A Story Built on Family, Fire & Flavor.
Before the smokers and the celebrations, there was a little boy with a play kitchen—and a family who showed him that food is one of the most meaningful ways to love people.
READ THE STORY ↓“The food matters. But the people, the memories, and the love behind it—that’s what stays with us.”
A Story Built on Family, Fire & Flavor
Before there was Pittman's Texaque®, before the smokers, the weddings, and the countless meals shared around tables, there was a little boy with a play kitchen and a family that loved food. That little boy was me. My love for cooking started when I was just three years old. In 1990, I received my first play kitchen, and I absolutely wore that thing out. Some of my favorite childhood memories are of being in the kitchen with my mom while she prepared meals for my sister and me. I loved watching her cook, and looking back, I realize just how much those ordinary moments meant.
My Aunt Jacque was another huge influence on my love for cooking. When I was little, she had a way of making food fun. She'd let us add food coloring to our oatmeal or Cream of Wheat, turning an ordinary breakfast into something we couldn't wait to eat. But her influence went far beyond colorful oatmeal. I've always looked up to Aunt Jacque. She's been the heart of so many of our family's holiday meals, spending countless hours in the kitchen making sure everyone has something delicious to enjoy. These days, I get to return the favor. I've started taking on more of the holiday cooking so she can spend a little less time worrying about what's in the oven and a little more time doing what she loves: hosting and enjoying time with family.
There's something pretty special about that. The person who helped make cooking fun for me as a child is now someone I get to cook alongside and, hopefully, make the holidays a little easier for. I guess some things really do come full circle.
A Childhood Surrounded by Good Food
Food was woven into just about every part of my childhood, especially when the holidays rolled around. My great-grandmother, Helen Pittman, and Uncle Jerry Pittman made some memorable meals and treats. Those family gatherings were always filled with good food, familiar faces, and the kind of memories that stay with you long after you've grown up. My step-grandparents, Kenny and Dorothy Michael, brought another kind of cooking into my life: good, old-fashioned Southern comfort food. I'm talking homemade biscuits and gravy, Sunday fried chicken cooked in cast iron, and the kind of meals that didn't need anything fancy to be absolutely incredible. German food was another part of my childhood. My dad was born on an Army base in Germany, and my Aunt Jacque and Uncle Pat lived there for several years.
Growing up, my dad and grandfather would take us out for German food, and I developed a love for dishes like schnitzel and sauerkraut. To this day, I still enjoy a good German meal. What's especially interesting to me now is how much German and Czech culinary traditions helped shape Texas barbecue, particularly in Central Texas. From smoked sausages and traditional meat markets to the techniques used to prepare and preserve meats, those influences are woven into the history of the barbecue I've grown to love. As a kid, I certainly wasn't thinking about any of that while enjoying a plate of schnitzel. I just knew I loved the food.
But looking back, I think it's pretty incredible how so many of the flavors and traditions I grew up around eventually found their way into my own culinary journey. Looking back, I realize just how fortunate I was to grow up surrounded by so many people who loved to cook. Everyone had their own specialties, their own traditions, and their own way of making a meal memorable. And without even realizing it, I was learning something from every one of them.
My First Introduction to Hospitality
When I was around five years old, my mom managed the catering department for a law firm in downtown Dallas. I loved going to work with her. In fact, I loved it so much that I'd occasionally pretend to be sick just for the chance to tag along. I'd sleep beneath her desk, sneak snacks from the kitchen, and experiment with what we called suicide sodas at the soda fountain. To a little kid, it was the greatest place in the world. To my mom, it was a job she genuinely loved. And to me, looking back, it was my first introduction to the world of hospitality.
I learned something there that has stayed with me throughout my life: food has a remarkable way of making people feel welcome, cared for, and connected. I just didn't know yet how much that lesson would mean to me.
The People Behind the Passion
My childhood wasn't without heartbreak. When I was eight years old, my family was involved in a devastating car accident. My mom spent seven months in a coma before passing away at just 27 years old. Losing her changed my life forever. But the memories we created together never disappeared. Her love of music, food, family, and bringing people together remained a part of me. And in many ways, those memories continue to inspire what I do today. After my mother's passing, my grandmother stepped in to raise my sister and me. I actually call her Mom, because that's exactly what she is to us.
She was another incredible influence on my love for cooking. To this day, I can still remember her fried squash and porcupine meatballs. Nobody made them quite like she did. I especially loved helping her make those meatballs. There was something so satisfying about getting my hands into the bowl and mashing the ground beef and rice together. I didn't know much about cooking back then. I just knew I loved being in the kitchen with her. Looking back, those weren't just meals. They were moments spent together, memories being made, and another chapter in my lifelong love affair with food. As I grew older, I found myself spending more time in the kitchen with my dad. He was an incredible cook, and I wanted to learn everything he knew.
He taught me how to make an omelet, and before long, I was grilling burgers, preparing meats for tacos, making salsa, and discovering just how much I loved cooking.
Uncle Preston, Adkins Seasoning & My Introduction to Barbecue
My Uncle Preston's family founded Adkins Seasoning, a seasoning manufacturing company whose products had actually been part of my family's kitchen long before I ever met him. My mother cooked with Adkins seasonings when I was growing up. At the time, none of us knew that Preston would eventually marry my Aunt Mary, my mother's sister, and become part of our family. It's funny how life brings things full circle. After my mother passed away, I spent quite a bit of time with Aunt Mary and Uncle Preston. And Uncle Preston wasn't just someone who introduced me to the business side of food. He was a great cook himself.
He prepared plenty of delicious meals on the grill, and I loved being around when he was cooking. Between the meals he made at home and the experiences I had tagging along with him at work, he played a big role in developing my love for barbecue. I'd often join him to pick up supplies and make deliveries, especially to barbecue restaurants. Those trips were some of my favorites. I got a behind-the-scenes look at the world of barbecue, met pitmasters, and experienced the sights, smells, and flavors that made Texas barbecue so special. I'll never forget watching a pitmaster open his smoker, pull out a fresh rack of ribs, slice off a couple for me to taste, and then show me the fire that had cooked them.
I was fascinated. The smoke. The fire. The smell. The flavor. I was hooked. And if there's one thing you should know about me, it's that I've always loved playing with fire. That experience helped shape a passion that would eventually become Pittman's Texaque®.
Finding My Way to the Pit
By my teenage years, cooking had become more than something I enjoyed doing with my family. It was becoming a genuine passion. I was always looking for an excuse to fire up the grill. Burgers, steaks, chicken, tacos—you name it. If I could cook it over a flame, I wanted to give it a try. And I wasn't afraid to experiment. As a young adult, I started exploring open-fire cooking, long before I owned a proper smoker. In fact, the first brisket I ever cooked was over an open fire. At the time, I thought it was absolutely incredible. Looking back now? Well, let's just say I had a whole lot left to learn!
But that's part of what I've always loved about cooking. There's always another technique to master, another flavor to explore, and another opportunity to make something better than the last time. It wasn't until my mid-to-late twenties that I purchased my first smoker. And once I had it, nothing was safe. If it could fit inside that smoker, chances are I was going to try smoking it. Meats, vegetables, even desserts. I wanted to understand how smoke could transform different ingredients and bring out flavors you couldn't achieve any other way. I was hooked all over again.
Learning Beyond the Barbecue Pit
Although barbecue had captured my attention, I never wanted to limit myself to one style of cooking. Over the years, I worked in bistros and Italian kitchens, gaining experience with different cuisines, ingredients, and techniques. One of the most influential people in my culinary journey was a chef named Pedro. I first met Pedro while working as a server. He took the time to teach me techniques, introduce me to new dishes, and share the kind of knowledge that can only come from years spent working in professional kitchens. I learned an incredible amount from him, and many of those lessons still influence the way I cook today.
That experience helped me realize something important: I loved barbecue, but I loved cooking even more. I didn't want to be known only for what came out of a smoker. I wanted to understand food, explore different cuisines, and create meals that brought together everything I'd learned.
Turning Passion Into Experience
Eventually, I went to work as a salesman for Adkins Seasoning, where I managed a major account with WinCo Foods. As WinCo expanded into Texas and Oklahoma, we'd bring our smoker to store locations and prepare samples so customers could experience the seasonings firsthand. For me, it was the perfect combination of two things I enjoyed: working with people and cooking barbecue. During that time, I also had the opportunity to learn from Matt Hardy, a pit builder and competition barbecue cook. Matt helped me better understand the techniques behind great barbecue, from managing a fire to developing flavor and consistency. I kept experimenting, asking questions, and refining my skills.
And the more I cooked, the more people started telling me the same thing: “You need to open a restaurant.” Or: “You should start a food truck!” I appreciated the encouragement, but I wasn't quite ready to make that leap. Instead, I started taking occasional food orders and offering private chef services. My first official catering job wasn't barbecue at all. It was sushi. I prepared sushi for a friend's college graduation party, using skills I'd picked up while bartending at Toshio's, a sushi restaurant where I'd learned how to make it. Not exactly what you'd expect from a future Texas pitmaster, right? But that's always been part of who I am as a cook. I've never believed great food should be limited to one cuisine or one tradition.
I also spent time running a nonprofit produce cooperative, where I developed weekly recipes to accompany boxes of fresh produce. Later, I created recipe videos showcasing different ways to cook with Adkins seasonings. Whether I was working in a restaurant, developing recipes, grilling for family and friends, or experimenting with something new, food was always finding its way into my life. Meanwhile, there was a smoker trailer at Adkins that wasn't getting much use. And I couldn't stop thinking about what I could do with it. Eventually, I decided it was time to get serious. I spent an entire year studying barbecue, practicing techniques, refining recipes, and developing the skills I needed to create something I could truly be proud of.
I didn't know exactly where it would lead. But I knew I wanted to build something of my own. And as it turned out, a good friend of mine had an idea that would help bring it all together.
The Birth of Texaque®
Two Friends. Two Culinary Traditions. One Big Idea.
In 2019, my good friend Ben Mason and I decided it was time to turn years of cooking, experimenting, and talking about food into something real. We shared a love for two of Texas's greatest culinary traditions: barbecue and Mexican food. And we had an idea. What if we brought those two worlds together? Not just barbecue with a side of Mexican food, but something that genuinely celebrated both traditions. The smoke, the fire, the bold seasonings, the fresh ingredients, and the flavors we'd grown up loving. We wanted to create something that felt familiar but different. Something distinctly Texan, with a personality all its own.
Of course, before we could do any of that, we needed a name. And let me tell you, we went through a few! Mexicue. Mexaque. Texicue. Texaque. I'd actually been using the name Texaque loosely through my private chef business, Cody's Kitchen, whenever I took barbecue orders. But as Ben and I talked through the possibilities, that name kept finding its way back to the top of the list. Then Ben suggested incorporating my last name into the business. After all, I was the pitmaster. Pittman. The man behind the pit. It was almost too perfect. And just like that, Pittman's Texaque® began taking shape.
Building Something From Scratch
Throughout the spring and summer of 2019, Ben and I spent countless hours developing recipes, testing seasonings, experimenting with sauces, and putting together our first menu. We weren't interested in simply opening another barbecue trailer. We wanted to build something with its own identity. One thing I'm especially proud of is that the foundation of our brisket seasoning hasn't changed since day one. And believe it or not, that seasoning has a pretty unexpected backstory. Years before Texaque, during a period when I was focused on healthier eating and experimenting with a vegan diet, I created an all-purpose seasoning without added sugar. That blend eventually became the foundation for the brisket seasoning we still use today.
Yes, our brisket seasoning has roots in my vegan days. I know. The irony isn't lost on me! I'm no longer vegan, but I've always enjoyed preparing plant-based meals, and I still have a lot of love for my vegetarian and vegan friends. To me, great cooking has never been about following one set of rules. It's about understanding ingredients, respecting different cuisines, and creating food people genuinely enjoy.
The Food Trailer Years
In September 2019, Pittman's Texaque® officially launched as a food trailer. We had big plans. Our goal was to introduce people to our style of Texas barbecue and Mexican-inspired cooking, build a loyal following, and eventually open a brick-and-mortar restaurant. It was exciting, exhausting, and everything you'd expect from starting a food business. Then 2020 happened. Like so many small businesses, we suddenly found ourselves facing circumstances we never could have anticipated. COVID-19 brought our food trailer plans to a halt. Once restrictions began lifting, we honored the catering commitments we'd already booked and gradually returned to public events. But the business landscape had changed.
Food costs were climbing. Disposable supplies were becoming more expensive. And making public events financially sustainable was becoming increasingly difficult. We had to make a decision. Keep chasing the original plan, or recognize that the business was showing us another path forward.
An Unexpected Change of Direction
By the end of 2022, we decided to shift our focus toward catering and private events. At first, we still offered the food trailer for events that could meet certain minimum sales requirements. Eventually, though, we made the decision to step away from public vending and concentrate on catering. And something interesting happened. The part of the business that hadn't been our original focus began to feel like exactly where we belonged. We started becoming part of people's most meaningful celebrations. Baby showers, weddings, family gatherings, corporate events, holiday parties, and all those special moments worth bringing people together for. Baby showers, in particular, played a bigger role in our journey than I ever expected. We catered several of them in those early days, and the relationships we built helped open the door to many of our first weddings.
One celebration led to another. Families shared our name with friends, guests remembered the food, and people began trusting us with some of the biggest moments of their lives. We weren't just preparing food anymore. We were helping people create memories. And that brought me right back to something I'd learned as a little boy, tagging along to work with my mom. Great hospitality isn't just about what's on the plate. It's about how you make people feel. Looking back, I wouldn't say everything happened according to plan. Not even close. But sometimes the road you never expected to take leads you exactly where you're supposed to be.
And for Pittman's Texaque®, that road led us to catering.
ILLUSTRATIVE TEXAQUE PHOTOGRAPHYMore Than Barbecue
Where the Cuisines of the World Meet Smoke
When Ben and I first started Texaque, our vision was to bring together two things we loved: Texas barbecue and Mexican cuisine. But as the business grew, so did the opportunities to share everything else I'd learned throughout my culinary journey. I've always loved cooking barbecue. There's something special about tending a fire, watching smoke roll from a pit, and knowing that patience and a little hard work are going to turn a beautiful piece of meat into something incredible. But my passion for food has never stopped at the smoker. Remember, my first catering job was making sushi! Over the years, I've fallen in love with all kinds of cuisines. Italian, Mexican, Asian, Mediterranean, Indian, German, Southern comfort food, classic American dishes, and just about anything else that gives me an excuse to get creative in the kitchen.
Asian and Mediterranean cuisines, in particular, have become two of my personal favorites. In fact, after spending an entire day cooking for everyone else, there's a pretty good chance you'll find me grabbing sushi or something Mediterranean for myself. And that's not just after catering events. Those are some of the foods I crave most in my everyday life, too. Indian cuisine is another favorite of mine, especially because of its incredible use of spices. Growing up around Uncle Preston and Adkins Seasoning gave me an appreciation for what different spices can do. I love how Indian cooking brings together so many seasonings to create layers of flavor, warmth, and complexity.
And if there's one thing I really love, it's spicy food. That's probably one of my favorite things about Mexican cuisine. I love the way different hot chiles bring their own flavors and levels of heat to a dish. I'm also the guy who puts hot sauce on just about everything. My fiancée actually calls my hot sauce bottle “adult ketchup.” Why? Because I'm constantly giving her a hard time about how much ketchup she eats. Ketchup happens to be one of my least favorite condiments. As far as I'm concerned, the best thing you can do with ketchup is turn it into something else!
She has her ketchup. I have my hot sauce. I guess we're even. But that's one of the things I love about food. Everyone has their own tastes, their own favorites, and their own memories connected to what they eat. To me, being a chef means never losing that curiosity. It's about learning from different cultures, respecting the traditions behind their food, and finding ways to bring those flavors together. And that's really what Texaque has become.
From Backyard Barbecue to Life's Biggest Celebrations
As our catering business grew, so did the variety of events we were trusted to serve. What started with barbecue orders and smaller gatherings eventually turned into weddings, baby showers, corporate celebrations, holiday parties, and private dining experiences. And with each event came new opportunities to create something special. Sometimes that means serving a beautiful spread of traditional Texas barbecue, complete with slow-smoked brisket, ribs, sausage, and all the fixings. Other times, it's preparing a chef-driven dinner with thoughtfully composed entrées, carefully selected sides, and a level of presentation that feels right at home at an elegant wedding reception. I love both. There's something incredibly rewarding about seeing guests enjoy a plate of barbecue they've been looking forward to all day.
But I get just as excited about creating a menu that surprises people, introduces them to something new, or brings together flavors they wouldn't normally expect. That's one of the things I enjoy most about catering. No two celebrations are exactly alike, and I don't believe their menus should have to be, either.
A Few Unexpected Tables Along the Way
One of the things I never imagined when I was a kid playing with my little kitchen was where cooking would eventually take me. Throughout my career, I've had the opportunity to prepare meals for some pretty incredible people. I've cooked privately for Dallas Cowboys Hall of Famers and prepared food at Bosque Ranch for members of the cast and crew of 1883 and Yellowstone. I've even had the pleasure of feeding Texas country music artist Stoney LaRue and his band. Those experiences have been exciting, and I've certainly collected some great memories along the way. But here's the funny thing. Whether I'm cooking for someone famous, a bride and groom, or a family celebrating a birthday, my favorite part is still the same.
Watching people enjoy the food. Hearing someone say, “Man, that's good!” Seeing people come back for seconds. Or having a guest stop me at an event just to tell me how much they enjoyed their meal. Those moments mean just as much to me as any impressive name on a guest list. Because at the end of the day, good food is good food, and everyone deserves to feel special when they sit down to eat.
The Relationships That Built Texaque
As Texaque continued to grow, something happened that meant more to me than any single event or accomplishment. Our customers started coming back. What began as one catering order turned into another. A baby shower led to a wedding. A company holiday party became an annual tradition. Families who invited us into one celebration started inviting us into the next. By the end of 2024, we'd built relationships with wonderful returning customers and corporate clients who trusted us year after year with their celebrations, holiday gatherings, and special events. Some of those relationships have grown into something that feels much more personal than business. We've watched families celebrate new babies, marriages, birthdays, and milestones. We've had the privilege of being invited back to share in moments that matter most to them.
And every time someone chooses to bring us back, recommends us to a friend, or trusts us with another important occasion, it means something. Because I know there are plenty of places they could choose to have their event catered. The fact that they choose us is something I'll never take for granted. To me, that's what building a business is really about. Not just the events we cater, but the relationships we create along the way.
Hospitality Beyond the Event
Today, Pittman's Texaque® has grown into something much bigger than the food trailer we launched in 2019. We cater weddings, corporate events, private celebrations, holiday gatherings, and everything in between. We also prepare Thanksgiving and Christmas meals, from smoked turkeys and whole briskets to traditional sides, desserts, and complete holiday dinners. And our love for cooking doesn't end with catering. I also enjoy creating personalized menus, preparing meals for clients in their own homes, offering private chef experiences, and sharing what I've learned through cooking classes. For me, these aren't separate passions. They're all different ways of doing something I've loved since childhood: cooking for people and bringing them together.
The smoker will always be part of who I am. It's where so much of my culinary journey took shape, and it's at the heart of our identity. But Texaque has never been about limiting ourselves to one kind of food. It's about taking everything I've learned, everything I love, and everything that makes food meaningful, and bringing it to the table. That's what I mean when I say, “Where the Cuisines of the World Meet Smoke.”
ILLUSTRATIVE TEXAQUE PHOTOGRAPHYOur Story Is Still Being Written
From My Family's Kitchen to Your Family's Table
Sometimes I think about that little boy playing with his kitchen back in 1990. The one who loved tagging along to work with his mom, sneaking snacks, and making ridiculous combinations at the soda fountain. The one who couldn't wait to get his hands into a bowl of ground beef and rice while helping his grandmother make porcupine meatballs. The one who watched his dad cook and wanted to learn everything he knew. And the one who stood in front of a barbecue pit for the first time, watching the smoke roll out and wondering how something so simple could create something so incredible. I never could have imagined where those moments would take me.
I certainly never imagined I'd build a business around them. But looking back, I realize that every one of those experiences helped shape the person I am today. My mother introduced me to the world of hospitality. My grandmother showed me how much love could go into a home-cooked meal. My dad helped me develop a passion for cooking, and my family opened the door to the world of barbecue. Along the way, friends, chefs, pitmasters, customers, and countless others helped me learn, grow, and turn that passion into something real. And I'm grateful for every one of them.
Passing the Love Forward
Today, one of my greatest joys is getting to share that same love of food with my own family. My fiancée and our children are some of my favorite people to cook for. And believe me, after spending an entire day preparing food for other people, you'd think the last thing I'd want to do is get back into the kitchen. But cooking for the people I love has never felt like just another job. It's one of the ways I show them how much they mean to me. In our house, birthdays are especially important. Everyone gets to choose their favorite meal, and we make their birthday cake or ice cream, too.
It doesn't matter whether they want something simple or something that takes a little extra effort. If it's their special day, I want them to have a meal they'll remember. I love seeing their faces when I make something they've been craving or when they take that first bite of something I know they're going to enjoy.
“Cooking is my love language.”
It's how I care for people, how I celebrate them, and how I create memories with them. And sometimes, when I'm in the kitchen with my family, I think about all the people who did those same things for me. My mom. My grandmother. My dad. Aunt Jacque. My grandparents. Uncle Preston. All the people who helped make food such a meaningful part of my childhood. Now I get to create those memories for the next generation. And I hope that years from now, when my children think about their favorite birthdays, holidays, and family dinners, they'll remember some of the meals we shared together.
Not necessarily because the food was anything extraordinary. But because of the love that went into making it.
More Than a Meal
If there's one thing I've learned throughout this journey, it's that food has a way of bringing people together like few other things can. Think about some of your favorite memories. Chances are, food was involved. Maybe it was a holiday dinner at your grandmother's house. A backyard barbecue with friends. A wedding reception surrounded by the people you love. Or a simple meal that somehow turned into one of those nights nobody wanted to end. For me, that's what cooking has always been about. Of course, I want the food to be incredible. I want the brisket to be tender, the flavors to be memorable, and every plate to be something I'm proud to serve.
But I also want people to remember how they felt. I want them to feel welcomed, appreciated, and taken care of. I want the couple celebrating their wedding to look back on their reception and remember how much everyone enjoyed the meal. I want the family hosting a holiday gathering to spend less time worrying about the food and more time enjoying each other's company. And I want the person grabbing a plate of barbecue to know that someone put genuine care into preparing it. Because to me, hospitality has never been just about feeding people. It's about making them feel like they belong at the table.
The Best Is Still Ahead
Pittman's Texaque® has come a long way since that first food trailer rolled out in September 2019. We've learned a lot, overcome challenges, celebrated milestones, and had the privilege of being part of some truly special moments. And there's still so much I want to do. New dishes to create. New cuisines to explore. New techniques to learn. New people to meet. And plenty more memories to make along the way. I don't know exactly what the next chapter will look like. But I know what will always remain the same. My love for cooking. My appreciation for the people who helped me get here.
And my belief that good food, genuine hospitality, and a little fire can bring people together in remarkable ways. So whether you're planning one of life's biggest celebrations, gathering your favorite people around the table, or simply looking for a meal prepared with care, I'd be honored to be a small part of your story. After all, so many people have helped shape mine. From my family's kitchen to your family's table, thank you for being part of the journey. Welcome to Pittman's Texaque®. Where the Cuisines of the World Meet Smoke. — Chef Cody Pittman
From My Family's Kitchen to Your Family's Table.
Welcome to Pittman’s Texaque®.
Where the Cuisines of the World Meet Smoke.