Meat+Poultry - June 2021 - 23

2008 and had a successful recipe for setting up
and processing orders electronically.
In addition to smoking and firing up house
specialties for delivery, Snow's also underwent
some upgrades when customer traffic was light
due to shutdowns.
" We were able to get a lot done - we built
a merchandising building with three new
bathrooms and storage, and a new shipping
area with walk-in coolers and storage, " said
Bexley, who did much of the construction
work himself.
Tootsie's
on a roll
Bexley agreed that the broadcasting of
" Chef's Table " and its barbecue-themed content
came along at a key time for consumers
seeking solace and entertainment through
food, and it continues to resonate. Since
reopening last November, Snow's BBQ has
become an even bigger mecca, with customers
from all over the country (and world) lining
up by the dawn's early light each Saturday (the
only day Snow's is open) to get an order in
before the supply runs out. The online business
continues to fare well even in the waning days
of the pandemic.
LOW AND SLOW MEETS HOT DEMAND
The fact that barbecue is a multisensory food
art encompassing taste, aroma and sight,
has helped sustain Snow's and other places
like it, Bexley added. " A lot of it is the total
experience - what people experience when
they come out here, " he said.
Indeed, media coverage and online and
social media reviews detailing peoples'
experiences when visiting Snow's have
maintained keen interest among people who
want to eat, see and smell its style of barbecue
for themselves.
Those experiences reflect the TLC
that Snow's pitmasters put into the meats.
Tomanetz's intuitive, intrinsic way of ensuring
just the right level of heat, combined with the
choice of raw product, is what leads reviewers
and customers to wax poetic about Snow's
fare. According to Bexley, the restaurant relies
on a group of meat suppliers to provide it with
cuts that meet its exacting standards.
He knows what to look for when it comes
to beef and pork. In addition to owning Snow's
BBQ and working a full-time job, Bexley owns
cattle and has a background that includes
rodeo and bullfighting.
" I'm a workaholic, " she admitted, proving that with
a schedule that has her working in maintenance and
groundskeeping with the local school district Monday
through Friday and every Saturday she manages
the pit at Snow's, which opens its doors just once a
week. " Open Saturdays only - 8 a.m. till sold out. "
When asked how she spends her downtime on
Sundays, nobody should be surprised by her answer:
" I go to church. "
www.meatpoultry.com | 06.21 | MEAT+POULTRY
23
For industry veterans and now famous pitmasters like
Tootsie Tomanetz, slow cooking meat and satisfying
loyal diners isn't a job, rather a calling. Tomanetz
is an 86-year-old Texas barbecue legend who's
worked as a pitmaster for 54 years. A longtime cattle
producer, she is almost as popular as the food she
cooks at Lexington, Texas-based Snow's BBQ, where
she's worked since 2003. Customers waiting in
hours-long lines at Snow's frequently sneak out of line
to have their picture taken with the Texas barbecue
legend as she is working the smoldering pits just
outside the modest restaurant.
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Meat+Poultry - June 2021

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