Our Story
Growing up, I always had a passion for food — especially BBQ. I believe it stems from all the traveling I did with my father (Jack Aronson) when I was younger. He would take me down to Arkansas every year to visit family. During our trips, we stopped at many roadside BBQ joints to eat. That's when I fell in love with BBQ. I hope you enjoy our lil' BBQ joint; we take great pride in what we do!
The year was 1995
Coolio topped the charts and “Die Hard with a Vengeance” was packing 'em in at the box office. On the left coast, San Francisco won the Superbowl, and back east, New Jersey took home Lord Stanley's cup. But in fashionable Ferndale, Michigan, the buzz was about Jack Aronson's Clubhouse Bar-B-Q. His little joint at 8 ½ and Woodward featured a menu as long as your arm, and epicurean flavors to make the most discerning barbeque hound blush. Jack used his innate culinary talent to craft comfort food with uncommonly accomplished flair—especially in the realm of traditional barbeque. Men wept over Jack's brisket, women swooned over his pulled pork and children grew ecstatic over the taste of his mac and cheese.
Throughout the time of Clubhouse Bar-B-Q's storied run, Jack's son, Trevor, accompanied him to countless cookoffs and competitions featuring some of the best practitioners of barbeque the country has to offer. He watched as his father racked up awards and accolades. He learned how to properly stoke and maintain a smoker at the ideal heat, and with just the right seasoned hardwoods. He developed a discerning palate for the complex flavors imparted through the art of barbeque, be they via a mouthwatering sauce or a sophisticated rub. And the sides, the sides! The creamiest of coleslaw. And oh, that mac and cheese…
Jack Aronson, along with his wife, Annette, went on to create the most successful nationally-distributed brand of fresh salsa in North America from a recipe he first created in his kitchen at that very Clubhouse Bar-B-Q restaurant. Their accomplishments in the realm of salsa eventually drew them away from the restaurant business. Yet, to this day, people pine for the soulful tastes and heartwarming experiences that characterized the Clubhouse days. Trevor's vision is to carry the tradition of BBQ Done Right to a new generation of barbeque lovers. Fire up your taste buds, because he's firing up the smoker!