Olaf Growald
Derek Allan’s Texas Barbecue
Savvy barbecue joint aficionados already know the secret to scoring a good plate of ’cue: Get there early.
The earlier you arrive, the better your chances are of not crossing paths with the “sold out” sign.
There’s now another incentive for barbecue lovers to rise early: barbecue for breakfast. Many local ’cue joints are opening at the crack of dawn for the most important meal of the day.
To entice customers, and also stretch their legs creatively, most are offering unique items unavailable during lunch or dinner. Here’s a look at this new barbecue breakfast club:
Derek Allan’s Texas Barbecue
Over the past year, this ’cue newcomer in the medical district — run by pitmaster Derek Allan and his wife, Brittany — has moved to the forefront of Fort Worth’s barbecue scene, offering Wagyu brisket, housemade beef sausage, and mouthwatering ribs that usually sell out within a matter of hours. To sate the appetites of early morning ’cue lovers and nearby hospital workers, Allan recently added a breakfast menu made up of tacos, platters, and other items.
What to get: Allan’s signature breakfast dish is the brisket biscuit, a large housemade buttermilk biscuit sliced in two, then piled high with Wagyu brisket, eggs, and a slice of cheddar cheese. Add hash browns to the mix and thank us later.
Second choice: The “Dirty Texan” taco, loaded with egg, Wagyu brisket, cheese, and sliced sausage. Like all of the breakfast tacos here, the DT comes wrapped in a warm, freshly made flour tortilla.
Breakfast hours: 7 – 10:30 a.m. Tuesday – Saturday. Details: 1116 Eighth Ave., derekallansbbq.com
Crystal Wise
BBQ on the Brazos
BBQ on the Brazos
Long before barbecue breakfasts became a thing, North Texas pitmaster John Sanford was serving barbecue breakfast plates out of his gas station barbecue joint in Cresson. After a brief stint in Fort Worth, Sanford recently moved BBQ on the Brazos back to its Cresson home, where he and his son, John Jr., serve a wide variety of breakfast dishes.
What to get: Any of their tacos are great, but the smoked brisket tacos are superb, thanks to the richness of his expertly smoked brisket. Excellent flour tortillas, too, made in-house.
Second choice: Sanford and son also serve a handful of Mexican food staples for breakfast, all mixed with barbecue meats, including huevos rancheros and chilaquiles.
Breakfast hours: 7 – 10 a.m. Tuesday – Saturday. Details: 9001 Highway 377, Cresson; bbqonthebrazoscressontx.com
407 BBQ
After running a successful trailer with the same name, former competitive barbecuer Bryan McLarty opened this joint last year on Farm Road 407 in Argyle, where he serves ’cue classics and brisket burgers. McLarty soon realized no one in his neck of the woods offered much in the way of early morning eats. Thus, his take on breakfast was born.
What to get: 407 offers an extensive breakfast menu, from tacos to biscuits and gravy to huge platters served with your choice of smoked meats. His best item: pork migas, scrambled eggs mixed with crisp tortilla strips, onions, cilantro, bell peppers, and on top, a hefty serving of tender pulled pork, all of which is smothered in a blanket of housemade salsa verde. It’s enough for two people, and an absolute steal at $10.
Second choice: Pastrami hash bowl, a mishmash of housemade pastrami, scrambled eggs, diced potatoes, onions, and bell peppers. It’s drizzled with a house Carolina barbecue sauce and comes with two flour tortillas.
Breakfast hours: 7 – 10:30 a.m. Wednesday – Saturday. Details: 831 FM 407 West, Argyle. 407bbq.com
Meat U Anywhere BBQ
Andy Sedino was another barbecuer ahead of the curve. His twin Meat U Anywhere BBQ restaurants — the original in Grapevine and the spinoff in Trophy Club — have been offering breakfast since they opened in ’14 and ’16, respectively. Right now, he only offers breakfast tacos, but there are several varieties, made with smoked meats you don’t normally see on breakfast menus, and they’re served all day.
What to get: Breakfast tacos come stuffed with eggs, cheese, and your choice of the usual smoked meats: brisket, sausage, pulled pork, good choices all. Beyond the norm is the excellent chorizo and egg taco, filled to the brim with a housemade chorizo mix, nice and smoky and not the least bit greasy.
Second choice: Smoked turkey taco, filled with eggs with lusciously tender turkey.
Breakfast hours: 6 a.m. – 8:30 p.m. Monday – Saturday; 6 a.m. – 3 p.m. Sunday. Details: 919 West Northwest Highway, Grapevine; 91 Trophy Club Drive, Trophy Club; meatuanywhere.com
Olaf Growald
Panther City BBQ
Panther City BBQ
This Near Southside barbecue joint, one of the best in the city, has spent the past several months experimenting with late-night and early-morning menus. While the late-night hours are currently on hold, owners Chris Magallanes and Ernest Morales have beefed up their breakfast options, offering killer tacos, bowls, and super cheap plates.
What to get: The breakfast platter is worth every dime. You get a huge slab of smoked brisket, two eggs, sliced and fried potatoes, a scoop of refried beans, a link of jalapeño cheddar sausage, fresh salsa, and a freshly made flour tortilla. It’s enough food for two people for less than $10.
Second choice: Forget second choice. Their guisado tacos are an absolute must. Brisket trimmings are made into a rich, spicy, and addicting gravy, then poured onto a flour tortilla. Could be the best guisado in town.
Breakfast hours: 7 – 10 a.m. Wednesday – Saturday. Details: 208 E. Hattie St., panthercitybbq.com
