Texas To-Do List: Loop 9 BBQ
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - What’s better than Texas barbecue? How about barbecue and a show?
On this week’s Texas To-Do List, we’re visiting Loop 9 BBQ located inside EpicCentral in Grand Prairie.
MORE FROM THE TEXAS TO-DO LIST
"Loop 9 BBQ is a restaurant with premium barbecue. We opened back in March of 2023. We’re a casual restaurant with prime brisket, prime food, and just a lot of fun faces here," said John Saldivar, the restaurant’s director of operations.
Loop 9 is owned by the people who brought us Alamo Drafthouse. And while it may be their first barbecue restaurant, they clearly know what they are doing.
"We start with our fresh brisket out of the pack. We trim the brisket up, we add our secret spices, and then we throw them into the smoker. We cook them at about 225 degrees," Saldivar said.
And if you’d like a side of entertainment with your meal, EpicCentral’s water light show that displays every night is right outside.
And if you walk further down the path, Loop 9 has a tent set up with food and drinks so you can continue to enjoy your evening without having to run back and forth.
"It's just a great water show. If you’ve been to Las Vegas, the Bellagio; we’re kind of like a sister one over here. It’s really really good. When I saw it for the first time, I was in awe. I was like, ‘Wow. This is really really awesome,’" Saldivar said.
Texas To-Do List: Breakout Games' Clue-themed escape room
Whether you're a fan of puzzles, or just looking for something to do indoors, grab your candlestick and join us in the billiards room in this next location on the Texas To-Do List -- Breakout Games Escape Rooms in Plano.
After the show, you’ll definitely want to go back and satisfy your sweet tooth with some handmade desserts.
"We have some delicious handmade pies from scratch. We have a chocolate pie, we’ve got a banana pudding, we have a key lime pie which is really, really good. And then we have a coconut pie that we just put out about a couple of weeks ago. The coconut pie is my favorite. It is delicious," Saldivar said.
The menu has a ton of incredible-looking items, including a variety of sandwiches and tacos. You may have trouble deciding what to try first.
"I would say that the moist brisket is my favorite. But our pork ribs are just perfect, man. Just the way that they’re seasoned, the way that they’re sauced," Saldivar said. "You’ve got some moist brisket there, you’ve got some lean brisket on top of there. You’ve got some Mexican corn there. The two-handler sandwich that we talked about earlier, and then we have the pork ribs there. Just a glazed BBQ pork ribs. Delicious ribs."
You could spend at least four hours trying to eat it all.
But you don’t need to feel tethered to the restaurant if you order an alcoholic beverage. As long as you stay within the EpicCentral property, you can take it with you.
"The awesome part about the experience of Loop 9 BBQ is that because we are in this area here at EpicCentral, you can actually get a margarita and walk around the lake, walk around the water park, and watch the show while you’re drinking a cold beer or a frozen margarita," Saldivar said.