We all dream of being a real pitmaster. We all want to be the next great brisket whisperer…

That is, until you actually open the restaurant, you’re 12 hours into a session, covered in salt, fat, and self-doubt. Luckily, Texas Monthly just dropped an inspirational story that reminds us how every legend starts from somewhere. In this case, with a few dozen failed briskets.

This is the story of Bryan Bingham, the man behind What’s Tha Deal Barbecue in Bryan, TX…

Bryan didn’t grow up in a smokehouse. He was actually working as a trucker hauling beef from Kansas to Florida when a customer rejected a few boxes of briskets that had no one left to claim them. That’s when Bryan got a little obsessed.

A few YouTube tutorials, several BBQ Pitmasters marathons, and roughly 25 orphaned briskets later, he was making magic good enough to go pro.

Now, he’s the owner of What’s Tha Deal Barbecue, serving brisket in the heart of Texas. We can all learn a few things from Bryan…

Practice Makes Pitmaster

Many of us are either too intimidated to try brisket, give up after a few bad attempts, or adopt a passing, but not perfect, brisket recipe that we bring out from time to time. Bryan proved that mastery takes time (and a lot of meat). You don’t build skills like that overnight.

If you’re serious about your smoke game, the lesson’s simple: buy another brisket (or 25) and keep going. Each one’s a tuition payment at the school of low and slow.

Learn by Watching (and Eating)

Bryan didn’t go to culinary school. He went to the church of BBQ Pitmasters reruns. Watching the greats, tasting as much as he could, and tweaking his process until it hit.

Moral of the story: binge your BBQ content guilt-free. Let the family know it’s “continuing education.”

Not Everyone Has What It Takes

But Bryan did. Now his joint’s pulling crowds, earning praise from Texas Monthly, and proving that passion + patience + persistence = an experience waiting for.

So, if you’ve ever thought about jumping in, whether it’s starting a small pop-up, entering a cook-off, or finally tackling that intimidating cut, consider this your nudge.

Fire up the pit. Burn a few. Learn a lot. You might just be 25 briskets away from glory.