Find New Barbecue Flavors Off the Beaten Path

Small shacks feed big appetites

If you’re looking for barbecue off the beaten path, you’ll want to try Lavon, Texas and nearby Wylie.

Lavon is home to Big Daddy’s Roadhouse BBQ, where the manager’s enthusiasm will make you more hungry for the food.

Joe Arrega has cheerfully worked the line at the Big Daddy’s since it opened in 1999 and is more than happy to tell you about the seven kinds of meat he serves.

“I’ve got a brisket, sausage, turkey, ham, hotlink, pulled pork and ribs,” said Arrega.

You can get a plate or a sandwich and meals include sides ranging from beans to mustard potato salad to cucumber salad.

Barbecue lovers from as far as Dallas and Plano patronize the restaurant that used to be something else.

“This place used to be a gas station a long time ago. A long, long time ago,” said Arrega.

This explains the gas pump and telephone booth that sit in the back dining room.

The secret to their great barbecue is the smoker out back. It's where you meal started -- yesterday. Some of the meats stay in here 24 hours before being brought in and served.

“I love the smoker and cooking the meats,” said Arrega.

There’s another place not too far from Big Daddy’s where you can also get something to eat.

Lakeway BBQ has been in business for 30 years and most famous for its brisket.

“It’s Texas favorite and the quality of it, we have a nice juicy brisket,” said Ahmed Samiullah who manages Lakeway BBQ in Wylie.

You can get the same meats as Big Daddy’s along with many of the same sides, but here you can also get jalapeno beans.

It sits right next to a gas station so many customers conveniently stop in on their way home.
The place sees a lot of business during the summer months because of the nearby lake.

“We have a lot of foreigners around. It’s about 75,000, 80,000 tourists come here. We feed about 75 to 80 people at least a day,” said Samiullah.

Big Daddy’s Roadhouse BBQ
1000 Texas 78
Lavon, TX
972-843-5200
www. bigdaddysroadhousebbq.com

Lakeway BBQ
3995 Parker Road
Wylie, TX
972-442-7871

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