ST. GEORGE —From smoked brisket to a show-stopping macaroni and cheese, one man is barbecuing his way through town with his savory home cooking.
“I just love to cook, so that’s the base of everything,” Joe Solomon, owner of By Joe said. “I chose barbecue because it’s always been a stable for us.”
Solomon, who started his homemade barbecue popup six months ago, said he and his family moved from Long Beach, California to Washington County in May 2021. With a history of cooking up his signature barbecue for friends, family and large neighborhood events, he never imagined his cooking would take him where he is now.
A collective push from his wife and close friends led him to meet Kat Puzey, founder of the Modern Farm and Artisan Co-op, and he began serving his barbecue at MoFACo’s “Foodie Roundup” events. In the beginning, Solomon said everything Puzey did to support his small business made all the difference. Opening her doors to “let the little guy in” allowed him to gain traction and understand where he fit.
Just three weeks into his business, Solomon said he put a deposit down on a food trailer, but as a one-man-show managing exponential growth, he chose to take a step back and focus on weekend markets and small event catering. He began selling his food at the St. George Downtown Farmers Market in August, and the barbecue business spread like wildfire.
“It’s still kind of a weird experience because it’s just been six months,” Solomon said. “I went from making one to two briskets and not selling out at MoFACo in May, to the height of the summer market doing 12 briskets and selling out in three hours.”
Outside of the market madness, By Joe also appeared in a two-night popup at Wood Ash Rye in November.
“That was a huge step,” Solomon said. “ In six months going from a tiny market to Chef Doug literally stopping by the booth and eating a beef rib going, ‘dude we got to do something,’ that’s big. It took one menu item.”
The By Joe staple barbecue menu consists of five items: a central Texas-style brisket, homemade macaroni and cheese, homemade cornbread, a unique potato salad and coleslaw. With a brisket cook time of 12 and 18 hours, he’s about two days into cooking prior to each event.
“I credit a lot of my success in not ruining food to my wife who wakes me up on the couch from my 20-minute naps and tells me to check the food,” Solomon said, laughing.
His special homemade macaroni and cheese is an adaptation of his grandmother’s recipe, which originated from a 1920s box of Velveeta cheese. The base recipe has been modified to create his own and has quickly become a fan favorite, with many people preordering tubs at a time.
“Like all good family recipes, it was never written down,” Solomon said about the mac and cheese. “It’s created quite the cult following.”
By Joe’s signature potato salad, dubbed the “Red White and Blue Potato Salad,” consists of red potatoes, bacon and blue cheese. Aside from the staple menu, Solomon said he also experiments with secondary meats, such as pork ribs and pork belly.
At the Mod Market this year, he offered smoked brisket chili, Cuban sandwiches and pork belly tacos. Not your average taco truck tacos, By Joe’s consisted of pork belly, homemade hot honey, feta cheese, pickled onions and microgreens, which he said got killer reviews.
While the downtown market is on a winter hiatus until February, Solomon said he is still taking orders, which are limited to whole quantities of meat such as a full brisket. Custom catering options are also available and include items outside his regular menu, such as vegetables and chicken.
By day, Solomon is a technical resource for outside sales at an aerospace component manufacturer but has big plans to do his barbecue business full-time.
“I don’t know what my future space will look like – a truck or a restaurant – but there will most definitely be a future space,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s in the next year or the year after, but it’s coming.”
On January 21, 2023, By Joe will be inside MoFACo for a “halfway to summer” foodie event, serving up his signature menu along with new items. To see all upcoming events or to place a custom order, follow @byjoe.solomon on Instagram.
“The community has been so positive and that’s what keeps me going,” Solomon said. “I’m not just another barbecue vendor in the midst of everything. It’s personal. I have my regulars and I love all my customers. It’s such a cool community and that’s why I’ll continue to push and grow.”
Photo Gallery
Joe Solomon is seen working his barbeque booth at the St. George Downtown farmers market in Utah, date unspecified | Photo courtesy of Joe Solomon, St. George News
Joe Solomon smiles for the camera inside Wood Ash Rye in St. George, Utah, Dec. 21, 2022 | Photo by Jessi Bang, St. George News
The signature By Joe smoked brisket is shown, location and date unspecified | Photo courtesy of Joe Solomon, St. George News
Ribs and brisket offered at By Joe are shown, location and date unspecified | Photo courtesy of Joe Solomon, St. George News
Smoked pork belly by Joe Solomon is shown, location and date unspecified | Photo courtesy of Joe Solomon, St. George News
A platter of food served at the By Joe popup at Wood Ash Rye is shown, St. George, Utah, date unspecified | Photo courtesy of Joe Solomon, St. George News
Joe Solomon is seen working his barbeque booth at the St. George Downtown farmers market in Utah, date unspecified | Photo courtesy of Joe Solomon, St. George News
Joe Solomon poses with his wife and three boys while enjoying a day in nature, location and date unspecified | photo courtesy of Joe Solomon, St. George News
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