The Brisket Shoppe’s Danny Hernandez—alongside a variety of other barbecue enthusiasts, volunteers, musicians and vendors—hosts the inaugural BBQ Love Fest in downtown Tampa next weekend with the mission of “cooking for a cure.”
Perry Harvey Sr. Park in Tampa’s Encore district is the host of the first-ever BBQ Love Fest, happening from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 18.
This family-friendly event is free for children under the age of 12 and offers discounted admission for first responders. Tickets ($65 for general admission, $129 for VIP) include barbecue samples from 20 local cook teams and the “Pitmaster’s Showcase,” access to a variety of grilling-related vendors, live music and the chance to vote for your favorite plate of the day. Keep those debit cards loaded up, because BBQ Love Fest is also a cashless event.
From ribs, brisket and barbecue chicken to sausages, burnt ends and all of the classic cookout sides, every style and region or barbecue will be represented.
All proceeds raised by this celebration of food, fundraising and entertainment will benefit three non-profits that are close to Hernandez’s heart: FARA (Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance), Operation BBQ Relief—an organization that provides food in the wake of natural disasters—and the veteran-focused Special Operations Memorial Foundation.
“My friend Paul Avery, who contributed to the national growth of Outback Steakhouse, has a child who is battling Friedreich's ataxia. So I wanted to cook for a cause that was close to my heart,” Hernandez explains.
In addition to the 20 “backyard BBQ teams” that will compete for the grand prize of $10,000 and bragging rights, there will be several nationally-recognized pitmasters—some with massive social media followings—representing their region’s unique style of barbecue.
The professional pitmaster lineup includes folks like Anthony DiBernardo of South Carolina’s Swig & Swine BBQ, Texas native Arnis Robbins of Evie Mae’s Pit Barbecue, Adrian Wright of West Virginia’s Dem 2 Brothers, Instagram-famous Mel Chmilar (@darksideofthegrill) hailing all the way from Alberta, Canada and private chef Antonio Harris aka The Butter Knife Shawty from Georgia. At-home barbecue enthusiasts with this season’s newest Blackstone might want to take a few notes from these respected industry professionals, all while sampling their tastiest eats.
Although this is the first time BBQ Love Fest for the Bay area, Hernandez has a lifelong relationship with barbecue, West Tampa and the community that connects the two.
His parents opened the first Pipo’s Cuban Café in the late-1970s, and the building he operates his barbecue restaurant and grill store out of boasts even older ties to the Cuban families that founded La Segunda and the now-closed Faedo Family Bakery.
By 2018, Hernandez was operating five Holy Hog BBQ locations between its brick and mortars, food trucks and a vendor spot inside Tampa’s Amalie Arena. But after enduring the long process of healing from serious kitchen fire burns, Hernandez decided to pivot slightly and open his retail store Grill & Provisions in 2019. By 2021, that space expanded and its restaurant counterpart The Brisket Shoppe started slinging Cuban-inspired barbecue, smoked on native Florida wood out of a massive 1,000 gallon barbecue pit.
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Now that both the retail store and restaurant have been up and running for a few years, Hernandez wanted to pivot yet again towards a cause bigger than barbecue and business—a philanthropic effort with a culinary force behind it.
And of course, a variety of Hernandez’s best eats will be on display at this week’s festival, too. The Brisket Shoppe’s unique Caribbean flare makes it stand out among other Southern barbecue styles. Oak wood-smoked brisket, ribs and pulled pork are constants on The Brisket Shoppe’s menu, but are often served with sides like tostones, rice and beans, empanadas and brisket croquetas. Since West Tampa’s Brisket Shoppe is only open Thursday-Saturday, that means about 20 hours of slow-smoked love is put into its variety of barbecued meats.
Hernandez tells CL that he has invested tens of thousands of dollars of his own money into BBQ Love Fest’s inaugural event, alongside funding from a variety of sponsors and donated time and food from his all-star pitmasters and friends.
Although next week marks the very first installment of this soon-to-be annual festival, Hernandez is confident in BBQ Love Fest’s future and hopes 2024’s rendition is even larger.
“It's a homegrown product that's gonna stay here in Tampa’s food space—specifically its barbecue space. And we're ready to create a community by raising dollars that are benefiting people right here in Tampa,” Hernandez says. “And since it’s the first year, we're definitely gonna learn from it. There's gonna be bumps like everything else, but I think if we do the right thing and we get the right support, fans of us and fans of barbecue in general are going to show up and help us cut checks to three amazing causes.”
He compares the potential of BBQ Love Fest to Tampa’s annual Pig Jig festival—a once-small party that started in a backyard has evolved into a massive event over the years, with national headliners and millions of charitable dollars raised.
For the latest information on the very first BBQ Love Fest and its lineup of both professional pitmasters and local cook teams, head to grillandprovisions.com or head to @bbqlovefestival on Instagram.
