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Bumbershoot Barbecue to open in Argyle

Bumbershoot Barbecue is expected to open in Argyle in March 2017.

Out behind a quirky coffee shop, there's a 32-foot trailer that will serve barbecue until they run out. Customers will nosh on brisket at picnic tables set up under the trees. You're in Austin, right?

Nope, you're in Argyle, Texas.

"We're going to keep it straight: just a salt and pepper rub," says executive chef Chad...
"We're going to keep it straight: just a salt and pepper rub," says executive chef Chad Kelley of his brisket at Bumbershoot Barbecue.(Narciso Tovar)

The culinary team behind Barley & Board in Denton and several Argyle restaurants are opening a new spot they call Bumbershoot Barbecue at the end of March.

"We just knew we needed to put something back there in the trees," said Kjell Knutson, chief operating officer for the restaurant group. They also operate Earl's 377 Pizza, located in front of it (in Argyle), and a coming-soon, whimsical-looking coffee shop called Kimzey's.

(And no: Actor Jason Lee isn't involved in Bumbershoot Barbecue, though he is involved in sibling restaurant Barley & Board.)

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Opening a barbecue joint in Texas is a tough venture. Chef Chad Kelley, former executive chef of Dallas' the Meddlesome Moth (where Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg ate recently), is aware.

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"Barbecue is almost a cult in Texas," he says, "so my goal is to maintain the soul and integrity of true Texas barbecue, but put our flavors and our spin on it." Bumbershoot's barbecue menu will include brisket (smoked with hickory, then pecan); pulled pork; St. Louis-style ribs; roasted chicken, turkey; and at least two varieties of sausage.

Bumbershoot will also sell tater-tot nachos topped with chopped brisket and shredded cheese.

The chef has made two sauces, a "regular and a spicy" for those who want it. Some Central Texas barbecue snobs say good barbecue doesn't need sauce. Here's Kelley: "Honestly, I don't think our barbecue needs barbecue sauce, but for those who want it ... we're just going to have it." (Good answer.)

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He is proud of the sides, which are far from an afterthought, he says. They'll have coleslaw; smoked red potato salad that's similar to a loaded baked potato; and baked beans with apple hot links for flavor. Bumbershoot will occasionally have specials like smoked bologna and chicken wings.

Bumbershoot will be open at 11 a.m., then reopen at 5 p.m. As is the plan with many joints like it, they'll sell until they run out. Closed Mondays.

425 Highway 377, Argyle. Expected to open March 22.