Stamey’s Barbecue of Tyro to celebrate 50th anniversary
{Photo: Vikki Broughton Hodges}
The sign at Stamey’s Barbecue of Tyro pretty much says it all about the restaurant — just beneath the name with a background of flames are the words “Family Tradition.”
It’s all in the family at Stamey’s where a third generation is keeping the barbecue pit flames going and serving up breakfast, lunch and dinner daily (except Sunday) to loyal customers in the Tyro, Reeds and Churchland communities and beyond.
Dan Stamey founded Stamey’s Barbecue on June 14, 1973, in a small 1,000-square-foot building on N.C. Highway150 South, just across the road from his current location since 1975.
But Dan already knew the barbecue business since his father, Herman “Smiley’’ Stamey, the original owner of Smiley’s Barbecue on Winston Road in Lexington, got him started “hopping curb” (delivering food to diners in their cars) when he was 13 or 14 years old. Smiley had been a cook in the U.S. Army during World War II before working in several local barbecue restaurants, as well as furniture factories, before starting his own. Like his father, Dan joined the U.S. Navy and came home to work in several local barbecue restaurants since his father had sold Smiley’s because of health issues and died at a young age.
So, at the age of 27, motivated by the birth of a newborn and a 4-year-old, Dan decided to strike out on his own. But he wasn’t actually alone because he enlisted the cooking talents of his mother, the late Helen Stamey, and mother-in-law, Mary Jo Poole, to make the plate lunches for which the restaurant also became known.
“I couldn’t survive just on barbecue,” Dan said. “I was blessed with a family that knew how to do these things. They were the glue that kept it together. It’s been a family operation since day one. That’s the reason for the longevity — family tradition. It’s about the family and the community.”
After his lease ended in the original location, Dan moved the restaurant to 4524 N.C. Highway 150 South in 1975 to its current 3,000-square-foot building that includes two private party rooms where local school sports teams, community sports groups and civic clubs routinely meet for meals.
West Davidson High School, Tyro Middle School and Churchland and Reeds elementary schools are within just minutes of the restaurant, noted Matt Stamey, Dan’s son who now handles the day-to-day management of the restaurant while Dan is more of a consultant. Dan’s other son, Scoot Stamey, also worked in the business a long time but retired because of an injury about five years ago.
“We get a lot of business from the high school sports but when they have a choral concert or something like that we get all the parents and grandparents, too,” Matt added. “It’s family oriented in so many ways.
“We have the most loyal customers,” Matt continued. “Some of our customers eat two or three meals a day with us.”
Matt said he began working at Stamey’s when he was around 9 or 10 years old.
“Since I was old enough to ride a bicycle I would come up here and wash dishes and then go to the pool,” he recalled, noting he learned about cooking and managing a restaurant as he grew up in the business, which at one time also included the Hog City Café on Piedmont Drive in Lexington, which was open from 1990-2000.
“We had a good run for 10 years,” Dan said, noting he got nationwide attention when the Hard Rock Café chain sued him over the original name — Hog Rock Café. The logo featured pig-faced likenesses of Elvis Presley, Tina Turner and the Rolling Stones. He used the images inside the restaurant but had to change to name to Hog City to avoid further legal entanglements.
There was also a Stamey’s Barbecue on South Main Street in Lexington from 1979-1981 but Dan decided to concentrate on the Tyro location he started with.
In more recent years, Stamey’s in Tyro has expanded its breakfast and lunch offerings and has added weekend specials such as barbecued chicken, ribs and brisket. Chicken wings, subs and a variety of fries have also been added to the menu.
“We listen to our customers and add what’s popular,” Matt noted.
While the Covid pandemic closed down many restaurants in recent years, Dan and Matt said it actually helped them in the long run.
“It really kind of helped us reinvent the business,” Dan said. “People rediscovered us and found out we were more than barbecue.
“And they knew they could count on us to be open,” Matt added, noting the restaurant offered take-out and curb service until they could reopen. They no longer offer curb service but still do take-out orders.
Dan said he recently added an acre of parking for the restaurant, which allows even big rigs to park for meal breaks.
A longtime participant in the Barbecue Festival in Lexington, Dan was inducted into the Barbecue Hall of Fame in October 2022. He said the festival is good exposure for his restaurant even though it’s not in Lexington.
Matt said he plans to keep building the business with the help of his uncle, pit master Joey Poole, who has been with the restaurant for more than 25 years, and about 30 others “who are like family.”
“I love it — it’s in my blood,” Matt noted.
Stamey’s Barbecue will mark its 50th anniversary on June 15 5pm to 8pm with a “Music by the Woodpile” celebration behind the restaurant featuring three live bands and a display of NASCAR vehicles with hosts Chocolate and Caron Myers
