Feeding the Brazos: That's Good Bull

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By Samantha Corpus

An award-winning barbecue food truck is on a mission to feed the Brazos Valley one meal at a time.

Good Bull BBQ’s philanthropic mission is to give a meal for every meal purchased. They are partnered with the Brazos Valley Food Bank, where they donate some of the proceeds from their business, including catering.

“If you’re going to be in a community and rely on that community to support your business and give you money for services so you can continue to operate, it’s your responsibility to give back to the community you’re in,” says Roy May, pitmaster and general manager of Good Bull BBQ.

Thomas Sitton, Class of ‘94 and founder of Good Bull BBQ, trademarked the name Good Bull in January 2015, in the hopes of opening a barbecue restaurant with a philanthropic mission. Sitton and other Mays Business School graduates who comprised the board of directors wanted someone who had professional work experience, was well-known, and was a recent graduate to run the business.

May, Texas A&M Class of ‘15, was a well-known combat veteran yell leader his junior and senior year. While in school, May was in contact with former yell leaders like Jonathan Lusk, Class of ‘04 and member of the board of directors for Good Bull BBQ.

“When you’re a yell leader, you speak a lot with former yell leaders about what you want to do after you graduate,” says May. “I have always wanted to open a barbecue joint here in College Station, and I brought that up and a light went off in [Lusk’s] head.”

Lusk arranged for May to meet Sitton. “A 30-minute meet-and-greet turned into a two-and-a-half-hour conversation,” says May. “It’s one of those things where all great ideas start off on a bar napkin. We really formed the basis for Good Bull BBQ.”

Good Bull BBQ first started as a catering business out of a prep kitchen. Without a physical location, they didn’t have a way for people to try their food. On Jan. 4, they launched the Good Bull BBQ food truck on George Bush Avenue at the Shell gas station across from the Texas A&M campus.

“The food truck was a good way to break in here locally and to start to make a name for ourselves,” says May. “Our long-term goal is to have a brick and mortar established here in town.”

May says during a standard week they sell about 250 meals, not including catering. Since opening the food truck, they have donated more than 3,000 meals to the food bank. Good Bull BBQ’s mission is “Feed yourself. Feed the world. That’s Good Bull,” and can be found on their website at goodbullbbq.com.

Good Bull BBQ is open from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, or until they sell out. Their standing menu includes brisket, pulled pork, jalapeño cheese sausage, garlic and pepper jack sausage, and regular smoked sausage. On Wednesdays they serve their “Hump Day Ribs” (which are always the first to go), and Fridays are pitmaster’s choice with special off-the-menu options like boudin, smoked turkey breast, smoked meatloaf, and more. Each dish comes with two sides and a drink for $10.

Follow Good Bull BBQ on social media: Facebook, www.facebook.com/goodbullbbq; Twitter, @GoodBullBBQ; and Instagram, @GoodBullBBQ.

About Roy May, Good Bull BBQ pitmaster Before attending Texas A&M University, Roy May served 12 years active duty in the Army as an airborne infantryman before transitioning into the reserves as a command career counselor. He is two years from retiring from the Army.

For as long as he can remember, May has always wanted to attend Texas A&M. He grew up maroon-blooded with his father, Class of ‘66, and his sister, Class of ‘95. While at Texas A&M, he studied industrial distribution and was a member of the Ol’ Ags Old Army Gentlemen’s society, the Professional Association of Industrial Distribution organization, and Corps of Cadets Delta Company.

May was the first combat veteran yell leader since 1951. He was considered a nontraditional student because he served in the military before attending Texas A&M. Additionally, he was the oldest yell leader ever elected and the first yell leader to be married and also have a child.