One of Fort Worth’s and Texas’ oldest barbecue restaurants now has a new top-10 owner
State-ranked Panther City BBQ is taking over 93-year-old Bailey’s Bar-B-Que in downtown Fort Worth, bringing new Texas flavors to a stand that was long the oldest barbecue restaurant in Texas owned by the original family.
Panther City, owned by co-founders Chris Magallanes and Ernest Morales, bought Bailey’s, 826 Taylor St., and will keep it open “to carry the torch for a part of Fort Worth barbecue history,” the restaurant announced on social media.
The restaurant remains open for lunch weekdays serving the same menu plus items from Panther City such as its brisket elote and desserts, Magallanes wrote in a message
Panther City will be “embracing the old as well as introducing the new,” the social media post read. The restaurant name will be revised, Magallanes said, and Bailey’s will continue to serve old-school barbecue at a value price.
“We want to keep a simpler style of cooking,” Magallanes wrote. Panther City will take over March 1 and get to know the downtown staff and customers, he wrote.
Descendants of founders J.T. and Tommie Bailey ran the tiny, red cinderblock barbecue stand from May 17, 1931, to May 2021, then sold it to Tim Turner.
The stand. originally a metal shed now wedged between an office and a parking garage, seats only a handful of customers in a few chairs that replaced school desks around the wall. Many customers stand at a counter.
Bailey’s serves traditional old-school brisket, ribs, sausage, ham, turkey and chicken, but also offers a distinctive spicy pulled pork that other restaurants don’t serve. It also features giant baked potatoes.
As at many Fort Worth barbecue restaurants, Bailey’s brisket sandwiches usually come with pickles and both mustard and sauce, an old-time local tradition.
Tommie Bailey oversaw the restaurant while J.T served 14 months in the Navy Seabees. According to Texas Monthly, she was a sister of East Texas barbecue pioneer Bill Cain, who had opened a restaurant in 1918 in Mutt and Jeff, Texas, near Winnsboro.
Bailey’s thrived when West Seventh Street was lined with the city’s three largest banks, three movie theaters, office towers and the Star-Telegram building and pressroom.
The Bailey’s location in the southwest quadrant of downtown serves mainly visitors and workers in federal offices and courts, along with the nearby Burnett Plaza and Fort Worth Club towers. The Fort Worth Convention Center is only a five-block walk.
Panther City BBQ is listed among Texas Monthly magazine’s state top 10. It started in 2014 as a caterer and then opened a food truck in South Main Village after craft barbecue pioneer Heim moved to a larger location.
Panther City quickly added a patio, then took over a former bar next door at 201 E. Pennsylvania Ave., also listed on some maps as 201 E. Hattie St.
More recently. Panther City has added dinner service.
This story was originally published February 20, 2024 at 5:30 AM with the headline "One of Fort Worth’s and Texas’ oldest barbecue restaurants now has a new top-10 owner."
