Alex Graf

Years of Participation

Native Texan Chris Fultz, and his wife/pitmistress Alex Graf, founded ZZQ Texas Craft Barbeque in 2013 to bring the beef traditions of Central Texas barbecue to Central Virginia. Over the past five years, they captured the attention of regional and national media due to the cult following of customers who were willing to wait in three-hour lines for their Saturday only pop-up. The culmination of their success was realized in March of 2018 when their brick and mortar opened.

The inspiration for the restaurant blends Chris and Alex’s love of modernism with their travels throughout the Lone Star State and Mexico. Modeled after a traditional Central Texas serving line style of service, their restaurant appears to be a humble barbecue joint on the outside, but unexpectedly it reveals an innovative large dining room that opens onto a cozy outdoor backyard. The thoughtfulness of the design is matched by a rigorous dedication to hospitality exemplified by their guest’s consistent praise for outstanding customer service.

Less than six months in operation, the summer of 2018 brought unprecedented accolades. ZZQ was named the Best Barbecue in Virginia, and a National Barbecue All-Star, by Food & Wine Magazine. Following this tremendous recognition, Thrillist named them one of the top 33 Best Barbecue Joints in America and Daniel Vaughn of Texas Monthly Magazine lauded their Texas Barbecue as “Flawless” and stated, “I don’t think anyone outside of Texas does it any better than ZZQ in Richmond, Virginia.”