Our Story
We are three barbecue aficionados and self-described pyromaniacs who knew there was something missing in the world of live-fire cooking: the ultimate grills and accessories.
Pitmaster, Harry Soo and Jon Faulkenberry, Sales Director, met in 2019 while performing Jealous Devil cooking demonstrations and bonded over their love of live-fire cooking. In early 2023, Jon created several grill prototypes and invited Harry and his business manager, Joel Birschbach, to bring their expertise to the table and help make his vision of the perfect live fire grill a reality.
Once Harry started cooking on the prototypes, he was sold on the idea. The “three amigos” decided to officially form a company, Primal Grills USA, with the goal of being the first American grill manufacturer to bring Texas and California live fire grill designs together and revolutionize how barbecue enthusiasts approach outdoor cooking.
To ensure quality, we reached out to like-minded pyros to help us design and build what we think would be the world's best Live Fire grills!
OUR TEAM
Award Winning Pitmaster
Harry brings in 30+ years of business knowledge as an IT industry veteran who oversaw a $65 million project portfolio in Los Angeles, serving 300 cities and 20M people.
He retired from IT in 2022 and has 15 years of experience as a professional pitmaster with 300,000+ followers on various social media platforms (YouTube, Fb, IG, X, Ln, TT, @thread, Patreon, Pinterest, food gawker), 800+ videos, 100+ first places and KCBS (Kansas City BBQ Society) and IBCA Texas awards, and numerous TV and celebrity appearances on Food Network, Chopped, and cable TV.
Harry teaches BBQ classes and does trade shows, demos, and celebrity appearances. He also sells 10 rubs and 5 sauces in the retail, wholesale, distributor, broker, online, private and white label markets.
Sales Director
Jon is an industry veteran who has over 30+ years experience in the barbecue business, from manufacturing to sales.
Formerly a manager with Sam's Club and Cabela's, Jon is highly experienced in customer service and cultivating partner relationships in all aspects of the retail realm.
Jon’s time in Sales and Manufacturing with Brinkmann, Royal Oak, Masterbuilt, and Jealous Devil Charcoal has equipped him with a strong sense of product line expertise that is ideal for the brick-and-mortar grill markets and to target the 800 mid-tier box retailers in the USA.
Operations Manager
Joel is a former Navy veteran submariner with 28+ years in operations, logistics, back office, IT, warehousing, fulfillment, and shipping including retail and manufacturing experience with PaperMate and Hostess.
Joel handles the Slap Yo Daddy BBQ’s Shopify website, rub and sauce operations and logistics, as well as Amazon FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) and Amazon FBM (Fulfillment by Merchant).
Manufacturing Director
Roshan was former Head of Global Procurement for Walmart for 15+ years with extensive manufacturing experience in diverse countries including China, Brazil, India, Thailand, Malaysia, Mexico, and Vietnam.
He is a great communicator and leader, is also a Wagyu rancher with expertise and interest in animal husbandry and provides strategic consulting and product development services in the Retail, IT, Operations, and Sourcing arenas.
Quality first
We started making the products we wanted to see in the world and we did this with an uncompromising approach to live fire grilling.
Humble beginnings
Our story begins in a small shop with a small team. With nothing but passion and a dream our brand was born.
