All in the Family
Photography by Jerry Perez
In the southernmost part of the county, barbecue lovers settle in at the table of a steakhouse that’s been serving classic cuts of meat longer, likely, than any current Nipomo resident has been alive. Since it opened it 1925, Jocko’s steakhouse has been bringing people together for quality food in a no-frills, saloon-style dining room.
“My dad would always say, ‘You can’t eat atmosphere,’” Dana Ashlock says of her late father, Fred Knotts, who co-owned Jocko’s with his brother, George. “He’s been gone now for almost 30 years. [For him] it was always about everything being real and great, the integrity of the meal. Everything had to be fresh and top dollar.”
Today, Jocko’s is owned and operated by Dana and her three siblings. They continue the exemplary standard of quality that comes from a long lineage of hardworking entrepreneurs.
It all started with Emery Knotts, Dana’s great-grandfather, who in 1883 owned a saloon on Tefft Street in Nipomo. Emery had eight sons, one of whom was known as Jocko, who all helped run the saloon. Jocko is believed to have been the second licensed driver in Nipomo history. By the 1920s, Jocko was running a nearby garage and service station. It was also rumored that Jocko, a man of the times, sold booze and homemade brew out of the trunk of his car during the Prohibition Era.
In 1925, Jocko and his friend, “Bull” Tognazzini, opened a saloon called “Jocko’s Cage” inside the garage, later expanding the business to include card rooms and slot machines. After Jocko passed away, his sons closed the saloon in 1957 and opened a restaurant and bar. Fred and George served BBQ and the restaurant quickly became one of the most popular dining spots in the country. People from all over the world flocked to Nipomo, a town of about 2,300 residents at the time, to feast on what they’d heard was “the best steak dinner.”
Fred and George decided in 1962 to open another BBQ restaurant and saloon on Thompson Street, catty-cornered from the original, known today as Jocko’s Steakhouse. “The day that location opened, we had a barrel of fire and all the local ranchers came in with their cattle brand and branded the walls,” Dana recalls, citing her family’s connection with and support of local farmers and ranchers. “My dad was related to a lot of ranchers and farmers in the area. He also just had a great rapport with people,” she says.
In an area of California known for its cattle production, Jocko’s embodies the work and contribution of locals. The restaurant’s famed, oak-grilled meats, otherwise known as Santa Maria-style BBQ, are the best locally sourced cuts cooked over live coastal red oak. This unique and assumed California style of BBQ, which burns hot but not too fast, is a craft of its own.
Historically, ranchers dug massive pits, layered them in red oak and willow branches, then grilled their cuts over a large fire. In the 1930s, this style shifted and the reigning Santa Maria-style BBQ employed today requires stringing meat tightly on steel rods, then grilling it over a pit of blazing red oak logs. Skillful pit masters control how the meat cooks by moving the rods up and down, grilling each cut to perfection.
As for Jocko’s, most customers go there for the steaks, each one hand-cut, aged and cooked over Jocko’s Red Oak Fire. “We seem to be known by locals and travelers for our steaks, good pour and value. We always hear that we’re not ‘very fancy’ and it’s this word-of-mouth that continues to bring people in,” Dana says.
Driving up to dine in, you’ll find a full parking lot and a mix of locals and out-of-towners clamoring for a seat. Once seated below the restaurant’s many taxidermized deer and elk busts, diners receive a robust menu featuring dishes like the steakhouse’s signature cut, the Spencer, an impressive list of seafood options and ravioli smothered in “Uncle George’s homemade meat sauce.” Though no longer bootlegged, the wines on offer are extensive and include a number of prized Central Coast creations. At the end of their meal, diners leave “well fed,” as the Jocko’s slogan goes.
Some say the Santa Maria Valley has more backyard BBQ pits than anywhere else in the U.S.; that type of hometown backing says it all. Jocko’s enduring success could be attributed to its ability to capture the spirit of the Old West in a family-friendly environment. It may also be the undying passion for food and family passed down from generation to generation, a tradition of excellence that stands the test of time.
