A construction worker who once sold ribs and pork belly on Facebook Marketplace has opened Sacramento's first dedicated Hmong barbecue restaurant. Sactown Hmong BBQ began its soft opening Wednesday at 5824 Franklin Blvd. in South Sacramento, serving Texas-style smoked meats alongside traditional Hmong flavors to a city with deep ties to the cuisine's origins.
The restaurant is the culmination of seven years of pop-ups and catering work by owner Ger Her, according to Abridged – PBS KVIE. Her began selling barbecue on Facebook Marketplace in 2019, not long after the birth of his son, working construction during the week and firing up his smoker on his days off. He sold out of ribs, pork belly, and lemongrass-packed Hmong sausage within a couple of hours on his very first day selling, the outlet reports.
That early momentum never really stopped. By April 2021, Her was preparing 18 racks of ribs, 100 pounds of pork belly, and 40 pounds of Hmong sausage during early morning hours before heading off to his day job, building a Facebook following of more than 1,500 people who messaged to guarantee plates, according to CapRadio. That social media following, per the Abridged report, helped spur the eventual move into a physical storefront.
What's on the Menu at the New Franklin Boulevard Spot
Sactown Hmong BBQ initially launched as a takeout-only operation, and during its soft opening the restaurant opens daily at noon and closes once the food runs out, the station notes. Once it settles into regular hours, the restaurant plans to operate noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, or until sold out, staying closed Sundays and Mondays for now.
The menu centers on Texas-style ribs and pork belly smoked over mesquite wood in an offset smoker, plus grilled chicken, pork belly, and Hmong sausage. Everything comes with kua txob, a Hmong hot sauce made from bird's eye chiles — though Her told the outlet he plans to offer a milder version, since the original proved too spicy for many customers. Her's Hmong sausage features lemongrass and ginger, and the meal is served with sticky rice and homemade Hmong pepper sauce, according to the same CapRadio report.
Her also told the publication he hopes to introduce nqaij tsaws, a rich, slow-roasted Hmong dish similar to pulled pork that's served with mustard greens, along with papaya salad, egg rolls, potato salad, and a winter soup. The restaurant doesn't yet offer vegetarian options and isn't taking reservations, but plans call for bottled and canned beer, sodas, Thai teas, and smoothies down the line. Her said he hopes the restaurant offers a different style of barbecue than what diners are used to finding in Sacramento.
A Storefront With Roots in South Sacramento
The dining room itself carries personal touches, with murals depicting the state Capitol building and Her's parents, per the Abridged report. El Rey Taqueria, a Mexican eatery, lists 5824 Franklin Blvd. as its location.
Hmong cuisine shares culinary overlap with Thai and Lao dishes, and Sacramento has the infrastructure of demand to support it: the metro area has the third-largest Hmong population in the country, trailing only Minneapolis-St. Paul and Fresno, according to Abridged's reporting. Census Bureau estimates show Sacramento County is home to 36,338 Hmong residents, with 19,431 living within Sacramento city limits, per Neilsberg's analysis of the data. Nationally, roughly 360,000 Hmong Americans lived in the U.S. as of 2023, making them the eighth-largest Asian origin group, with California home to the largest statewide population at more than 107,000 residents, according to the Pew Research Center.
Timing Lines Up With Franklin Boulevard's Makeover
The restaurant's debut also follows on the heels of a major infrastructure push along the corridor. In July, the Franklin Boulevard Business Association and local officials celebrated the completion of a 15-month, $20 million Complete Streets Project that modernized 1.5 miles of Franklin Boulevard between Sutterville Road and 32nd Avenue with wider sidewalks, protected bike lanes, and new shade trees, according to a separate Abridged report. The business association represents more than 600 businesses along the corridor and markets the district's multicultural identity, with particular emphasis on its Latino and Southeast Asian Hmong roots, according to a Locable report.
Sacramento's Hmong community has also found other recent moments in the spotlight. South Sacramento's Valley Hi-North Laguna Library unveiled a 30-foot public mural called Threads of Belonging in August, blending Hmong, Filipino, and Palestinian textile patterns to celebrate the area's diverse heritage. And each autumn, Sacramento hosts its own Hmong New Year Festival over Thanksgiving weekend at Cal Expo, a tradition established in 2003 that now draws more than 40,000 attendees and over 200 food and retail vendors, according to CapRadio's coverage of the festival.
