 I popped in at my local supermarket Lucky's to get just a few things. I rounded a corner and spotted the familiar bright yellow label that caught my eye. I still get goosebumps seeing my mother’s sauce on a supermarket shelf. Next time you are shopping, pick up a jar or two of Everett and Jones Barbeque “Super Q” barbecue sauce. We have come a long way since 1973. Who remembers when the only way you could buy our sauce was you had to bring your own container, and we would go in the kitchen and fill it up. If you were at the Berkeley restaurant and forgot to bring a container you went next door to the Can Food grocery store, bought a quart jar of orange juice and told us to pour it out and fill it up with some medium sauce...LoL. If you were at the Fruitvale restaurant and forgot to bring an empty jar you went next door to the Liquor store or across the street to the Black & White Market and bought a jar of juice and brought it back to us to fill it up. We got so much free orange juice ...LOL. Ahh yes, the good old days!   We first bottled our sauce in 12 ounce glass jars in 1983, and sold to local supermarkets and specialty stores.  
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 The next President of the United States Kamala Harris! Time to get the band back together for another historic road trip. On January 16, 2009, fifty-four passengers boarded a bus at Everett and Jones Barbeque restaurant in Oakland, California and traveled across country to witness history, the 1st Black President of the United States, Barack Obama for his inauguration January 20, 2009. Let's do it again!       Memorial Day 2024 marks the 51st Anniversary year of Everett and Jones Barbeque. Thanks to our customers we made it to this milestone. Thank you even to the customers who gave us a tough time, always wanting extra meat, extra sauce, extra potato salad, extra bread, extra plate, etc. You know who you are. Thank you even to the always late customers who would run up to the door or window of the restaurant after we have closed pounding on the door and yelling can I get an order pleaseeeeee . . . you know who you are. Thank you even to the customers who would call in their orders and ask everybody in the house what they wanted; while we held on to the phone for 30 minutes . . . you know who you are. Thank you even to the customers who would ask for hot sauce on their orders, boasting that they eat spicy sauce all the time and then bring it back to us and ask us to wash it off. You know who you are. Here is a BBQ tip, do not change. You have made this journey to 51 memorable. We thank you for every minute, every second, and would not change a thing except that time when . . oh wait that is another story. Updated 5/5/2024 We are descendants of Jenny Mclean.  Purchase DVD
 “Nothing says Christmas in the Everett & Jones family like Charles Brown, Sweet Potato pie, and a charred-smelling Afro.” Blues singer Charles Brown became a part of our family. His record “Please Come Home For Christmas” would be played on repeat from Thanksgiving Day throughout Christmas Day. If you ask any one of the grandchildren they can sing the entire song including the lead guitar instrumental interlude. It is seared in our brains. There was a time when we’d cover our ears trying to escape; now we can’t wait to hear it played to signify the beginning of the season. My earliest memory of Christmas was the smell of Sweet potato pies baking in the oven, Charles Brown bellowing “Please Come Home For Christmas”, grandma in the kitchen, aunts, cousins, friends, and friends of friends all crowding in my grandmother’s 2000 sq. ft. home. This is how we spent Christmas growing up. Those were the good ole days that I thought about while serving overseas in the Navy and what I think of now as I live in North Carolina with my own family. It was always a special time for me and our Everett & Jones Family. It wasn’t just because of the gathering it was also because the restaurants were closed and that was a reason to celebrate. They were only closed two days out of the year-Thanksgiving and Christmas. It was one of two times when we didn’t have to worry about what was going on at the restaurant, or who would go and lock up. We didn’t think about ribs, beef, chicken, or links (nor was it on our Christmas dinner menu). No one had to go and make sauce or get supplies. This was one day we could spend as a family, and you could feel the sense of relief in the air. But while everyone else was relaxing there were still a faithful few who were busy working away in the kitchen to help prepare the Christmas dinner. Dinner most often consisted of Turkey, Ham, cornbread dressing, gravy, cranberry sauce, yams, green & cabbage, cornbread, Auntie Angie’s Macaroni and cheese, Auntie Helen or May’s Banana Pudding, grandma’s delicious sweet potato pies, and my little cousin Auzerais’ infamous cookies and cupcakes. Ever since she was little Auzerais started baking cookies and cupcakes to share at Christmas dinner. Let’s just say that they were desserts that only a mother could love–and eat.  Grandma Dorothy with Santa and her nine children I know that every family thinks that theirs is special, but mine really is. I have seven aunts: Virginia, Dorothy, Shirley, Mary, Helen, Katie, and Angie, one uncle Allen, my grandmother, and of course, my parents Annie Pearl Everett Jones and James Jones, who started the chain of Everett & Jones Barbeque restaurants in 1973 in the middle of a recession. Someone forgot to tell my family that you don’t start businesses in the heart of recession, but they did it anyway and beat the odds. They took the same tenacity to make Christmas a special time for us. I’m the second oldest grandchild behind my cousin Lamont (Monty), who is only 5 months older and I remember the good ole times around Christmas. When I was younger, I remember going to grandma’s with my family: my mother, father, brother (James Jones Jr. aka Scooter), and little sister LaShaun in our pajamas. The plan was for the entire family to spend the night on Grandma’s living room floor while waiting for Santa Claus to arrive. I could hardly wait until everyone was there because that’s when the real fun began. Every cousin came wearing the same smile, the same twinkling eye- the same excitement. No one ever complained about being there. We’d make bed pallets on the living room floor with our blankets and pillows. The Aunties would hang around with us initially playing games, and making us laugh, but slowly migrate into the kitchen with grandma leaving us grandkids to entertain ourselves. It never failed that a grown-up would threaten to light the fireplace so Santa could not come down causing us to sing in unison NOOOOOO! On a few occasions, they would get one of the employees to dress up like Santa and come through the door yelling, “Merry Christmas!” We weren’t fooled though because they always smelled of smoke- like they’d just gotten off work. “That’s Red” someone would yell, or “Russell.” My mother even dressed as Santa one year, I guess she thought she could do a better job than the men, but she didn’t because my sister gave it away when she started crying, “Mama.” But hey, she tried. Right when we were about to fall asleep one of the aunts would come through the door after working the late shift at the restaurant. They would still be wearing a dirty red or black apron, smeared makeup up, and a charred-smelling afro. Nothing says Christmas in the Everett & Jones family like Charles Brown, Sweet Potato pie, and a charred-smelling Afro. Just like the restaurants, Grandma Dorothy Turner Everett, Head Chief in Charge, also headed this kitchen crew in her home. She was a hard-working woman, who never stopped. Grandma could always be found in the kitchen either sitting at the table picking the meat off of cooked chicken necks and gizzards for her homemade dressing, or stirring in one of several pots. By the time we’d arrived she had accosted plenty of help in the kitchen. One was chopping bell peppers, onions, and celery, another peeling mounds of sweet potatoes, while another was trying to stay on top of the dirty dishes that were rapidly piling up. This was often Auntie Katie’s job and she’d fuss the whole time. If you were smart you stayed clear of the kitchen because they would quickly find you something to do. Grandma had managed to cook about 30 sweet potato pies by Christmas Eve, which were strategically placed throughout the kitchen and dining room so she could watch them. She’d only let us eat the “ugly ones” on Christmas Eve, ones that were burnt around the edges or had either gotten damaged during the process. As some things changed others never did. Someone is always coming through the door with a dirty apron, a smeared smutted face and charred Afros, jerry curls, or a weave in this family. There are always Sweet Potato pies scattered throughout somebody’s kitchen and dining room and The last time at Grandma’s house, Auntie Katie was still fussing about washing dishes, and Auntie Helen still carted away leftovers in Tupperware dishes. However one thing did change, my cousin Auzerais no longer serves us indescribable-looking cookies and cupcakes. She went on to culinary school and received a Bachelor of Science degree in culinary science. We like to remind her that we endured the hard times together with her desserts. Through the process, we all smiled and encouraged her all the while inconspicuously discarding them in a napkin. Look at her now Blondery Eventually, the family grew too big to sleep on grandma’s floor and she kicked us out to sleep at our own homes and instead come the next day. We got too big to eat around the dining room table, kitchen table, and kids table, so they moved it outside under the extended carport at a 30 ft. long table, which was dressed for the festivities. We didn’t care where we ate, just as long as we're together. Eventually, we outgrew the carport and moved it to the Everett & Jones Barbeque restaurant in Jack London Square because it was the only place big enough to hold us. Now we’re all grown up with families of our own, and Grandma is no longer with us. Some of us are struggling to recreate the memories of the past, while others are taking on new ones. Let me encourage you to remember your family this year. We have everything we need to survive- Jesus Christ, good food, love, and family. Most importantly, let’s remember why we celebrate this season. No, it’s not because the restaurants are closed although that’s good too, but it is the fact that God loved us so much that He sent us a Savior that we might be saved. Grandma was good and did a wonderful job, but it is because of God’s grace and mercy that we are blessed beyond measure. Don’t take it for granted. It’s not just a cliché that He is the reason for the season because He is. We are family-the Everett & Jones Barbeque family. Merry Christmas family I love you. Be Blessed, Yvette Jones-Hawkins  Happy 50th Anniversary-August 11, 2023  Photo by E40  Photo by E40     Dorothy Turner Everett We may not have a cent to pay the rent but we’re gonna make it I know we will Dorothy Turner Everett said "I thought that I would never earn more than $2.00 dollars an hour. With nine children I always believed that God would make a way for us. I had a dream. I wanted to build something that my children could fall back on. He answered my prayers." Check out our upcoming 50th anniversary exhibit at oacc.cc/event/everettjones/ Growing up this song by Little Milton was on repeat in our house. By then my mom was a single parent. My dad and mom divorced and Dad moved to Albany, New York. She played this song to encourage herself that everything would be alright.  Harry Mock and his contribution to Oakland's Black barbeque culture will be explored in August at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center https://oacc.cc/ https://www.instagram.com/oaklandasiancc/ We’re Gonna Make It Sung By Little Milton - May 19, 1965 Written By: Billy Davis, Carl Smith, Gene Barge, Raynard Miner We may have to eat beans every day but we’re gonna make it, I know we will. And if a job is hard to find And we have to stand in the welfare line I’ve got your love and you got mine So we’re gonna make it, I know we will. We may not have a home to call our own But we’re gonna make it, I know we will We may have to fight hardships alone But we’re gonna make it, I know we will Cause togetherness brings peace of mind We can’t stay down all the time I’ve got your love and you know you got mine So we’re gonna make it, I know we will Our car may be old, our two rooms cold But we’re gonna make it, I know we will We may not can spare a roach a crumb But we’re gonna make it, I know we will And if I have to carry around a sign Sayin help the deaf, the dumb, and the blind I got your love and you know you got mine So we’re gonna make it, I know we will We’re gonna make it We’re gonna make it, baby It might seem hard sometime But don’t worry, darlin baby We’re gonna keep on tryin My mother was born Dorothy Turner on July 28, 1932, in rural Choctaw County, Alabama. She was the oldest daughter of eight children from her mother Maybelle Everett. Her father Leslie Turner and her mother Maybelle were never married.  Grandma Maybelle, three of her daughters Minnie Lee, Ethel Lee, and Bobbie Jean, and stepfather Allen Gandy. Dorothy worked at a domestic cleaning house in Alabama until, as part of the wave of African Americans leaving the segregated south looking for a better life. She migrated to Oakland, California in 1952, with her husband the late Reverend Cleveland A. Everett, and three young daughters. Dorothy’s first job in California was cleaning houses in the city of San Leandro. Dorothy later worked at Wolf’s Records in West Oakland on the historic 7th Street selling popular black records- they were called "race records" back then to the growing Black population in West Oakland. Dorothy also worked as a waitress at the Continental Club on 12th Street in West Oakland, where she saw legendary Blues performers live, and later as a cook at the Original Jenkins Bar-B-Que on 7th Street in West Oakland. Two natural forces were born in 1973, Hip Hop and Everett & Jones Barbeque, both will celebrate 50 years in 2023. Five decades of Everett and Jones Barbeque, which continues to succeed and inspires the third generation of family pitmasters and BBQueens. My late mother and five deceased siblings' legacy will live on! Black Girl Magic! To read more about West Oakland's famous and historic 7th Street BBQ and Blues Legacy, click on the link 7th Street Barbeque Legacy   Shirley Everett-Dicko and Ken McGhee  |
(c) 2024 Shirley Everett-Dicko
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Looking for an agent/publisher for a proposed new barbeque book from a Black woman's perspective 50 years in the game.
The Everett sisters organized a bus trip to the 1st President Obama inauguration
Sharing photos of the 1st President Obama inauguration.
Everett sisters Dorothy, Helen, Mary and Shirley @Jack London Square restaurant planning the "We Believe Get on the Bus" trip to witness history - 1st Obama inauguration.
(C) 2016 Everett and Jones
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