Dickey's Barbecue Pit

Dickey's Barbecue Restaurants, Inc.
Dickey's Barbecue Pit
Company typePrivate
IndustryRestaurant Franchising
GenreFast Casual
Founded1941 (1941)
Dallas, Texas
FounderTravis Dickey
Headquarters
Dallas, Texas
,
U.S.
Number of locations
385 (May 2024)
Area served
Key people
Laura Rea Dickey CEO
Jay Rooney CFO
Renee Roozen CAO
ProductsSlow smoked meats, such as beef brisket, pulled pork, pork ribs, Polish sausage, and various types of side dishes
Revenue US$322 million (2019)
OwnersDickey family
Number of employees
4,765 (2019)
ParentDickey's Capital Group
Websitedickeys.com
Footnotes / references
[1][2]

[3]

Dickey's Barbecue Pit is an American family-owned barbecue restaurant chain based in Dallas, Texas, and is a subsidiary of Dickey's Capital Group. Since Travis Dickey established the restaurant in 1941, it has become the largest barbecue franchise in the United States and worldwide.

History

1941 to 2017; Early history

In 1941, Travis Dickey founded Dickey's Barbecue Pit in Dallas, Texas. The original location was a bar where Dickey sold barbecue from a pit he built in back.[4] The original location was a family run business with Dickey's wife working the front of the house. The original location was still open as of 2025, making it the longest continuously operating restaurant in Dallas.[4]

Travis Dickey died of a heart attack in 1967 and his son Roland Dickey took over the business. He opened a second and third restaurant in 1968 and 1969. Over the next 25 years, a dozen more locations were opened.[5] The restaurant began franchising in 1994.[6][7] Roland Dickey Jr. was appointed CEO in 2006,[8] and it expanded to over 300 locations by 2013.[4] Beginning in 2008, it added an average of 45 new locations per year, peaking at 564 locations in 2017.[9]

Technomic named Dickey's Barbecue Pit the "Fastest-growing restaurant chain in the country" in 2012.[10] That year, QSR Magazine included Dickey's Barbecue Pit on its list of "Best Franchise Deals."[11] Dickey's Barbecue Pit established The Dickey Foundation (formerly Barbecue, Boots & Badges Foundation[12]), a charity foundation for law enforcement officers and firefighters, in November 2014.[13] Fast Casual included the restaurant on its list of "Top 100 Movers and Shakers: Restaurants" in May 2014.[14]

2018 to present; International expansion

In 2018, the company opened its first international location at the Yas Mall in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.[15] This location resulted from a franchising deal with operator Serenity Hospitality, based in Abu Dhabi. In a collaborative effort, the company and Dickey's customized its menu for locals, adding offerings such as smoked lamb and beef sausages.[16] The second international location opened in Dubai in March 2019.[17][18]

The first Dickey's Barbecue Pit in Singapore opened in its Central Business District in March 2021. The franchise is a ghost kitchen concept in the Central Kitchen Co., a contactless food court across from the city's Cross Street Exchange.[19] In April 2021, the chain expanded to Japan, starting in Tokyo, with plans to open a restaurant in every major city in the country.[20] The Tokyo restaurant is located in the Kamiosaki District of Shinagawa-ku and offers limited dine-in seating as well as takeout and third-party delivery. It will be operated by the Japan Barbecue Franchise Company's owner, Sunsheng (Jason) Lin.[21]

By 2021, it was operating 650 locations in the United States with another 300 locations internationally.[5] In April 2022, the chain expanded into Canada, starting in Edmonton, Alberta.[22]

The chain has seen a number of years of declining sales and shuttered locations, dropping to 385 open restaurants in May 2024 from an apparent high of 571.[23]

Operations

Dickey's Barbecue Pit is a fast-casual restaurant that serves beef brisket, pulled pork, pork ribs, Polish sausage, spicy cheddar sausage, hot link, and chicken.[6][24] The restaurant chain smokes its meat on-site over wood-burning hickory pits.[25] Additionally, Dickey's Barbecue Pit serves home-style sides including fried okra, jalapeño beans, green beans with bacon, waffle iron fries, barbecue beans, Caesar or garden salad, macaroni and cheese, corn on cob, and onion tanglers.[25] The same recipes have been used since the restaurant was established in 1941.[25]

See also

References

  1. ^ Luna, Nancy (Mar 27, 2019). "Dickey's promotes Jay Rooney to new CFO role". Nation's Restaurant News. Archived from the original on March 28, 2019. Retrieved March 28, 2019.
  2. ^ "Find your local Dickey's Barbecue Pit location". Dickey's Barbecue Pit. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  3. ^ Coley, Ben (2024-10-02). "Dickey's Barbecue Closes 85 U.S. Franchised Restaurants". QSR Magazine. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
  4. ^ a b c Maddox, Will (13 March 2025). "Dickey's Is Dallas' Oldest Restaurant And Still On the Cutting Edge". D Magazine. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  5. ^ a b Blaskovich, Sarah (20 October 2021). "Brisket for 10 cents: Looking back on Dallas' oldest — and biggest — barbecue joint". Dallas News. Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  6. ^ a b Brown, Andrea (May 30, 2014). "Dickey's Barbecue Pit does brisket, smoked meats right". Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  7. ^ "Dickey's Barbecue Pit". April 2010. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  8. ^ Spaeth, Merrie (9 June 2010). "Dickey's Texas Barbecue Aims to Conquer the Country". Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  9. ^ Maze, Jonathan (30 September 2025). "Dickey's closed 85 locations last year". Restaurant Business. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  10. ^ Maze, Jonathan (July 22, 2013). "Technomic: 2012 Was A Good Year For Restaurants". Archived from the original on June 15, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  11. ^ Smith, Daniel P. (July 2012). "2012's Best Franchise Deals". Archived from the original on March 8, 2015. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  12. ^ "The Dickey Foundation".
  13. ^ "Dickey's New Charity Benefits Police Officers, Firefighters". February 9, 2015. Archived from the original on March 18, 2015. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  14. ^ "Top 100: Restaurants – Dickey's Barbecue Pit". February 2, 2015. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  15. ^ "Dickey's Barbecue Pit now open at Yas Mall". Abu Dhabi Confidential. October 22, 2018.
  16. ^ Innovates, Dallas (2018-10-31). "O Canada: Dallas-Based Dickey's Barbecue Pit is Going Global » Dallas Innovates". Dallas Innovates. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  17. ^ "Dickey's to open four more Dubai stores in 2019". Caterer Middle East. Dec 24, 2018. Archived from the original on 2019-05-11. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  18. ^ "Dickey's Barbecue Pit opens second Dubai location". www.fastcasual.com. 2019-03-20. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  19. ^ "Dickey's Barbecue Opens in Singapore". QSR magazine. 22 March 2021. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  20. ^ "Dickey's Barbecue Pit Makes its Highly Anticipated Japan Debut". Restaurant News. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  21. ^ "Dickey's plants flag in Japan". www.fastcasual.com. 2021-05-13. Archived from the original on 2021-06-10. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  22. ^ "Dickey's Barbecue Pit to open first Canada location". Verdict Food Service. 2022-04-19. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
  23. ^ Jonathan Maze (December 11, 2024). "Dickey's sales plunge, and franchisees pay the price". Restaurant Business. Archived from the original on 2024-12-17. Retrieved 2024-12-16.
  24. ^ Freedman, Brian (July 16, 2014). "Dickey's Barbecue Pit, or, when local chefs do great things to national chains". Archived from the original on July 16, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  25. ^ a b c Foster, Drew (August 26, 2014). "Dickey's Barbecue Pit opens in Kennewick Aug. 28". Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
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