Rusty Buckle BBQ in New Caney suffers Thanksgiving fire, owner reflects on gratitude amidst loss

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Texas - A popular BBQ restaurant in Montgomery County was damaged in a Thanksgiving Day fire while the owner of the business was out delivering turkeys.

This happened at the Rusty Buckle BBQ Company on Community Drive in New Caney.

RELATED: Donor gives Thanksgiving feast to Houston firefighters and their families, hopes to inspire others

Owner Allen Rhoden says he was finishing his last Thanksgiving deliveries at the time, and heading back to the business to pick up food made for Porter firefighters. His manager had already gone home for the afternoon.

"I was leaving to go back to get the food we made extra to take to the fire department, and they saved me a trip," says Rhoden. "Something sparked where it wasn't supposed to spark, and now I don't have a barbeque place."

Around 4 p.m., a driver on Grand Parkway reported what they suspected as a grass fire south of the Parkway between I-69 and Loop 494. Porter Fire was responding when additional calls confirmed it was not a grass fire, but The Rusty Buckle, a local favorite, was in flames.

Rhoden says he received multiple calls from community members - and pulled over south of Kingwood Drive to take a picture of smoke coming from the restaurant. He then rushed to his business.

Porter firefighters arrived on the scene and found the building under heavy fire and propane bottles exploding - the smokehouse and back of the restaurant took on the most damage.

DOWNLOAD THE FOX 26 HOUSTON APP BY CLICKING HERE

"The smokehouse and the prep kitchen are gone, pits are gone," says Rhoden. "Most of my equipment, electrical and everything else, but we made it through. No loss of life, no bodily injuries. We still have more to be thankful for than we do to complain about."

An investigator with the Montgomery County Fire Marshals Office tells local reporter Scott Engle he believes the fire was caused by a commercial pellet smoker. 

Thankfully, the fire department could still get the food meant for them to enjoy for the holiday. Rhoden thanks the Porter Fire Department for responding and extinguishing the fire quickly. He also posted on the Rusty Buckle BBQ Facebook page that the business will be closed, but is making plans to return. Rusty Buckle has been open since 2018.