About Back Forty Texas BBQ
The Back Forty BBQ Team travels regularly to compete in contests against the nation’s finest barbecue operations. As one of the nation’s Top-24 Barbecue Teams, Back Forty has been invited to compete in the annual National BBQ Rib Cook Off since 1991.
The 24-member panel of judges regularly votes Back Forty the #1 Barbecue In California. In 2011, Back Forty was named the #1 Barbecue in the Nation. In 2012 and 2014, Back Forty was voted “People’s Choice” among all competitors. The prestigious panel also singled out Back Forty’s Barbecue Sauce twice as the Best Barbecue Sauce in the Nation!
More than 400,000 people attend the 4-day event. After sampling barbecue prepared by all competitors, they voted Back Forty’s barbecue the best in the competition!
#1 Barbecue In California
#1 Barbecue in the Nation – 2011
“People’s Choice” Award – 2012 and 2014
Best Barbecue Sauce in the Nation! – Two Times winner
It All Began in a Poker Game.
In the mid-1960’s, Michael Schroeder was in Austin, Texas, engaged in his favorite pastime. Another player, short on cash but long on nerve, covered Schroeder’s bet by offering “half my restaurant.” Schroeder’s three 3’s beat a pair of queens. When it was time to pay up, the owner of the barbecue restaurant insisted that he meant “half the space,” not a “half interest.” Schroeder’s “half” was an empty room in the back.
Angered by the sleazy tactic, Schroeder collected his grandmother’s barbecue recipes and set up a restaurant-within-a-restaurant.
Customers were aware of the shared-space arrangement. And, although his seating space was limited to 40 people, his barbecue was so superior that customers were soon asking specifically to be seated in the back forty. Business in the front section dwindled; Schroeder bought out the owner and turned it into a legendary barbecue chain.