Old-time Texas BBQ restaurant in historic location near AT&T Stadium will close
Bodacious Bar-B-Q, a 34-year-old Arlington restaurant in a 1950s barbecue landmark, will close in August, owner Fran Ruegsegger posted on Facebook.
“We’ve had so many wonderful people come through here — customers who became family,” she wrote, announcing the end of the only DFW location for a loose East Texas chain of restaurants with different owners but the same name and similar menus.
“We’ve watched folks grow up, and now they’re bringing in their own kids,” she wrote.
Bodacious was once considered one of Arlington’s best barbecue restaurants. Customers came to 1206 E. Division St. for the simple platters and inexpensive sloppy Joes made of chopped brisket and pork.
“God never closes one door that He doesn’t have a better one to walk through,” Ruegsegger wrote, “so we are excited for whatever opportunities God has ahead for us.”
The restaurant rates 4.2 stars with users of Google.com and 3.8 stars with users of Yelp.com, with praise for the pork and beef sandwiches and plates.
Bodacious opened in 1991 as part of East Texas pitmaster Roland Lindsey’s barbecue empire.
But the building dates to 1958, when it was built as a highway location of Texas legend Underwood’s Bar-B-Q from Brownwood.
Back then, many cross-country travelers still chose to drive Division Street between Fort Worth and Dallas instead of paying to take the brand-new Dallas-Fort Worth Turnpike, now Interstate 30.
Jackrabbits roamed where stadiums now stand. Even Six Flags Over Texas would not open until three years later. The city was primarily known as the home of the Buick Roadmaster and other 1959 General Motors cars.
After Underwood’s, the building was home to severa restaurants including Cade’s Cafe before Bodacious opened.
Bodacious is open for lunch daily except Sunday, and for dinner Thursdays through Saturdays; 817-860-4248, bodaciousbbqarlington.org.
This story was originally published May 30, 2025 at 5:32 AM.
