BARBECUE RESTAURANT CATERS TO APPETITES.

Byline: Kathleen Sweeney Staff Writer

CASTAIC - In Abilene, Texas, cooking and sauces are sacred.

By the time children are 4, they've already learned to bake hardtack biscuits, and if they're lucky, they've been clued in on Grandma's secret to the perfect barbecue sauce.

George Adams got his secrets from sitting in his mother's kitchen with the ladies in his family while the guys sat on the porch and chewed the fat.

``My mother said, 'Never let anyone leave your kitchen hungry,' '' Adams recalls, with tears in his eyes.

Taking her secret recipes, and developing his own, Adams upholds that advice by serving 10-ounce New York steaks, short ribs, chicken, baked beans and mashed potatoes, and of course, biscuits.

In January, he began sharing his secrets and large portions with neighbors and strangers alike.

George's Bar-B-Q and Steakhouse, 27526 Lake Hughes Road, is hidden a few blocks off the Golden State Freeway, only a small sign letting people know it's there - though hungry appetites might find it from the aroma of barbecued chicken or ribs floating in the air from the outside Santa Maria-style grill.

Inside, it's not a fancy place, but the red-checkered, plastic tablecloths covering the picnic tables is a reminder of backyard barbecues and what good food is to come.

People with healthy appetites can relish the steaks and barbecued chicken, ribs, pork and hamburgers with Adams' special dry sauce on most. For the lighter eaters, there's the Philly sandwich, salads and soup.

Adams won't serve anything he doesn't like eating. That's why customers won't find liver on the menu, but there's plenty from which to chose.

``I always prided myself on cooking the best food,'' he said.

Though Adams, 56, has always been cooking, his restaurant venture began after spending 12 years of catering birthday parties, school events and private parties. He did this on the weekends while he worked as a pipe fitter and welder, as he has for 35 years during the week.

He got the idea to share his cooking with the public when he noticed people leaving Angela's Range in Little Tujunga Canyon just before lunch and returning in the early afternoons.

Adams started serving his barbecue for lunch at the firing range and three weeks later he was asked to cater his first party for 200 people at actor Lee Marvin's beach house.

``It was quite a deal,'' he said.

The next weekend, he was booked for a birthday party, and has had a gig every weekend since.

Last year, he and his wife, Elizabeth, decided to get their feet wet in the restaurant business.

``You learn in a hurry,'' he said. ``We jumped in with both feet and it was scalding hot.''

But after months of working both jobs, he finally found a cook, or food creator as he calls him, to add more flavor to the menu.

Paul Maggiano, an Italian who has cooked for the past 42 years, sometimes in five-star restaurants, instantly liked what he saw and tasted.

``I liked the way it smelt and the family-type atmosphere,'' Maggiano said of George's. ``This young man was out at every table, making sure everyone had what they ordered on their plate. That's rare.''

Maggiano is adding daily specials to the menu, such as pasta on Tuesdays and fish on Fridays. The prices are remaining affordable and the quality is improving.

Adams assures his customers, especially those who come in for lunch and dinner every day, that their place away from home will still be George's place.

``The sign out front says, 'Family Restaurant,' '' he said. ``That's what I want. I built this place for the locals.''

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) George Adams adds secret dry seasoning to his meats on the barbecue at his Castaic restaurant.

(2) Adams, right, the chef and Chef Paul Maggiano cook up dinner at George's Bar B Q in Castaic.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer