Crystal Wise
Depending on the day, you just might get lucky and catch a full-bearded man with one of Fort Worth’s most relaxed, I-got-life-figured-out dispositions selling an insanely diverse selection of smoked meats on the back patio of Showdown — one of the city’s best dive bars. The guy, Rich Chiarello, has been using this spot, at least whenever he sees fit, for his increasingly popular pop-up, Yellow Rose Smokehouse, since 2021.
Using the Showdown’s outside griddle, Chiarello prepares an ever-changing menu of meats. His dishes intermittently include Philly cheesesteaks; Cuban sandwiches; scallion pancakes; pork jowls; brisket; and duck tacos, one of his most popular items. But, outside of a mouthwatering cheeseburger, don’t show up expecting a specific item. Like a Grateful Dead setlist, the menu at Yellow Rose Smokehouse is contingent on the whims of its chef.
Originally hailing from Connecticut, Chiarello would attend Rhodes College in Memphis, where he worked in dive bars and pizza joints before an unexpected pregnancy forced him to move to Fort Worth. A divorce and financial hardships would ensue, but he took solace in smoking meats.
Crystal Wise
“Food was kind of an escape for my son,” Chiarello says. “[Smoking meats] became a routine. I didn’t have the money for us to do some of the things we wanted to do, so it became an event for us.”
When the financial difficulties waned (Side Note: Chiarello became a petroleum landman whose colleague happens to be another well-know, if also underground, chef, Scotty Scott), Chiarello realized that, despite this success, he didn’t find it rewarding.
“One of my partners looks at me and goes, ‘Rich, you’re a decent layman, but it’s very obvious cooking is what you’re excellent at.’”
During his second gig after entering the pop-up world, Daniel Vaughn, the self-anointed BBQ snob of Texas Monthly fame, showed up and gave a glowing review via social media. Chiarello would follow this up with a third-place finish at a nation-wide barbecue competition.
At this point, he approached Showdown about doing pop-ups.
“[Showdown] is one of those places where the more you meet the people and start peeling back those layers, it’s a very diverse crowd,” Chiarello says. “But the decision to come was also location. Showdown is close to my house. It’s just a hop, skip, and jump and everything’s copacetic.”
When asked what’s next, Chiarello seems happy right where he’s at.
“I’m at the peak of my life right now. So, like, why would I rock this boat? I think I’m gonna keep doing what I’m doing.”
