From my early childhood on the bayou in rural Louisiana, I have always shown a passion for cooking.  At the age of 4, I was baking pies in the early morning hours with my grandmother, and at the age of 6, I was cooking my momma breakfast. I was 14 when I started working at Chez Oca where I began to learn classical French technique and when my love for the kitchen grew, sparking my interest to pursue a future career in the culinary arts.

After attending and playing football at LSU, I followed my passion and drove across the country in my beat-up pickup truck with $200 in my pocket to work in the kitchen of the renowned Four Seasons Hotel Beverly Hills as a Poissonnier. Over time, I continued to develop my culinary skills, techniques, and leadership at many prestigious restaurants across the country as well as internationally.

Highlights include:

• Working under chef Emeril Lagasse as a sous chef at the internationally acclaimed Commander’s Palace in New Orleans
• Hired as the youngest executive chef at The Boca Raton Resort & Club, at 5 Star 5 Diamond Resort
• Executing Asian cuisine as the executive chef of the Hong Kong Sheraton, Kowloon Bay
• Winning the caterer bid for both the Olympic Games in Greece and Italy. As the executive chef, overseeing 16 kitchens, serving the athletes and NBC executives
• Chef de cuisine of Oscars, the French Brasserie at the world-renowned luxury hotel Waldorf-Astoria New York

My wife, Julie Marshall was raised in Devon for most of her childhood. After graduating from Agnes Irwin and attending Denison University, she moved to NYC to pursue a career in the garment center, but it was the Manhattan restaurant scene that eventually captured her interest and which led her to her next position at the most prestigious culinary organization in the nation, the James Beard Foundation. It was at the James Beard House in Greenwich Village in 2005 where I met Julie, as I had received the great honor of an invitation to prepare a dinner in James Beard’s kitchen – a lavish white truffle dinner in celebration of the Torino Winter Olympics. The rest is culinary history…

After spending a few years living and working in NYC, in 2012, Julie and I purchased Half Hill Farm (circa 1745) in Malvern, PA and lovingly restored the dairy farm. I became a leader in the Farm to Table movement, executing French-inspired private dinners and events, for which I am honored to have received multiple awards from the Chaine des Rotisseurs and The International Food & Wine Society.

When everyone’s world changed in 2020, we took up smoking and got busy with BBQ!  With my greatest attribute being my devotion to the craft, I researched and trained myself on Central Texas BBQ, and soon our family-owned business was born. Just as most great southern BBQ’s get their start, Farm Boy BBQ was originally located outside at the Sunoco gas station in Malvern, where like the postman, neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night could stop us from smoking and serving up mouthwatering central Texas barbeque!    

With all of our experience and passion, our commitment is to serve you with southern warmth and hospitality. Each of our delicious sides and desserts are house-made using the best ingredients. Our premium meats are cooked to perfection, seasoned with salt and fresh ground 16 mesh pepper and smoked low and slow in custom built reverse flow smokers (soon to arrive are our two 20’ smokers custom built in Texas!). Using top quality woods of hickory, cherry or post oak, Paul manages the fire to achieve that legendary blue smoke – now that’s authentic BBQ! 

Julie and I are strong believers in sharing our culinary passion and our love of the smoke and craft BBQ, which is why you’ll often find us speaking with you about the concepts and ideas behind the craft and the menu offerings. 

Farm Boy BBQ is proud and excited to serve you and your family the best BBQ North of Texas!