About Me

Me, getting my grill on.

Who are you?

I’m Steve. I’m a husband and father. I am a corporate graphic designer by day, an independent designer by night and a BBQ cook on the weekends. I like to try new foods and cook new things. I'm a certified BBQ judge for Kansas City Barbecue Society and the Carolina BBQ League (CBL) and serve on the board for the CBL. 

Why a BBQ Blog?

I’ve always loved to cook and eat. I started cooking when I was five. Yes, five. Every morning I wanted pancakes for breakfast and my mom got tired of me asking her to make them so she showed me how to use the electric skillet and read the recipe. I started to make my own breakfast then. 

My mom also taught a Home Economics class and some days I would attend. I always got to sample what was being cooked and I think I learned a little something about cooking while I was there. I started to cook other things as I got older and then discovered the joys of grilling. Living in the Carolinas through high school I found that I also liked BBQ. It wasn't until 2008 when I really started to set my hand to trying to BBQ. I had always heard it was hard to do. Well, after smoking my first turkey I was hooked. After the first butt I smoked, it was on. It wasn't difficult to do, it just took time and patience. 

Really what is so hard about starting a fire, putting some spices on a hunk of meat and maintaining the temperature for 8+ hours? Nothing really. The hard part comes in knowing what spices to use, how your cooker works and knowing when to pull that hunk of meat off the fire so it doesn't become a dried out piece of junk. 

As I started to explore the BBQ cooking method, cooking on a competition team, judging BBQ contests and experimenting with various foods, I thought I would write about it. Not so much for others to read but so I could have a record of what I tried, what I liked and what worked well for me. Well, I discovered that there are other BBQ fanatics out there who might be interested in what I did so I decided to blog about it and let them try my methods, recipes and other products I liked. 

Who are you to review these things?

Honestly, I’m an average Joe. I like to BBQ and I like things that make it easier or make it better.  If I find a product I like, I enjoy telling my friends about it and why I like it. If I find a restaurant where I like the food, I’ll share it with my friends. 

On the BBQ side I’m a Certified BBQ Judge through KCBS and NC BBQ Association. Does that mean I am the last word in BBQ? No. But I like to think it means I have a clue about what good Q is and what isn't. I also like to cook my own food and I have friends and family who try to be at my cookouts because they like my food. I figure I must be doing something right. 

How do I contact you?

I’m always looking for new items to review, to test or to try out. If you have something you want me to review you can contact me via email at grafixgibbs@gmail.com and I’ll see what I can do. If you just want to drop me a line feel free to. You can also follow me on twitter at twitter.com/Q4Fun or FaceBook at http://facebook.com/bbq4fun.