to figure it out all ourselves and I'm not there anymore, but they are still running strong.

Feel free to PM me to connect.
 
What we did at the place I worked at was put the briskets and pork butts in at 6pm, let them cook over night, and the morning prep cook would take them off at 6am. The Souther Pride smokers have a hold feature and will hold at whatever temp you select once the cook is done. Take them off at 6am, wrap, and hold in an Alto Shaam until ready to slice.

After the brisket and pork was off, load the smoker up with the rest of the days meats (chicken, turkey, pork loin, ham, potatoes). Those will get done right before opening at 11. After that, load up the ribs. Use reheated ribs from the previous day to get through lunch (ours actually tasted better reheated).
 
DECENT BBQ said:
Use reheated ribs from the previous day to get through lunch (ours actually tasted better reheated).
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Are you referring to unsold ribs or ribs made to be reheated? I’ve walked in to places expecting the fresh stuff when they open and received a crusty leftover rack from the day before. Big difference to a place like The Salt Lick who notoriously reheat stuff they smoked days prior but they package their stuff right off the smoker.
 
I would only do 2 batches of briskets if I didnt have the smoker capacity to do them all at once. Who is cooking the rest of the cuts of meat? What's that time line? Your dinner batch will be done at 5p, and you close 3hrs later, how big is your dinner batch? What's the plan if lunch is really slow and you have half a days briskets left for dinner and a smoker full of brisket? Running 2 batches now you have to count on 2 pol to cook briskets the exact same or you could get 2 different products. Hiring is tough and quality is low, i would focus on hiring 1 superstar rather than 2, and research holding cabinets.
 
How many days a week will you be open...that one 7p-3a guy won't last more than 3-5 days straight of that. If you're open 6 or 7 days a week, you're going to need two of those 'pit masters'. Your morning crew can be staggered since your overnight guy should have alot of the kitchen prep done while he's watching brisket cook in the automatic oven...not like he's monitoring temps, adding logs, shoveling coals all night. Get your moneys worth out of that guy.
 
Czarbecue said:
Are you referring to unsold ribs or ribs made to be reheated? I’ve walked in to places expecting the fresh stuff when they open and received a crusty leftover rack from the day before. Big difference to a place like The Salt Lick who notoriously reheat stuff they smoked days prior but they package their stuff right off the smoker.
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Nah, the unsold ribs from the day before we tore down and used in the green beans :thumb: Our ribs we would smoke at 225* for 3 hours, wrap in plastic wrap, and put in the walk in blast cooler. We would then reheat as needed at 350* in a convection oven. For whatever reason, they always tasted better this method than straight out of the smoker.
 
DECENT BBQ said:
Nah, the unsold ribs from the day before we tore down and used in the green beans :thumb: Our ribs we would smoke at 225* for 3 hours, wrap in plastic wrap, and put in the walk in blast cooler. We would then reheat as needed at 350* in a convection oven. For whatever reason, they always tasted better this method than straight out of the smoker.
Click to expand...

That rib method sounds great, I do that at home when taking ribs on a camping or tailgate type trip.

Smoke for 3 hours then vacuum seal , fridge or even freeze for later cook
 
I would take Jason TQ up on his offer and see what you can learn. There are plenty of reputable places in Texas that hold briskets for 8 to 12 hours in an Alto Shaam. Briskets/butts are cooked the day/night before service and ribs, chicken, turkey, and sausage are cooked day of service. Being open for lunch and dinner may complicate things, but I'm sure you'll figure it out. I'm in East Cobb so let us know when you open and good luck!
 
1) Why are you hiring a GM and pitmasters? What's your job going to be? Shouldn't you be the manager at least?

2) Your schedule makes no sense, Every place in Texas starts brisket in the morning and cooks brisket and pork butts in the day, pull around midnight-ish to rest, then into the CVAP till lunch service. If you go to Franklin BBQ and eat lunch and get a pit tour, they are putting new brisket on at noon while you are eating. I dont know of a top Texas joint that does it another way. I'm sure there is though. I have heard rumors that Terry Black's in Austin puts batches in a fridge and reheats as needed so they can serve all day. Maybe they just CVAP it all day, I dunno.

3) Why are you wrapping after only 4 hours and cooking brisket 14+ hours? That's 10 hours+ wrapped??? Why?
 
Cook said:
One thing that would help...although you said you don't want to do it (but I'm going to say it anyway)...there are places...GOOD places...that are holding their brisket for 12+ hours. An insulated holding cabinet is where it's at, my friend.
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What he said. I hold mine at least that long and I think they are better because of it. Plus I get to sleep at night.

I have 80 seats and I have four people in the back and four in the front of house, plus me. We do table service and have a drive thru window. So you might get away with less up front. We don't do just smoked meats so you may be able to get by with less in the kitchen. Those first weeks you are open can make or break you, so I would not be understaffed for grand opening.

A lot of your questions will be better answered once you get open.

Also, I too use a Southern Pride. My briskets never take more than 6 hours at 250 unwrapped. Is yours a rotisserie?
 
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