The Horn way features the meat-smoking techniques of Central Texas infused with the deep foodways of the Black South. From farmers markets to his wildly popular pop-ups, Matt Horn has introduced a new food movement that draws from those roots in Texas and the South. Matt calls it “West Coast barbecue.” It’s a cuisine that tells the story of their people and their traditions. This is why Horn Barbecue is launching in West Oakland. This neighborhood was the cultural center for food, music, and the arts for the families of the great Black migration. Matt cooks with the passion and purpose of a chef who knows that he has a responsibility to represent the best of his people. “I am their story,” says Matt. “We are their wildest dreams.” The dream is Horn Barbecue.
Our Story
Barbecue found Matt Horn long before the world ever did. His journey began in his grandmother’s backyard, where the smoke, the fire, and the rhythm of family meals shaped his earliest understanding of purpose. There, he learned to cook by instinct — to listen to the food, to honor the people before him, and to trust the quiet pull of his own imagination.
From those first sparks, Matt forged a style of barbecue that is unmistakably his own — a craft rooted in heritage, lifted by creativity, and powered by the soul of his people. What began as a boy learning to tend a fire has become a movement, a voice, and a culinary expression that carries generations forward with every plate.
Our Stores
What started as a 1800 square foot home decor shop back in 2003 has grown into a wide assortment of home decor, furniture, and apparel available globally.
Our Television Network
Beginning in 2020, in partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery and Max, we set out to create television that feels like home by telling stories worth telling.
i never set out to cook barbecue
"MATT HORN"
THE HORN WAY
The Horn Way is built on fire, memory, and truth. It draws from the precision of Central Texas craft and the soul-deep food traditions of the Black South – two worlds of barbecue brought together and redefined on the West Coast.
Matt’s approach didn’t begin with a restaurant; it began with community. From early farmers markets to pop-ups that grew into cultural events, he introduced a style of cooking that carried the stories of his roots while speaking to a new generation. This is what he named West Coast Barbecue — a cuisine shaped by heritage, but unafraid to evolve.
West Oakland is its home for a reason. This neighborhood has long been a crossroads of Black creativity — where families of the Great Migration built new lives, where music and art found their voice, and where food became a bridge between the past and what was possible. Horn Barbecue stands in that lineage.
Every cook, every plate, every fire carries intention. Matt cooks with the understanding that his work represents more than a business — it represents the spirit, resilience, and brilliance of his people.
“I carry their stories,” he says. “And I honor their dreams.”
This is the Horn Way — a tradition reborn, a culture expressed, and a fire that refuses to fade.
