You may not be aware of this, but Ed used to live in Southern California. Yep… he spent his weekends playing beach volleyball on the sands of Huntington Beach and worked in the commercial real estate and Chamber of Commerce world in Irvine, CA. During his time there, he met Brett Douglas. Brett had a cool event space that Ed visited occasionally. Brett also had a boat. Well, it was more like a floating bathtub, but it was big enough to cruise the Newport Beach Bay. When Ed was dating his future wife, Mariana, his brother Preston came to visit. Ed wanted to create a fun experience for everyone and called Brett to see if he’d like to take everyone on a boat cruise. He quickly agreed and the plan was set.
They get to the boat ramp and see this tiny boat. There’s no way they’d all fit! Somehow, they did and off they went. It was a little rough in the bay that day, so the bathtub of a boat was more like a fishing bobber much of the time. If you like roller coasters, then you would have loved this cruise! After a few hours, they realized how little planning went into having food for the trip. Plenty of drinks, just not much food! Enter the “boat sandwich.” Mariana took the random loaf of bread and a bag of potato chips, put them together as a sandwich, and offered the crew a “boat sandwich.” Starving, everyone stuffed their faces and wanted more. Of course, there wasn’t more, so the path of the floating tin can steered back to shore. It was an experience that none of them have ever forgotten!
Fast forward to March 2024, Ed and Mariana have been married for nearly 9 years and own Barham’s Ozark Beef. Brett is married and has moved to Tennesse. Brett and his wife, Ashley, were looking to eat cleaner and source their food from local farms. Brett had seen Ed’s posts about the beef business and decided to give it a try. This past weekend, Ed met Brett in Memphis, TN, to deliver is first half beef from Barham’s Ozark Beef! They had a blast catching up about each other’s families and careers. The only thing missing (other than Mariana, Preston, and the boat) were the boat sandwiches. We’d like to think the half beef was an upgrade, but those boat sandwiches sure sounded good!
Brett, welcome to the Beef Snob community!
Preston Linck and brother Ed Linck on Brett’s Boat in 2014.
Not pictured: Mariana Linck, Brett Douglas, & Boat Sandwiches.
– Hey Ed… Nice hat! –