In the barbecue world, Greg Gatlin has long been one of Houston’s defining voices.

The Houston pitmaster first opened Gatlin’s BBQ in 2010, showcasing his family’s take on East Texas–style barbecue with Creole flair for the city and beyond. After establishing what is now canon to Houston barbecue, he expanded his footprint in 2022 with Gatlin’s Fins and Feathers, a soulful tribute to his roots in Independence Heights, a historically Black neighborhood known for its legendary fish fries. The menu features a blend of fried seafood and chicken, along with hearty sides like collard greens, bowls of seafood gumbo with sausage, and a Viet-Cajun chicken sandwich that pays homage to Houston’s diverse culinary heritage.

This year, Gatlin took his talents to television, competing on Food Network’s  sixth season of BBQ Brawl, a reality TV competition where celebrity chefs like Bobby Flay assemble competing teams of standout pitmasters and chefs from around the country. As the “Texas Legend” on Chef Maneet Chauhan’s team, Gatlin has brought the smoke, spice, and Houston heart to every challenge. Though he’s stayed tight-lipped about the finale, which airs Sunday, July 27,* even host Flay says he’s positioned to win it all.

Houstonia caught up with Gatlin to discuss what it’s like to test his skills on national television, the importance of celebrating the wins, and what’s next for his growing food empire.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

OK, I’m caught up on the episodes, and I feel like you're representing Houston very well.

Greg Gatlin: I’m trying really, really hard.

How did this opportunity come about?

It’s funny because the very first time that [Food Network] asked me about this was in 2021, and I passed it off to Chef Michelle Wallace because I was doing some other stuff for the restaurant. So, when it came along again, I said, ‘You know what? Hey, I’ll do it this time. I’ll go ahead and go out here and try to represent the family and the city well, and have a good time doing it.’

Did you feel like you had to prepare at all? Did you do any test cooks? How did you prepare, if at all? 

Honestly, I just tried to mentally prepare for it, just from the standpoint that the days are long, and then you don’t necessarily know what they're going to throw at you. I didn’t do anything differently. I asked some people who have been on shows questions to know what to expect. All of us were fine with the competing part, but when you intertwine that with being on television, you have to get used to doing that, and you can tell who’s comfortable being on TV.

I noticed that one of your first dishes was a redfish sandwich, which was an interesting first choice for a barbecue competition, but very Gulf Coast. Then later, you prepared something spicy—a Thai cabbage salad.  Houstonians love spice! Were you going into this thinking you would showcase Houston flavors, or did you go with what you felt was best? What was your strategy or approach?

I didn’t want to be locked into one thing. Some people were very like, Hey, I cook barbecue. This is what I do, and that’s all that I do, and I know that competing in this, you’ve got to be versatile, right? In the first challenge, I knew I wasn’t going to have time to barbecue a brisket. I wasn’t going to be able to cook ribs or a chicken in that amount of time, so you have to know the custom meats that you can use. My thought was, What am I going to be able to do in whatever amount of time that they give, and then, whatever it’s going to be, put enough flavor into it and then present it in a way that's appealing and appetizing? Those are the things going through your head. If you’re not going through those things, you’re probably not going to succeed.

Tell me about what it’s like competing on the show. What surprised you most? What’s been most challenging?

The biggest challenge is time. Everybody on that show can cook. It’s just, how do you cook under pressure? How do you deal with the element of time and having to cook something within the allotted amount of time? That’s the biggest caveat you have to get over.

Your attitude on the show is so upbeat, positive, and optimistic, which is refreshing. Some people seem nervous, but you’re very even-keeled. How do you maintain that energy?

My thought is that you can’t get too high, otherwise you’re gonna miss something, and you can’t be down, beating yourself up over a mistake that you think you made, because a lot of times people don’t even know you made a mistake unless you say something. For me, it’s just about enjoying it. Everybody on the show is doing something they love, and so I just try to remember that. I’m not going to complicate something that doesn’t need to be complicated here. There’s enough pressure on me having to deal with the time factors and not knowing exactly what I’m going to be up against. Then, they throw different caveats and curveballs at you during the show. I’m just gonna ride the wave, wherever it takes me, whether it’s up or down.

On the show, you’re around all these different, talented chefs. You’re working on a team. What have you learned from the competition?

Seeing different regions of the country and various parts of the world, and gaining that experience has been the best thing for me. Sometimes we get caught in our bubbles, and if you don’t get outside of that, you don’t know or get to experience what those things are. I looked back and thought, All of us and all our cultures are so alike. We talk about soul food, for example, and that spans across nationalities and different countries—it’s based on survival food, and that’s part of your everyday lifestyle. Then, when you move into the world of being a certified chef or cooking for a business, you have avenues to elevate or do something different than the simple things we do to survive. That’s the beautiful thing about food. There are many ways to connect with it, and ultimately, it tends to bring people together.

I heard you had a watch party for the first episode. How did that go?

The turnout was absolutely amazing. I couldn’t have asked for better. I saw a bunch of people I hadn’t seen in a while, a bunch of regulars, family, and friends. I thoroughly enjoyed that moment. There were some quiet moments that were very reflective. It was so funny because I was in the kitchen, trying to feed people. I’m in my comfort space, and my publicist came and got me out. She said, ‘Get out of the kitchen. Now. [The staff] will take care of it.’ 

Sometimes, you don’t get a chance to celebrate yourself, and I’ve been told that I need to try to do that a little bit more. My thing is always, what’s the next? What’s the next thing that we have to do? But, actually being there and having that opportunity was great. Regardless of what you think may be going wrong or what you want to improve, this is an awesome opportunity that many people do not get. So, it’s important to celebrate that and be thankful, be grateful. 

What would it mean for you to win?

Personally, it’s a challenge for me. I’ve been doing this for more than 15 years now, and it’s me showing all the things that I’ve learned and come across. I have another way of showcasing it outside of the restaurants that we do on a day-to-day basis. It’s about having the opportunity to win, but also, my peers on this particular show—they’re absolutely amazing at the things that they can do. I think they also have some nervousness and reservations about going against guys who barbecue all day, every day, but being able to navigate that and compete against your peers, while gaining their respect, is a big deal for me. Like I said, I’ve been doing this for a long time, and some people come and go. Having the validation of my peers is my reward for something like this—when we go to barbecue festivals, and guys come up to me and say, You know what? You did an awesome job, dude.

Beyond the show, what’s going on with you here in Houston? 

I’m trying to figure out my next move with each of the concepts. We’ve been at this thing for 15 years, and now, we’re looking at the current economics and the things that are happening. How do we continue to grow our business? How do we continue to stay relevant? I’m in a position right now where I want to find a space where I can combine [Gatlin’s BBQ and Gatlin’s Fins & Feathers] together on the same property, so I would love to find a space to be able to do that. Then, we’re trying to find ways to give back to any young men and women who want to be in this industry, seeing people that look like them come from similar backgrounds, and giving them the confidence that, Hey, you can do this, too, and this is what it takes. Put your mind and your heart into it. Assess your passion, and go for it.

Is there anything else you’d like people to know about your experience on the show, or things you’re doing in Houston?

I want people to watch the show and get a glimpse of who Greg Gatlin and the Gatlin family are, and know, hey, we’re just normal people trying to do good things. I want to create a space where people can look at [me] and say, I want to do what he's doing. And they can. 

I laugh all the time because some people say I have a healthy ego. I’m like, What do you mean? My dad raised us to have confidence in ourselves, but to do that in an extremely humble way. I love embracing opportunities like this, because, like I said, they don’t come every day, and you have to be able to take advantage of the opportunities that God blesses you with or people have given you. You have to make the most of it because life is short, and you’ve got to be able to live those experiences and make them worthwhile.

Editor's Note: This article has been updated to include the correct date of the BBQ Brawl finale.