Small businesses have long been perceived as America’s economic engine that paves roadways to the American dream. They account for 44% of all U.S. economic activity and create two-thirds of America’s new jobs, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration.
But in the case of the restaurant industry, it’s estimated that only half will continue unlocking their doors and taking orders after five years. Owners passing the baton of ownership to their children is even rarer for restaurants that manage to survive decades in this competitive business.
At a few generation-spanning restaurants still turning on their “open” signs in Dallas-Fort Worth, younger owners say they were taught responsibility and the value of a dollar at an early age. Kristopher Manning was 7 years old when he started cleaning floors and wrapping sandwich bread to serve with the famous hickory-smoked ribs at Smokey Joe’s BBQ in South Dallas.
Jesse Adame Jr. was the same age when he began bussing tables and refilling chips at Chuy’s Mexican Restaurant, known throughout the Northside of Fort Worth as “the family-owned Chuy’s,” as opposed to the Austin corporate. His parents never instituted a curfew when he grew older, but if he was a no-show for a shift, it spelled major trouble.
In Arlington, at Prince Lebanese Grill, siblings Aziz and Elizabeth Kobty have heard, “We remember when you could run under the tables,” more times than they can count. They both say Elizabeth was their late father’s favorite, but even she had to skip tennis tournaments in middle school if they occurred during her work shifts. They understood from an early age if they wanted financial support for college, they would have to work for it.
After being bestowed with ownership, these younger owners also quickly learned that consistency is of utmost importance. Changes in recipes, price and even paint color should be made with extreme caution. Consistency, along with remembering people’s names and orders, is how regulars are made.
Successful generational restaurants go beyond being mere meal dispensers. For many, they become supportive second homes for the communities that have given them a viable business. Here’s how three restaurants are keeping it in the family.
Smokey Joe’s BBQ
Smokey Joe’s BBQ was opened in an old gas station off of I-35 in 1983 by two childhood friends. Kenneth Manning was the financial investor, and the pit master and chef was the late Joe Melton, who died in January 2023. Melton’s rib technique came from a man who went by the nickname “Fats” at his previous workplace, a long-closed restaurant called Barrell’s on Childs Street.
Arguably still the main show at Smokey Joe’s, Melton’s specialty was his incandescent ribs. But “anything he put his hands on turned to gold,” says present-day owner Kristopher Manning, Kenneth’s son. He recalls one day Melton made some cabbage: “Joe didn’t have no recipes, just threw it together, and it was amazing.” From cabbage to pies to smothered ribs, Melton “was just one of those talented cooks with no culinary background.”
Kristopher reluctantly took over the business in 2014 after his dad and Melton had “paid their dues” with over 30 years in the business. He balked at the idea of getting into conflicts with cooks and spending 10 hours a day at the restaurant. However, after not being able to find a job after graduating from Sam Houston State University, “I got really humbled,” he says. No matter where he landed work, he realized he would have to start at the bottom anyhow, so he hesitatingly took the helm at Smokey Joe’s.
Three years later, Kristopher renovated the old gas station to look more like a restaurant, and he upgraded the brisket with tips from Guess Family Barbecue in Waco. A few customers complained that the food didn’t taste the same afterward, and there was a small revolt when he attempted to change the potato salad recipe, but the brisket got widespread approval. Smokey Joe’s landed a coveted spot on Texas Monthly’s Top 50 best barbecue joints in 2021. Kristopher calls the recognition a “huge blessing” that made his dad proud.
Although he made some structural changes, he follows his dad’s parenting example. On weekends, Kristopher’s daughter, Mckinley, can be found working the register, and his 8-year-old son, Dallas, is already helping out in the pit room.
Smokey Joe’s offers a daily $10 senior citizen special, called the Claude Manning, who was Kristopher’s grandfather, and on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, a $5 lunch special comes with a sandwich and chips. “There’s barbecue, and there’s understanding the community, as well,” Kristopher says. “You have to give back a little bit.”
Smokey Joe’s BBQ is located at 6403 S. R.L. Thornton Freeway, Dallas. smokeyjoesbbqdallas.com.
Chuy’s Mexican Restaurant
The history of Chuy’s Mexican Restaurant in Fort Worth can be distilled down to the oft-used Mexican idiom, échale ganas, which means hustle hard, and put your heart into it. That’s what Jesus Adame Sr. did when he emigrated from Zacatecas, Mexico, in the 1970s and successfully operated his first restaurant before receiving his permanent resident card.
During a much different era of border customs, Adame Sr. started by working in construction for exactly one day, followed by employment at a few local Mexican restaurants. After learning the business, he opened his first three-table spot on Central Avenue on March 19, 1982.
Three years later, he expanded with his second location on NW 25th Street, near a police station. The traditional Mexican fare with a Tex-Mex twist at an extremely affordable price was popular among police officers. Many officers unknowingly asked Adame Sr. if he’d enjoyed his vacation when he returned from being deported a couple of times. His answer was always yes, he says.
Since the inception of the original Chuy’s, three of Adame Sr.’s sons and his eldest grandchild have opened a total of 12 locations. Attracting steady regulars with tender barbacoa, robust menudo and “big as yo’ face” burritos for around $6, five locations are still going strong despite the hurdles of the past three years. The family takes pride in having the lowest prices in the industry, which they intentionally keep low to show appreciation to loyal customers.
Jesse Adame Jr., co-owner of two locations and the eldest grandchild among “definitely more than 30,” admits it isn’t an easy business. But he enjoys it because it allows him to stay in touch with his close-knit Diamond Hill community and his family. He says even though they sometimes bicker, “family is everything.”
Jesse describes his grandfather as a reserved man who doesn’t talk much, so he waits for long drives to Mexico when the radio signal goes out to ask for stories about growing up in a family of migrant farmers. He never knew until a family funeral a few years ago that his grandfather’s schooling never went past the third grade. He emphasizes that his grandfather’s success all comes down to échale ganas.
Adame Sr., now 76, was supposed to retire 10 years ago, but he still shows up at his River Oaks Boulevard location every day with his wife, Maria Artemia “Doña Chole” Adame. “This restaurant is their retirement plan,” says their daughter, Monica Adame, 41, who’s worked in her father’s restaurants her whole life.
Chuy’s Mexican Restaurant now has five locations in Fort Worth, Richland Hills, Haltom City and Azle. chuysftw.com.
Prince Lebanese Grill
The night before the gregarious founder of Prince Lebanese Grill passed away in 2021, he sat two of his children down at their usual meeting table in his restaurant made famous by Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. “Don’t let this place overwork you,” Francis Kobty told them. “If you don’t enjoy this business, I’ll shut it down.”
The advice was starkly different from his usual “work, work, work” mantra, and it caused Aziz and Elizabeth to wonder “what the hell he was talking about.” The next day, the phone call came. “Everybody has their day,” Aziz says, “and it was his day.”
Aziz and Elizabeth’s mother’s name is Amira, meaning “princess,” so customers knew their dad as “Prince.” He came from Nazareth, Israel, to attend Navarro College in 1979, and later owned a construction business. In 1989, he opened his first and only restaurant “for fun,” serving a menu based on his Lebanese grandmother’s recipes.
He had zero restaurant experience, and for the first couple of years, business was sluggish. But he liked what food did. In his culture, with a deeply embedded emphasis on hospitality, food always brought people together.
By 2009, Prince Lebanese Grill landed on Guy Fieri’s radar, which Aziz describes as “hitting the restaurant lottery.” Francis hung up on the Food Network several times before he finally believed the inquiries. The day after the show aired, he drove up to see the line at the door and famously kept driving. He was going to need more food.
What the crowds came to discover wasn’t just juicy, citrusy shish tawook, paper-thin but hearty shawarma, and extra-large gyros spread with melted feta cheese and tzatziki. They also encountered an incredibly friendly owner. “Everyone wanted to see him,” Aziz says. “The food was the bonus.”
Francis’s philosophy was to always give back to those who gave him a taste of the American dream. When schools, churches and neighbors approach for a donation, try not to say no, he advised his kids. “Dominate in giving,” he would say, pointing to the verse in the Bible that it would come back tenfold.
When Francis died, more than a thousand people came to his funeral. The Arlington police chief told Aziz that it was the largest civilian funeral he’d ever seen. Over and over, people told the family, “Your dad was my best friend.”
“There’s no way he had that many best friends, but he really just made you feel that important,” Aziz says. “His spirit was a giving, kind, fun spirit. And I might be biased, but I think he was the greatest dad ever.”
Prince Lebanese Grill is located at 502 W. Randol Mill Road, Arlington. princelebanesegrill.com.
