Marvin Green IV is the master of many things, especially the grills at his new barbecue joint.

Marvin Green IV is a familiar face, at least for staffers at the Weekly. In 2019 he served as an editorial intern – and he turned out some daring stuff, once writing about flying a plane without first taking lessons on the ground. He was then scooped up by the sales department, where he worked until the pandemic shutdown.

He still writes, covering local sports on a freelance basis for The Californian. But his focus is also on barbecue. And on Friday, March 11, he welcomes diners to Marv’s Barbecue, which will set up at Urban Kitchen in Monterey every weekend, serving brisket, tri-tip, ribs, chicken and more from a custom offset smoker and a Santa Maria grill.

Green was raised in the Sacramento area where he tended the smoker at Roxie’s Deli & Barbecue. He arrived here to study human communication and social action at CSU Monterey Bay, where much of the coursework involved writing. “Like many guys I came for school and stayed because of a girl,” he says. (The story has a happy ending; Green is now married and has a son.)

He visited with the Weekly shortly before becoming the newest face in the local barbecue business.

Weekly: Why barbecue?

Green IV: Two things. Like most guys I love playing with fire, and I love the results. You get to eat something really good and you get together with family and friends.

Barbecue is often the subject of debate. Smoker or open flame, a particular style. What is barbecue to you?

I think barbecue is something cooked low and slow. You can do it over an open flame, but you have to do it right. I mean, my chicken takes over two hours. It allows you to take a cut of meat that’s not desirable – brisket; most tri-tip becomes ground beef – and make it great.

Do you have a favorite style?

No, Marv’s picks from a lot of styles. Someone in central Texas decided indirect heat would be better and all of a sudden brisket became the thing. But there are so many other cuts and meats. Everyone does Texas, and I do a brisket. But I create a California style. It’s important to take advantage of what you have locally. Santa Maria style direct heat – that’s our California history.

You don’t find a lot of good brisket in California.

You need a lot of time and patience. You have to go lower and you have to go slower. You know, when I did brisket in my backyard smoker it was fine. I got a commercial smoker and I tried brisket the first time, I was so disappointed.

We haven’t talked about wood.

Wood is huge. I use oak and almond for a couple reasons. Oak has a strong smoke that is not overpowering. Almond is nutty and is low ash. The red oak in the Central Coast is wonderful. Those coals just last.

How did Marv’s come about?

A friend of mine from Roxie’s Deli & Barbecue in Sacramento asked me if I wanted to borrow his smoker. I decided to give myself a year to practice. In January I made a fortuitous phone call to Rene Diaz [formerly the owner of Plaza Linda restaurant in Carmel Valley, and current owner of Plaza Diaz inside Urban Kitchen]. I was looking for a commissary kitchen at the time.

So now you get to do barbecue and sports. Great, right?

Yes it is, because with sports I get to be a part of youth in the local community. And food – can you beat serving other people food? You see people at the best part of their day.

How did you manage during lockdown?

It was my year of practice with barbecue. And we had a baby when Covid hit. I got laid off at the right time. It allowed me to focus on being a father. I refuse to look back on it as a bad time.

What is your goal with Marv’s? Will you expand the schedule?

I want people who come to leave happy and full. I think barbecue is a labor of love, care and patience. To sustain that is difficult. Maybe I’d expand to Thursday and Sunday, but you read about the legends of barbecue and they only work on weekends.

Do you miss the Weekly?

I do, a lot. It’s hard to find a job where you find a sense of community, and that’s what you have.

MARV’S BARBECUE is at Urban Kitchen, 1425 Munras Ave., Monterey. It opens every Friday-Saturday from 11:30am until sold out.