A North Texas barbeque restaurant got a big boost from a member of the ultra-popular K-pop group BTS and they’re sharing what the star ordered.
Hutchins BBQ told NBC 5 it has seen a rise in visitors after BTS member j-hope gave the restaurant’s McKinney location a rave review at one of the group’s recent shows in Arlington and posted about them on social media.
“I had barbecue yesterday and I think I might have found the best spot in the world,” j-hope told the sold out crowd at AT&T Stadium on Aug. 14, and added, “That’s what gave me the energy for tonight.”
j-hope didn’t mention which barbecue joint he visited by name in the video shared with NBC 5, but the mystery of where he dined didn’t last very long.
A few days after the concert, Hutchins BBQ shared an enthusiastic selfie posted by j-hope, showing him holding a metal tray loaded with barbecue on Instagram with their logo in the back.
“He said a lot of great things about our food,” said Nick Hutchins, Chief Operating Officer at Hutchins BBQ.
While the buzz around BTS is undeniable, with the band so popular that thousands of fans spent hours in line for merch ahead of the Arlington concerts, j-hope’s visit to the barbecue joint still flew largely under the radar when it happened, Hutchins recalled.
“We had several employees, you know, recognize them but I don’t think a lot of people kind of recognized them in the moment,” he said. “I think a day or two later they had posted it on social media and it really created a huge buzz and my phone started blowing up.”
Hutchins called the visit a “great honor” and credits it with drawing in new diners.
“We’ve had an increase. We think there’s been definitely some tourists and people that are BTS fans coming in and people asking questions and things like that,” he said.
Hutchins BBQ in McKinney got a big boost from a member of the ultra-popular K-pop group BTS. J-Hope gave them a shout-out at one of the group’s recent shows in Arlington. We caught up with Nick Hutchins, who told us what J-Hope ordered. #bbq #btsarmy #jhope
♬ original sound – NBCDFW – NBCDFW
For BTS fans looking to recreate j-hope’s meal, Hutchins shared part of his order: a beef rib and brisket. Photos and videos shared by j-hope on Instagram also show what appear to be sides like potato salad, coleslaw and mac and cheese, as well as the restaurant’s Texas Twinkies, which are big bacon-wrapped jalapeno peppers stuffed with brisket and cream cheese.
“Those are meats we’ve taken a lot of pride in over the years,” Hutchins said, adding that it’s been a family tradition passed on through generations.