Oakland’s Horn BBQ torched in fire, defaced with graffiti

OAKLAND, Calif. – Matt Horn, chef and owner of the renowned Horn Barbecue in Oakland, has had a terrible week.

His restaurant on Mandela Parkway was vandalized with graffiti on Sunday night. And then on Tuesday morning, his prep crew showed up to work to see a portion of the building in ruins. 

Now, Horn is left picking up the pieces. 

Oakland firefighters were dispatched at 4:19 a.m. and crews were on scene within three minutes.

Oakland Fire Department spokesperson Michael Hunt said 20 firefighters were on scene to find the back of the building in flames. “It was not fully involved but there was heavy fire and smoke from the rear of the property upon arrival. It extended into the main area of the restaurant and it appears to be a total loss,” he said.

Horn said one of his employees called him when they went to work and found the building in ruins after firefighters left the scene. “They called and said, ‘Hey Chef are you sitting down?’ and I’m like ‘Yeah, I’m sitting down, what’s going on?’ and they’re like ‘There was a fire here at Horn,’ and I was like ‘How bad is it?’ and they were like ‘It’s pretty bad.’”

The fire devastated the now red-tagged building, eating holes in the dining room walls and leaving a wake of dark, black debris and rubble in the kitchen. 

“The whole thing burned, inside and outside,” Horn said in an interview.

Horn told KTVU, “I feel completely deflated honestly, just walking around and looking at everything and seeing the family pictures burned up.”

The walls of Horn BBQ told the story of the chef’s entrepreneurial endeavors. The Oakland pitmaster and his “West Coast Barbecue” have been featured throughout the nation, in Sunset and Esquire magazines, as well as by Forbes, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Mercury News and the New York Times. 

He said he doesn’t know at this point if the two crimes are related, but he does know that the fire wasn’t related to any meal preparation. 

“There was no cooking at that time,” he said. “We think the fire may have started from outside the building and then traveled inside.”

Fire investigators believe the fire originated inside a gated enclosure just outside the building.

“I don’t want to assume that someone would do something like that but you just don’t know. Just yesterday we dealt with vandalism and a break in of our trailer,” Horn said of the concern it may have been caused by arson.

Surveillance video from a neighboring business, Voyage Foods, shows the fire started nearly an hour before dispatchers got the call. KTVU is unable to share the video because of the business’s policy, but the video shown to reporter Crystal Bailey is too far to make out anyone intentionally starting the fire. Additionally, Ring camera technology only starts recording when it picks up activity.

Hunt said the fire is under investigation. He said it’s premature to declare that it’s arson at this early stage. 

In his Instagram post, Horn blasted the vandals for attacking small businesses and restaurants throughout the city.

“You are nothing more than the filth that plagues our beautiful city,” he wrote. 

Not only did someone scrawl white letters across the outside of his building, but he said that someone also tried to break into his food trailer.

Horn urged his fellow Oaklanders who have been affected by crime to unite – a theme he holds near and dear to his heart. 

“Let’s confront these acts of cowardice with a resolve as unyielding as steel,” Horn wrote. “It’s time we unite in an unbreakable front, showing these perpetrators that their attempts to undermine us will only reinforce our solidarity.”

In fact, of Horn’s most famous quotes is that BBQ can be a “great unifier.”

Horn’s restaurant was also recognized by Michelin as one of California’s best affordable eateries in 2021, and the James Beard Foundation named Horn Barbecue as a semifinalist for “Best New Restaurant” in 2022. 

SFGate first reported in Oct. 22, however, that Horn also faced financial difficulties as some distributors complained they stopped selling him meat until he paid what he owed. 

And according to SFGate, some staff said their paychecks had bounced. 

But that’s behind him now, and Horn still feels this committed to his city. 

“I don’t feel like those people that brought those allegations forward would go out of their way to tag a building or commit arson,” said Horn.

Members of the community gathered at the restaurant on Tuesday in support of Horn. Even business owner Dennis Ring, CEO of Ocho Candy, shed tears.

“It’s like having a member of the family go through something just devastating,” he said. Ocho Candy had a factory nearby and he developed a relationship with Horn over the years.

Horn is left with the decision to repair the damages and start over or close up Horn BBQ for good. Horn is considering running Horn BBQ from a food truck on the property. 

“It’s kind of hard to think about moving forward at this point,” he said.

He still plans to hold his third annual turkey giveaway on Wednesday at 1 p.m. on the sidewalk outside his now-burned restaurant, giving away turkeys to families in need. 

His original plan was to also serve hot meals, which he won’t be able to do now, since he doesn’t have a functioning kitchen.

“I want to move forward and show the community we’re resilient in the face of this tragedy,” Horn said.