When Mark White graduated from culinary school at Johnson & Wales University, he never imagined himself specializing in barbecue, but after more than a decade in the barbecue business, he wouldn't have it any other way.

“I never really intended on settling down into something simple like barbecue, but it kind of worked for me and who I am, being into blues, football and music,” White says. “It became an avenue for me to have fun.”

White runs the Orange Beach, Daphne and Mobile locations of Moe's Original Bar B Que, a successful chain of barbecue restaurants featuring Bama-style barbecue, above-average sides, live music and drinks.

The founders of Moe's met at the University of Alabama and were taught the art of barbecue by Moses, a Tuscaloosa legend. White was one of Moe's Bar B Que's first employees and joined the team when it was still a roadside stand in Vail, Colo. in the early 2000s.

Over the past decade, the recipes have been perfected and its founders have opened more than 25 brick-and-mortar locations in Colorado, back home in Alabama and in several other states, including Georgia, Maine, North Carolina and Tennessee.

Because White had Alabama roots, he accepted the invitation to move back to his home state in 2006 to open the Moe's location in Orange Beach — the first Moe's in Alabama.

“The Orange Beach location was really the stepping stone for Moe's to become what it is today,” White says.

Although Moe's is a chain restaurant, White says the staff at each restaurant makes everything from scratch daily. While all the locations use the same recipes and techniques for the barbecue and sauces, each staff is free to create its own side items.

White says the barbecue is the focus, but the original, made-from-scratch sides — classics like potato salad, baked beans and cornbread alongside seasonal specials made with local vegetables — are what sets Moe's restaurants apart from other barbecue joints.

“We started adding random sides, and people who worked for me brought recipes to the table,” White says. “Most of our recipes come from grandmas, moms or nannies, and because of that, this place really touches a down home bone for people. You could come every day of the week and get a different combination of sides.”

Each location also has a different personality to match the community around it.

The Daphne restaurant is tucked away on Bayfront Drive in an old house with an interesting story.

“When we decided we wanted to expand with another restaurant in Baldwin County, we started looking at tons of places up and down Eastern Shore, in Foley — everywhere,” White says. “One day, my wife and I we were driving down this road (Bayfront Drive) to just check out the water, and we noticed a for sale sign on front right here. So we called the guy, and after a couple of months, we finally got this place.”

Years ago, the house belonged to a Daphne matriarch known as Miss Sarah. She was well-known and loved in the community as a babysitter and a renaissance woman.

“From what I've heard, she was rough around the edges — and we're rough around the edges,” White says. “We lucked into all kinds of history and stuff going on here. Tons of people came to tell stories about the place when we first opened.”

White says doing business would probably be easier if the restaurant was located on a main roadway or in a shopping center, but the history and personality of the old house was irresistible.

“Some of the best barbecue joints in the South are completely off the beaten path,” he says. “If you cook good food on a consistent basis and serve it at a fair price, people are going to come.”

Restaurant profile

NAME: Moe's Bar B Que

LOCATIONS: Daphne (Bayfront Drive), Orange Beach (Perdido Beach Boulevard), Mobile (Spring Hill Avenue), more than 25 locations in several states

SPECIALTIES: Smoked meats, vinegar sauce, Alabama-style sauce, sides unique to each location