By MIKE MCKENNA
There’s an old saying that “there’s no truer love than the love we have for food.”
Whoever first coined that phrase certainly must have been a fan of barbecue. And if you’ve been to Sisters BBQ in Hailey recently, you can see—and taste—how easy it is to fall in love with food.
“I’ve been a foodie from the get-go and barbecue has become my passion,” Christine Martinez said.
Christine is the owner of Sisters BBQ on the south end of Main Street in Hailey, across from another foodies’ favorite—CK’s.
Christine originally opened Smokey Bone BBQ as a food truck in Ketchum with her husband back in 2015. They moved into a brick-and-mortar in Hailey and then added a second location in Twin Falls a couple of years later. They have since parted ways, with the Twin location keeping the original name. Christine kept the Hailey location so that she can keep serving up the kind of food she loves to a community she has deep passion for.
“This is such a beautiful small town where people really value community,” said Christine, who first moved to Hailey from Iowa 20 years ago. “We want our restaurant to be a positive part of it. I feel lucky to be here.”
Christine’s large, local family helped her remodel the restaurant and inspired her to name the place after her sisters. Her family also shares and inspires Christine’s passion for food, but it was a “barbecue pilgrimage” that took her love to another level.
The tour around the Southern U.S. included stops in BBQ havens like Kansas City, St. Louis and around the Lone Star State. Some days they’d have barbecue for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The dry-rubs from Texas turned out to be their favorite flavors. That’s the style they first started selling from the food truck nearly a decade ago and it’s still the star of the menu today.
Sisters still offers some of the old favorites of Smokey Bone fans, like brisket, pulled pork, ribs and turkey legs, but the menu has become more creative and diverse.
“We’ve added some new sandwiches and sides to add more depth to the menu, while still keeping the Smokey Bone fans happy,” Christine said. “You can still come in and have your ‘man’s meal’ with lots of meat and she can have something lighter if she’d like, like a cucumber salad, and everyone wins.”
Sisters smokes their meats daily right here in Hailey over apple wood. The dry-rub style allows them to serve all their sauces on the side, which is a big hit with our more health-conscious and dietary-limited locals.
Sisters also offers regular specials and seasonal desserts like their tasty pumpkin pie. Folks who follow them on Facebook or sign up for their Loyalty Program can find daily and weekly specials.
“I bring my energy and passion here every day to make food that people will love,” Christine said. “I really care about what happens here.”
Sisters BBQ at 315 South Main Street in Hailey is open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. for dine in or take out. Find out more by visiting Sisterbbq.com or calling (208) 788-0772.