Business: Gemato’s Wood Pit BBQ
Address: 1566 W. Ogden Ave., Naperville
Phone/website: 630-778-9990, www.GematosWoodPitBBQ.com
Owners: Brothers Mario Soto, 62, of Aurora, and Tomas Soto, 75, of Naperville
Years in business: 28
What does your business do? “We provide good food, ribs, sandwiches. Nice beautiful salads. We’ve got brisket, chicken, pork. … The gyros, we sell a lot of those,” Tomas said.
What sets you apart? “We’re different than anybody else because we use the wood. … We use a lot of oak, a lot of maple and cherry. The smoke makes the flavor. And there’s the sauce,” Mario said.
Why is wood better? “The flavor,” Tomas said. “Tell the people to come and try it. If you don’t try it, you don’t know.”
What’s your secret to success? “Consistency. Dedication,” Mario said.
“The food’s got to taste the same every day. It’s got to be consistent. It’s very easy. You measure (ingredients) the same every day,” Tomas said.
Is sauce the key? “Everything is the key. The system and the sauce. Those two go hand in hand,” Mario said.
Did you develop the sauce? “Yes. There were a lot of (attempted recipes). You taste it and you like it,” Mario said.
Do you have variations of the sauce? “We have only one, the mild,” Tomas said. “You can buy bottles to take home”
Where do you get your ribs? “We have a meat guy, a supplier. We buy everything from him once a week,” Tomas said.
How many ribs do you sell per week? “In the summer, we sell 50 cases a week,” Tomas said. “In the winter, 30 to 35.”
Is summer the busiest? “Yes. I think that’s pretty much for everybody. Kids out of school. Holidays. People doing things. They keep us busy,” Mario said.
Why did you start this business? “It’s what we’ve known all our lives,” Mario said.
“We’d been cooking a long time. We always wanted to. I like cooking stuff. I think it’s fun,” Tomas said.
Is Naperville good for business? “This is good. People are very loyal. Everybody is like family,” Mario said.
Where is your second restaurant? “In Worth. We opened that in 2012,” Mario said.
“We get people (there) from all over. We get people from Tinley Park, Orland Park. It’s the same thing. Same flavor of the good. Consistent. The boys over there, they’re on top of the business. That’s the key,” Tomas said.
Will you open a third restaurant? “We’re planning on it. It’s not a secret. We want to open one not too far from here. Maybe 30 minutes away. … It can be Downers Grove. Yorkville is a nice town. Not too far,” Mario said.
“Oswego is nice. We’re working on it. We’re thinking about it,” Tomas said. “I’ll be 90, 100 and still running a restaurant.”
How did the pandemic impact your business? “We didn’t close. We used the (drive-thru) window. We did a tremendous business,” Tomas said.
“Some family restaurants had to close because they didn’t have the system,” Mario added.
How many employees work here? “Ten,” Mario said.
What are your hours? “10 to 10 every day. Except Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. We are closed then,” Tomas said.
Where do you get the wood? “A friend of mine who cuts trees, he selects the wood. He knows,” Mario said. “All the fruit trees have sweet smoke. It matches well with pork. … Oak for the chicken and the beef.”
What do you like best about the job? “You know it, so you do it. What I know is what I do. I’m not going to complain because I like it. … When you work and you love it, you don’t feel it. Put your heart into it,” Mario said.
“That’s what it’s all about. Good service. Good food. Everything goes smoothly. … Everyone who walks out says their meal was the best. The best. That means we’re doing something right,” Tomas said
What competition do you face? “I’m not going to mention anybody. I worry about our business,” Mario said.
Do you offer catering? “We do. It’s going good,” Mario said.
Any favorite stories? “When we started it was very hard. The first few years were crazy. Then, little by little, the business grew. … This place was painted pink. Crazy color. We got rid of the pink. Then we put the sign on the street. We were Gemato’s Eatery. Soon as we called it Gemato’s Wood Pit BBQ, bingo, (the business) takes off.”
What’s your advice for someone starting a business? “To work hard and never give up. You’ve got to try. Do your best,” Tomas said.
“Consistency,” Mario added.
Steve Metsch is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun. If you know of a business you’d like to see profiled in Down to Business, contact him at metschmsfl@yahoo.com.
