Taste of the Town: From their backyard to yours

Two North Aurora men – and Batavia natives – have found success with their barbecue catering business.

Team FIB BBQ Caterers began in the backyards of Bryan Whipple and Sean Trowbridge, before the pair wanted to try their hand at barbecue competitions.

“[The name]’s kind of a tongue-in-cheek play on what our friends in Wisconsin call us. It actually stands for ‘Flatlander’s Incredible BBQ,’” Whipple said. “We were originally going to do barbecue competitions, and that’s where the ‘team’ came from.”

The pair started catering for larger groups by making food for Trowbridge’s excavating company’s annual parties. The partners “learned the ropes” of whole-hog cooking from Trowbridge’s uncle.

“It kind of snowballed from there. We built this large cooker ourselves out of reclaimed metal from local scrap yards,” Whipple said. “We built it for competitions, but as I posted pictures on Facebook, people started seeing it and saying, ‘Hey, could you cook something for me?” and we thought that maybe we have something here.”

Catering customers can order just meat, or have Team FIB BBQ provide everything from the main course to the plates and utensils. Team Fib charges by weight for meat-only orders, and for large catering orders they charge per person.

Originally only cooking meat for clients, Team FIB BBQ now offers sides such as coleslaw, potato salad and more. Team FIB uses fresh, local ingredients, including eggs from their own chickens, local honey and meat from Major Meats in Batavia.

“Nothing is out of a bag,” he said.

Whipple said that Team FIB BBQ converts a lot of people with its brisket.

“We don’t do it the same way a lot of places do it. They’ll try to do it Texas-style or something else. But this isn’t Texas, it’s Illinois. We’re a hodge podge of different food genres and styles. Just like the blues from the Chicagoland area, we got influences from everywhere else to make something unique,” he said.

He does admit that there are differing opinions on what barbecue they cook is king.

“Sean and I are real partial to the beef brisket. But if you ask our wives, it’s the pulled pork,” he said. “But the consensus of the people we’ve served: It’s been the ribs.”

Whipple said he and Trowbridge have spent years tweaking their rib recipe.

“We make our own sauce, and the ribs themselves get a honey, brown sugar and bourbon glaze,” he said.  “Once people try our food, they love it. I call them ‘Team FIB converts.’ They become part of the team.”

Visitors to this year’s Windmill City Fest will get a chance to become Team FIB converts, as the caterers will be on hand selling their barbecue. Whipple said Freddy Martinez of El Taco Grande in Batavia was a big factor in Team FIB BBQ not only launching its catering business, but also taking part in the festival. Martinez hired the grillmasters when he and his wife held a baby shower.

“He was the first client of ours that paid us to cook,” Whipple said. “He called me up and asked me to do it. He really pushed for us to do the Windmill City Fest this year.”

Whipple and Trowbridge both grew up in Batavia, and Whipple has memories of helping his mother, Donna Whipple, at the VFW food tent at the festival growing up. His sister Wendy Does, who also works with Team FIB, worked in the VFW kitchen, too.

“I remember being 12, 13 years old, being at the booth and just helping where I could,” he said.

Even with Martinez pushing for Team FIB to work the Windmill City Fest, Whipple said that they were still on the fence. Food vendor organizer Lindsey Williams of the Batavia Chamber of Commerce approached Tony Turner of Diesel’s Service and Repair about doing barbecue. He wasn’t interested, but suggested Team FIB BBQ.

“That was it. With Freddy pushing us and Tony pushing us, we were doing it,” Whipple said.

On the Windmill City Festival menu for Team FIB BBQ is beef brisket and pulled pork. The pair is toying with the idea of limited-quantity, bone-in pork chops on a stick as a special during the evening June 9.

“It’s a new thing we’re working on, and we think it’ll be a big hit,” he said.

The booth will also feature coleslaw, baked beans and potato salad.

Going forward, Team FIB BBQ is looking into the possibility of a food truck or concession trailer as its business expands. They are also looking to add another cooker.

“The food truck would be the best route, because we could tow our cooker behind it,” he said. “With how small we are, we’re actually having to turn down some work that we could do. So we’re thinking about getting another cooker and possibly bringing on some people. We could have someone operate the food truck during the week.”

Whipple expressed gratitude for the success Team FIB BBQ Caterers has seen so far.

“The reaction has kind of been overwhelming,” he said. “It’s a very satisfying thing for people to eat your food and compliment you.”

For information, search for “Team FIB BBQ Caterers” on Facebook or call 630-229-6099.