The Barn House BBQ officially opened its doors in Lemon Grove, with its unique infused Kansas City BBQ and Texas BBQ style in each bite.
Co-owners Alberto Vasquez and Executive Chef Yovani Palacios brought this classic BBQ space with a SoCal twist in its rustic and spacious indoor and outdoor setting, along with a 1,500 square-foot game room with arcade games, pool tables, and more, creating a family friendly restaurant.
Vasquez said Palacios used to live in Kansas City, then in Houston learning both techniques which inspired him to infuse the two for a unique flavor. Vasquez, has lived in Lemon Grove for five years.
“Sometimes people will recognize the smokey flavor, which is Texas style, and then notice the sweet taste of Kansas City BBQ,” he said. “We are already updating our menu with some more California items, adding sandwiches, BBQ pizza, BBQ quesadillas, small burgers, smoked cheesecake, and also pork ribs, with lots of meat, tender, and full of flavor.”
Vasquez said with all the space, they plan on updating its large patio.
“People are really going to love it,” he said. “We have a beautiful and large patio, for the people who want to eat outside. We have the game room, which makes this place very family friendly.”
Vasquez said the restaurant is already busy, especially on weekends, and is already catering to large groups of families, and groups. He said the group sizes so far have been from 20 to 40, with one-night last week with four group parties at the same time.
“The best thing is that we were able to accommodate everyone,” he said. “Everybody was enjoying the food and having fun.”
Opening on Super Bowl weekend, Vasquez said the restaurant opened with a busy crowd, with groups of up to 30 coming in.
“That was a great weekend and a very good time for us,” he said. “The community here has been great to us. The community is quiet, chill, and the people are extremely nice. I never thought I would have a business in this area, but I really get along with our customers. They are amazing. With the restaurant, I have become friends with many of them. They give us so much support, and many of them I see here two or three times a week.”
Vasquez said he hopes that more of the community comes in and tries the food.
“We have a great product for people,” he said. “It is full of flavor. I will not say we are the best, but our food will make you happy when you try it. We have comfort food. Collard greens, fried pickles. Our BBQ pizza is the BBQ meat of your choice. It is a lot like California food. It is not all Mexican food, but it is an infusion of Mexican and American food. That is what we are doing here, and our menu has a little bit of everything.”
Palacios is giving classic BBQ dishes a SoCal twist including the Grove Burrito made with BBQ pulled chicken, smoked BBQ aioli, fries, cheese, avocado, and pico de gallo; Barn House Burger loaded with homemade BBQ sauce, smoked pork belly, and cheese on an angus beef patty. Additional menu items include appetizers such as TJ Nachos and BBQ Sliders, along with chicken, pork and beef rib plates.
The Barn House BBQ is located at 8099 Broadway in Lemon Grove.
