• Home
  • popular
  • EVENTS
  • submit-new-event
  • CHARITY GUIDE
  • Children
  • Education
  • Health
  • Veterans
  • Social Services
  • Arts + Culture
  • Animals
  • LGBTQ
  • New Charity
  • TRENDING NEWS
  • News
  • City Life
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Home + Design
  • Travel
  • Real Estate
  • Restaurants + Bars
  • Arts
  • Society
  • Innovation
  • Fashion + Beauty
  • subscribe
  • about
  • series
  • Embracing Your Inner Cowboy
  • Green Living
  • Summer Fun
  • Real Estate Confidential
  • RX In the City
  • State of the Arts
  • Fall For Fashion
  • Cai's Odyssey
  • Comforts of Home
  • Good Eats
  • Holiday Gift Guide 2010
  • Holiday Gift Guide 2
  • Good Eats 2
  • HMNS Pirates
  • The Future of Houston
  • We Heart Hou 2
  • Music Inspires
  • True Grit
  • Hoops City
  • Green Living 2011
  • Cruizin for a Cure
  • Summer Fun 2011
  • Just Beat It
  • Real Estate 2011
  • Shelby on the Seine
  • Rx in the City 2011
  • Entrepreneur Video Series
  • Going Wild Zoo
  • State of the Arts 2011
  • Fall for Fashion 2011
  • Elaine Turner 2011
  • Comforts of Home 2011
  • King Tut
  • Chevy Girls
  • Good Eats 2011
  • Ready to Jingle
  • Houston at 175
  • The Love Month
  • Clifford on The Catwalk Htx
  • Let's Go Rodeo 2012
  • King's Harbor
  • FotoFest 2012
  • City Centre
  • Hidden Houston
  • Green Living 2012
  • Summer Fun 2012
  • Bookmark
  • 1987: The year that changed Houston
  • Best of Everything 2012
  • Real Estate 2012
  • Rx in the City 2012
  • Lost Pines Road Trip Houston
  • London Dreams
  • State of the Arts 2012
  • HTX Fall For Fashion 2012
  • HTX Good Eats 2012
  • HTX Contemporary Arts 2012
  • HCC 2012
  • Dine to Donate
  • Tasting Room
  • HTX Comforts of Home 2012
  • Charming Charlie
  • Asia Society
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2012
  • HTX Mistletoe on the go
  • HTX Sun and Ski
  • HTX Cars in Lifestyle
  • HTX New Beginnings
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2013
  • Zadok Sparkle into Spring
  • HTX Let's Go Rodeo 2013
  • HCC Passion for Fashion
  • BCAF 2013
  • HTX Best of 2013
  • HTX City Centre 2013
  • HTX Real Estate 2013
  • HTX France 2013
  • Driving in Style
  • HTX Island Time
  • HTX Super Season 2013
  • HTX Music Scene 2013
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2013 2
  • HTX Baker Institute
  • HTX Comforts of Home 2013
  • Mothers Day Gift Guide 2021 Houston
  • Staying Ahead of the Game
  • Wrangler Houston
  • First-time Homebuyers Guide Houston 2021
  • Visit Frisco Houston
  • promoted
  • eventdetail
  • Greystar Novel River Oaks
  • Thirdhome Go Houston
  • Dogfish Head Houston
  • LovBe Houston
  • Claire St Amant podcast Houston
  • The Listing Firm Houston
  • South Padre Houston
  • NextGen Real Estate Houston
  • Pioneer Houston
  • Collaborative for Children
  • Decorum
  • Bold Rock Cider
  • Nasher Houston
  • Houston Tastemaker Awards 2021
  • CityNorth
  • Urban Office
  • Villa Cotton
  • Luck Springs Houston
  • EightyTwo
  • Rectanglo.com
  • Silver Eagle Karbach
  • Mirador Group
  • Nirmanz
  • Bandera Houston
  • Milan Laser
  • Lafayette Travel
  • Highland Park Village Houston
  • Proximo Spirits
  • Douglas Elliman Harris Benson
  • Original ChopShop
  • Bordeaux Houston
  • Strike Marketing
  • Rice Village Gift Guide 2021
  • Downtown District
  • Broadstone Memorial Park
  • Gift Guide
  • Music Lane
  • Blue Circle Foods
  • Houston Tastemaker Awards 2022
  • True Rest
  • Lone Star Sports
  • Silver Eagle Hard Soda
  • Modelo recipes
  • Modelo Fighting Spirit
  • Athletic Brewing
  • Rodeo Houston
  • Silver Eagle Bud Light Next
  • Waco CVB
  • EnerGenie
  • HLSR Wine Committee
  • All Hands
  • El Paso
  • Avenida Houston
  • Visit Lubbock Houston
  • JW Marriott San Antonio
  • Silver Eagle Tupps
  • Space Center Houston
  • Central Market Houston
  • Boulevard Realty
  • Travel Texas Houston
  • Alliantgroup
  • Golf Live
  • DC Partners
  • Under the Influencer
  • Blossom Hotel
  • San Marcos Houston
  • Photo Essay: Holiday Gift Guide 2009
  • We Heart Hou
  • Walker House
  • HTX Good Eats 2013
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2013
  • HTX Culture Motive
  • HTX Auto Awards
  • HTX Ski Magic
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings 2014
  • HTX Texas Traveler
  • HTX Cifford on the Catwalk 2014
  • HTX United Way 2014
  • HTX Up to Speed
  • HTX Rodeo 2014
  • HTX City Centre 2014
  • HTX Dos Equis
  • HTX Tastemakers 2014
  • HTX Reliant
  • HTX Houston Symphony
  • HTX Trailblazers
  • HTX_RealEstateConfidential_2014
  • HTX_IW_Marks_FashionSeries
  • HTX_Green_Street
  • Dating 101
  • HTX_Clifford_on_the_Catwalk_2014
  • FIVE CultureMap 5th Birthday Bash
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2014 TEST
  • HTX Texans
  • Bergner and Johnson
  • HTX Good Eats 2014
  • United Way 2014-15_Single Promoted Articles
  • Holiday Pop Up Shop Houston
  • Where to Eat Houston
  • Copious Row Single Promoted Articles
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2014
  • htx woodford reserve manhattans
  • Zadok Swiss Watches
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings 2015
  • HTX Charity Challenge 2015
  • United Way Helpline Promoted Article
  • Boulevard Realty
  • Fusion Academy Promoted Article
  • Clifford on the Catwalk Fall 2015
  • United Way Book Power Promoted Article
  • Jameson HTX
  • Primavera 2015
  • Promenade Place
  • Hotel Galvez
  • Tremont House
  • HTX Tastemakers 2015
  • HTX Digital Graffiti/Alys Beach
  • MD Anderson Breast Cancer Promoted Article
  • HTX RealEstateConfidential 2015
  • HTX Vargos on the Lake
  • Omni Hotel HTX
  • Undies for Everyone
  • Reliant Bright Ideas Houston
  • 2015 Houston Stylemaker
  • HTX Renewable You
  • Urban Flats Builder
  • Urban Flats Builder
  • HTX New York Fashion Week spring 2016
  • Kyrie Massage
  • Red Bull Flying Bach
  • Hotze Health and Wellness
  • ReadFest 2015
  • Alzheimer's Promoted Article
  • Formula 1 Giveaway
  • Professional Skin Treatments by NuMe Express

    BBQ Comes to EaDo

    Pitmaster praised by Texas Monthly plans move from barbecue trailer to permanent restaurant

    Eric Sandler
    Jul 10, 2015 | 10:33 am

    Historically, Houston hasn't been known for great barbecue, but that's changed over the past few years. As names like Gatlin's, CorkScrew and Killen's have evolved from promising upstarts to barbecue royalty, a new generation of pitmasters have emerged who are pushing the city towards being on an equal footing with anywhere in smoked meat greatness — even Austin.

    Foremost among them is Wesley Jurena of Pappa Charlies Barbeque. The former Army Ranger -turned-competition-barbecue-champion has emerged as a consensus favorite among local barbecue bloggers for his fatty, smoky, pepper-heavy, Central Texas-style barbecue that's prepared "hot and fast" in five or six hours instead of "low and slow" in 12 or more.

    If all goes according to plan, Jurena will be serving by Labor Day.

    For the past year, Jurena has been selling barbecue out of his trailer that's parked at Jackson's Watering Hole in Montrose, but he's made no secret of his desire to have a space of his own. Recently, the pitmaster signed a lease on a space in EaDo, briefly the site of Japon Sushi, for a brick and mortar location of Pappa Charlies.

    Negotiations had been under way for awhile, but Jurena got a call two weeks ago that the deal was done — coincidentally, shortly after Texas Monthly barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn had made his visit that would turn into a highly-coveted four star review (and when I had stopped by for a sandwich).

    "That spot has been a couple of different places, and I’ve had my eye on it for a while," Jurena tells CultureMap. "It’s not ideal for what I want to do, but it’s the best option at this time. I would have preferred to stay in Montrose. I’ve been there a year, and Montrose has been very good to me."

    Close to major attractions

    While the space isn't perfect, its status as a second-generation restaurant means that it has all the necessary plumbing and equipment like a grease trap and vent hoods that can be expensive to install or require a lengthy wait at the permit office. The location is also close to major attractions including BBVA Compass Stadium, Minute Maid Park and the George R. Brown Convention Center. As Jurena notes, the Ranger Creed includes the sentence "surrender is not a Ranger word," and he's determined to make it work.

    "I don’t have any choice. It’s here," Jurena says. "Like anything else, you can’t be scared of your dreams. If you put in a hard days work and put out a good product, it’ll come along."

    "Like anything else, you can’t be scared of your dreams. If you put in a hard days work and put out a good product, it’ll come along."

    Renovations to the space are designed to be accomplished quickly, with mostly cosmetic changes to the dining room and the installation of two vertical smokers from local manufacturer Pitmaker. If all goes according to plan, Jurena will be serving by Labor Day.

    Lunch service will feature the items Jurena already serves at the trailer: brisket, pork ribs, tri tip, turkey, sausage and beef ribs. Dinner is still a work in progress. Jurena's cooking style allows him the option of serving the same menu twice, but he's also contemplating the possibility of plated dishes that use smoked meat as one component. Frequent visitors to the trailer have encountered one-off specials like Indian-style masala-spiced lamb. Pappa Charlies could set itself apart with other, similar features.

    One complicating factor is that Jurena has no experience working in a restaurant; he went straight from the barbecue competition circuit to operating his trailer. "I suspect it will be a comedy of errors as it goes on," Jurena says with a laugh, but don't underestimate his ability to learn and adapt quickly. He reached this point in less than two years and shows no signs of slowing down.

    "As I’ve said in many different interviews, it’s been a grind and a lot of sweat. Not that I think that’s going to go away, but hopefully this is the culmination of that year of hard work. Hopefully, we can continue to provide a quality product to the city."

    Pappa Charlies joins John Avila, who will bring his barbecue joint The Pit Room to a former Montrose porn shop later this year, and Grant Pinkerton, the passionate 26-year old pitmaster who's also on the hunt for a brick and mortar space after his plans to open in River Oaks fell through, as part of the next wave of Houston's barbecue boom. Whether or not national respect comes, Houstonians are the happy beneficiaries of all the activity.

    Wesley Jurena, center, at the Houston Barbecue Festival.

    Wesley Jurena Pappa Charlies Barbeque
      
    Pappa Charlies Barbeque Facebook
    Wesley Jurena, center, at the Houston Barbecue Festival.
    unspecified
    news/restaurants-bars
    CULTUREMAP EMAILS ARE AWESOME
    Get Houston intel delivered daily.

    one last squeeze

    Ben Berg's New York-inspired, fancy burger joint will soon shutter

    Eric Sandler
    May 21, 2025 | 5:16 pm
    BB Lemon exterior
    Photo by Leah Wilson
    undefined

    The original location of Ben Berg’s fancy burger joint will soon serve its last meal. B.B. Lemon on Washington Avenue will close after service on Sunday, June 1, the restaurant announced on social media.

    In response to CultureMap’s request for comment about the decision, a representative provided a statement that reads in part:

    “It is never an easy decision to close a restaurant,” Berg said. “The love Houston has shown B.B. Lemon-Washington over the years is what made it such a special place. Thank you for making us part of your everyday moments and life celebrations.”

    The statement continues that the restaurant is “no longer part of our strategic plan,” referring to Berg’s company, Berg Hospitality Group. However, the location of B.B Lemon that opened last year in the downtown tunnels will remain open.

    Open since late 2018, B.B. Lemon takes inspiration from iconic New York City restaurant JG Melon, including its signature green-and-white checked tablecloths. Thanks to a spacious patio and a lively atmosphere, B.B. Lemon soon found favor with area residents and downtown office workers, who made it a happy hour favorite.

    Like its decor, B.B. Lemon’s menu also takes inspiration from the East Coast. In addition to a diner-style, wagyu cheeseburger, the restaurant serves an array of comfort food that includes fish and chips, a lobster roll, and blue crab beignets.

    Berg’s decision to close B.B. Lemon follows last year’s closure of Benny Chows, its New York-inspired Chinese American restaurant. In January, the company closed NoPo Cafe to make way for a new location of Bagel Bob’s HTX.

    The group also opened three new concepts in 2024: live fire steakhouse Prime 131, retro diner Buttermilk Baby, and upscale steakhouse Turner’s Cut. It will open a second location of Buttermilk Baby in Sugar Land this summer.

    news-you-can-eatclosings
    news/restaurants-bars

    most read posts

    Houstonians will get the royal treatment at this lively new steakhouse

    Houston's new Napa Valley-inspired restaurant sets opening date

    Predicting 13 barbecue joints that could make Texas Monthly's new top 10

    Loading...