Billy Bob Barnett rarely grants interviews. But the former owner of Billy Bob’s honkytonk in Fort Worth spoke with NBC 5 Monday about his new project, Big Beat Dallas, at the Toyota Music Factory in Irving.
His development has five food and beverage venues with seven stages for a variety of daily live music from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m.
“It has blues and jazz. It has country. It has Dee-Jays, and it has all kinds of music on the outdoor stage,” Barnett said. “We’ll have festivals on the weekend.”
The project includes a combination of Barnett’s music and life experiences, in addition to his time at Billy Bob's in Fort Worth, Barnett spent years in New Orleans and Los Angeles.
“Just time and history teaches you a lot. So you get a little piece here and a little piece of what was in Fort Worth, what was in Louisiana.”
Already open at Big Beat Dallas is a restaurant and bar called Highway 61, which features food and music of that road to New Orleans and the states along the way.
Also open is Texas Jam House, a restaurant and bar with Texas recipes his sister cooks on the C Bar Ranch in the Hill Country. That ranch is the namesake for another restaurant and bar soon to open. Bar Manzanilla is another food and drink section of Big Beat Dallas.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
The restaurants wrap around an outdoor plaza and concert stage where festivals and market events will be held.
Irving voters first approved city support for an entertainment center in 2007 and Barnett has been involved all along, through several city delays.
“I was the concessionaire early on,” he said. “I like to say it was a 10 year marketing plan.”
Barnett said he is very excited to finally have a grand opening, set for Thursday March 29.
Big Beat Dallas is in the Toyota Music Factory project off Highway 114 in the Las Colinas section of Irving. Admission is free until 9 p.m. when there is a cover charge at Big Beat Dallas.
