Audio By Carbonatix
Hundreds of people lined up this past Saturday inside Shed 2 of the Dallas Farmers Market, all in hopes of sinking their teeth into some of the best barbecue in the country at Pecan Lodge. I was there, camera in hand, shooting some meaty behind-the-scenes shots for Scott Reitz’s Dish review, but also took the opportunity to interview a few of the dedicated smoked-meat fans about their favorite barbecue, where they’re from, and most important what they’d do if Pecan Lodge ran out of barbecue before they got to the front of the line.
Name: Earl and Chris Garland
Age: Both are 59
From: Carrollton
Amount of time spent in line: 45 minutes
Favorite barbecue: Bodacious Bar B Que in Tyler
Sauce or no sauce: Him: No sauce
Her: Sauce on the side “I’m a dipper”
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: “Pack up our chairs and go home.”
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Name: Erin Ruhl
Age: 26
From: Originally from Kentucky, but lives in Houston (left Houston at 7 o’clock that morning to get barbeque).
Amount of time spent in line: Just got in line
Favorite barbecue: Smitty’s Market in Lockhart and Neely’s Bar-B-Que in Memphis
Sauce or no sauce:“No sauce, but sometimes I like to dip”
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: “I don’t know, I haven’t thought that far ahead. But let’s keep our fingers crossed.”
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Name: Paul Ekawat
Age: 31
From: Dallas
Amount of time spent in line: An hour and a half
Favorite barbecue: The original Sonny Bryan’s
Sauce or no sauce: Sauce
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: “Get the fried chicken I guess. I waited for three hours last time and they ran out, so I came back this week.”
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Name (from left to right): Tonya Mitchell, Valerie Wooten, Bianca Wooten
Age: “30ish,” 49, 27
From: Mesquite
Amount of time spent in line: More than an hour
Favorite barbecue: Lockhart, Sweet Georgia Brown, “I don’t know… Dickey’s?”
Sauce or no sauce: Sauce
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: Get the fried chicken.
Name: Michael, Lori and Charlie Lysobey
Age: 40, 34, 3
Amount of time spent in line: Nearly an hour
Favorite barbecue: The original Sonny Bryan’s
Sauce or no sauce: Him: No sauce. “I’m a vegetarian, but I’m going to try the barbecue.”
Her: Sauce on the side
Charlie: No sauce
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: Her: “Probably just have a lot of fruit for lunch.”
Charlie: “Be hungry and sad. Eat cake.”
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Name: Jeff Walker, Elizabeth Stacey
Age: 40, 34
From: Him: Currently Dallas, but originally from Kansas City
Her: Currently Dallas, but originally from Memphis
Amount of time spent in line: 45 minutes
Favorite barbecue: Him: Arthur Bryant’s BBQ in Kansas City
Her: Central BBQ in Memphis
Sauce or no sauce: Him: “It depends, it shouldn’t need it but I always get it on the side.”
Her: Sauce
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: “I’d take her to Sammy’s or Lockhart.”
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Name: Russell & Janie Sard
Age: 65, 62
From: Burleson
Amount of time spent in line: About an hour
Favorite barbecue: Him: “Mine, I smoke my brisket for 16 hours over mesquite and pecan.”
Her: “I guess I’d better say his.”
Sauce or no sauce: Him: No sauce
Her: “I use it if it needs help”
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: Him: Go to the original Sonny Bryan’s
Her: “Go over there (points across the room) and get a tamale.”
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Name: Josh Stacey
Age: 32
From: Originally from California but currently lives in Jordan
Amount of time spent in line:About an hour
Favorite barbecue: Central BBQ in Memphis
Sauce or no sauce: Sauce
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: Come back earlier tomorrow
Name: Chase Harrison and Sean O’Neal
Age: 30, 28
From: Harrison: Currently lives in Dallas, originally from Alabama O’Neal: Currently lives in Dallas, originally from Gulfport, Mississippi
Amount of time spent in line: An hour and a half
Favorite barbecue: Harrison: Miss Myra’s Pit Bar B Q in Birmingham, Alabama
O’Neal: Cooper’s in Llano, Texas
Sauce or no sauce: Sauce
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: Harrison: “I’d grab another six pack.”
O’Neal: “I would grapple over that wall there, grab the first warm basket and run as fast as I could.”
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Name: Kristal McGhee (Slim Pickin’s)
Age: 27
From: Current Dallas, but originally Kansas
Amount of time spent in line: Just got in line
Favorite barbecue: Julius Rib Cage in Kansas
Sauce or no sauce: “Depends on how tender the meat is.”
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: Cry
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Name: Chris Dinsmore
Age: 39
From: Currently in Dallas but originally from Kansas City. “I got barbecue in my blood.”
Amount of time spent in line: Got to skip the line because he bid on (and won) the golden ticket at Meat Fight.
Favorite barbecue: Back home: Gates Bar B. Q. or Oklahoma Joe’s. In Texas: City Market in Luling, Texas
Sauce or no sauce: “Depends if the barbecue is good.”
What they’ll do if Pecan Lodge runs out of barbecue: Didn’t need to worry about that.
