West End’s Moak’s BBQ Looks To Fill Void Left by Sonny Bryan’s Closing

The space on West End’s Market Street that once housed Sonny Bryan’s has a new resident, but the fare will remain familiar.

The new tenant, Moak’s Family Texas BBQ, made its debut in late August. On the menu, you’ll find appetizers like homemade chips, fried onion strings, Texas Torpedoes (bacon-wrapped brisket stuffed jalapenos), fried pickles and Gulf Coast Torpedoes (more on these in a minute). Entrees include chicken-fried steak (and chicken), 14-ounce hand-cut Texas ribeyes and grilled butterflied chicken breasts.

Sandwiches range from your standard sliced and chopped barbecue meat to a diet-wrecking concoction of chopped beef, sliced sausage, beef rib, onion strings and queso (known as “The Texas Sandwich”).

But like any barbecue joint, the individual meats own the spotlight. Moak’s touts slow-cooked, fall-off-the-bone meats as its hallmarks and points out that the team at Moak’s has a combined 70 years of experience in the business. Texas brisket, smoked half-chickens, sausage (regular and jalapeno), $45 Texas “dino” ribs (available on weekends), turkey and beef ribs are the featured house meats.
We stopped by on a recent weekday afternoon to give Moak’s a first look. West End foot traffic was bustling as folks headed briskly to the nearby DART station to catch a ride home. A handful of patrons were inside Moak’s — it was fairly quiet outside of a country music song that played in the background. An employee greeted us and jotted down our order. As we awaited our order, we sat by a window with a beautiful partial view of Dallas’ skyline, which included Reunion Tower.

An appetizer of Gulf Coast Torpedoes ($16.95) arrived first, and these things were a freaking revelation. Bacon-wrapped jumbo Gulf shrimp finished with a glaze of barbecue sauce. That’s it. It’s a simple recipe, but the results are divine. And we can't imagine anyone executing it better than Moak's does here. This was one of my favorite appetizers of the year.
As we sat there contemplating whether to order more Gulf Coast Torpedoes to take home, our main course of sliced Texas brisket ($14/half-pound) and a side of fried okra ($3.95/4 ounces) arrived. Speaking of sides, your choices are potato salad, coleslaw, sweet cream corn, mac and cheese, homemade chips, cornbread, bean soup, French fries, corn on the cob, salad and fried okra. There are also three baked potato variations.

Our side of fried okra was fried crisp on the outside with tender, fresh okra inside (in other words, perfect). The brisket was solid — not dry at all and with the perfect amount of fat on the edge. And the house barbecue sauce was terrific. It has a sweet initial punch but is followed by a noticeable (and lingering) dose of heat.

The West End district used to be one of the places to be in Dallas. But over the years, it has waned as a hotspot. That’s evident by the many West End restaurants that have come and gone. Sonny Bryan’s, which occupied this space previously, shuttered after becoming another ill-fated victim of the pandemic.

The West End needs a proper barbecue spot, and we’re rooting for Moak’s to stick around to be the one.

Moak’s Family Texas BBQ, 302 N. Market St., Ste. 102. Daily, 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.