The barbecue staple out of Lockhart is set to open a new restaurant in the former Trudy’s Tex-Mex location on West 30th Street, just north of the University of Texas campus. Trudy’s permanently closed its final Austin outpost on Burnet Road in January 2025, ending the local chain’s nearly 50-year run in Austin.
The owners of Black’s Barbecue reportedly purchased the West 30th Street location that Trudy’s used to call home, along with an additional lot, in 2025, with plans to double its dining space from the restaurant’s only Austin location, ABJ reports. Black’s Barbecue has operated its Austin location at 3110 Guadalupe Street since 2014, which is also near UT’s campus.
Barrett Black, fourth-generation pitmaster at Black’s Barbecue, told ABJ that the restaurant now has five years remaining on its current lease, which is what prompted interest in the abandoned Trudy’s space that shuttered in 2022. The new property on West 30th Street is also about a block away from Black’s current Austin outpost, so UT fans still won’t have to go far for the barbecue in the area they’ve come to know and love.
Black estimates that the move will take approximately two years to fully relocate. The Black family told the Austin American-Statesman that the restaurant will likely have a full liquor license and intends to be a family-friendly operation with a small play area for kids.
Black’s Barbecue opened its original Lockhart brick-and-mortar in 1932 and touts itself as being the oldest continually family-run barbecue restaurant in the state. The 94-year-old chain, known for its smoked brisket, sausage and meats, has since expanded to serve nearby cities like Austin, San Marcos and New Braunfels.
MySA reached out to Black’s Barbecue for comment, but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
Find it: 409 W. 30th St., Austin, TX 78705