Marv’s Barbecue Adds to Urban Kitchen’s Unique Restaurant Concept

February 22, 2022 – Marvin Green IV had his fire for barbecue lit at a young age: He was 14 when his neighbor in East Sacramento talked him into tending the smoker in the yard next door. 

In exchange for keeping an eye on the meats for as many as six hours, he’d be rewarded with a rack of ribs slathered with a secret-recipe sauce he loves to this day. 

But now that a series of serendipitous events have transpired, that 14-year-old start seems a little late.

Those events that took place: 

• Green would work for that same neighbor Chris Tannous at his Roxie Deli & Barbecue, which has become something of a Sacramento institution, for a solid decade. 

• Years later, long after Green moved to Seaside, Tannous replaced his smoker and asked Green if he’d like the old offset rig Green learned on. 

• Green agreed and, amid generous amounts of COVID home time, gave himself a year to work on his own recipes.

• The results started tasting better and better, and the business potential began to catch his mind’s eye. 

• A search for a commissary kitchen led to a meeting and ultimately a partnership with relatively new Urban Kitchen Monterey—more on them in a minute—and a new Friday-Saturday-only barbecue operation in an atypical place, namely the Red Lion Hotel Monterey, which Urban Kitchen calls home.

The reason that all makes 14 seem a little tardy: Green’s young son, who’s not yet 2, is already deep in the barbecue game. When papa pitmaster starts up the smoker to advance his grill skills, Zephyr scuttles around the yard in pursuit of kindling. 

“He sees the fire and yells, ’Cooking! Cooking!’ and collects wood,” Green says. “He’s down for helping dad.”

Meanwhile, Zephyr has developed an appetite for a house specialty, though his father insists that’s not because he put barbecue sauce in his son’s baby bottle. 

“He loves ribs,” Green says. “You get to hold something, maybe that’s what it is. It gives him a little sense of responsibility.”

The 6-hour-smoked ribs and what Green calls his “signature” chicken will star the sauce Green learned from Tannous, a homemade ketchup-based number that leans brown sugar sweeter with a hint of vinegar and galaxy of savory spices Green promised his old boss he wouldn’t reveal. (He also uses a rub on both, and wraps the ribs and uses an apple cider spritz on the chicken to keep them moist.)

“I’m most proud of the ribs because they’re inspired by Roxie’s Deli, with my twist,” he says. “I feel like I’m bringing something from my hometown to the place I now call home.”

His process on the Central Texas-style brisket and Santa Maria-style tri tip leans a little less complicated. He marinates the tri-tip in different IPAs he’s experimenting with (and hopes to partner with a local brewery some time soon). For the brisket the recipe’s even simpler, as long as it comes with a generous portion of patience: salt, pepper and time.

“A lot of people like to have secrets in barbecue,” Green says. “With brisket I have no secret: It’s just good wood, good meat, good smoke, salt and pepper, low and slow until I get the flavor I want.”

The good wood is oak and almond. The meat, while he searches for a viable regional source, is certified Angus Prime. The “low” is around 200-250 degrees, the “slow” around 16 hours. The desired outcome is positive vibes.

“Barbecue is about creating memories with friends and family over good food,” Green says. “And I’m so excited to provide the backdrop for that experience.”

When it comes to requisite sides, the potato salad and brisket beans sound tempting, but the attention-grabber is the soft buttery cornbread made from an heirloom family recipe.

“The cornbread comes from my grandmama, who was a huge influence, and always had a meal ready for me,” he says. “She left a lot of really good recipes for us, which is a fantastic legacy, and it’s a treat to use one in my cooking.” 

Specials will surface each week as Green taps into seasonal Central Coast ingredients.

Go time arrives March 11. From there, Green will serve every Friday and Saturday from 11:30am until he’s sold out.

For Urban Kitchen, which opened mid-pandemic, the barbecue element adds another piece to a unique puzzle. 

The Diaz family who founded (and later sold) popular Plaza Linda of Carmel Valley has taken the mantle of Crazy Horse Restaurant—for decades a locals favorite as the area’s best old-school, endless-ingredient salad bar—and updated it with a remodel and all organic ingredients. 

On top of that there’s a full menu starring burgers, salads, steaks and seafood from chef/co-owner Brad Kreitler that can be ordered at the counter, fast-casual style, and delivered to your table. 

Some highlights from that part of the menu include a New York steak with white truffle salt and house steak sauce, rock cod on brioche and an ahi salad bowl.

Perhaps best of all, a number of the Diaz family’s original Mexican food recipes also figure in.

That means artichoke enchiladas, chile verde, chicken chimichangas, super tostadas, which represent just a few of the house specialties. 

A range of beverages from Peet’s Coffee, plus desserts from The Cheesecake Factory Bakery, round out the incredible range of offerings available 11:30am-7pm Wednesday-Saturday.

René Diaz, a majority owner along with his brother Rob, is pleased to carry on a family tradition, but is most enthusiastic about providing something the Monterey Peninsula has been missing. 

“I’m most excited about—and proud—to bring back the salad bar,” he says. “I think people will be surprised that it’s all organic.”

He goes on to add he loves being able to present live entertainment, a lounge and an event venue that occupies spaces on two stories.

So there’s a lot going on—and worth checking out—and that was the case well before the smoker showed up.

More about Marv’s Barbecue via its Instagram and Facebook feeds. More on https://www.urbankitchenmonterey.com/.