BBQ, pizza business grows from West Leechburg man's passion

Call Joe and Brenda Sperski a smoking-hot couple, and they won’t be offended.

The West Leechburg couple opened Smokey Joe’s House of Q in 2018, offering takeout barbecue and pizza from a mobile trailer at various locations in the Alle-Kiski Valley.

Joe Sperski smokes the meats and does all the cooking from his custom outdoor smokeshed in his backyard. Brenda Sperski assists with sales and operations.

Both work full-time jobs and operate the business year-round on weekends.

“I don’t sleep a whole lot,” Joe Sperski said. “Barbecue and pizza is my passion, or an obsession.”

He said the business has faced numerous event cancellations because of the pandemic.

“I was able to provide takeout,” Sperski said, “which people really appreciated when they couldn’t go out to eat anymore.”

Joe Sperski, 48, grew up in the Vandergrift Heights neighborhood of Vandergrift surrounded by a love of cooking.

“Growing up, my parents were always cooking for friends and family, and I loved helping out in the kitchen,” Sperski said.

Specialty barbecue chicken, brisket, ribs, pulled pork and chicken and wood-fired pizzas are the staples. Prices range from $6 to $24.

Chambers Hotel in Apollo extended an open invitation for the Sperskis to operate from their kitchen on Sundays this winter.

“This is great because it’s too cold to work in the trailer in winter,” Sperski said.

Joe perfected his smoking technique by reading extensively about barbecue and taking an online class from Aaron Franklin, one of Texas’s biggest barbecue chefs.

“Mostly it’s just practice, practice, practice,” Sperski said. “I’ve had a lot of trial and error before getting to where I’m at now. I still always strive to do better.”

Advertising mostly on Facebook brings in the orders, with customers placing orders before Friday for the upcoming weekend.

Also served are creative combos such as bacon cannoli, cheese stuffed, bacon-wrapped pickles and pig shots; kielbasa; and cheese wrapped in bacon.

“They’re big sellers because they’re so unique,” Sperski said.

Brenda Sperski, 53, said her husband is modest when it comes to praising his barbecue.

“He has customers who I refer to as his ‘groupies,’” Brenda Sperski said. “He has several customers that are on a blanket order for pizza every Friday, and there are loyal followers that come to pretty much every event, no matter the distance they have to travel. I think that kind of feedback speaks volumes.”

Joe Sperski said some of his customers have asked him to open a brick-and-mortar establishment.

“That’s a huge step but definitely something to think about,” he said.