Big Belly Brothers BBQ Serves Up Burnt Ends, Loaded Waffle Fries and More

"I've always wanted to open a restaurant. And then about two years ago, I got a smoker for Father's Day, and that's when it all started to click. I did some ribs and then some brisket for friends and family, and everybody loved it," says Jarrod Andrews. Along with his two brothers, John and Justin, he launched the Big Belly Brothers BBQ food trailer in 2021.

All three grew up in the Park Hill neighborhood, and they all worked in hospitality when they were younger, but it was Jarrod who first decided to establish a career in the industry. "I've been an executive chef for about seventeen years," Jarrod says. "I've been in and out of a few restaurants, and some of the bigger corporate restaurants like Cheesecake Factory and P.F. Chang's, so I definitely understand the hospitality and the culinary side of the industry."

While he's got a lot of kitchen experience, he'd never smoked meats professionally. "I've always done everything other than barbecue," he notes. "My dream was actually a Mexican restaurant, because I love green chile, and there's nothing better than a smothered burrito. But once I started messing with barbecue and really understanding the flavors and the cooking temperatures and how creative you can be with spices and seasonings, and then the different cultures, I fell in love."
After receiving what some may consider to be the best Father's Day gift ever, Jarrod began experimenting with regional styles such as Texas, Kansas City and Carolina ’cue. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, an opportunity presented itself. "It kind of fell into my lap where there was an opportunity to finance a food trailer," he recalls. "Worst-case scenario, I break even every month. Even if I don't make any money on it, it's worth a try. That's how we kind of started going."

After mentioning the idea to his brothers, John created the trailer's logo. "I've always loved drawing since I was a kid, and it's something that I carried into my adult years," John says. "Jarrod told me to get creative, and we decided to do three pigs because there are three of us brothers."

Having the logo in place "really sparked a fire to get us rolling," Jarrod adds.

At the time, John was living in Florida, but since Jarrod was, and still is, working in a restaurant, he needed some help to launch the business. He pitched the idea of becoming a part-owner to John, who quickly agreed. "He moved from Florida and changed his whole life for the business," Jarrod says.

Now, Big Belly Brothers BBQ is roughly two years old, and the brothers are hitting their stride and perfecting their barbecue technique. While they both do the cooking, prepping and smoking, John has taken the reins on daily operations.

"My favorite thing is the brisket quesadilla," John says. "You can't get one like it anywhere. Our brisket is mouthwatering, and you add a little barbecue sauce and cheese and then crisp up the tortilla on the flat top. It's delicious. A close second, he adds: the green chile sausage link.
Jarrod says that his favorite from the start was the burnt ends. "But our newest item is the brisket-loaded fries. ... I'm a big carne asada fries guy, and I thought, how can we transition Mexican into barbecue?" So he loaded brisket onto waffle fries with queso. Now that item has become his new go-to. "It's amazing," says Jarrod.

Big Belly Brothers BBQ also serves traditional staples such as pulled-pork sandwiches, ribs, wings, mac and cheese, and baked beans. The brothers make their own barbecue sauces, too. The lineup includes regional styles as well as some original creations like the jalapeño barbecue sauce. "We started with our honey barbecue sauce as a base and blended in some jalapeños and spices. Most jalapeño barbecue sauce is so spicy, but this one is more mild. You really get the flavor of jalapeño with a slight kick, and then the sweetness of the honey," Jarrod says.

The brothers are in the early process of getting another truck to expand their business. "It's about the people. It's about jobs," Jarrod notes. "I want to be around people. I want to give them an opportunity to change their lives. I want to make sure that hey, if this guy hasn't had the best past, let's give him an opportunity to have a good future. It's about employees who believe in us, and we're believing back in them."

Follow Big Belly Brothers BBQ on Instagram @bigbellybrothersbbq for its full schedule — and run, don't walk, for a taste of its loaded brisket fries.