The restaurant will open in mid-April at 2105 Lone Star Drive, Sugar Land, offering various barbecue fare with a Creole-modern twist as well as pasta, wings, salads and other dishes. Speciality items will include brisket and cheese empanadas, stuffed turkey legs, armadillo eggs, and smoked oxtails on weekends, Williams said.
Williams, who has 30 years of experience in the food service industry, met Greenwood while managing a local bar and restaurant. The friends and business partners worked together for more than 20 years before deciding to open Williams Smokehouse BBQ & Blues together, noting there were not many Texas barbecue options in Sugar Land, Williams said.
Williams learned to cook authentic Texas barbecue from his uncle H.K. Williams, who built barbecue pits for customers across the state and was a pillar in the Sugar Land community, Williams said. Wood type, smoke time, temperature and seasoning are the cornerstones of Texas barbecue, Williams said.
“We strictly stick to the principle of barbecue,” he said.
Another focus of the Williams Smokehouse BBQ & Blues is bringing in live music on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays as well as a DJ on Thursdays, which Greenwood will manage. Music was also a big part of Williams' family; his other uncle was “the blues guy in the family,” even once playing with the late B.B. King, Williams said.
“Our motto ... is a thing called 'Wang Dang Doodle,' which is a blues song from the early ’60s, and it basically means just come in and have an amazingly good time,” he said. “And that’s what we want all our patrons to do is come in and have a great time.”
www.williamssmokehouse.com
