The best BBQ in the DC, Maryland, Virginia (DMV) area, with a wonderful story, a great team, and the freshest offerings. From the beginning at the Farmer’s Market to their current brick-and-mortar location. There’s no better place to be than 2Fifty Texas BBQ

What first sparked your passion for barbecue, and how did that evolve into becoming a pitmaster?

Fernando’s barbecue journey began in the most unexpected way: a movie night back in El Salvador. He was still working as a civil engineer when he saw Aaron Franklin tending a massive smoker in the film Chef. That image stuck with him.

The questions that followed would certainly change the course of his professional life. How are these guys cooking in these gigantic smokers? Why’s the food wrapped in butcher paper? What even is a firebox?” he recalls. “Coming from a place without any barbecue culture, it sparked this obsession.”

3 years later, he made his first trip to central Texas, originally a short trip, turned into an added 3-day barbecue pilgrimage to some of the most influential barbecue locations in Texas, then, on his return home, with his wife Debbie’s blessing, building his very first smoker from a repurposed 135-gallon propane tank—right in his living room.

How does your Salvadoran heritage influence your approach to barbecue?

From the start at the farmer’s market, to their current location “some of our roots were there since day one” It’s not loud or flashy, but it’s there—showcasing a delicious variety of Salvadorian and Latin American dishes such as platanitos fritos, entraña in the house-made beans flown in from Central America, in the bright tangerine salads, and to my delight, buñuelos—Colombian-style.

“We know we can do great Texas-style barbecue… but the sides?
The sides can’t be an afterthought.”

What does a typical day look like at 2Fifty?

With his team of 59 people, the day starts early and runs deep. Fernando might say it’s “boring right now,” but the rhythm of his day is anything but boring. From planning menus and tasting proteins to checking deliveries and visiting the on-site garden, he has his work cut out for him.

Menu’s are seasonal and planned one-month in advance “We were born in the farmer’s market, that shaped us,” he says. “We still work closely with farmers. We don’t source commodity proteins. Everything we use is locally and ethically raised.”

“We’re not just running a restaurant—we’re trying to work as an ecosystem.”

Everything at 2Fifty is personal. Every ingredient, every fire, every plate. He saves his closest focus for the proteins. “I stay hands-on
with the barbecue. I like to taste throughout the day—brisket, whole hog, ribs,
turkey. I move through them all, just checking quality. But I’m also really
mindful of barbecue fatigue,” he says, smiling. “It’s real. You have to pace
yourself.”

Tell me about your smokers.

Fernando lights up when talking about his smokers.

“We have two primitive pits, both 1,000-gallon,” he says. “They’re great for short cooks—anything in the four- to six-hour range.”

Then there are the stars of the show: the Mill Scale pits. “We’ve got two of those as well—also 1,000 gallons each. They’re what I call the Cadillacs of brisket,” he says proudly. “They came all the way from Lockhart, Texas. And we load them with 100% briskets. All day, every day.”

“We also have one M&M rotisserie—a 1,000-gallon wood-fired smoker. No gas,” he adds quickly, with pride. “And then there’s our direct-heat setup, a Santa Maria-style grill, also from M&M. Again—all wood.

He speaks about the smokers the way an artist might speak of brushes. Each has its own function, its own place in the rhythm of the kitchen.

How do you choose your meats and butchers?

Every cut of meat has to meet the highest standard: prime-grade, ethically sourced, and flavorful. There’s no room for compromise.

He’s candid about the business reality. “Honestly, it’s not the wisest financial move. Not on paper. Restaurants that run protein-heavy menus—like we do—are already dealing with thin margins. Add on ethical sourcing and premium grading? You’ve got to run high volume just to keep it sustainable.”

But quality wins, every time. “We don’t cut corners. We won’t. Because this food is a reflection of who we are.”

He gives full credit to the person who makes the balance possible. “That’s where my wife comes in. Debbie’s the mastermind behind our financial strategy. She’s third-generation in restaurants. She’s the one who makes it all work.”

What makes 2Fifty stand out in a field crowded with Texas-style barbecue?

Fernando doesn’t believe the Mid-Atlantic is crowded. Instead, he saw a space full of curiosity and craving for something real.

“What we found was that our community here was ready. Ready to move past commodity food.”

Tell me about your wood.

Wood is fuel, yes—but it’s also flavor. 2Fifty uses 100% oak, aged for about 1 year, sourced from a family they trust – the Prince family.

Clean combustion isn’t just a technical term—it affects everything. “If you don’t get it right, you get creosote buildup in your pits. You get dead smoke. It affects flavor, texture… everything.”

What are you most proud of?

“We were named this year semi-finalists for the James Beard Award,” the team shared with immense pride. “It means a lot because it’s way beyond food. It’s about sustainability, it’s about advocating for others, for yourself. It’s about educating yourself on how to use your voice for things that matter to the rest of the industry. It’s about climate survival, it’s about the relationship with farmers.”

“I really appreciate that we were selected as semi-finalists because that means we’re doing something not only from a menu or a business perspective, but way beyond that.”

What’s the toughest challenge you’ve faced?

“I think keeping our doors open is pretty challenging right now,” he admitted. “As we speak, we’re facing probably one of the highest records in history when it comes to beef prices, and operating a Texas-style barbecue, beef prices are directly impacting our operations.”

How do you train your team to maintain consistency?

Training is constant—hands-on, immersive, and uncompromising. They even fly in pitmasters to train the team, as well as sending their team off to Texas for more hands-on experience. And they’ve chosen not to franchise because consistency matters more than scale.

“The moment Debbie and I can’t be here every day… we disengage from the experience.”

What was it like teaching barbecue in El Salvador?

The response was overwhelming. Texans and expats living abroad missed barbecue—and Fernando delivered.

Despite early challenges, the passion for barbecue shone through. “We were selling out. We were selling out every single weekend. And probably the barbecue was not that great back in the day. One because of sourcing. Secondly, because I was still learning, I’m still learning, but I was learning on really basic stuff. I didn’t have access to a consistent amount of wood or a protein that I was 100% happy with.” Yet, the experience underscored barbecue’s unique power:

“Barbecue has the power to sit people down at the same table.”

Are meat cuts in El Salvador the same as in the U.S.?

“That’s a very good question,” he responded, highlighting the complexities of sourcing. “I was able to source pretty good locally sourced chicken. I was able to make my own sausages, and I was going to one of the biggest markets that imports goods from the United States to source my spare ribs.”

However, brisket presented a significant challenge. “Brisket was non-existent. I had to go to a specialized butcher in the west side of the country so he could cut some brisket especially for me, and even then, they were so lean, there was barely any fat in there.”

Are you teaching barbecue here?

“Yes. We’re gonna have our first barbecue class” he enthusiastically announced. “It’s a partnership we’re doing with Skillette Cooking Academy in DC and us.”

Any surprising ingredients you love to use?

“I can’t think of one in particular,” He began, “What I can say is how pungent our greens are that we grow in house. It might be surprising for some people.” Fernando attributed this to the quality of their produce. “You know why? Because if you go to the supermarket, chances are, they put all kinds of stuff in it. And the soil where that vegetable comes from is 100% not the same soil as what we are growing ourselves. So, our parsley, is pungent, because we’re growing it and washing it and serving it probably the same day. And you can’t beat that freshness.”

The farm-fresh greens and onions they grow and source locally are incredibly vibrant.

What did you learn from Francis Mallmann and Aaron Franklin?

He explained how Mallmann’s approach contrasted with common perceptions of fire: “When you think about fire, it might sound something really violent and something really intentional and something really aggressive, cooking with fire, but it was quite the opposite, learning from him and listening to him and seeing how he moves around fire. Surprisingly for me,  his most repeated word, ‘fragile’—’This is fragile, the fragility of smoke, the fragility of the fire, the fragility of the embers.'”

Transitioning to Aaron Franklin, they humorously stated, “Aaron Franklin… if Francis Mallmann is all about romance, romance with fire, then Franklin is all about rock and roll. It’s rock and roll and fire and smoke.” He was particularly impressed by Franklin’s adaptability: “It was very interesting to see how he was navigating in Argentina, this happened in Mendoza, Argentina, so looking at him, how he was pulling tricks and pulling a different card on how to make this Argentinian cattle that he is not used to cooking, in a completely different environment and a different altitude with completely different wood, different humidity, and still able to produce an amazing brisket. That was something special.”

“Every fire is different. Every cook is different. Leave room for surprise.”

What advice do you have for home cooks?

He stressed the importance of patience, especially with live fire cooking. “You can char, sear and smash and create a Maillard reaction, super hard, super fast, super hot, but the preparation to get to that point is also very long when it comes to getting your wood, thinking what chop are you going to use or what kind of grill are you going to use. And then building that fire the way you build that fire, how much time you need to get that plancha or that stove top or that chapa or whatever you’re using to that point. There’s a long prep to get to that point, and that also really needs a lot of patience.”

Don’t rush. Treat each cook as a learning experience. Fire takes time and patience—but it rewards you if you let it.

“You’ll never know everything about fire—and that’s what makes it so beautiful.”

What dish is closest to your heart?

Vegetables cooked directly on the embers. Simple. Honest. Transformative.

“Don’t overcomplicate it.”

How do you want guests to feel after eating at 2Fifty?

Like family. Like they’ve been invited into something warm and meaningful.

“Welcome to the family. That’s what barbecue is really about.”

I can honestly say, I felt welcomed and a part of the 2Fifty Family, Thank you Fernando and Debbie for making time for me, to the whole 2Fifty Staff, thank you for your smiles, your storytelling, and your passion for what you do.