Decades of family experience running a barbecue restaurant, combined with the draw of beloved Dallas Cowboys' defensive lineman and linebacker Randy White, have been a recipe for success for owners Tracy and Nicole Hutchins.

Randy White's Hall of Fame Barbeque's casual country feel and sports memorabilia decor draw a strong lunch and dinner crowd, but the food, perfected over decades of practice, is what keeps them coming back, the owners said.

"Everything is homemade," Tracy said. "Our pits—we use no gas; it's all 100 percent wood burning. We are pulling meats off the pit fresh every day."

Brisket, ribs, sausage, chicken, pork, turkey, ham and a plethora of homemade sides flesh out the menu. The original barbecue sauce recipe dates back to 1978—the year the Hutchins family opened their first restaurant.

"We like to think our barbecue doesn't need sauce, but if you want it, we have the best," Tracy said.

Although Randy White's Hall of Fame Barbeque no longer carries the Hutchins family name in its title, the restaurant's history dates back to a small roadside smokehouse opened in the late 1970s on U.S. 380 near McKinney by Tracy Hutchins' father, Roy Hutchins.

By 1991, the demand at Roy's Smokehouse had grown enough to allow the family to open a much bigger restaurant in McKinney—called Hutchins BBQ.

In 1994, the business expanded to include another barbecue restaurant in Frisco. At the time, it was one of only six restaurants in town, Tracy said.

Dallas Cowboys hall of fame player Randy White, a Prosper resident at the time and a family friend, in 2002 agreed to let the Hutchins family change the restaurant name to Randy White's Hall of Fame Barbecue.

White's sports memorabilia, ranging from a Troy Aikman jersey, to autographed sports and rodeo photos and much more, decorates the walls of the restaurant, adding to its rustic appeal.

"Probably what separates us from the competition, besides putting everything we have into our food, our meats, our vegetables, is we are a family, and customers are everything to us," Tracy said.

Patrons can get barbecue in a meal (two-meat combo, $11.95; three-meat $12.95) or by the pound. Randy White's Signature Baby Back Ribs are also on the menu ($14.99/pound, $8.54/half-pound). A fried catfish plate starts at $10.95.

Four different types of beans—jalapeno, baked, pinto or green—baked potatoes, potato casserole and many more sides start at $2.54 per serving.

Catering is also a large part of Randy White's business. The restaurant will cater to just about any size group, small or large.

Randy's favorite and a customer favorite:

The smoked brisket and ribs—all you can eat for $16.54. The meal includes baby back ribs, Black Angus brisket and all the trimmings. Owner Tracy Hutchins said the sides are popular as well, particularly the jalapeno beans.

• 9225 Preston Road 972-377-0540
• www.randywhitesbbq.com
• Hours: 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Mon.-Thu.,
• 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Fri.-Sat.