Texas Monthly included Burnt Bean Co. co-owner Ernest Servantes in its coverage of the Texas pitmasters appearing as judges and competitors on Food Network’s Pitmasters.
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Burnt Bean Co. is back in Texas Monthly—this time for Ernest Servantes’ role on Food Network’s Pitmasters. The magazine recently included Ernest in its look at the Texas BBQ names appearing throughout the competition.
Ernest judges the competition with Andrew Zimmern, Jess Pryles, and Moe Cason. After spending years waiting to hear how his own BBQ scored at cook-offs, he now gets to taste what the teams put in front of him.
Read the full story from Texas Monthly.
Most televised cooking competitions move quickly. A clock starts, contestants rush through a dish, and the judges have a plate in front of them less than an hour later. That is not how brisket, pork shoulder, and other low-and-slow BBQ work.
Pitmasters give teams longer cooking windows that are closer to what they would face at a real cook-off. The first Big Burn challenge gave competitors nine hours to prepare a family-style platter with two proteins and at least one side. Other cooks stretch well beyond that.
The longer clock does not mean the teams can take it easy. They have to keep their fires going, adjust to outdoor conditions, and work with the cooking setup available to them. Shorter Flash Burn challenges can also show up in the middle of a cook, forcing contestants to stop what they are doing and turn out a bite for the judges.
Ernest spent years competing before he and David Kirkland opened Burnt Bean Co. in downtown Seguin. His first BBQ competition started with a simple H-E-B barrel pit and ended with a win against teams cooking on far more expensive equipment. From there, one cook-off led to another.
That history matters on Pitmasters. Ernest understands what can happen during a long cook because he has dealt with the same problems himself: changing weather, stubborn fires, tight deadlines, and meat that does not always behave as planned.
He also knows what separates a technically good plate from one people remember. That is the experience he brings to the judging panel.
Ernest is not the only Texas BBQ name featured on the show. Esaul and Grecia Ramos of San Antonio’s 2M Smokehouse compete as a team, while Boerne pitmaster Al Frugoni joins Jeremy Yoder of Kentucky.
The competitors bring different methods, flavors, and live-fire backgrounds to the series. Having Texas pitmasters at the judging table and in the cooking area gives viewers more than one look at the BBQ being made across the state.
The Texas Monthly feature comes after a busy run of recognition for Burnt Bean Co. The magazine named the Seguin restaurant the No. 1 BBQ joint in Texas on its 2025 list, while the Michelin Guide awarded Burnt Bean a Bib Gourmand.
Now, people who know Burnt Bean for the line outside its downtown Seguin restaurant can watch Ernest draw on his competition background as a judge on Pitmasters.
The series premiered July 13, 2026, on Food Network. Episodes were made available to stream on HBO Max and Discovery+ the day after airing.
Want to try Burnt Bean after seeing Ernest on Pitmasters? Stop by for brisket, ribs, house-made sausage, beef cheek pastrami, signature sides, and Sunday breakfast. Take a look at the menu before you come, and arrive early—we’re open until 3 p.m. or until sold out.
