Longtime Arlington barbecue staple Bodacious Bar-B-Q will serve its last slice of brisket, final rack of pork ribs and ultimate hot links Aug. 16.

The restaurant will permanently close its doors because its lease wasn’t renewed after 34 years at its Division Street location, according to the barbecue joint’s owner.

On Facebook, owner Fran Ruegsegger expressed gratitude for the generations of customers who have become “more like family and friends instead of just customers.”

“Yes, the rumors are true — after 34 years in Arlington, Bodacious Bar-B-Q will be closing in August,” Ruegsegger posted in May. “We have been blessed to have met so many wonderful people through the years and our customers have truly become more like family and friends instead of just customers.”

Ruegsegger went on to thank his loyal customers throughout four decades.

“God never closes one door that He doesn’t have a better one to walk through, so we are excited for whatever opportunities God has ahead for us,” he wrote.

The Arlington restaurant opened in 1991 with the blessings of Dallas native Roland Lindsey, who opened the first Bodacious in 1965 in Longview.

As the Bodacious name grew over the decades across North and East Texas, the restaurants became known for brisket, hot links, pork ribs, ranch-hand stew, and Bo-Pie, a concoction of Fritos topped with chopped brisket, beans and cheese. 

Each location was independently owned in Plano, Kilgore, Tyler, Lufkin, Sulphur Springs, Henderson and Winnsboro. 

Ruegsegger encouraged customers to stop by before the final day.

The restaurant’s closing prompted some customers to express their feelings.

“I’m sad to see it go,” Nedda Stewart Graves wrote on Facebook.

“That’s sad. I would stop there almost daily running from school to work,” Amy Whitehurst Tores, who studied at the University of Texas at Arlington, said on Facebook.

Lance Murray is a freelance contributor covering business for the Arlington Report.

At the Arlington Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.

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