CINCINNATI — Just a few weeks ago, President Joe Biden paid a special visit to the Cincinnati area to discuss funding for the Brent-Spence Bridge project. But before his trip was over, he made sure to stop by a popular barbecue spot, to the surprise of staff and customers.

Jan. 4 is a day Just Q’in BBQ owner Matthew Cuff will never forget. Members of the Secret Service showed up at his restaurant in preparation for a surprise visit from Biden. 

“We didn’t have any notice that he was coming,” said Cuff. “We didn’t know anything about it. Secret Service just kind of showed up with all their stuff, their dogs, and commandeering the parking out and our patio.”

After thoroughly inspecting the Texas-style barbecue restaurant, they gave out a number of instructions and an itinerary for everyone to follow.

“So many things happening all at one time,” Cuff said. “We were just kind of like I guess in shock and just went about our day as we normally would.”

It wasn’t long before the president made his special appearance. Before meeting with Cuff, Biden spent some time with customers.

“He actually went to them and chatted with them a little bit and took a selfie with a couple of our guests and I shook his hand and introduced him to our team,” said Cuff. 

Biden didn’t get to stay long, but before he left he made sure to take a couple of pictures with Cuff and his crew. He took an order to go and tried one of the restaurant’s most popular desserts.

“He ate the peach cobbler here,” said Cuff. “He loved the peach cobbler and then after the fact I was in communication with people from the White House and they just said he raved about the food all the way back to D.C.”

Cuff said it was a surreal experience meeting the president and having him try out his food. And to hear such great reviews from Biden, he said it's a testament to the hard work of his team.

“We didn’t go get the good stuff,” he said. “We didn’t hide the good food. I didn’t have to tell our team members to be on their best behavior. The same service that we give everybody every day is the same service we gave the President of the United States.”