From Obstacles to Success
A culinary American delight that’s been “fit for a king” was also fit for a spaceman.
The late Commander Dave Walker, an astronaut for NASA and Eustis native, enjoyed the sauce so much that he took it into space during a mission in December 1992. “Now King’s can certainly boast about barbecue that’s ‘out of this world!” wrote Donna Goodwin in a promotional article about King’s Taste Bar-B-Que in 1993. Thanks to the dream of two men --- and a rifle, an electric shaver and a radio --- the tantalizing smell and taste of King’s Taste Bar-B-Que have been luring folks to a quiet neighborhood in Eustis since the early 1950s.
Isaac Thomas, the founder of King’s hocked his rifle, shaver and radio so he would have enough money for his first two boxes of ribs, so the story goes.
Thomas, who died in 1982, was an educator who was well respected and fought for the rights of fellow African-American teachers. Thomas attended Florida Normal College in St. Augustine and after graduation became the principal at Tavares Elementary Grade School for seven years, according to Goodwin. According to a niece who wrote a family history, “The issues he raised included the inferior equipment and books: provided for the black schools, as well as the unequal pay for black teachers. “That got him into trouble with the administrators of the school system,” according to the story. “His activism caused him to leave the teaching profession. One version of the story is that he quit on his own. Another version is that he was forced to.” Still, “Uncle Ike,” as he was called, made the most of it.
After things didn’t work out in education Thomas thought he could make a “go” working for himself. He dabbled in a few projects which included a grocery in Coleman and later, a restaurant in Sanford, where he developed an interest in barbecue. The restaurant wasn’t doing well, so he closed it down and stayed in Eustis. There, with a lot of ambition and a little money, Isaac started his first barbecue stand.
Carla Mitchell, was born in the neighborhood on the southwest side of town. And she remembers being drawn to the wonderful odor of “Uncle Ike’s” culinary delights. “I remember when he first started his little business on the corner of Bates and Palmetto,” she said. “All us kids after church would walk cross-town about two miles. It didn’t seem too far to us because we were young kids. We got a chicken sandwich for a quarter and a penny – the 26 cent sandwich. And there was a rib sandwich too. I didn’t care about having a soda. It was just meat and bread.”
And of course, the famous King’s Taste Bar-Be-Que Sauce. “Eustis has been blessed with a barbecue that is so good, that it is still being cooked using the original method and secret sauce that in nearly 50 years old,” wrote Goodwin in 1993.
Thomas’s good friend, Reuben Blye claimed it’s the best he’s ever had. “It’s the slow cooking and the secret sauce that makes it so good!” he told Goodwin. Thomas developed his secret sauce when he went into the barbecue business. He used mustard base instead of the customary ketchup base. In addition to the unique taste, his sauce doesn’t require refrigeration. Years later, in 1973, Thomas patented the sauce and began bottling it. His family still markets the sauce at Publix, Winn Dixie, Albertson’s and some other outlets across the state but mostly to the loyal customer around the country. In the early days, as well as for most of time that Thomas owned and operated King’s, it was a one-man show Thomas got the wood; he’d cook the meat and even take the orders.
“Occasionally, if things got a little busy, Reuben would handle the cash register for him,” wrote Goodwin. “His menu was simple chicken, ribs, bread and cold drinks. His prices were very reasonable as well – 35-cent sandwiches and a slab of ribs for three dollars.” Eventually Thomas had his wood delivered by the Sennett family of Umatilla. A second generation of Sennett still delivers the wood for the pits. This consistency in wood has created a consistency in flavor for the barbecued meat. It was at the first location that Thomas told people his barbecue was “Fit for a King!” “And that phrase has been used ever since,” added Goodwin, despite two location changes over the years.
But Mitchell remembers another saying “Uncle Ike” used to describe his barbecue. “He said, ‘My barbecue is as tender as a mother’s love,’” Mitchell said. The owners of the property had plans for the lot so Thomas moved to East Bates Avenue. It was his good friend, Reuben Blye, who told Thomas about the land right across from his house at 503 Palmetto St., which was owned by the local postmaster. It eventually became what is the present location though the barbecue stand has changed. The first building on this site was built of wood and burned to the ground. Thomas quickly rebuilt and replaced it with the block building that stands today.
Originally there was only one pit, but now there are three. And during the 1950s, Isaac added three apartments to the side of the barbecue stand. He lived there until he built his home in the 400 block of Palmetto Street.
The barbecue stand was closed for a short while after Thomas died in 1982 and was re-opened briefly before Wilts Alexander bought King’s in 1983. Alexander’s roots are in Lake County and it is his dream to make sure that the barbecue stand stays as it was for so many years. He recalled that even the civil rights movement didn’t create problems at King’s. “Blacks and white stood in the same line sometimes for two hours waiting for ribs and chicken,” he said. “There were never any fights or problems here.”
In 1986, the Alexander’s purchased an area adjacent to the stand from C.J. Mathes. It was fenced just before Memorial Day 1993; Alexander added a picnic pavilion and children’s playground. He became an absentee owner in 1993 while conducting business abroad. But he returned home in 2005. Alexander purchased King’s for several reasons. His primary reason was to help Doris Thomas, his third-grade teacher at the Milner Rosenwald Academy in Mount Dora, as well as keeping the tradition alive.
“My vision is to build a commercial area that is anchored by King’s,” Alexander wrote in an email. “The city planners have a green way from the lake to Carver Park. King’s and the park behind King’s is one of the hubs in that plan. I hope to be apart of the restoration of our community. As Magic Johnson has demonstrated, there is money, opportunity and intrinsic value in revitalizing our community.”
The late Commander Dave Walker, an astronaut for NASA and Eustis native, enjoyed the sauce so much that he took it into space during a mission in December 1992. “Now King’s can certainly boast about barbecue that’s ‘out of this world!” wrote Donna Goodwin in a promotional article about King’s Taste Bar-B-Que in 1993. Thanks to the dream of two men --- and a rifle, an electric shaver and a radio --- the tantalizing smell and taste of King’s Taste Bar-B-Que have been luring folks to a quiet neighborhood in Eustis since the early 1950s.
Isaac Thomas, the founder of King’s hocked his rifle, shaver and radio so he would have enough money for his first two boxes of ribs, so the story goes.
Thomas, who died in 1982, was an educator who was well respected and fought for the rights of fellow African-American teachers. Thomas attended Florida Normal College in St. Augustine and after graduation became the principal at Tavares Elementary Grade School for seven years, according to Goodwin. According to a niece who wrote a family history, “The issues he raised included the inferior equipment and books: provided for the black schools, as well as the unequal pay for black teachers. “That got him into trouble with the administrators of the school system,” according to the story. “His activism caused him to leave the teaching profession. One version of the story is that he quit on his own. Another version is that he was forced to.” Still, “Uncle Ike,” as he was called, made the most of it.
After things didn’t work out in education Thomas thought he could make a “go” working for himself. He dabbled in a few projects which included a grocery in Coleman and later, a restaurant in Sanford, where he developed an interest in barbecue. The restaurant wasn’t doing well, so he closed it down and stayed in Eustis. There, with a lot of ambition and a little money, Isaac started his first barbecue stand.
Carla Mitchell, was born in the neighborhood on the southwest side of town. And she remembers being drawn to the wonderful odor of “Uncle Ike’s” culinary delights. “I remember when he first started his little business on the corner of Bates and Palmetto,” she said. “All us kids after church would walk cross-town about two miles. It didn’t seem too far to us because we were young kids. We got a chicken sandwich for a quarter and a penny – the 26 cent sandwich. And there was a rib sandwich too. I didn’t care about having a soda. It was just meat and bread.”
And of course, the famous King’s Taste Bar-Be-Que Sauce. “Eustis has been blessed with a barbecue that is so good, that it is still being cooked using the original method and secret sauce that in nearly 50 years old,” wrote Goodwin in 1993.
Thomas’s good friend, Reuben Blye claimed it’s the best he’s ever had. “It’s the slow cooking and the secret sauce that makes it so good!” he told Goodwin. Thomas developed his secret sauce when he went into the barbecue business. He used mustard base instead of the customary ketchup base. In addition to the unique taste, his sauce doesn’t require refrigeration. Years later, in 1973, Thomas patented the sauce and began bottling it. His family still markets the sauce at Publix, Winn Dixie, Albertson’s and some other outlets across the state but mostly to the loyal customer around the country. In the early days, as well as for most of time that Thomas owned and operated King’s, it was a one-man show Thomas got the wood; he’d cook the meat and even take the orders.
“Occasionally, if things got a little busy, Reuben would handle the cash register for him,” wrote Goodwin. “His menu was simple chicken, ribs, bread and cold drinks. His prices were very reasonable as well – 35-cent sandwiches and a slab of ribs for three dollars.” Eventually Thomas had his wood delivered by the Sennett family of Umatilla. A second generation of Sennett still delivers the wood for the pits. This consistency in wood has created a consistency in flavor for the barbecued meat. It was at the first location that Thomas told people his barbecue was “Fit for a King!” “And that phrase has been used ever since,” added Goodwin, despite two location changes over the years.
But Mitchell remembers another saying “Uncle Ike” used to describe his barbecue. “He said, ‘My barbecue is as tender as a mother’s love,’” Mitchell said. The owners of the property had plans for the lot so Thomas moved to East Bates Avenue. It was his good friend, Reuben Blye, who told Thomas about the land right across from his house at 503 Palmetto St., which was owned by the local postmaster. It eventually became what is the present location though the barbecue stand has changed. The first building on this site was built of wood and burned to the ground. Thomas quickly rebuilt and replaced it with the block building that stands today.
Originally there was only one pit, but now there are three. And during the 1950s, Isaac added three apartments to the side of the barbecue stand. He lived there until he built his home in the 400 block of Palmetto Street.
The barbecue stand was closed for a short while after Thomas died in 1982 and was re-opened briefly before Wilts Alexander bought King’s in 1983. Alexander’s roots are in Lake County and it is his dream to make sure that the barbecue stand stays as it was for so many years. He recalled that even the civil rights movement didn’t create problems at King’s. “Blacks and white stood in the same line sometimes for two hours waiting for ribs and chicken,” he said. “There were never any fights or problems here.”
In 1986, the Alexander’s purchased an area adjacent to the stand from C.J. Mathes. It was fenced just before Memorial Day 1993; Alexander added a picnic pavilion and children’s playground. He became an absentee owner in 1993 while conducting business abroad. But he returned home in 2005. Alexander purchased King’s for several reasons. His primary reason was to help Doris Thomas, his third-grade teacher at the Milner Rosenwald Academy in Mount Dora, as well as keeping the tradition alive.
“My vision is to build a commercial area that is anchored by King’s,” Alexander wrote in an email. “The city planners have a green way from the lake to Carver Park. King’s and the park behind King’s is one of the hubs in that plan. I hope to be apart of the restoration of our community. As Magic Johnson has demonstrated, there is money, opportunity and intrinsic value in revitalizing our community.”
