A Dream Come True!  

I came out of the Marines in 1963 wanting to learn how to cook barbecue the “Old Fashioned Western Kentucky” style. The way barbecue was cooked in our area by the old timers who would literally dig a pit in the ground, cover it with wire, put on a bunch of pork shoulders and chickens and then fire it with hickory coals. They would cover the meat with a piece of tin to help hold in the heat and to keep the possibility of a fire to a minimum. It was done slow and easy and it was good. Calling it pit barbecue today is referencing the pit being dug in the ground originally. Of course today the health department requires us to use metal or block “pits” to hold the meat and fire while we are cooking. But it is the same principle. In 1974 I really began trying to learn how to barbecue (or more about barbecue techniques or barbecue cooking styles) and in January of 1975 “Mike’s Barbecue” was started. Things did not work out the way I had planned but, even after the business closed I would cook in the driveway for special occasions, church dinners, Sunday School picnics, Christmas, Thanksgiving, or maybe just because I wanted to. I collected recipes and practiced my craft until 2002 when the door opened for me to go into business again. I have done a little bit of everything over the years including being a pastor but the barbecue was always in my heart. A friend in NYC even nicknamed me the “Pit Master Pastor” because of the pastoring and cooking roles I played for several years. The original Mike’s was a neat little place with good food and good customers. They were, for the most part, farmers, construction workers and their wives with a good representation of teachers and local government leaders mixed in. We developed our recipes for the barbecued beans, the slaw sauce, our "special" barbeque sauce, burgoo (a barbecue stew) and the other sides as we went along. And please do not forget the corn bread, "hoe cakes" we call them. People would come in and make suggestions or give us recipes in an effort to help us. That is the way “us country folks” are, wanting to help each other succeed. Today we are a little more fancy, we have a nicer place and more room but the menu is basically the same. We have added things like “fried corn” which is a cream style corn cooked our unique way, green beans, turnip greens, and hash brown casserole. Add on the home made pies and today we are carrying on the tradition that began back in 1975. “Country Cooking” at it’s best. Incidentally many of the recipes are ones that I grew up seeing my Mother use on the farm. Today this “Mike’s Barbecue” is what I dreamed of all of those years cooking in the driveway or a church parking lot. It is truly a dream come true!

Mike Reeves The "Pit Master Pastor"  

Psalms 37:4 “Delight yourself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”