Simplicity the key to Ed's BBQ

Good barbecue comes down to two things, Ed McGrew says — patience and simplicity.

“You have to start out with good quality beef or pork, but keeping it simple and not over thinking things — that’s what works for me,” McGrew says. “My barbecue is about as basic as you can get. At one time I had over 20 ingredients in my rub. Now I have four.”

McGrew last month opened Ed’s BBQ, a takeout and catering kitchen located in the space behind Lakestream Fly Shop, formerly occupied by Fleur Bake Shop.

Ed’s BBQ features all of McGrew’s favorites, including pulled pork, ribs, beef brisket, tri-tip and sides like coleslaw, beans, mac and cheese and other specials. McGrew sources all of his meat locally, and the kitchen is open Tuesday through Sunday from noon to 6 p.m.

Catering for up to 60 people is available by advance request.

The kitchen, which opened for business July 11, is far from McGrew’s first crack at cooking up delicious barbecue.

He’s been serving food since moving to the Flathead Valley from Oklahoma in 2004, operating a mobile kitchen that got most of its business from private catering and events like the Whitefish Trail Hootenanny.

Catering and mobile kitchens are a young man’s game, McGrew says, and the time was ready to settle into a space that’s not supported by wheels.

“I should have retired in January,” he says. “I turned 65 in January, but I still have a lot of barbecue left in me. This was just ideal for me.”

McGrew’s history with barbecue stretches back even farther than his entrance to the Flathead Valley 15 years ago, though.

He remembers a time when he was 10 years old, when his uncle Joe and other older family members put together a big barbecue on the way home to Oklahoma from a Colorado vacation.

His young eyes wide with fascination, McGrew says it was those memories of watching his family whip up pork and beef that instilled in him that love of barbecue.

“I come from a family of barbecue lovers. I used to just listen to them, just fascinated with the passion and how much they enjoyed it and all that,” he says.

Prior to coming to the Flathead, McGrew worked for Dell Computers in Oklahoma City.

While he enjoyed his time in technology sales, McGrew said the joy in his current gig — besides the meat — is the joy his work brings to others.

“Just seeing the people that come in, getting to interact and know and be friends with people. The one thing about barbecue is that it makes everybody happy. Nobody gets pissed off when they’re coming in for barbecue,” he says. “Honestly, when people come in here and buy stuff, they’re happy and they’re in a good mood.”

For more information, look for Ed McGrew’s BBQ on Facebook or call 406-407-4697