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Introducing The Grill Guy


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My name is Blake Moody and I was born right here in Jacksonville. I have two sisters, one brother and two very supportive parents. I never had any desire to learn to cook and my mom took great care in putting the food on the family table.

My earliest food memories consisted of cooking my dad and myself spaghetti – the noodles were gummy and the sauce was from a jar – and eating a bowl of peanut butter Cap n’ Crunch in the morning. My dad could griddle up some pancakes with the best of them and specialized in making breakfast for dinner. A picture of my dad’s small charcoal grill – which held a pyramid shape of charcoal briquettes right before their dousing with lighter fluid – is burned into my memory.

I cook like I saw my mom cook. Feeding four kids on a limited budget, she cooked in a “cook with what ya got” style that I maintain and try to teach my own daughter. Realizing how important nutrition is in raising healthy and reasonably well-behaved children, she educated herself through self-study, nutritionists and holistic medicine. I remember her shopping at the Granary – the whole foods grocery store started in 1979 right here in Orange Park – and letting me tag along. I’ll never forget the smell of that place.

Fast forward almost 30 years and I’ve got a family of my own. When my wife was pregnant with our first child, I got the overwhelming desire to cook, starting with grilling. I wanted to provide better options for our little girl than what we were used to making for ourselves as college students and young adults. I bought a small charcoal grill from the hardware store and got to work. My public library card served me well because I must have checked out every grilling book they had. I watched every cooking show I had access to, and practiced my own recipes at the house.

This journey led me to starting my competition barbecue team Tortoise Q and I have traveled all over the Southeast cooking professional barbecue competitions. Presently, I have a part-time job at what I believe is the best restaurant in the city – Moxie Kitchen and Cocktails – as I continue to follow my dreams of one day operating my own food truck.

The objective is to do something that I am passionate about and make a positive and lasting impact on my family and community. Feeding or attempting to feed my kid has been more challenging than any barbecue competition will ever be. There is so much more at stake when my daughter’s mental, physical & spiritual well-being is being affected.

With this column, I hope to encourage present and future cooks to get in the kitchen and cook. It’s not so much what you cook or how it turned out as it is the experience and adventure that came along with putting yourself out there.

Every time you fire up the grill or sift some flour into a batter, you are most certainly putting yourself out there. Hopefully, your fear will subside and we can share a laugh as I share stories about me falling on my culinary face. There have been some hits for sure, but I have had many more blunders and most importantly, lived to tell about it.

Cooking is all about eating together, sharing a special moment and quite possibly creating something brilliant. Have some fun, put on some good music, pour yourself something cold to drink and be up for some adventure.

Teach your kids the same way my mom taught me. You do not need fancy ingredients or equipment, but you do need to make an attempt to provide a better option. With a little practice, the best restaurant in town could be in your kitchen. The experience, fellowship and memories you receive will be worth it, I promise.