Backyard BBQ & Café
It all started in the backyard!
Their custom t-shirt shop in Vallejo was non-essential during COVID and so they started cooking in a tent and serving take-out to friends and family. Then Norman and Winnie Traballo did the almost impossible and “smoked it” during the middle of a pandemic. Taking over the Rosie’s Café location in the Benicia Industrial Park, they celebrated their entrepreneurial toughness with a grand opening in July of 2020. Norman says he graduated from the University of YouTube, learning to smoke meats and developing his skills and recipes for excellence in BBQ ribs, links, tri-tip and brisket. Inspirational, for sure.
“Sweet heat” tacos, tri-tip nachos, FIRE BALLS (grilled meatballs wrapped in bacon, with a surprise inside!), Mexican french dip sandwiches (yum!), and Caveman bites are just some of the fantastic specials. And, besides all that deliciousness, there are excellent lumpia and varieties of “snow shots,” Mexipinos, and the tastiest Mama’s potato salad with bacon, Foe Cheezy Mac (four cheeses), baked beans, garlic fried rice, smoked deep fried corn — all the sides. And, there’s more… you’ve got to see, smell, and eat it to believe it!
BBQ Bay Area style fusion — Filipino and Mexican influences. Order at the window and eat on the spacious, covered patio, meet the regulars, and be prepared to ENJOY this scrumptious food prepared with family love.
“We All Gone Eat!”
BackYard BBQ & Café
Instagram: @backyardbbq707
3001 Bayshore Road, Benicia, CA 94510 707.745.1154
Open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 am – until sold out.
Chef’s Table: BBQ, 2020; Netflix Original Series; Created by David Gelb
Most episodes 45 min; Rated TV-14
The first thing you learn in Chef’s Table: BBQ is that barbeque is not about the seasoning or cook time, or even the basting sauce. It is all about the pitmaster. In this critically acclaimed series, this truth becomes clear in the first moments of the first episode, featuring Tootsie Tomanetz, pitmaster at Snow’s BBQ in Lexington, Texas. And, we have to say, if you do not fall in love with 85-year-old Tootsie right out of the gate, you might be a bubble off (that is Texas talk for “not quite right!”).
Tootsie began barbequing 50 years ago, and she reflects the second lesson of barbeque lore – pitmasters share what they know. “We don’t have any secrets at Snow’s,” she says. “Our seasonings are salt and pepper. I can’t tell you the temperature of my pit though, because I don’t have a gauge on it. I use my hand.” Indeed, Tootsie rests her hand on the barbeque pit! That is how she determines if the temperature of the flaming and glowing coals within are ready to do their magic.
And, true to the form of the other featured masters, Tootsie is happy to sit back and say to the novice, “Good luck with it!”
From hill country BBQ to the spiritual experience of Lennox Hastie in Sydney, Australia, the portraits of those devoted to cooking over open flames are lovingly crafted and beautifully filmed. It will make your mouth water!
10 Out of 10 Whiskers
