A food critic inadvertently discovered the unfortunate story behind two popular Texas barbecue restaurants after reviewing their food.
Keith Lee, who has over 16 million followers on TikTok, is popular for writing takeout reviews, often while still warm in the car.
Lee, who also relies on suggestions from his followers, ordered from Hutchins BBQ in January of this year, a restaurant that has been around since 1978 and has locations in McKinney and Frisco, but where lines were out the door.
Last week, Lee decided to visit the location again, or so he thought.
Lee thought he was visiting a separate location, but it turned out he was visiting a new location founded last year by different members of the same family after a spectacular falling out over expansion plans.
TikTok food critic Keith Lee, who has more than 16 million followers, inadvertently meddled in a family feud
Lee visited Hutchins BBQ in January this year, but visited The Original Hutchins Barbeque last week, thinking it was another branch of the same restaurant
On his follow-up visit, Lee visited The Original Roy Hutchins Barbecue Restaurant, which confusingly also lists itself as having been established in 1978, but in reality did not open until 2023.
Lee might think the two restaurants are run by the same owners, but due to disagreements between family members, the two businesses are now direct competitors.
The food fight began in 2023 when one side of the Hutchins family wanted to expand their popular barbecue chain.
When one side of the family refused to expand, they decided to open their own version of the barbecue restaurant, hoping to use the family name and capitalize on its broad appeal.
Roy and Wes Hutchins, owners of The Original Roy Hutchins Barbeque, use red oak to smoke their meats.
From left to right: Zack, Wes and Roy Hutchins of The Original Roy Hutchins Barbeque
The two restaurants have very similar names, but are run by opposite sides of a feuding family
Tim and Trey Hutchins, owners of the other two Hutchins BBQ locations, use post oak wood.
Lee had no idea he was trying out another barbecue restaurant for the first time.
When he reviewed his scores, he found that he had actually given the second location higher scores than he had on his first visit, but overall he had helped both businesses with positive reviews.
“I think the location makes a difference too, because it tastes a little different than I remember, but it’s still tasty,” Lee even suggested.
TikTok followers were quick to point out the mistake Lee had made, no doubt to educate some viewers who may have also thought both locations were run by the same owner.
A reviewer on Facebook pointed out the absurdity of the similarities between the two restaurants, saying that a bad experience at one location could have a negative effect on the other.
A reviewer on Facebook pointed out the absurdity of the similarities between the two restaurants, saying that a bad experience at one location could have a negative effect on the other.
“It’s too confusing and deliberately suggests it’s the ‘original’ when it’s not,” Luke Purvis wrote in a review.
“It downplays ‘Roy’ and adds ‘Since 1978,’ which is technically true, but this restaurant brand in particular has only been open since 2023. Even Hutchins itself recently rebranded, and perhaps ‘Since 1978’ is a family pact.
“I understand it’s just a franchising disagreement, but almost every casual person I know thinks they’re the same, but they’re not. They’re both great in their own way, but one misstep from either side could ruin the brand for both sides.”