Starting Sept. 15, Baker University students will have the option of a new barbecue restaurant next to Espress Yourself downtown Baldwin City.
Hickory Creek BBQ, owned and operated by Ric Gere, started in 2004 as a catering business, but will now offer dine-in and call-in, in addition to catering. Also, Gere said he is looking into Internet ordering.
The menu will consist of five meats and five side dishes. The meats include pork, brisket, sausage and ribs, while the side dishes include barbecue beans, “cheesy taters,” potato salad and cold slaw. Gere said he is working on expanding the menu.
“We have a limited menu, and if you don’t like what we have then you can go some place else,” Gere said. “In the future we want to have french fries, but now we don’t have a fryer.”
The barbecue sauce that will be in squirt containers on the tables plays a special role in Gere’s business, as the recipe was passed down from his parents.
“It started with the sauce. My parents always made us sauce,” he said. “When I moved out I had to come back home and take a couple jars.”
Gere originally started cooking for friends and family.
“I enjoy cooking for people,” Gere said. “A hobby turned into a side business.
Hopefully it can turn into a full business.”
Last year, Gere catered at the Maple Leaf Festival for the Rainbow Pre-school. Over the two days he catered, he estimated serving close to 1,000 people.
Gere began renovations of the location where Walt’s Pizza used to be soon after July 4 and has not ceased. A refinished floor, newly painted walls and a new drink counter are just some of the changes made.
“We plan on getting a pool table and a dart board,” Gere said. “We want it to be a good place to hang out.”
Gere said there would be tailgating packages offered on Fridays and Saturdays before, during and after sports games.
Sophomore Larry Todd Westbrook said he is planning on giving Hickory Creek BBQ a try.
“There is no other barbecue place in town,” Westbrook said. “If it’s any good, they’ll definitely see me around.”
Gere said what separates good barbecue from the bad is the way it is cooked.
“I like to grill, but slow smoking is the best,” Gere said. “Good barbecue is slow cooked where you can taste the smoke in the meat. It’s nothing fancy.”
Gere said the business would only be open on weekends for seveal weeks to get a feel for how much to cook.
“That’s the thing about barbecue,” Gere said. “If you run out, that’s it until the next day.”