A few years ago, the Wall Street Journal traveled all over the United States, searching for America’s best Bar-B-Q. Guess who was in the top 10? That's right, Oklahoma Style Bar-B-Q right here in Tulsa!

Mattie Bledsoe Hayes, is the owner of Oklahoma Style Bar-B-Q, and for her, it’s all about tradition. Mattie started working for her Aunt Lizzie and Uncle Oscar at the young age of 14 at Pete's Bar-B-Q in North Tulsa. Mattie talks about those days with a gleam in her eyes. "I started cleaning the place. I guess you could say I was the janitor, coming in to work on weekends and nights, pretty much because I was legally too young to be working." When Mattie turned 17 and was old enough to "legally" work, she moved up to prepping the food and taking orders, pretty much what Mattie does today, except she’s now the owner with lots of good help!

1982 lead to the retirement of Uncle Oscar and that’s when Mattie became an official "partner" at Pete’s BBQ. Then in 1993, Mattie started Oklahoma Style Bar-B-Q. Recently, Mattie bought her own land and built a new restaurant located right across the street from her first location on North Harvard.

We asked Mattie what it was like to start a new restaurant on her own. "I felt anxious, yet excited about stepping out there with my very own business. But, something inside was telling me to step out there, so I did and I just kept looking forward".

Mattie said she came up with the brand name of "Oklahoma Style BBQ" from Pete’s. Pete’s original name was "Oklahoma BBQ", but he changed it to Pete’s BBQ. "I liked the original name of ‘Oklahoma BBQ.’ To make it a little different, my Sister Catrina suggested adding the word ‘Style’. I loved the way it sounded, so it was official. I chose ‘Oklahoma Style BBQ.’"