Phat Daddy’s BBQ Shack: Love and Patience
There are few things that cause as much serious and legitimate debate in the United States as barbeque. From vinegar-based to tomato-based sauces and cooking techniques, barbeque is as varied as America itself with a long history that permeates the country’s regions. Even the spelling is varied: Bar-be-que, barbeque, BBQ.
While its origins are thought to have started in the easternmost colonies, barbeque is popular all over the United States. And although the cooking traditions may vary from whole hog to parts, the practice of cooking meat over an indirect flame is the common thread dating back to America’s indigenous people. The Spanish called it barbacoa, and while the name has evolved and been simplified over the years, the tradition permeates the nation’s culinary history. From Texas to Kansas City to Memphis to the eastern southern states, the sweet and savory dish can be found almost anywhere. On Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Phat Daddy’s BBQ Shack has taken root.
Owner William Holland has been cooking BBQ since 1999. What started as a hobby in his native Glen Burnie, Md., soon grew into a business. Holland credits several older gentlemen, fathers and uncles of friends, with his love of cooking BBQ. While working for the Anne Arundel Police Department as a booking officer, Holland was asked by one of the lieutenants who was retiring if he would cook some ribs for his retirement party. Soon that first catering job led to more. and through word of mouth Holland began to cook on weekends setting up on the side of the road outside his house. A case of ribs and a half case of chicken wasn’t enough and by the end of that first summer in 1999, he was up to four cases of each. Graduation parties, fundraisers, church events, and festivals soon followed.
Holland left the Police Department in 2001 and was working in the corporate world of cable, moving to Millington, Md., on the Eastern Shore. Then came company layoffs and the pandemic, and the opportunity to turn his fun side gig into a full-fledged business. Looking for a commercial kitchen, thanks to social media and a call to Kent County Economic Development Director Jamie Williams, Holland was directed to the site of Ellen’s, a diner in Chestertown, once a haunt of college students, hunters, and locals. The restaurant was no longer operating and the property owner already had an offer on the table.
The property owner was talking to a friend in Glen Burnie who knew Phat Daddy’s and said, “give it to them, they’re the best.” The next day, she had fifteen more calls advising her to lease to Holland.
“She said, ‘I’m not promising anything but I’ve had wonderful reviews, so come take a look,’” says Holland, who went right over with his two-year old grandson in tow. The building was in rough shape, with everything left by the previous owners. Benches, tables, booths, bowls, glasses, refrigerators, and an ice machine were still there.
“I prayed about it and asked God for a commercial kitchen,” he says. “When I walked in the doors, all I saw was my vision. The vision I wanted to create.”
He still has no idea who it was who initially encouraged the property owner to go with Phat Daddy’s, but signed a lease in May 2021, and held the official grand opening that October. Providence showed its hand again when Holland received an email from the Small Business Administration of Maryland with a PPP (paycheck protection program) loan of $35,000. At the time he had $35 in his checking account.
“I just wanted the commercial kitchen to continue catering, a restaurant wasn’t a thought,” he says, adding, “Be careful what you ask for, God gives in abundance.”
Despite the pandemic and its regulations and rules for restaurants in full swing, Holland was able to open a restaurant during one of history’s most tenuous periods for small business owners. Today, one of his proudest achievements is doing the weekly payroll for his ten employees. “Paying people to work? I’m happy and blessed to do that.”
A favorite among the faculty, staff, students and parents, and alumni of Washington College in Chestertown, the small space is filled with jerseys and pennants.
“All the College teams, men and women, come in,” he says. “Washington College has been absolutely wonderful to me, and we try to make it feel like a special place for the kids.” The feeling is mutual. The students often call Phat Daddy’s with post-game orders.
Thanksgiving also has special meaning for him. Since 2021, Holland has set aside $2,500 to give out free dinners to the homeless and to those without family nearby, rearranging the dining room to create a buffet. Since the initial dinner, the town has come together and contributed to this effort.
“We almost have to turn some volunteers away, there are so many who want to help serve. And you’d be surprised by how many families don’t get together like in years past. Now they volunteer and they eat together,” he says proudly.
Keeping his recipes and ingredients close, a culinary omertà, Holland admits to using nine or ten different spices in his rubs and sauces, which are made daily. Prepared in the more southern style, with a more vinegary taste, ribs, pulled pork and the brisket are among customer favorites.
“We cook as fresh as possible,” says Holland. “There are days when we might run out because we don’t like to freeze anything. It’s got to be fresh.”
All sides are homemade and he uses only fresh vegetables for his coleslaw, collard greens, fried cabbage, and string beans. There is also deep fried corn on the cob and mac & cheese balls. His tips for making good BBQ? Using aluminum foil to keep the meat tender was a trick he learned from the pit masters, especially those working at Dotson’s BBQ in Glen Burnie.
But most importantly, “You’ve got to have patience. Love and patience.” After the meats are seasoned overnight, they cook for three to four hours on the grill.
The man who always loved cooking, finds his peace at the grill.
“Once I light up that grill, my stress leaves,” says Holland. “As the smoke rolls, all my frustrations just melt away.”
Phat Daddy’s BBQ Shack
205 Spring Avenue, Chestertown, MD, (443) 282-0028
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Open Wednesday through Sunday
