After two years of sleepless and smoke-filled Friday through Sunday evenings, Graysen Walles now has a kitchen to call home as his longtime food trailer, MooHogz Craft BBQ, is one of the newest food spaces open at The Commons, located at 147 Welborn St.
The transition comes after serving nearly three years as principal at Tanglewood Middle School, during which time he often rang the last classroom bell and headed straight to the smoker to perfect his Texas style vinegar and sauced barbecue recipes.
The opportunity to serve his smoked cuisine at The Commons comes after he brought his barbecue trailer to the 3M manufacturing plant and connected with Ryan Smith, a co-owner of The Commons. His reputation and good-tasting food now make him the first Black-owned restaurant in the five-year history of the food hall inside Unity Park.
"To move in this direction was something I had to do," Walles said. "The ownership group has been amazing to our vision and I'm thankful to them. I'm getting older, and I want to make sure I do everything in this life that I enjoy and one of those things is barbecue."
With experience as a retired military veteran, a tropical storm aircrew assistant, and former principal at Tanglewood Middle School, he has worked his food trailer at popular Greenville dining spaces such as Hampton Station, Westside Market, and other pop-up opportunities in North Carolina to ensure people knew of the taste and quality of his barbecue.
Now, comes his opportunity to showcase his passion in one of the most popular food halls in the Upstate.
"We are excited about the opening of the final phase of The Commons," said Drew Parker, co-founder of The Commons, about MooHogz and the opening of the other four restaurants. "The diversity and expanded variety of amazing food options will be an experience everyone can enjoy.
"To now have 12 of Greenville's finest restauranteurs under one roof is something to celebrate," he said.
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Texas-based barbecue served in Greenville
Over the years, after many trips to Austin, Texas, Walles' passion for barbecue continued to grow as strong as the smoke that drifts from his kitchen's air ducts.
Because of those trips, Walles' barbecue is unique due to his willingness to go the extra mile. MooHogz Craft BBQ will import a special post oak from Texas to ensure a true mesquite taste. His ties to the Lonestar state are so strong that he had a custom Oyler smoker from Austin, Texas, built so that he could curate nearly 1,000 pounds of meat at a time.
Unlike many other local barbecue establishments, their vinegar and house sauce mix is expected to complement a menu that includes breakfast and a full week of service.
Their breakfast menu includes pork belly, brisket and pulled pork biscuit sandwiches with eggs and stone mill grits. His smoking techniques include a 10-to-14-hour process at nearly 225-to-250 degrees that showcases his twist of Texas tastes through lunch and dinner options, including pork, but also chicken, beef ribs, wings, turkey breasts, and more.
"Serving people, watching them enjoy the food, watching them smile is a really good feeling," Walles said. "It's an immediate reaction unlike education; sometimes I wouldn't find out how my kids would turn out until 10-to-15 years later.
"Both education and barbecue are very rewarding, but this is immediate," he added.
Breakfast will be offered throughout the week, beginning at 7:30 and ending at 9 a.m., and lunch and dinner will be served until The Commons closes.
Transitioning from Tanglewood to full-time at MooHogz BBQ
During the 2022 school year, Tanglewood Middle School community experienced a heartbreaking event as a male student was charged with shooting and killing another student on the "700" wing of the Greenville County School's campus.
The event on March 31 sent shockwaves through the entire neighborhood, and it happened under Walles's leadership.
"That situation was very traumatic and my heart still goes out to everyone involved," he said. "I knew I had to stay with the school through that trauma and make sure I was there the next year, they deserved to have stability."
Walles says that his wife and three sons, Colin, Lethan, and Nev, gave him the strength to help mend a hurting community and continue his passion project of curating good barbecue.
"My wife and kids were everything during that time," he said. "Unlike education, barbecue is new for me, but I accept the challenge and give it my all like I did in those hallways. Tanglewood means a lot to me."
In time, Wallen plans to give back to Greenville County Schools and Tanglewood Middle School through his efforts at MooHogz Craft BBQ in The Commons.
What are the other new restaurants at The Commons?
In the new food corridor at The Commons, MooHogz Craft BBQ will join Kuka Juice, Luna Noodles & Pizza, Indigo Indian Street Kitchen, and LaRue Sweets Treats & More.
The majority of these restaurants will open during the final portion of July.
"We're excited to be opening in this new space at The Commons," said Toni Norton, chocolatier at LaRue. "There was no ice cream business here before us, so what better place to start out than here.
"We're glad to be a complement to restaurants like MooHogz, and the others, and we're excited to serve."
– A.J. Jackson covers the food & dining scene, along with arts, entertainment and downtown culture for The Greenville News. Contact him by email at ajackson@gannett.com, and follow him on X (formally Twitter) @ajhappened. This coverage is only possible with support from our readers.Sign up today for a digital subscription.
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