"When I opened here 40 years ago, this was it," said owner Joe Saladino. "There were no other restaurants on this street, and Alvin has really grown over the years."
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Saladino's grandfather, also named Joe, opened the original Joe's Bar-B-Q 73 years ago in Houston. His father kept the restaurant going and later moved it to Alvin.
Now, his son Joey is in charge, carrying the legacy of four generations.
"When I was little, 7 or 8 years old, I'd get up in the middle of the night and go lay down on the foot of his bed so he would trip on me in the morning so I would wake up," said Joey. "Because he wouldn't wake me up."
Over the years, the recipes at Joe's Bar-B-Q haven't changed. The wood is still aged for at least two years.
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The brisket is still smoked for a full 24 hours and about 1,200 people visit the restaurant every day. Together, the crew goes through 80 briskets, 130 slabs of pork and beef ribs, 100 pounds of sausage, 80 half chickens, and approximately 10 hams.
That doesn't even include the seafood.
If those numbers sound impressive, the restaurant's catering business is equally eye-popping.
According to Joe's Bar-B-Q's website, Joey and his staff average 300 off-site catering jobs a month.
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The company says the largest catering job was done for Monsanto Chemical Company where food was prepared for 25,000 people.
"If you love what you're doing and can't wait to get up and go to work in the morning, Hey, why not?" said Joe.
Joe's Bar-B-Q is located at 1400 E Highway 6 in Alvin.
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