Behind the Smoker: How We Craft True Texas BBQ in San Antonio

When you walk into Big Bib BBQ in San Antonio and order a plate of brisket or ribs, what you’re seeing and enjoying is the finished product. What you don’t see is how early in the day that plate started to come together. True Texas BBQ takes time, so our smoker is already going before most people are thinking about lunch. 

 

Every day, the crew follows the same routine—getting the menu ready for the day ahead. Enjoying a meal at The Big Bib means you’re eating good. 

 

Texas BBQ is not something you rush. It’s something you stick with. You build the fire, you watch the smoke, and you let the meat do what it’s supposed to do over time. That’s what brings people back for barbecue.

 

Our smoker is where that work happens. It’s where the day really begins at Big Bib BBQ, and where true Texas BBQ in San Antonio starts long before the restaurant doors ever open.

 

The Day Starts with the Fire

Every day at the Big Bib BBQ begins with the smoker and the fire that drives it. Before customers line up and before we slice the first brisket, our pitmaster Tamu is already getting things going. As pitmaster, she sets the pace for the day. 

Knowing how to tend the fire and make small adjustments can make all the difference in the finished product. 

 

Brisket, ribs, and pork all need the same steady fire. When the fire is right, the meat can take its time and cook the way it should.

 

While Tamu and her crew focus on the smoker and the meat, the front-of-house team prepares the dining room for service. Both sides work simultaneously, setting the day in motion.

 

Our crew is hard at work before the first customer ever walks in, but it matters just as much as what happens once orders start coming through. By the time guests begin thinking about BBQ for lunch or dinner, the work behind the scenes has already impacted the meal they are about to order.

 

Time Shapes the Meat

Once the fire is steady, the waiting really starts. At Big Bib BBQ, the meat isn’t rushed through the smoker just to stay on schedule. No, we know that brisket, ribs, and pork all cook at their own pace, and Tamu watches how each cut is responding instead of trying to force it along. Over time, she’s learned what the meat needs and when it’s ready to move to the next step.

 

That slow cook is what gives Texas BBQ its character. Time in the pit allows the smoke to sink in, lets the fat break down naturally, and lets the meat soften without drying out.

 

This part of the process takes patience and consistency. When someone orders brisket, they’re tasting the result of dozens of small decisions made along the way, even if they never see them happening. For us, time is one of the ingredients.

 

Where It All Comes Together

Every plate that leaves the line at Big Bib BBQ carries the work of the entire day with it. It starts with the early fire, continues with the time each cut of meat spends in the smoker, and comes through in the care we give every step of the way. Tamu’s role at the smoker sets the tone, but it takes a whole team paying attention and staying consistent to maintain that standard day after day.

 

Our Texas BBQ restaurant has always been about feeding people well. We want our customers to eat food that feels familiar, filling, and worth slowing down for. The process behind the smoker matters because it shows up in the texture of the meat and the way a meal holds together when it reaches the table. Nothing about our food is accidental; over the years, we’ve worked hard to get it right.

 

Behind the smoker is where the craft lives, but at the table is where it becomes a meal. That is the part everyone gets to share.

 

Come join us for a meal.