COLUMBUS, Ohio — It’s a pretty common site to see Brad Harkrider along High Street in Columbus preparing wood-fire oven smoked brisket in the early morning hours.
“Barbecue very much lends itself to long cooking periods and a lot of love that goes into the meat. I felt like that was just something that Columbus needed,” said Harkrider, owner and chef of Hank’s Texas BBQ.
It’s been quite a journey for the Columbus State Community College graduate, who spent 20 years as a chef in Central Ohio before losing his job during the pandemic.
Harkrider then shifted course and secured a catering deal with Rogue Fitness and its 1,400 employees.
“It was a lot of hard work but it was a good way to get some of my staff members that also lost their jobs involved during the pandemic. And it also afforded us to kinda get this thing rolling,” said Harkrider.
Harkrider’s newest venture, Hank’s Texas BBQ, is a true return to his roots in Houston, Texas, where barbecue is all about the brisket.
“Central Texas Barbecue is mostly salt and pepper. Letting it rest and letting all the juices absorb back into the brisket is something that is very key in making a good juicy brisket. So sometimes we’ll let the brisket’s rest about 12 hours before we serve them,” said Harkrider.
Although it may have taken 20 years to get to this point, Harkrider has no regrets and gives this advice to budding entrepreneurs: “The hardest step is the first step obviously. Keeping things small and keeping things simple I think is the best thing to do right now,” said Harkrider.
Hank’s Texas BBQ is located at 2941 N. High St. in the Columbus neighborhood of Clintonville.
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