Ray Lampe, better known as Dr. BBQ, isn’t the only one who knows a thing or two about barbecue. Restaurateurs Suzanne and Roger Perry, the wife-and-husband team behind South Tampa’s Datz, Dough and Roux, have explored their own ’cue-ducation. In fact, the idea for a barbecue restaurant came after the Perrys began spending lots of time on what’s called the BBQ Trail around Austin, Texas.
“I have one child, so I was visiting, aka stalking, my son in Texas literally all the time,” Suzanne says of the trips to see their son Matthew, a junior at College Station’s Texas A&M University. “And that really is what started this entire project was our exposure in Texas to so much fantastic barbecue on a regular basis.”
Wanting to bring that kind of experience to St. Petersburg, where they’d been scouting locations for Datz, Suzanne phoned Lampe, a Barbecue Hall of Fame inductee with nine cookbooks who’s spent the last 30 years traveling to barbecue joints in every corner of the country, and proposed the new venture — the doc’s first as a restaurateur. That was two years ago, and now the partners are gearing up to launch their collaboration, Dr. BBQ, at 1101 First Ave. S.
Offering a mix of standards and fresh approaches inside what used to house a steel casting company (and almost a brewery), the indoor-outdoor EDGE District restaurant — a little larger than Datz with around 220 seats and more than 9,000 square feet — will get its industrial look from reclaimed barn wood, smoky brick, concrete floors and corrugated roofing, among other design elements. Two bars, two patios and two floors of dining are also planned, in addition to an open kitchen, a feature the Perrys’ other food spots don’t have.
Here are five more things to expect when Dr. BBQ debuts in late September. Although big piles of meat are important, there’s a bunch going on besides barbecue. Take from Lampe: “I like to think of it as a really great restaurant that serves barbecue.”
1) A 7,000-pound smoker that holds up to 1,300 pounds of meat.
One of three that’ve been sold in Florida, the wood-fired smoker, a rarity that looks more like industrial machinery than something used to cook up barbecue, is made by J&R Manufacturing in Mesquite, Texas.
“We tried how many restaurants?” Lampe asks the Perrys. “A hundred is an easy number to say, between us. We’ve all been to a hundred barbecue restaurants — probably more. And the best food we ate came off these smokers. It’s a big deal.”
But it takes a certain kind of person to spearhead the restaurant’s smoker, known as an Oyler in the barbecue world. It’s uncommon to find that kind of equipment in restaurants because, as Suzanne puts it, the barbecue pit (which ’cue connoisseurs geek out over) requires a skilled operator. Not to mention, the thing ain’t cheap at $30,000.
“It’s gonna be right out front where everybody can see it. We’re not hiding this one,” Lampe says.
2) A seasoned pitmaster from the barbecue capital of Texas.
Back in January, the partners relocated native Texans Lee Jasper and his wife Madeline to the area, undercover, for their latest project. Lee most recently served as pitmaster for Kreuz Market, whose original restaurant, where he trained, is in Lockhart, the barbecue capital of Texas.
Grilling since he was 8 and smoking since he was 16, 28-year-old Lee — who opened Kreuz’s second location in 100 years and met the Perrys while they were in Texas to see their son — is just what the trio ordered.
“It’s a lot of work, what they’re saying about the dedication and the commitment, somebody [needs to] do this. I don’t have time to do that; I’ve got a bunch of other stuff to do. So we need somebody specifically to be in charge of cookin’ the barbecue,” Lampe says.
Pitmaster Lee is familiar with the low-and-slow process (he spent more than two years at barbecue Mecca, after all), and, more importantly, what good barbecue is, because the real skill is knowing when it’s done.
“There was a vibe. You know, when you meet people,” Roger says. “I said, ‘Hey, if you get tired of Texas, what do you think about moving to Florida?’ And he thought I was kidding. After two or three more trips back, he realized we were serious.”
3) New American barbecue, including badass dishes that just happen to be veg-friendly.
While their smoker and pitmaster are from Texas, the gang’s not focused on Texas barbecue. There’s ’cue all over the country, much of which Lampe has tasted. Florida has its own barbecue style. And a new generation of chefs is adding Korean, Vietnamese and Mexican touches, notes Roger, who’s come across barbecue in everything from tacos to spring rolls.
“They’re putting barbecue meats in tacos, in bánh mìs, in phở bowls. They’re taking the barbecue that they’re cooking, the same way we probably will be cooking, but then they apply it in a different format,” he says.
Lampe isn’t a fan of the word “artisan,” but New American barbecue — or Suzanne’s definition: “a fresh approach to traditional cooking” — sums up what the restaurant plans to churn out. Expect plenty of Texas influence, plus inspiration from the Perrys and Lampe’s barbecue know-how and travels to Chicago, New York City, England, Memphis and Kansas City, to name a few.
“We’re gonna take all of that into account, and then we’re gonna try and make a modern version of it,” the doc says. “We’re not just trying to make the exact same thing as every barbecue joint in town. We will pay homage to all that, we honor that. But we’re gonna make good, modern-day food.”
In addition to brisket, pulled pork, house-made pastrami, ribs and a wood-fired rotisserie for chicken, he’s dead serious about vegan and vegetarian selections, aka badass dishes that just happen to be veg-friendly. They’re part of that New American flavor, as is weekend brunch.
Carrying more than coleslaw for herbivores (Suzanne says their chefs have started playing around with jackfruit at Datz) allows the partners to reach a broader audience, as well as cultivate regulars who stop in more than once a week for lunch and dinner.
“Even if you are a brisket eater, you may not eat that three days a week. You may wanna eat a salad once in awhile. I don’t know why, but I’ve heard that people eat salads,” Lampe says with a laugh.
4) An impressive bourbon selection.
Dr. BBQ won’t disappoint in the rare bourbon department. Though wine and 16 beers (a few made by local breweries exclusively for the restaurant; Cycle Brewing is working on a special lager, for instance) are in store, the emphasis is on a bourbon lineup, curated by beverage director Morgan Zuch, that’s “probably the best around.”
They’ll likely open with three private, hand-picked single barrels of Kentucky bourbon, each bottled under the Dr. BBQ name and used in signature bourbon cocktails like smoked Old Fashioneds. So far, Zuch’s spoken to Buffalo Trace and Knob Creek, whose samples she and Roger recently tasted. The favorite of that bunch is one barrel set to arrive in time for patrons to pair with plates of barbecue.
“It’s gonna be a big part of our culture here,” says Roger, who also envisions punches.
Other bar highlights include smoked ice, a couple of interesting frozen drinks, the Texas beer Shiner and iced-tea cocktails. In one form or another, bourbon and beer will make appearances in the cooking as well — maybe for collard greens, or perhaps in salad dressing, marinades or barbecue sauce.
5) Second-level dining, à la Datz, that’s flexible enough for larger parties.
During the holidays and other celebrations such as graduation, the Perrys have had to turn people away due to lack of space. That won’t be an issue for the St. Pete newcomer.
“A challenge that we’ve had with the restaurants now is when people want 40 or 50 people for an event, it’s hard for us. But we will be able to do that here. It’s gonna be built in. We have a lot of flexible space,” according to Suzanne.
The second level, which is getting its own patio with a bar and fire pit, overlooks downstairs, à la Datz, and can accommodate groups of 20 or 40 diners — even 100. Sliding barn doors allow the floor to become as private as desired, too.
Dr. BBQ isn’t an event venue, but its flexibility upstairs is fit for the barbecue classes Lampe anticipates, plus guest appearances from his chef pals.
“We actually want to have a lot of guest chefs,” Suzanne says. “We love that, so that’ll be a component for sure.”
This article appears in Jun 1-8, 2017.
