Gatlin's Fabulous Barbcue Moved to Oak Forest

By: Lorms Insurance Services
 
HOUSTON - Sept. 23, 2015 - PRLog -- by Sally Adams and David Lorms

He's holds a degree in Economics and Management from Rice where he was a star football player, still gets along with his parents and makes the best BBQ you'll ever taste. Greg Gatlin of Gatlin's BBQ in Oak Forest was a recent guest on Make It Happen With David Lorms.

While growing up in Houston, he and his brothers spent time in the summer with their Louisiana cousins. His uncle was a master country barbeque maker and Gatlin got to learn all about it. Later he used his uncle's sauce recipe as a starting point for his own creation. The original Gatlin's was in The Heights, had 700 square feet and seated 40 barbecue lovers. "The small space paid off for us in a way because there was usually a line out the door. People who were going to other restaurants would see the line and wonder what the fuss was all about! What is this place that smells so good and has this pretty lady out front who hugs people? We got many new customers that way," he laughed.

"I know you studied business in college, but how did you know the restaurant business so well before you opened in 2010?" asked Lorms. "I worked for The Pappas Family Restaurants in management and insurance and property appraisal between college and the restaurant," said Gatlin.

On September 4th weekend, Gatlin moved his place to Oak Forest where he has 4200 square feet and seats 140 folks. "We put our sign out early so the Oak Forest people would know we were coming," he said. Lorms laughed, "I know, we have been drooling for months!"

"After The Heights location closed and before the Oak Forest place opened, we set up a mobile trailer and made it into our catering office. That way we would keep some of my staff working and not let our customers forget about us!" he smiled.

Gatlin's new location has a total of four barbecue pits behind the building: Two new big pits outside can cook 120 briskets at one time and the two from his former location. "Great barbecue deserves great pits. It took weeks to get the two new pits 'smoked out.' " said Gatlin. "The intense labor in barbecue is when my guys are trimming that many briskets at one time.  I'm really not trying not to wear out my staff, believe me!"

Gatlin works with his mother, (the hugger) in the front of the restaurant and his dad, in the back. "When we opened in 2010, we ran the numbers and hoped to have 50 customers that first day and thought that wouldn't be possible. By the second hour we surpassed that number" he beamed. They had posted news about the restaurant on Facebook and emailed everyone they knew. "We do not take our diners' support lightly. Word of mouth has increased our clientele over the years and we're busy every day we are open."

"One of the ways to tell a great barbecue place is if they run out of food before closing time. Has that ever happened to you?" asked Lorms. "Oh, yes. When we run out of brisket, the other meats are soon to follow and then we have to shut the doors. It takes barbecue hours and hours to cook and we don't want to overcook and serve our diners dried out meat. We focus Quality --- not Quantity. It's a 12 hour process to make this great BBQ and we will only sell our meat at its optimal temperature," Gatlin answered.

"So the lesson is, if you want to eat at Gatlins, go early!" summed up Lorms. "But what if you run out of cobbler?" Gatlin smiled as he said, "My mother makes all that cobbler. She won't let anyone else touch it. It's all about her secret recipe. And thank goodness Blue Bell is back! We do run out of it, but we don't close down the doors when that happens" he laughed.

His current restaurant has a great new kitchen with additional staff - a total of 26. After their first shift on the first day, the newer members of his staff asked, "Is it busy like this all the time? We're exhausted." He and his dad laughed and told them to be encouraged!"

Gatlin is also involved in other ventures such as a partnership with Jackson Street Bar B Cue in downtown Houston.

What are the spices in your rub? Salt and pepper and some other good stuff.
Can I buy your sauce and rub somewhere? We're working on a deal with HEB right now.
Secret to good barbecue? Paying attention to how it's cooking and temperature.
What is in the future for Gatlin and his restaurant? Hours - We will be open from 11:00 am to 9:00 pm. We're looking into items that may take less time to cook for our later night diners.
Food - We'll be adding Beef Ribs and other items
Upgraded Processes: To go orders will be processed more expertly and the wait for phone-in orders will be much quicker.

Community - Cooking BarBCue for the Denim and Diamonds BBQ benefiting Manna, which supplies food to area children and adults through local churches. Oct 10, 2015. From 7:00 to 11:00 pm.  Liederkranz Hall in Houston.

Gatlin's business and life philosophy: Get to where you're going on time, be presentable, get excited about what you're doing and learning even if you like other things more, work hard at what you're doing. If you have a passion for what you're doing - you'll be successful.

David Lorms hosts Make It Happen With David Lorms, on http://kbreezesports.com/ live every Wednesday at noon.

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281-300-2580
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Source:Lorms Insurance Services
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Tags:David Lorms, Greg Gatlin, Barebecue
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