One of Fresno’s top secrets: Mega Texas Barbeque. Where bacon-wrapped BBQ is a reality

Arguably the best barbecue food in the central San Joaquin Valley is served out of a gas station.

But if you let the odd ambiance prevent you from trying these chicken and ribs, you’ll likely never get to appreciate one of Fresno’s best-kept secrets.

Mega Texas Barbeque – a husband and wife owned and operated eatery – serves Texas-style barbecue at Texas-size portions all for a reasonable price.

But unless you’ve come across their social media posts on Instagram or searched for them on Yelp, there’s a good chance you’ve never heard of them, let alone tried their food.

And that would be a shame if you enjoy eating barbecue, because you’ll be hard-pressed to find another place that brings a tasty Texas flavor to the Golden State.

Smoked and slow cooked by owner/pitmaster Anthony Vallejo, Mega Texas Barbeque on most days serves moist brisket, tender ribs, bacon-wrapped chicken “lollipop” drumsticks, as well as tri-tip, pulled pork, chicken thighs, pork belly and beef sausages.

They even debuted bacon-wrapped ribs during the “Fresno Street Eats” event, which turned out to be a wildly popular food item that generated long lines during the pop-up-food series last month.

“The way I see it is, you only have sometimes one opportunity to get people’s attention,” Vallejo said. “And one bite is sometimes all you get.”

Vallejo, 43, remembers eating barbecue about three to four times a week while growing up in Caruthers.

But it wasn’t until he moved to Garland, Texas, in 2007 and lived in northeast Texas for seven years that he realized the vast difference between the barbecue he once enjoyed eating in California and the barbecue that he couldn’t get enough of while in the Lone Star State.

It was the style: Smoked and slow cooked with the meat just about ready to fall off the bone.

“Smoke is almost like another seasoning, another layer of flavoring,” Vallejo said. “It should be like a gentle kiss, not a punch in the mouth.”

And it was the different meat: Beef brisket, for one, is king when it comes to Texas barbecue, and when done right, offers a tender, juicy meat.

“Generally, when you’re cooking a brisket, what you’re looking for is the jiggle,” Vallejo said. “It practically melts in your mouth.”

This summer, Vallejo and his wife Tasha took a trip back to Texas plus a couple of Southern states to eat at several restaurants known for barbecue.

Vallejo devised his own menu by taking ideas of what the couple liked from each place, as well as incorporating the tried-and-true favorite of California BBQ – tri-tip – and mixing in some of his own grill master creativity.

“In Texas, you can get spoiled with barbecue,” Vallejo said. “When I moved back, I just … wasn’t really as impressed.”

Vallejo has won multiple barbecue competitions in California.

One year, Vallejo swept all honors at The Big Fresno Fair, taking first place in the beef, pork and chicken categories.

His bacon-wrapped chicken lollipop – what’s become Mega Texas Barbeque’s most popular item – won “Best in Show.”

The BBQ competition trophies, including one that looks like a wrestling belt, proudly are displayed on a shelf behind the Mega Texas Barbeque counter and just below their chalkboard menu.

Though his family had encouraged Vallejo for years to sell his food, he said it wasn’t until he won the barbecue competitions that he felt comfortable charging strangers for his barbecue.

“It’s different when you’ve cooked for your family and they tell you it’s really good,” Vallejo said. “Well, they’re your family, and they just ate for free.

“What’s someone going to think when they’ve paid for it?”

In the beginning, Vallejo would post images of his food on social media and ask if anyone wanted to buy his barbecue. Then, he’d drive around town the next day and deliver the meals.

To “become legitimate,” Vallejo understood he needed to sell his food in a different manner. But the price of opening a restaurant was too steep.

He and his wife considered opening a food truck.

Then a customer suggested to Vallejo that he sell his barbeque at a vacated food stand inside a gas station, which previously had been used to sell Mexican food.

Vallejo hesitated, aware of the perception that comes with food from a gas station and the images of hot dogs on a rotisserie.

He eventually decided to give it a try, with the hope that his social media following of 7,000-plus would come whereever he sold barbecue.

It also helped that the gas station was centrally located in Fresno and about the center point to many of Vallejo’s customer deliveries.

By October, Mega Texas Barbeque officially opened inside the ARCO gas station at the corner of Fresno and McKinley avenues.

And based on the lines, Mega Texas Barbeque has become quite the hit among those “in the know.”

He’s even had customers travel all the way from Los Angeles and the Bay Area after admiring his food postings on Instagram.

Vallejo said he strives to serve food that looks exactly like his photos.

“If you think about some of the places where there’s really good food, they’re sometimes at a hole in the wall,” Vallejo said. “Being in a gas station, it’s become part of our character.

“And once you try the food, you forget about where you got it at.”

Mega Texas Barbeque

Hours of operation: Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. or when the food is sold out

Where: 2429 E. McKinley Avenue (corner of McKinley and Fresno inside the ARCO gas station)

Social media: @Mega_Texas on Instagram

This story was originally published February 6, 2019 at 1:32 AM.