BBQ Legend honored with ‘Roy Perez Day’

By Anthony Collins

LPR Editor                                                       

   For nearly four decades, Roy Perez has stood near the fires and smoke of Kreuz Market, becoming one of the most recognizable faces of Lockhart’s world-famous barbecue tradition. On Sept. 5, the city he has represented for so many years made sure he knew what he has meant to the community.

   Lockhart Mayor Lew White presented Perez with an official proclamation declaring Sept. 5, 2026, as “Roy Perez Day” in the City of Lockhart. White was joined for the presentation by other city officials as family, friends and community members gathered to celebrate Perez’s retirement and 39 years at Kreuz Market. “Roy has been there since 1987, and he has become the face of barbecue in Lockhart, Texas,” White said. “His profile is probably more widespread than anybody else’s there. And we’ve all come to know and respect Roy.”

   Perez joined Kreuz Market on March 25, 1987, when he was 24 years old. He began by cooking sausage, bringing with him a little of his previous experience working in construction. According to the proclamation, Perez would refer to the wood used to fire the pits as “lumber.” Rick Schmidt soon recognized Perez’s ability and began teaching him how to slice meat and manage the pit area. Perez learned quickly, beginning what would become a lifetime around the pits and eventually earning a reputation as one of Texas barbecue’s best-known pitmasters.

   Customers came to recognize Perez for more than barbecue. His trademark muttonchop sideburns reflected his longtime admiration for Elvis Presley, while his personality made him a familiar face to generations of people walking through the doors at Kreuz.

   As the years passed, Perez made it a point to learn nearly every part of the business. He learned how to make sausage, filled in wherever he was needed and eventually became general manager after Kreuz moved to its current location. One of the most memorable moments in Kreuz history came during that move. Perez dragged a bucket of ashes from the old location up Commerce Street to the new building, where they were used to help light the new pits. The moment symbolically carried the fire and history of the old Kreuz Market into its new home. Perez was also known for rarely taking time away from the business, preferring to be at Kreuz rather than sitting at home or going on vacation. There was, however, one trip he made in 2025 that marked one of the biggest honors of his career. Perez traveled to Kansas City, where he was inducted into the Barbecue Hall of Fame, recognizing his decades of work and his role in preserving the traditions of Texas barbecue.

   Much of Perez’s legacy can still be found inside Kreuz Market today. During his career, he taught numerous employees the cooking and slicing techniques he had learned. Many of those employees remain at Kreuz, continuing to prepare barbecue using the methods Perez passed along. White said Perez’s impact on Lockhart also reaches well beyond the walls of the restaurant. “If you need help in the community, you go to Keith and Roy, and they don’t ask. They just do,” White said. “Anywhere from sharpening knives to making donations to the community. They’ve always been ready to be there.”

   That willingness to help, White said, is part of what has made Kreuz Market a cornerstone of the Lockhart business community and Perez such a respected figure in the city. When White finished reading the proclamation, he thanked Perez for everything he had done for Lockhart and wished him well in retirement.

   When Perez was asked to say a few words, the emotion of the occasion was evident. “I want to thank everybody for being here, and I’ve already cried enough,” Perez said. “But I appreciate everything.” Perez then turned to a subject people who know him well might have expected, Elvis Presley. “I’ve always considered myself like Elvis,” Perez said. “I don’t mean to say I’m Elvis, but he stood for what we should all stand for, treating people kindly.”

   It was a fitting message from a man who spent 39 years doing more than tending fires and slicing barbecue. Perez helped teach a new generation how things were done at Kreuz. He greeted countless customers, helped his community when called upon and played a part in carrying Lockhart’s barbecue tradition far beyond the city limits.

   Now, after nearly four decades around the pits, Perez is stepping into retirement as a Barbecue Hall of Famer and a man whose name has become closely tied to the story of Lockhart barbecue. And in the city where he spent so much of his life tending the fire, Sept. 5 will forever carry his name, Roy Perez Day.