DAVENPORT, Fla. — Polk County is known as the BBQ capital of Florida.
In Davenport, you will find Cooter’s Smokehouse, a family-run business serving up some award-winning BBQ.
The restaurant has an interesting backstory. Back in 1911, it was a hotel and then became a rental property that was purchased by the grandmother of one of the owners. In the late 90’s the building was about to fall, so they made changes to turn it into a bed and breakfast, but that never happened. It eventually became a tearoom, and from there it became a full-blown BBQ restaurant.
Cooter’s has all your typical BBQ staples on the menu, including ribs, pork and brisket. On occasion, they also serve up chicken, sausage, and smoked bologna, and Friday night is steak night.
Being around BBQ every day may seem like a good gig for some, but it’s not a career one of the owners thought he would ever have.
"Not at all. I don't think anybody else did either. It was just a hobby I picked up at my parents’ house, and just, I don't know, I'm kind of self-taught in a way,” said Daniel Tomlinson, owner of Cooter’s Smokehouse.
He continued, " I was just a, you know, a ragtag guy cooking in people's backyards, and now this is what we do for a living.”
“When I started dating Daniel, we actually had barbecue one night a week, and everyone's like, oh, you got leftovers. And I'm like, we don't serve leftovers. Everything is fresh. Well, it just became such a hit that we went from one night a week, and then in the middle of COVID, we went to full-time barbecue,” said Samantha Summerlin Tomlinson, owner of Cooter’s Smokehouse.
And if you are wondering how the restaurant got its name, Tampa Bay 28 got the backstory on that, too.
“So, my husband got the nickname of cooter when he was in the bassinet when he was first born by his dad, because he said he looked like an upside-down turtle trying to roll over onto his stomach because he was on his back,” explained Samantha.
The restaurant also has a competition team called Cooter’s N’ Smoke!
In 2023, the team placed 14th in the world for ribs at The Kansas City Barbecue Society World Invitational Event.
