A 909-based family-owned concept dubbed Spirit of Texas Craft BBQ may soon debut a third iteration in West Covina, according to The Press Enterprise.
SoTCB began in San Bernardino in 2021 amid the pandemic before opening a Riverside outpost earlier this year. The Riverside location can be found at 3965 Market St., formerly Woodfire Cafe, while the original Spirit of Texas remains at 1588 W. Highland Ave., San Bernardino, the former longtime home of The Mug restaurant. The eatery is open 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
Founder Santos Aviles says of the journey, “We were successful from day one! The demand has only increased. Our food and impeccable customer service have people returning for more.”
Aviles conceived Spirit of Texas after an inspiring conversation with his wife. From there, the amateur chef quickly emerged from retirement and headed to Texas to train with some of the best pitmasters at Hurtado BBQ in Arlington.
“I didn’t come out of retirement to make money, I came out of retirement because there are way too many restaurants not caring about their customers,” explained Aviles via Voyage LA. “And in that sense, I wish to inspire restauranteurs that great customer service with decent food is not impossible to achieve.”
There’s currently no address or opening date for the anticipated LA location.