Willow's Barbecue is no stranger to the Houston food scene. Back about 10 years ago or so, Willow Villareal and his partner in crime Jasmine Barela, ran a successful barbecue pop-up trailer operation in the Houston Heights area. They'd setup in front of various clubs and taverns such as the Grand Prize Bar, Dan Electro's Guitar Bar and most notably the Big Star Bar where Villareal obtained a fair amount of notoriety. With other successful joints like Greg Gatlin's to the west and Pinkerton's to the east of his location, the barbecue scene in the Heights was strong.
Fast forward through the fog of the pandemic to the latter half of 2021 and a former lawyer and aspiring restaurateur by the name of John Toomey, decides to open a new venue near downtown Houston in the EaDo (or east of downtown) district. The area has enjoyed a fair amount of gentrification over the past decade or so, and continues to sprout new and upscale venues. He hires as his pitmaster and chef both Villareal and Barela to run the kitchen operation. Trying to draw crowds from downtown, the Astros Daikin Park and the soccer venue, the J Bar M was big, bold and served as the area's need for a restaurant and bar featuring Central Texas BBQ. Within a year; however, both Villareal and Barela found themselves at odds with the direction the owner wanted to take the venue, concentrating not only on the barbecue but extended hours into the evening dinner times. Both decided as a result, to leave and seek other opportunities.
The next step for Houston's barbecue power couple was with Ronnie Killen's restaurant group. Killen's not only operates as one of Houston's finest barbecue joints, but specializes in steak, seafood and home style cooking restaurants as well. Villareal hoped to take advantage and learn from a successful restaurateur and Killen I'm sure benefited from this talented young pitmaster.
Fast forward again to 2026 and we find Willow and Jasmine back in EaDO operating their own brand new venue simply called Willow's. Opening on August 13, 2026, out of a renovated 1922 Italian grocery next to the old Eastwood Railroad Station, you find featured Central Texas barbecue, tavern fare (burgers, wings, smoked crab dip), and a full service bar. Outside is an inviting patio sitting next to a railroad car setup perfectly for those warm summer days and cool evening nights to enjoy some good food and a cold beverage....
Inside the cozy interior, you find a place that's got a great eclectic vibe to it . I would characterize it as a mixture of Central Texas patio, railroad and Tex-Mex themed with a hip upbeat interior design all wrapped up in a warm and inviting place to both eat and drink.
Well after all that fanfare, what about the 'cue you may ask? The reason I even knew about this place, much leas made the drive downtown to check it out, was Daniel Vaughn's latest article in Texas Monthly just gushing over this guy's food. Knowing that he literally visits dozens of barbecue joints all over the state of Texas, when he gushes, something is definitely happening here. And indeed, it did not disappoint.
Without sounding overly 'gushy' myself, this was one of the best plates of barbecue I've had in well over a year. This guy definitely has honed his craft and is turning out some excellent food. And although his pricing for meat on a per pound basis is about the same as his competition, the plate shown here (typical Texas trinity) was a reasonable $28.00 with a glass of ice tea included.
So on the usual Troutman scale of 1-10, 10 being Aaron Franklin's mama, here was my rating of the food and the place;
Ribs - solid 9.75 - Pork rib was amazing. Perfect bite through (hate fall off the bone) with tenderness and flavor abounding. Typical peppery finish but I detected a bit of sweetness as well. That single rib was probably the best I've had in a long time, it was pork-a-licious.
Sausage - 9.5 - I believe it said on the menu the links were made in house. I got the jalapeno variant and it was delicious. Interior had great seasoning with just a bit of heat. And even more important was the snap of the outer casing, a real pet peeve if not done right. Smokey and tasty, just the way I like my sausage,
Brisket -10+ - (First of all Troutman don't normally give 10s, they have to be earned). Starting with that little piece of burnt end on the lower right hand side. I popped that in my mouth first thing. All of a sudden I was in some sort of dream world with an angelic host singing halleluiah all around me. When I awoke I felt disoriented so I shoved a piece of that fatty brisket in my mouth; you know that kind with the perfectly rendered fat turned to gelatin, the peppery, smokey bark awaking your taste buds and the creamy smooth and moist texture as you gently savorize every moment in your mouth? Yea....it was that good and not a hallucination. I have no other words to express it.
Sides - 9.5.. The mac and cheese was solid, but the corn bread (a house specialty) was amazing. Topped with a cinnamon butter I'd love to have that recipe..
Bang for the Buck - solid 9.5. That plate filled me to the brim and certainly satisfied my ich for 'cue. I mean $28.00, that's the best bargain around.
Atmosphere - 9.5. It's the kind of place that's small and intimate, warm and cozy. I would love to live in that neighborhood and just hang out there. Loved it.
I firmly believe that Texas Monthly may have another Top 50 candidate in our future. Regardless, his stuff is right up there with Truth and all the other top tier joints in my opinion. I'll definitely be going back and will certainly give this place my full endorsement.
Keep your eye on this young fellow, you are defiantly going to be hearing more from him again....
Fast forward through the fog of the pandemic to the latter half of 2021 and a former lawyer and aspiring restaurateur by the name of John Toomey, decides to open a new venue near downtown Houston in the EaDo (or east of downtown) district. The area has enjoyed a fair amount of gentrification over the past decade or so, and continues to sprout new and upscale venues. He hires as his pitmaster and chef both Villareal and Barela to run the kitchen operation. Trying to draw crowds from downtown, the Astros Daikin Park and the soccer venue, the J Bar M was big, bold and served as the area's need for a restaurant and bar featuring Central Texas BBQ. Within a year; however, both Villareal and Barela found themselves at odds with the direction the owner wanted to take the venue, concentrating not only on the barbecue but extended hours into the evening dinner times. Both decided as a result, to leave and seek other opportunities.
The next step for Houston's barbecue power couple was with Ronnie Killen's restaurant group. Killen's not only operates as one of Houston's finest barbecue joints, but specializes in steak, seafood and home style cooking restaurants as well. Villareal hoped to take advantage and learn from a successful restaurateur and Killen I'm sure benefited from this talented young pitmaster.
Fast forward again to 2026 and we find Willow and Jasmine back in EaDO operating their own brand new venue simply called Willow's. Opening on August 13, 2026, out of a renovated 1922 Italian grocery next to the old Eastwood Railroad Station, you find featured Central Texas barbecue, tavern fare (burgers, wings, smoked crab dip), and a full service bar. Outside is an inviting patio sitting next to a railroad car setup perfectly for those warm summer days and cool evening nights to enjoy some good food and a cold beverage....
Without sounding overly 'gushy' myself, this was one of the best plates of barbecue I've had in well over a year. This guy definitely has honed his craft and is turning out some excellent food. And although his pricing for meat on a per pound basis is about the same as his competition, the plate shown here (typical Texas trinity) was a reasonable $28.00 with a glass of ice tea included.
So on the usual Troutman scale of 1-10, 10 being Aaron Franklin's mama, here was my rating of the food and the place;
Ribs - solid 9.75 - Pork rib was amazing. Perfect bite through (hate fall off the bone) with tenderness and flavor abounding. Typical peppery finish but I detected a bit of sweetness as well. That single rib was probably the best I've had in a long time, it was pork-a-licious.
Sausage - 9.5 - I believe it said on the menu the links were made in house. I got the jalapeno variant and it was delicious. Interior had great seasoning with just a bit of heat. And even more important was the snap of the outer casing, a real pet peeve if not done right. Smokey and tasty, just the way I like my sausage,
Brisket -10+ - (First of all Troutman don't normally give 10s, they have to be earned). Starting with that little piece of burnt end on the lower right hand side. I popped that in my mouth first thing. All of a sudden I was in some sort of dream world with an angelic host singing halleluiah all around me. When I awoke I felt disoriented so I shoved a piece of that fatty brisket in my mouth; you know that kind with the perfectly rendered fat turned to gelatin, the peppery, smokey bark awaking your taste buds and the creamy smooth and moist texture as you gently savorize every moment in your mouth? Yea....it was that good and not a hallucination. I have no other words to express it.
Sides - 9.5.. The mac and cheese was solid, but the corn bread (a house specialty) was amazing. Topped with a cinnamon butter I'd love to have that recipe..
Bang for the Buck - solid 9.5. That plate filled me to the brim and certainly satisfied my ich for 'cue. I mean $28.00, that's the best bargain around.
Atmosphere - 9.5. It's the kind of place that's small and intimate, warm and cozy. I would love to live in that neighborhood and just hang out there. Loved it.
I firmly believe that Texas Monthly may have another Top 50 candidate in our future. Regardless, his stuff is right up there with Truth and all the other top tier joints in my opinion. I'll definitely be going back and will certainly give this place my full endorsement.
Keep your eye on this young fellow, you are defiantly going to be hearing more from him again....
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