Top 10 Reasons to Order Catering From Pok-e-Jo’s
1. Mom said it’s your turn to make dinner for the family and you know she doesn’t want Hot Pockets or Pop Tarts
2. You and your co-workers are tired of pizza and sandwiches
3. You’re getting married and this is Texas
4. Your boss reminded you it’s your day to get lunch…and it’s 11 o’clock.
5. Because #AustinTraffic
6. Because you got a degree in business management, not Rib-eral Arts.
7. Because the kitchen is all the way over there, and your phone is just right here next to you
8. That’s what we do: We smoke meat and we know things.
9. Because you were catching up on Game of Thrones this weekend instead of cooking like you said you would. We don’t judge, we love it too.
10. Because BBQ. Do you really need any other reason?
Back to Blog
Vegetarians Can Eat Pok-e-Jo’s?
Yes, Pok-e-Jo’s is a BBQ place.
But we are also in Austin, and that means that when you’re feeding a large group, some of those people are going to need something other than some delicious smoked meats, and some can’t have the bread that goes along with it. That’s right, we’re talking about vegetarians and gluten free folks. And even if we are a meat company, we welcome you at our events, herbivores. Come on over to our buffet, gluten-be-goners. We’re going to take care of you.
Our most popular vegetarian entree item is our smoked veggie skewers (pictured above). These are seasonal vegetables that we skewer up, marinate, and smoke until they’re so tasty that your meat eaters will be trying to swipe them. We often do these as a straight swap for the meat portion for your vegetarian guests, making it really easy to get your order in. Just tell us how many people in your group are vegetarians, and we take it from there.
Want to go a different direction than the skewers for your vegetarians? We can hit you with our house made quinoa salad. This item has been a favorite on weddings and full service events, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do it for your office. Just make the request when you place your order and you’ll see why we’re so proud of this one.
Want to do salads for your vegetarians? We got you. How about baked potatoes? Sure thing. They just want a bunch of our sides? We don’t blame them, they’re great. The point is, vegetarians have options with us. And we’re a BBQ place. Boom.
If you have gluten free members of your crowd, we make things easy on you too. Our meats are gluten free, our BBQ sauce is gluten free, and 7 of our 13 sides are gluten free, so you have lots of great options to keep your gluten free friends/co-workers/guests fed and happy.
We just want you to remember, no matter the diet restrictions you have in your group, we can help you out, and make it easy on you to boot! No need to call multiple places and deal with multiple vendors; Pok-e-Jo’s is here for you, vegetarians, those who are gluten free.
Back to Blog
Austin’s #1 BBQ Caterer
We’re #1! We’re #1!
That’s right everyone. The company that has always been #1 in your hearts is actually the #1 BBQ caterer here in Central Texas! And, in case you were wondering, #1 when you google “bbq catering austin TX” 🙂
Catering means different things to different people, and at Pok-e-Jo’s, catering means… a lot of different things. It can mean picking up food at one of our stores. It can mean we deliver and set up a buffet for you. Our staff could be on site to give you the “full service” experience. We can even class it up for a wedding, banquet, or upscale event.
While we do offer different menus for catering, what we’re most known for are our BBQ packages, and if you remember one word when you think of our catering, we want it to be this: Easy. With our BBQ packages, picking out your menu is nice and easy. Pick two or three meats. That’s right, any two or three meats on our menu. Pick three sides. We don’t limit you to just the classics potato salad, coleslaw, and beans (admittedly, with all these options it can be tough to narrow it down to just three sides). Then we include some of our home-brewed iced tea to wash it all down, cookies for dessert (ask about our peach cobbler, too), and all the stuff that tastes good with BBQ. That would be pickles, onions, jalapenos, and bread to those that may be BBQ newbies. With all of these delicious foods and tasty beverages you might think “what am i gonna put all in this in or serve it on?” Don’t fret partner, we have you covered there too. Every Pok-e-Jo’s catering package comes with plenty of plates, cups, eating ware, and serving ware to serve your entire group. You provide the people, and we’ll do the rest!
We also make it easy to order when you call our catering hotline. You’re not going to get someone who is doing three things at once; we have dedicated catering staff ready to answer your call, answer your questions, and help you pick out the food that’s best for your group. Is the event a potluck you’re providing meat for? Are you feeding “ballerinas or linebackers”? Are you just looking for sides? We know there are a lot of variables that go into feeding a group, and we can help you work through all of them.
Our last point: just look at these ribs though:
We rest our case.
Back to Blog
Gift Cards: Even Better Than the Jelly of the Month Club
\Finding the right gift can always be a challenge. Having received more than my fair share of socks in my days, I can personally attest to this. But have no fear, Christmas shoppers, You live in Central Texas, which means that the person you’re buying a gift for loves BBQ. It’s written in the contract we all sign when we take up residence here. So to buy that perfect gift, you don’t have to think any more, or even leave that chair you’re sitting in. Because Pok-e-Jo’s gift cards aren’t just available in our stores, you can get them online too. I know what you’re thinking; it’s like Christmas come early. I mean, not that early, because it is December, but at least a little early. Anyway, trust us, they’ll love it. And this gift never gets old. Because Pok-e-Jo’s gift cards never expire.
Buy Gift Card
Back to Blog
Catering Heroes: Saving the Day and Just A Phone Call Away
In a world, where the need for catered meals is at its greatest, where unexpected guests arrive…unexpectedly and quality takes a back seat to fast food, there comes the need for the greatest among us to rise…we call them Catering Heroes!
Just a few weeks ago, we received a call from a person who was clearly distressed. They had hired another catering company to provide a dinner for 50 people that evening, and the caterer never showed! Luckily, this person, we will call her “Bernadette,” picked up the phone and called Pok-e-Jo’s catering hotline at 512-388-7578. Within an hour of her call, we arrived with a meal of Brisket, Sausage, 4 sides, iced tea, cookies, and all the fixings. Not only were “Bernadette’s” guests fed, but once she placed her order, “Bernadette” was able to sit back and relax, knowing that we would take care of her.
So the next time that you’ve got to feed a hungry horde of board members, a gaggle of guests, or even a plethora of partiers, know that Pok-e-Jo’s is only a phone call away from saving your bacon with a delicious, worry free catered meal of barbecue or fajitas!
Back to Blog
Story Time: Pork Loin is Really Good, Y’all
Brisket and Pork Loin: a Tale of Two Meats
As we all know, BBQ can mean many different things to a lot of different people, mostly based on where you live and here in Texas, BBQ means brisket. While brisket is undoubtedly delicious and the state meat of Texas, Pok-e-Jo’s offers a wide variety of meats to choose from in addition to the classic, namely our smoked pork loin. Many might remember this as a staple of our menu before we made it our special on Wednesdays, what many don’t know, sadly, is just how delicious our pork loin can be! One guest was lucky enough to find out just last week and now we’re gonna share their story so you too can know the power and appeal of pork loin.
Almost every Wednesday evening, John Smith (names have been changed to protect the innocent) came to the Pok-e-Jo’s store located in the Great Hills shopping center to buy a Sliced Brisket plate because that was the special on Wednesdays, it was discounted from the regular menu price and also, John loved smoked brisket. This night however, John Smith was in for a unexpectedly delicious surprise for a few weeks prior, the special for Wednesdays had been changed to the Pork Loin plate. Upon realizing this change John had said, in a completely understandable huff, “I came here for brisket and now y’all aren’t serving it as a special?! This is terrible!” Of course, we at Pok-e-Jo’s understand that this was both surprising and disappointing for Mr. Smith and he was given a sliced beef plate at the special plate price however, we also saw this as an opportunity to introduce Mr. Smith to a new menu item that he might like, enjoy even, and so with his plate was given a sample of the pork loin and we sent him on his way.
Almost 30 minutes later, John Smith stood up from his table, walked over to the manager of the store and said “That pork loin was amazing! I didn’t know pig could taste so good, save for bacon! Thank you for offering me that, I now have a new meat to compete with brisket!” And with that, John Smith left Pok-e-Jo’s a new man, a changed man, we’d like to think a better man for he now knew the joy that we in the company have known for quite a while: Pok-e-Jo’s pork loin is the best smoked meat you may have never had but you can fix that any Wednesday of the month, so grab a friend on hump day and Come and Get It!
Back to Blog
Brisket: A Texas (and PoK-e-Jo’s) Tradition
A few facts about Texas: our summers are hot, our chili ain’t served with beans and our BBQ is built on brisket. Pok-e-Jo’s has been serving up traditional Texas BBQ since 1979, which means we’ve been smoking briskets for 36 years now and we’ve gotten pretty good at it too.
Our briskets are smoked in-house every day of the year at each of our locations so no matter which Pok-e-Jo’s you visit, you’re always getting high quality, hand crafted brisket made lovingly by one of our pitmasters. Our briskets are smoked uncut and untrimmed with no sauces or fancy mixes, just a black pepper dry rub that goes on before smoking and then we let the smoke do the rest. We cook our briskets for 14+ hours before they get trimmed and sliced up on the line to ensure that every slice is tender and has the taste of Texas in every bite.
If you’ve ever had brisket, you know that it has several different cuts of meat and that some are leaner than others. We serve 3 cuts of brisket at Pok-e-Jo’s: The Lean, The Moist and what we call “The End Cut”. The lean cut is the largest and has the least amount of fat or marbling (as you might of guessed by the name). This is the cut that most folks think of when they think of brisket and though it is lean, it is not lacking in tenderness and smokey flavor which is why it is our most popular cut. The Moist cut, also known as The Crown, Marbled or “That Good Part” is the upper cut of brisket and the meat has the most fat surrounding it before trimming so it retains much of the moisture and tenderness. However, this cut also has the highest fat content which may not be desirable for some. For others though, this cut is highly sought after and is the only cut of brisket there is! The third cut or “End Cut’ is a part of the brisket where the lean and the moist meet, and as such the meat is both tender and juicy like the moist but has a lower fat content more akin to the lean cut. We typically use this meat to make our Chopped Beef as it is a nice marriage of the two main cuts of brisket. If you’re not sure which cut to order or would like to try any of them, you can always ask for a sample from any Pok-e-Jo’s team member and they will gladly get you a sample of one, or heck try all three! Here at Pok-e-Jo’s, we offer up any cut, or combination of cuts, of brisket when you order with no extra fee ‘cause everybody has their own preference, and we think we’ve got a cut of brisket for just about everyone.
We offer up our brisket on plates, sandwiches, salads, on potatoes or just by itself ’cause, let’s face it, it’s the star of BBQ. Come on in to any Pok-e-Jo’s today and try out our take on Texas’ tastiest tradition!
Back to Blog
Menu Feature: Texas Style Pulled Pork
We are proud to announce the return of Texas-Style Pulled Pork to our menu, now as a permanent addition!
Our recipe is a new and improved twist on a traditional southern staple, featuring a slow-smoked pork butt, pulled, and mixed with our brand new Sweet and Spicy Peach Habanero BBQ sauce. It’s great on a plate, but we think it really shines in a sandwich with a side of fried okra or french fries! (Protip: add a half side of cole slaw on top!)
Come in today and your taste buds will thank you!
Back to Blog
