Lockhart Smokehouse, Plano, TX - a first look.

Crossing over the DART tracks into downtown Plano, you will quickly notice new construction surrounding the area off 15th Street. With a recent article from the Dallas Morning News of the city's planned mixed development sprawl southward, it’s not far-fetched to say downtown Plano is very similar to Bishop Arts District.

Already there is a healthy mix of shops, restaurants and bars such as Vickery Park, Fillmore Pub, and Kelly’s Eastside. In 2012, Urban Crust spawned a Tex-Mex sister, Urban Rio, and more recently the popular food truck, Cajun Tailgaters, moved into a brick and mortar.

Adding to the downtown diversity was the announcement of Lockhart Smokehouse's second location in the summer of 2013. December was initially the target month for open doors, but unfortunately this did not occur.

Owner Jeff Bergus said of the date being pushed back, “With every business, there will always be hurdles to jump over, but we’re close. I expect us opening within the next couple weeks.”

After an October fire to neighboring restaurant Zanata, the city of Plano tightened the reins on their plans. The pits had to be enclosed within a separate brick structure. Being housed in a building over 100 years old, Lockhart's owners obliged due to the safety factors involved.

Owner Jill Bergus was elated to have found a location with such history, and the preservation of its character played an important part during the renovation. “We just seem to fall into dumb luck," she said. "Between the Bishop Arts location and here, just luck.”

Originally there was a downtown McKinney location mapped out before that deal fell through. Though disappointed, Jill was content saying, “Because of that not working out, it gave us another year of learning and planning. I believe we’re in a much better position now.”

“This location gives us something we didn’t have before -- more space to accommodate our customer’s needs. There will be an upstairs dining area which will have a bar over looking the restaurant, and will also serve as dual purpose for an event space," she said.

Wanting to maintain as much of the building's original appearance as possible, they kept partially exposed brick walls, wooden floors, and an exposed ceiling. During the renovation, an old well was found where the downstairs bar is situated. This dated back to when every building had its own well for precautionary measures in case of a downtown fire.

As far as the menu goes, it will remain the same as the Bishop Arts location with a robust local craft beer selection. The service line will be more fluid from entrance to chopping block. One thing the Bergus' didn’t want to do was separate their customers from the quintessential barbecue experience and not allow them the opportunity to view the cutting of the meat.

With the first annual Suburbia Fest being announced earlier this month, there’s no denying Plano is becoming an eclectic place to live and play. If there was anything missing to the downtown's puzzle, Lockhart Smokehouse aims to put that piece in place.

Kenny's Smoke House

Update: No movement (Feb. 2013)

After great customer service, I came back to Kenny's to try again. Unfortunately the brisket had slipped compared to my first visit and unfortunately the ribs had been drowned in sauce. Let the meat speak for itself guys. I could tell a difference in texture on the ribs had I only been able to try them naked.

3 Stars

After reading most of the froo-froo reviews about this and that...let's get serious here. To the meat of the thing. I walked into Kenny's on a Friday afternoon of their opening week to get a menu. I was told "they're the best in Texas". Speaking locally, I said how about Pecan Lodge, Lockhart, and Meshack's. The reply "oh we rival any of them". Hold those horses.

Enough with the 5 stars people. It's good but not great. I stuck to the BBQ because hey...you wanna be a BBQ joint then that's what better take the cake. I've read once when BBQ restaurants have a plethora of other menu items, this can be questionable. Are they really concentrating on the meat? I understand they're at the Shops at Legacy and probably couldn't live on selling BBQ alone here...hence the seafood side of the menu.

The atmosphere was cool. Framed portraits of BBQ pits from around the state. Blues music was playing over head. A healthy lunch crowed ensued. I ordered the jalapeno cheese sausage for the appetizer. Of course it came with two sauces to dip, neither one being BBQ sauce. The sausage was confirmed to be Elgin Southside. It appeared to have stayed on a stove rather than a grill as it was served in an immeasurable amount of grease. Marbled and lean brisket were both ordered as well as the pork ribs (St. Louis style). I had them hold off on the sauce on the ribs.

The marbled brisket looked beautiful and this truly hit the nail on the head. The smoke flavor was on par with the amount of bark and rendered fat. So good. The lean brisket had a small ring, good bark but was a tad dry. Flavor still smoky. On to the ribs. The outer layer was dry enough the meat begin to harden. Maybe they were done with high heat. Or put in the oven for a bit. There was decent flavor, not much smoke, steaming hot under the dry outer layer and did come off the bone. Looks like only salt and pepper used.

Since sides come with meals, I'll hit this fast and hard. The Gouda Mac and Cheese was over salted and of course gouda cheese is very sharp anyhow. Bit overwhelming. Coleslaw was good and what I'd expect. Bread pudding and Henry's ice cream (Plano, TX local) hit the spot.

They've been open a week. I'll give them that. But for two employees who I presume are unfamiliar with BBQ to say you're the best in the state and could rival DFW notables...don't get a hitch in your giddy-up too early. I'll be back to try again.