Smokey John’s Reaves got it’s start on Lemmon Avenue, but has been at its current location since 1999.
Brothers Brent and Juan Reaves, owners of Smokey John’s, are one improv class away from running a comedy club. Sometimes they’ll get going on a bit, and play off each other like they’re arguing about who’s on first. After a recent interview, I found myself just sitting in my car in front of their restaurant, the sunshield still in place, my head down getting the last of the laughs out before trying to drive home. I thought the restaurant business was supposed to be exhausting. Tiresome. Restaurant owners are supposed to be grumpy at 3 p.m. on a Wednesday. So then why did my face hurt for laughing so much?
After 50 years, it’s not that the brothers are putting the business on autopilot, being silly, letting the restaurant run itself. Quite the opposite.
Smokey John’s BBQ has a lot going on these days. The brothers who took over the business from their father, “Smokey” John Reaves, in 2013 have a lot of irons in the pit: they continue their legacy of 50 years at the State Fair of Texas in about a month, and they need to hire enough staff to cover six stands for 24 days straight. They have a retail business stocking shelves at H-E-B with banana pudding, spices and sauce (plus a new sweet potato pie they’re working on). The duo also has a social media feed to cater to (it’s hilarious). Oh, and they actually cater as well. Then there’s the day-in, day-out of running a restaurant. And recently they bought a new smoker and revamped their brisket program, which they’re still fine-tuning…