Here we go!

Well, summer is here!  Our summer at least!  Memorial Day weekend was CRAZY!  We kicked off our burnoff season with a trip to the Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds for the Berea National Rib Burn Off.  Wasn’t a great weekend because of weather, but it’s always good to get back into the swing of things and see our old friends!  This coming weekend we head to Paratown Mall in Parma, Ohio for their burnoff!  Always a good one.. and it’s always HOT HOT HOT!!  Forecast is looking to promise the same weather.. hopefully the rain stays away!

Our cement is poured and we’re getting ready to bring in the forklift to move our smoker to its permanent location in the restaurant!  It is an exciting time for us.. but also a little bittersweet.  The first smoker to “live” at the restaurant is our first smoker that we got 6 years ago.  She is named Ginny after Dale and Bill’s Mother.  “Ginny” is the smoker that started it all, and we are completely dismantling our “big” trailer because as we’ve grown, it has held us back a bit because of size.  We are now able to work off a much smaller trailer that is easier to pull and also to get into events!  We have come a long way in the past 6 years and we are very proud of where we came from, and also very excited to see where the future takes us! 

We are now considering turning our “traveling” into a year round adventure taking us to many different parts of the country that we haven’t visited yet.  We just have to get the logistics worked out as to how to do that as well as keep our restaurant up to our standards… but we’re working on it! 

Now, as promised before, a little introduction to who the “fat guys” are!  The number one guy is Dale Foraker.  He has been grilling most of his life and this was always a dream of his.  It just so happened that after being laid off from the steel industry after 30+ years was the push needed to get it going!  Number 2 (and 3.. and 4 and 5 if you want to count them) helpers is Jen and Andy Bolgiano (4 and 5 are their daughters Eiley (who is almost 2 years old) and Kinsey (who is 5 months!)).  Jen is Dale’s daughter and helped from the very beginning.. she is also blamed for coming up with the name!  Andy got sucked into the whole ordeal when he and Jen started dating!  Little did he know what all he was getting himself into!  The next part of the ownership team is Dale’s other daughter Kim, and her husband, Mark.  They live down near Marysville, Ohio so can’t be as involved with the every day operations, but like to help whenever and however they can.  The final part is Adam Bolgiano.  Adam is Andy’s brother and not only does he own a portion but he is our acting general manager at the store.  He also plays a huge part is running our summer team (he’s the one pushing for traveling more!). So that is us in a nutshell!  Not too exciting, but as you can see.. no corporate bs here!  We are family owned and operated.. for better or for worse!

Call me a slacker!

Well, we’ve passed our two month anniversary!  Things are going really well and we are staying busy!  We’ve gotten a lot of the restaurant “kinks” worked out and now we’re working on some more issues that have come up!  #1 is our air conditioner!  Thank goodness it hasn’t gotten super hot yet because our old fella is struggling!  We are in the process of figuring out the best way to keep our store comfortable, so we appreciate your patience while we get it under control!  We’ve also got our plans in the works to finally get our smokers installed!  Hopefully soon you will be seeing the construction going on outside.  Not only will this make our cooking a little easier, but it will also add some much needed parking.. or better access to what we do have!  We’re very excited for you guys (our customers) to be able to see our cooking process while in the dining room.

We are also getting ready to head out for our summer events!  Can’t believe it is already that time!  In just 2 short weeks we will be making the trek to Berea, Ohio for their National Rib Cook-off.  This is our 6th year at the event and, my how we’ve grown since year one!  I have to find the pictures from our first year.. but you wouldn’t even recognize us!  We started out just working out of the trailer with one little banner.  It makes me very proud to think how far we have come and grown in such a relatively short period of time! I will get our full summer schedule posted soon and we’d love to see some of our restaurant customers out on the road!  Same great food.. fun atmosphere!  It also gives you a chance to taste some of our “competition”… and remind you why you keep coming back to us!   

Personally, this has been quite a rough month for our family.  Although we try to separate family and business as much as possible.. when you are a truly “family owned and operated” business, it makes it difficult.  We appreciate all of our customers and any and all feedback.. good and bad!  We wouldn’t be here without each and every one of you!

Almost a month!

Well.. we’re quickly coming up on our 1 month “open-aversary” and what a month it has been!  We’ve had a few mishaps here and there, and we are truly learning as we go.  We are working hard to make everything run smoothly, for us (in the back of the house) and for you (our customers)!  We have already made some changes and we are slowly getting to where we’d like to be!  We still have a few changes in the works to make things flow a little smoother.  We appreciate any and all feedback that you guys can give us.. it only makes us better! Of course we LOVE to hear the compliments.. but if you’ve got a complaint, we want to hear that too.  We are always open to suggestions because we are here for you!  One of the owners is (almost) always in the store, so feel free to grab one of us and tell us what you think.. we can take it!!

Now.. we’re finally into Spring!  At least that’s what the calendar says.. the weather tells that story a little differently!  Soon you will see some construction going on as we FINALLY get our smokers placed permanently in the restaurant.  Those windows you see when you first come in the door?  Our smokers will proudly be displayed behind that so you can see what we’re doing.  No fooling here!  Our first smoker to go in the wall will be “Ginny”.  Ginny is an Ole Hickory pit and lovingly named after Dale’s mother.  It’s a bbq tradition to name your pit’s (if you were wondering)  Our second smoker, the one that will be doing our traveling this summer is “Millie”.  Millie is named after the barbecue legend Mike Mills.  On our roadtrip to pick her up, we stopped at Mike Mill’s restaurant and he came out to see who had the beautiful new pit in his parking lot.  (There is a picture on the wall of Dale, Andy and Mike if you want to see it!).  We will be purchasing a new smoker soon also to place in the wall.. maybe we should have a contest to name that one?

Menu!!!

Just wanted to post our menu on here.. just a generic version until we get our finalized ones back!! 

Two Fat Guys Bar-B-Q Menu

 

RIBS

Our award winning ribs!

 Dry rubbed with our secret recipe and slow smoked to perfection  using Ohio grown Apple and Cherry wood from the Foraker’s farm.

1/3 Rack (4 bones) $7.99

½ Rack (6 bones) $11.99

Full Rack (approximately 12 bones) 17.99

Belly Buster $19.99 A Burnoff Favorite!

1/3 Rack of ribs, pulled pork, beef brisket and a quarter chicken.

Served with 2 sides and homemade cornbread.

NO SUBSTITUTIONS PLEASE!

Add 2 sides and homemade cornbread for only $2.79

 

Add one of the following for an additional $3.00

¼ pound of: Pulled Pork, Beef Brisket, Smoked Turkey, Smoked Sausage

2 Chicken Tenders or ¼ chicken (breast/wing or leg/thigh)

 

SANDWICHES

All of our meats are seasoned to perfection and slow smoked using  Ohio Grown Apple and Cherry wood

Sizes:  Regular (6oz sandwich) or Large (1/2lb sandwich)

 Pulled Pork R: $4.29 L: $5.79

Beef Brisket R: $4.59 L: $6.29

Turkey Breast R: $4.39 L: $5.99

Pulled Chicken R: $4.29 L: $5.79

Smoked Sausage R: 4.29 L: $5.79

 Add any 2 sides and homemade cornbread for only $2.79

CHICKEN

Seasoned and slow-smoked with Ohio grown Apple and Cherry wood

¼ Chicken (Leg and Thigh) $4.29

¼ Chicken (Breast and Wing) $4.99

½ Chicken $7.99

Chicken Tenders (4) $5.49

Add any 2 sides and our homemade cornbread for $2.79

 

PLATTERS

Your choice of any of our delicious meats served with 2 sides and homemade cornbread.

Meat choices: Pulled Pork, Beef Brisket, Turkey Breast, Smoked Sausage,

 ¼ chicken (breast/wing or leg/thigh) or 3 Chicken Tenders

Choice of 1 meat $7.99

Choice of any 2 meats $13.49

Choice of any 3 meats $18.99

GRAND CHAMPION CHALLENGE  $42.99

Eat this massive meal solo in 60 minutes to receive a “Two Fat Guys” t-shirt and your name and picture on our wall of fame!

Full Rack of Ribs, Large Pulled Pork Sandwich, Large Beef Brisket Sandwich, ½ chicken, 4 sides and 4 delicious pieces of our homemade cornbread.

NO SUBSTITUTIONS PLEASE!

DINNER SALADS

Chopped Lettuce, Carrots, Onions, Tomatoes, Egg, Croutons and Cheddar Cheese

Small $2.99 8oz

Large $4.99 12oz

Add meat to Salad  $2.00

            Choices of meat include; Pulled Pork, Beef Brisket, Turkey, Pulled Chicken  or

Chicken Tenders

Dressing choices: Honey Mustard, Ranch, French, Italian or BBQ Ranch

KIDS OPTIONS (10 and under only please!) $3.99

 Sandwich (Any meat) (Includes1 Side and Kid Sized Drink, Milk or Juice)

2 Chicken Tenders (Includes1 Side and Kid Sized Drink, Milk or Juice)

2 Ribs (Includes 1 side and Kid Sized Drink, Milk or Juice)

Any 3 side dishes (Includes Kid Sized Drink, Milk or Juice)

SIDES $1.79 each

 Steak Fries

Creamy Coleslaw

This is our classic coleslaw with our own homemade dressing. If you aren’t a fan of creamy coleslaw you are in luck we have vinegar slaw too!

Carolina Slaw

This is how they make coleslaw in the South. It goes great right smack dab on top of that pulled pork sandwich covered with some of our barbecue sauce!

Blasi Beans

These aren’t your normal baked beans. Created by one of their own, these beans are a staple in the fire stations in Canton. There they eat them as a meal by themselves. Packed with flavor and lots of meat these are a favorite among our local firefighters!

Mac N Cheese

Fresh made daily with a combination of 4 different cheeses makes this mac and cheese a favorite among everyone…including adults!

Sweet Potato Casserole

Our sweet potato casserole is an old secret family recipe. It is made fresh daily with fresh ingredients!

Apple Crisp

Side Salad

Fresh chopped salad with diced tomatoes, cheddar cheese and croutons with choice of French, Honey Mustard, Italian,

Green Beans

Green Beans like grandma used to make them. Loaded with bacon and cooked to perfection. These green beans go great with beef brisket.

2 pieces of Homemade Cornbread

Our cornbread is made fresh throughout the day. It is our own secret recipe that will leave you wanting to take more home!

 SOUPS Served with Crackers and Cornbread

 Cup $2.99

Bowl 4.59

Homemade Chili topped with Cheddar Cheese and Diced Onions

Brunswick Stew

 Delicious blend of slow smoked meats, corn, tomatoes and seasonings

 DESSERTS

Banana Puddin’  $2.99

DRINKS

Fountain Sodas $ 1.99

Coke, Diet Coke, Coke Zero, Cherry Coke, Sprite, Orange Hi-C

Fresh Brewed Sweetened and Un-Sweetened Iced Tea $1.99

Fresh Lemonade $1.99

20 oz bottle $1.59

2 liter $1.99

Milk (White or Chocolate) $1.59

Juice $1.59

Coffee $1.29

To Go Packs

Are you busy to join us at Two Fat Guys Bar-B-Q? Pick up one of these packs on the way and take it with you to enjoy. These packs are great for the busy family nights, lunch gatherings, and parties of all types. Just give us a call and we will have it ready for you to pick up so you can enjoy it at your convince.

The Quick Fix – $19.95

                Pulled Pork Sandwiches, 2 sides and cornbread for 2 adults and 2 children. 

The Family Pack (feeds 4 to 6) – $34.95

                Includes 2 pounds of meat, choose 2 from pulled pork, pulled chicken, or beef brisket

                Includes 2 sides (1 quart of each)

                Half Dozen Cornbread

½ Pint of Barbecue sauce

                ½ Dozen buns

The Small Herd Pack (feeds 8-10) – $54.99

                Includes 3 pounds of meat, choose 2 from pulled pork, pulled chicken, or beef brisket

                Includes 2 sides (1 1/2 quart of each)

                1 Dozen Cornbread

1 Pint of Barbecue sauce

                1  Dozen buns

The Large Herd Pack (feeds 14-16) – $79.99

                Includes 4 pounds of meat, choose 2 from pulled pork, pulled chicken, or beef brisket

                Includes 2 sides (2 1/2 quart of each)

                1 ½ Dozen Cornbread

1 ½  Pints of Barbecue sauce

                1 ½   Dozen buns

The Small Picnic Pack (feeds 20-24) – 112.99

                Includes 6 pounds of meat, choose 2 from pulled pork, pulled chicken, or beef brisket

                Includes 2 sides (1 half pan of each)

                2 Dozen Cornbread

                2  Pints of Barbecue sauce

                2   Dozen buns

The Big Picnic Pack (feeds 40-50) $224.99

                Includes 12 pounds of meat, choose 2 from pulled pork, pulled chicken, or beef brisket

                Includes 2 sides (1 full pan of each)

                4 ½ Dozen Cornbread

                2  Quarts of Barbecue sauce

                4  Dozen buns

Tubs To Go

 Get your Two Fat Guys Bar-B-Q Favorites for home or the office!

Just the Meat – The Sauce is always served on the side!

                Pulled Pork $10.49/lb

                Beef Brisket $12.59/lb

                Smoked Turkey $12.59/lb

                Pulled Chicken $10.49/lb

                Smoked Sausage $7.99/lb

½ Pint of Sauce included per pound of meat.

 

Whole Smoked Pork Shoulder (feeds 8-12)

Weighed at time of pickup this shoulder is wrapped for you to take home and pull yourself. Do not attempt to use a knife you will not need it. Just pull apart with a fork and enjoy the experience!

Whole Smoked Chicken (feeds 4-6) $14.99

This chicken is slow smoked over apple and cherry wood to give great flavor. Chicken will appear to have a pink color on the outside and this is due to the smoke. All chicken is cooked to 175 degree internal temperature!

Side Dishes

$4.49/Pint  $7.99/Quart $23.99/Half Pan $45.99/Full Pan

French Fries

Creamy Coleslaw

Vinegar Coleslaw

Baked Beans

Mac N Cheese

Sweet Potato Casserole

Hot Cinnamon Apples

Side Salad (Chopped Lettuce, Diced Tomatoes, Cheddar Cheese and Croutons)

Green Beans

Complete Your Meal

Pair these favorites with a meal pack or a pound of your favorite meat to have the best barbecue experience!

Slab of Ribs    $15.99

                (With purchase of Meal Pack)

Half Chicken     $6.99

                (With purchase of Meal Pack)

Leg and Thigh Chicken Quarter   

10/$25.00    20/$50.00    50/$125.00

Small Party Salad (feeds 10-12)   $15.99

                (Includes choice of 2 dressings)

Large Party Salad (feeds 20-24) $29.99

                (Includes choice of 2 dressings)

Corn Bread    $5.99 a dozen

 (Served with Honey Butter on the side)

Desserts

Don’t forget the best part. All of our desserts are made from scratch daily in house!

Pint feeds 2-3, Quart Feeds 5-6, Half Pan Feeds 18-20

Fruit Cobbler w/whipped cream (Apple, Cherry or Peach)

$4.99/pint    $8.99/quart    $24.99/Half Pan

Banana Pudding

$3.99/pint    $6.99/quart    $19.99/Half Pan

Drinks

Fresh Brewed Iced Tea    $4.99/gallon

                Unsweetened or Southern Sweet Tea

Homemade Lemonade    $7.99/gallon

                Fresh made daily with pure cane sugar!

20 oz Bottle of Coke Products    $1.79

2 Liter Bottle of Coke Products    $2.29

Notes to add to the bottom.

24 hour advanced notice is recommended for all bulk orders and meal packages.

Prices Subject to change.

Plates, cutlery and napkins included upon request.

Put a side note or image off to the side somewhere stating

Interested in catering for your event? We have options available for any size event from 25 people to 5000 people. We will create a menu specific to your event, whether you are interested in buffet style of sit down service we will make your event memorable! Ask to speak with our Catering Manager.

What a week!!

We had a great first week and a half here at the “raunt”.  We haven’t even had our grand opening yet.. we decided to start with a “soft” opening and then once the weather breaks, we will have our BIG opening!  We haven’t done any advertising whatsoever.. so if you haven’t heard much about us.. that’s why! It has been quite hectic, but we’re getting all of the kinks worked out so hopefully your food is coming to you just how you like it!!! Our weekends have been quite busy.. and we’re loving it!!  We’re used to the fast paced atmosphere of the burnoffs, but the whole restaurant scene is new to us so we are learning as we go!  Last night we actually ran out of almost every meat we make!!  It’s not because we weren’t prepared, we were jut a lot busier than we anticipated.. but we’re loving it.. and hopefully we won’t run out again!  We take pride in the fact that we are smoking our meats (and making our sides and cornbread) daily, so no leftovers here, but it does take some understanding that in order to keep with this system, we can’t over cook.. so we do our best to estimate how much we will need for the day.  Alright, well.. time to make that cornbread! Hope to see ya soon!

We’re back!

Hey all!  It’s been awhile since we’ve posted.. but we have been busy!  We had a great summer season in 2010, so good in fact that we decided it was time to add a permanent location! We just opened this past Wednesday, March 9!  Our new address is 4859 Tuscarawas Street West Canton, Ohio 44708.  Our phone number is 330-479-7705.  It is a fast casual style restaurant. You order at the counter then have a seat and we bring it out as soon as it is ready!  Slow food, fast! 

Our menu consists of a lot of our summertime favorites.  Our slow smoked ribs, pulled pork, beef brisket, and chicken.  Added to this delicious list is a smoked sausage and turkey breast. We take pride in the quality of our food and all of our sides are homemade (besides the steak fries!)!  The list includes 2 types of coleslaw, a sweet creamy and a Carolina style. We also have a 3 cheese mac and cheese (which so far has been a crowd favorite), sweet potato casserole, Blasi-beans (our version of baked beans), apple crisp and sweet and sour green beans.  Don’t forget the AMAZING homemade cornbread with honey butter served on the side.  If that isn’t enough to fill you up, add some banana puddin’ or cherry or peach cobbler with ice cream!

We spent a lot of time getting the restaurant ready, and soon we will add pictures of the progress.. as well as the finished product!  Better yet, stop in and see us to check it out for yourself!  Our hours are Sunday-Thursday 11am-9pm and Fridays and Saturdays from 11am-10pm. Don’t worry.. we will still be traveling around on the “meat circuit” during the summers defending our titles.. and earning new ones!

We also have a full catering menu, and family sized take-out items.  Menu coming to the blog soon!  Check us out on facebook under “Two Fat Guys Bar-B-Q” We tend to keep that updated a little more often, and also our website www.twofatguysbbq.com.  We hope to see you soon!  Also check out yelp.com for check-in coupons when you visit us at the “raunt”.  See ya soon!

Roadtrip to St. Louis MO, Cape Girardeau MO, and Murphysboro IL

Me, Jen, Eiley and Dale embarked on a 1400 mile trip in 50 hours to go pick up our new smoker from Ole Hickory Pits in Cape Girardeau Missouri. We first stopped in St. Louis Missouri to hit up a few barbecue restaurants. We rested up in the hotel before going to Pappy’s Smokehouse for lunch. You walked past 2 Ole Hickory Pits sitting on a trailer next to the restaurant and entered through the back door. The place was packed and we waited in line for 45 minutes to order our food. We order a little bit of everything to try. We found a tabe and a few minutes later they were yelling my name to bring us our food. The food was very good at Pappy’s and the owner came over several times to chat with us. We did not think to bring the camera in so next time we go there we will get some pictures. I would highly reccomed this place as all the barbecue was really good and the fried corn on the cob was excellent. We then went and took atour of the Anheuser Busch Brewery. The tour was free and we got to see the whole place. It was neat to see and we were given some good beer samples at the end. After that we drove around and looked at the Arch and went to Bandana’s for dinner. This is another barbecue restaurant in St. Louis. Bandanas was ok but not great. I wont go into great detail but if you visit St. Louis go to Pappys Smokehouse. We then headed back to the hotel to call it a night. We woke up bright and early because Eiley did not want to sleep anymore and we packed up and headed south 2 hours to Ole Hickory Pits in Cape Girardeau. They were definately busy at Ole Hickory because their lot was full of smokers ready to ship. We finally got to meet Margaret and Penny and David. We hooked up our shinny new pit and got ready to leave. We originally were going to go down to Memphis Tenessee and hit up 4 or 5 more barbecue joints on the way back home but decided that with the floods down there we weren’t going to chance it this trip. Plus I really wanted to go to a barbecue restaurant in Murphysboro Illinois. So we decided to drive an hour to Murphysboro Illinois to visit the barbecue legend Mike Mill’s original restaurant The 17th Street Bar and Grill. When I first got into barbecue 4 years ago the first book I bought was Mike Mill’s book calle Peace Love and BBQ. So I was excited to go to his restaurant and give it a try. Mike also has many other restaurants now including some in Las Vegas but I have always wanted to visit the original one.

We parked across the street from The 17th Street Bar and Grill as we got out a guy started walking across the street towards us. It was Mike Mills and he had seen us drive past his office with our smoker. We ended up talking barbecue for about 2 hours and sharing tips and stories. It was a leaning experience for me as I was able to pick his brain a little bit. I was humbled to be talking barbecue with one of the barbecue Legends. He showed us around his offices, banquet rooms, and catering kitchens. After talking barbecue for 2 hours little Eiley was ready to eat so we went over the restaurant to eat. The food at !7th Street Bar and Grill was very good. Again we got a sampling of everything and it all was very good. I would recommend goint to 17th Street if you are ever near Murphysboro. Mike holds a BBQ competition across the street every fall and we are considering going down to compete this fall.

We headed back to Ohio and on the way back we decided that we were going to name our new pit Millie. We decided on this after getting to meet Mike Mills and inspiring us to keep making great barbecue!

2010 BARBECUE SEASON IS ALMOST HERE!!

We have been busy this spring getting ready for this summer. We have decided to start a second team so we can cover more ground and get our BBQ out to more of you! We have ordered another smoker from Ole Hickory Pits in Cape Girardeau Missouri and are anxiously awaiting the call that it is done. We are going to be driving out there to pick it up and will post pictures and blog about our trip. Our second team is going to serve the same great BBQ and sauces we are just going to be able to be in 2 places at once! We have packed our schedule with 19 shows including several new spots as well as a return to Charleston WV. The schedule will be posted soon on our website and if you joined our email list on our site we will be sending it out soon! We look forward to seeing all of you this summer and I promise to make this blog more exciting this summer!

TWO FAT GUYS WINS 7 AWARDS IN LAST 3 SHOWS

SORRY FOR THE DELAY IN POSTING. WE HAVE BEEN SUPER BUSY LATELY. WE WON PEOPLES CHOICE AND MAYORS CHOICE FOR RIBS AT THE HALL OF FAME IN CANTON OHIO! WE WON BEST SAUCE, 1ST RUNNER UP PEOPLES CHOICE, 2ND RUNNER UP BEST RIBS AND BEST HOT SAUCE IN NORTHEAST PA! AND WE WON BEST SAUCE AT HEINZ FIELD IN PITTSBURGH! THAT BRINGS OUR TOTAL TO 11 AWARDS IN 2009! THANKS TO ALL THAT CAME OUT TO SEE US THIS SUMMER! YOU HAVE ONE MORE CHANCE TO COME OUT AND TRY OUR STUFF AT LAKESHORE PARK IN ASHTABULA SEPTEMBER 18TH-20TH

Finally time to get back to BBQing

After having a few weeks off it is finally time to get back to cooking. We are going to be in Alliance Ohio at the Carnation Mall for the Ribfest there. It is July 30th to August 1st. Come see us. Baby Eiley is doing good and mama is too.

I found this link to an interview a news station did in Fort Wayne Indiana with Dale. Check it out!

http://www.wane.com/dpp/video/local/local_wane_ftwayne_ribfest_doing_well_200906191737