From a backyard BBQ to a multi-restaurant empire, The Beefy Boys have been serving up award-winning burgers across the UK for over a decade. What started 14 years ago as a few mates experimenting with American-style BBQ in their spare time, quickly turned into something much bigger after a surprise win at Grillstock and a second-place finish at the World Burger Championships in Vegas.

Now with five locations, including their newest in Oxford, The Beefy Boys combine hands-on leadership with a focus on community, keeping their independent, local vibe alive while constantly innovating on the menu. We chatted with co-founder Anthony ‘Murf’ Murphy about the secrets to the perfect burger, the story behind a brand built on passion, experimentation, and what’s next:

Can you take us back to that first backyard BBQ. What sparked the idea that eventually became The Beefy Boys? 

It was around 14 years ago, we’d been watching a lot of Man vs Food and Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, and we wanted to eat food like that. The BBQ scene in the UK wasn’t great back then, so we jumped into the research and cooked for our mates, and they loved it.

Did you ever imagine, back then, that it would grow into a multi-restaurant brand across the UK? 

God no, it’s been a roller coaster. We just made burgers for us to enjoy while we were drinking beers. We entered Grillstock for a laugh, and we won that and ended up competing at the World Burger Championships in Vegas. Every step of the way has been as big a surprise to us as it was to everyone else.

What was the “aha” moment when you realised this wasn’t just a hobby anymore? 

Defo the Vegas trip! Coming 2nd in the world was such a huge event for us, it was the moment it all changed. We did a pop-up in Hereford after we got back, and 300 people turned up. We were doing a regular pop-up every Thursday in our home town and we would have 600-700 people turning up. We knew we were on to something at that point.

The Beefy Boys now have five locations, with Oxford joining the family – what’s been your approach to expanding while keeping that local, independent feel? 

We are very hands-on, we are there for training, we are there in the kitchen and out front. It’s important to us that we remain an independent and don’t become a faceless chain. We like to work with local sports clubs, theatres, and charities to help keep Beefy Boys as part of the community.

You’ve won multiple awards for your burgers. What’s the secret to a truly great burger in your opinion? 

Simplicity and freshness, never freeze the meat, don’t overcomplicate it. You need fresh, quality beef and a searing hot grill. Treat the food with respect and care about what you are putting out.

 How much time and experimentation went into perfecting your signature patty and menu? 

The Beefy Boy has remained pretty much unchanged since that first BBQ. We did a lot of research beforehand and experimenting, but that’s been there for years. The menu’s always evolving, new burgers coming on, old ones coming off. We currently offer three patty styles: thick and pink, smashed and Oklahoma. We like to innovate and keep things fresh, so hopefully we’ll have some new stuff coming soon…

What’s your personal go-to order from The Beefy Boys menu? 

I love an Oklahoma Onion Boy, but I am partial to a thick patty Dirty Boy as well.

Tell us about the cookbook. What inspired you to put your recipes into print? 

We first had the idea during lockdown as a way to keep sane. It got parked for a few years as we came out of the pandemic. We thought a book would always be great; we have an interesting origin story and the book is as much about that as it is about burgers and the history of burgers. We wanted to write the only burger book anyone would ever need, but one that also has a few pages dedicated to our many adventures at the World Burger Championships.