A Cleveland, Tenn., native will be featured on tonight's episode of "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" when host Guy Fieri rolls into San Francisco to stop at Cathead's BBQ. The Food Network episode airs at 10 p.m.
Richard Park, a graduate of Bradley Central High School class of 1993, and his wife, Pamela, opened Cathead's BBQ in 2008 as a catering company then expanded to a weekly pop-up three years later. Southerners will recognize that business name as a nod to homemade biscuits that "are as big as a cat's head."
Within six weeks after starting the pop-up, Cathead's was named by San Francisco Weekly as one of the five best new mobile barbecues in the Bay area. As demand for their Michigan- and Tennessee-inspired fare increased, the couple opened a restaurant in 2012. Pamela is the pitmaster; Park works the front of the house.
He says he has no idea who submitted their restaurant's name to the producers of "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives," also called "Triple D."
"They just called out of the blue and said they wanted to feature us on the show. Guy is very funny, very friendly and was really accommodating to us. He's just like he comes across on TV," says Park.
The Parks were asked to submit their menu so Fieri could pick two items to be featured on the show. A cathead biscuit with pulled pork on it and a smoked lamb shoulder is what Park and Fieri will be making tonight.
Park says the production company taped a little more than two days for their 10-minute segment. The couple was given instructions not to talk to Fieri until the crew was ready to tape "because all the good conversation and questions about the food would lose their spontaneity," Park explains. "Then he came in, took a big breath of air and said, 'That smells good!'"
Park says he was so busy making biscuits on camera - and so nervous - that he really can't remember what the "Triple D" host had to say.
"I'm going to see it for the first time tonight and find out," he laughs. "We're doing a big viewing party here tonight."
But when the "Triple D" crew left, Park remembers their last words were "Be ready." The couple was advised to expect a significant upswing in business next week.
"Evidently there are people from around the country who will go to a restaurant just because he's been there," says Park. "They suggested we put up a map so people can mark where they're from."
Contact Susan Pierce at spierce@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6284.