Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy
Dallas BBQ, which has anchored the NE corner of Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place since the early 1980s, is closing after service on Dec. 31, staff confirmed to EVG contributor Stacie Joy.
News of a closure had been expected since an applicant for a new bar-restaurant appeared before Community Board 3 in June. Hospitality vet Curt Huegel, whose portfolio includes concepts such as Bill's Townhouse, Campagnola and Printers Alley, received approval for the unnamed establishment. There was some debate over closing time, and the committee wouldn't approve a 4 a.m. close. We reached out to Huegel to see if he was still taking the prime corner space.
According to staff, the building's landlord would not renew the chainlet's lease and opted to rent the space to another business.
The EV Dallas BBQ staff has been offered jobs at other locations, including one near JFK in Jamaica, Queens, and a new one set to open in New Jersey.
The family-owned Dallas BBQ has a dozen locations in the metropolitan area. The original Dallas BBQ opened on the Upper West Side in 1978, and the EV location debuted in the 1980s (1984?). They have a solid following who enjoy the enormous platters of reasonably priced food (onion loaf!) and supertanker-sized frozen drinks.
There were rumors in 2018 that this outpost would relocate, but management decided to stay put after protests from regulars.
The Dallas BBQ on University Place and Eighth Street shuttered in 2007... the original UWS outpost closed in December 2014 — both the result of rent hikes.