Red River Gorge barbecue joint has its own style with bbq sundaes, street tacos

You can find “BBQ sundaes” as well as brisket, burnt ends, banana pudding and more at one Eastern Kentucky-based barbecue joint.

Thatcher Barbecue Company, 918 Natural Bridge Road in Slade, has been serving the signature sundaes consisting of baked beans, pulled pork and slaw over a layer of hash brown casserole since opening their location in the Red River Gorge in January 2021.

“We never offered the sundae until opening up in the Gorge,” said Shawn Thatcher. “When we opened there we adopted it onto our menu because the restaurant here before us (Red River Smokehouse) had it on their menu, people enjoyed it and I didn’t want to drop $2,000 for a new menu board at the time.”

In terms of its barbecue, Thatcher’s serves up everything from brisket to burnt ends, pulled pork, pulled chicken and baby back ribs prepared in a style that incorporates the best of Texas’ signature smoke and Western Kentucky’s mouthwatering mop sauces. However, rather than using a literal mop to slather the sauces on, Thatcher has come up with a modernized method.

“Instead I take my sauce, put it into a pressurized sprayer and spray it onto the meat as I’m cooking it,” said Thatcher. “That combined with the Texas-style seasoning on the meat creates something different from what you’ll find anywhere else. I didn’t set out for it to be that way. That’s just how it tastes best to me, and fortunately others seem to like it too.

Shawn Thatcher uses a pressurized sprayer to put his sauce on a brisket on Sunday, June 12, 2022, at Thatcher Barbecue Comapny in Slade, Kentucky.

In addition to meats and sundaes, Thatchers also serves up street tacos, smokehouse nachos, loaded mac n cheese, loaded baked potatoes and a plethora of sides and desserts from recipes hand-crafted by Crystal Thatcher, Shawn’s wife and a co-owner of the business. This includes burgoo, cornbread muffins, baked beans, hashbrown casserole, southern slaw, mac’n cheese, green beans, potato salad, sweet corn, banana pudding, peach cobbler and Derby-style pie.

From coal to catering

Thatcher first got involved in barbecue in 2015 when he launched his own catering company cooking full hogs after being laid off from his previous job working in the Breathitt County coal mines. Shortly after, he and his wife were looking to expand with a food truck when a small brick and mortar space became available in downtown Jackson. They opened there in 2017 as Thatcher’s Downtown.

Shawn Thatcher poses for a portrait on Sunday, June 12, 2022, at Thatcher Barbecue Comapny in Slade, Kentucky.

Customers sit and eat on Sunday, June 12, 2022, at Thatcher Barbecue Comapny in Slade, Kentucky.

“I was determined to make something else work,” said Thatcher. “The coal industry was so volatile. You could make $120,000 for two or three years and then be out of work for two or three more. This land has been raped and pillaged for years by the coal industry and I needed something new. I didn’t want to be a part of it any longer.”

In January 2021 they expanded again into the Red River Gorge, which has since become their main focus due to the Jackson location being closed due to staffing shortages and for renovations (a covered outdoor patio and stage is in the works).

With Jackson’s location currently closed, Shawn Thatcher is staying at home in Breathitt County on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday nights before driving to and staying in Slade Wednesday through Sunday evening. While there he sleeps behind the restaurant in a camper next to his smokers, waking up every few hours overnight to check his meats.

Music in the mountains

Besides barbecue, Thatcher is also aiming to bring live music to the Red River Gorge, something he often lacked the space to do in Jackson. This is accomplished in Slade with The Pit House, a 125-person standing room capacity located in a building next to Thatcher Barbecue Company’s dining room.

Thatcher has already booked well-known local and regional artists like Eric Bolander, Buffalo Wabs & The Price Hill Hustle, Jeremy Pinnell and Sydney Adams. His hope with the stage is to provide more places for up and coming artists in Eastern Kentucky to perform without having to leave the region to do so, similar to what fellow Jackson native Sturgill Simpson had to do back in the mid 2000s.

“I’ve seen (Simpson) say numerous times how there just weren’t many places near Jackson for him to play growing up,” said Thatcher. “I know I’m never going to get him back here, but maybe I can get the next guy or gal from the area who eventually makes it big and give them a place to learn and grow.”

A three meat platter and a barbecue baked potato wait to be eaten on Sunday, June 12, 2022, at Thatcher Barbecue Comapny in Slade, Kentucky.

Benefit for Eastern Kentucky

Thatcher Barbecue has been collecting for flood relief and has planned a benefit concert to raise money for Eastern Kentucky. The Red River Revival will be Aug. 14, beginning at noon. Doors open at 11 a.m. Tickets are $25 apiece in advance through Eventbrite or $30 at the door. Musical guests will include DeeOhGee, Sean Whiting & The Big Badness, Jeremy Short, Nolan Taylor, Eric Bolander, Lucas Wayne, Sydney Adams and Ethan Wayne.