Where Brian's Love of Cooking Started
Brian’s love of cooking started in his Nana’s kitchen. Family gatherings on his dad’s side of the family centered around her food, and Brian gravitated to the room where people, conversation, and good smells came together.
Once he got to middle school, he watched her cook every chance he got. Even during his years playing football at Elon University, he found time to tinker in the kitchen.
From Family Photos to Social Media Stardom
Brian started G_Bque in 2020 after he and his wife moved out of an apartment and into their first house. He bought his first smoker with their stimulus check, and a tomahawk steak he cooked during paternity leave hooked him for good.
He kept posting food photos in the family group chat until someone told him to share them on social media. The combination of a creative outlet, the BBQ community, and online feedback pushed him forward.
His turning point came when he decided he wanted G_Bque to generate enough income for his wife to stay home with their kids. Reels launched around the same time, and his audience grew quickly.
“There wasn’t a day when I said, ‘OK, this is my full-time gig,’” Brian says. “It was a culmination of little decisions.”
Bold Flavor, Low-Stakes Cooking
Brian has built his brand on bold, approachable recipes anyone can make at home. The philosophy comes from the hectic nature of real life: people are busy, and when you’re hosting, you want to serve great food without spending all day in the kitchen.
His wife loves hosting, and Brian loves cooking, and that balance informs a lot of his recipes. He aims for easy, indulgent, prep-friendly food that makes people enjoy having others over.
“I want people to feel like they can do this too,” he says.
When developing recipes, Brian keeps a running list of ideas in his head. A true G_Bque dish is fun, indulgent, easy to recreate, and made for sharing. Hot Dog Burnt Ends fit the bill: affordable, simple, the kind of low-stakes recipe people will try at home.
A Cookbook and a Table Full of Friends
Brian’s first cookbook, “So Good: My Favorite Backyard Bites,” collects the kind of food he loves making most: easy, indulgent, crowd-pleasing dishes built for real life.
For Brian, the table is where life happens. Some of his favorite moments are the simple ones, like when friends come over on a random Tuesday.
“Hosting doesn’t always have to be a big event,” he says. “Sometimes it’s just inviting people into everyday life.”
Brian wants his children to understand that success looks different for everyone, hard work matters, and what they care about is worth chasing. He and his wife hadn’t considered backyard cooking as a career when they got married. Now, it’s the life they’ve built.
Why MKC?
Brian’s appreciation for high-quality, USA-made knives drew him to Montana Knife Company. Getting to know the team behind the brand sealed the deal.
“It felt like a natural fit,” he says.
His go-to is the Cattlemen Cleaver 2.0, which he uses in about 75% of his videos. He loves the weight, how smoothly it cuts, and how versatile it is for chopping, mixing, and scooping. The sturdy MagnaCut steel is a huge bonus.
When working through a full backyard cook, Brian cares about sharpness, durability, solid feel in the hand, and overall utility. The Cattlemen Cleaver delivers.
What's Next For Brian?
Brian splits his time between his backyard, his recipe development, and his growing audience. With his cookbook out and a steady stream of new content, he’s keeping his focus where it started: feeding his family and the friends who show up at the table.
