DALLAS — When Billy McDonald went to unlock the door of Mac's Bar-B-Que for its 11 a.m. opening time on Friday, he was met with more than a dozen faces.
"I had 15 people waiting outside," McDonald said. "By the time I looked at the clock again, which was 11:15, they were all the way to the door and down around the corner to the next block.”
By 1:30, an hour before closing time, he was sold out.
“Some people came back to the counter and said, 'Oh, I wish I knew you were here. We’d like to try you some more. but you’re not going to be here anymore,'" McDonald said.
The first Mac's Bar-B-Que location opened in January 1955. In 2021, it's in its third iteration, though still in Dallas, and still operated with the same standards and values as it was in 1955.
"It was about people wanting to be here," McDonald said. " It’s not just a place to come eat. My dad was still cutting barbecue. My mom was running the cash register, and I was the hand- dandy bus boy, sweep 'em, clean up, take care of the bathroom guy.”
Now, he's the owner. He's been the owner for the past 40 years, and he's closing the 66-year-old eatery.
“I think it’s time for me to let somebody else handle the reins," McDonald said.
He means of Dallas' barbecue industry. While there are plenty of options, he said few have the same old school feel as his. His walls are lined with framed photos of the restaurant's history -- of the Dallas' history. There's an old school cash register, canned sodas and only a handful of tables.
"Everything we do here is handmade," McDonald said. "We make the coleslaw by hand. We make the potato salad by hand.”
Like many other businesses, Mac's Bar-B-Que took a major hit from the pandemic.
"It really did a disastrous turnaround on my business," McDonald said. “2020 was probably the worst business year this company has had in its existence.”
However, McDonald said it's not the reason he's closing.
"It's time for me to have a little time to myself," McDonald said. “It’s my choice that I’m doing what I’m doing."
He will open Monday for regular business hours, 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. He said he will open Tuesday if he has enough supplies.
While he's had years of success and customers have been coming out in droves after hearing his plans to close, McDonald doubts that this fast-growing city will always have a place for small counter-service spots like his.
"It doesn’t have enough eye candy," McDonald said. "This is pretty plain. People are like, 'Aww, I didn't know you were here.'"
McDonald said the city and industry are changing, and it's hard to compete with larger businesses with flashier settings and more robust marketing. He said that's never been his game.
So, when asked why he chose to close instead of handing over ownership of the restaurant to another barbecue enthusiast, he said that would've been ideal.
"I think a lot of people don't want to work this hard," McDonald said.
Instead, he will lease the space to a renter planning to open a restaurant offering what McDonald calls "authentic Mexican food, instead of Tex-Mex".
"Everyone out there who’s small like I am is struggling, and they’re trying to do the best they can," McDonald said. “I like to see the little restaurants succeed.”