Texas barbecue spot Loco Coyote Grill is coming back under new ownership

It may not be the end of the road for a decades-old barbecue joint outside the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Sunday marked the final day for Loco Coyote Grill at 1795 Co Rd. 1004 in Glen Rose, but the roadside restaurant is already poised to be taken over by a new owner: the family behind Ruston Cattle Company, a steakhouse in Ennis.

Loco Coyote Grill's team announced the restaurant's permanent closure on social media July 14, as Chron previously reported, nearly two weeks after the property was listed for sale for $2.2 million. At the time, the owners said they had decided to sell because they wanted to relocate closer to family, but specified that the restaurant would continue operating and serving guests throughout the sale process.

When sharing the restaurant's final day, Loco Coyote Grill's team said rising food, labor and operating costs had made it impossible to remain open. But the statement did not mention whether there had been any movement on the property's sale.

Under contract

On Sunday, its final day, however, Republic of Texas Land & Home told Chron that Ruston is under contract to purchase the property. If the sale moves forward, Ruston said he and his 28-year-old son, Justin, who also runs their Ennis steakhouse with him, plan to make Loco Coyote Grill "better than it's ever been."

"I found out like everybody else on Facebook that it was going to be their last weekend. We were planning on going Friday night and just couldn't stop thinking about that place not being there," Ruston told Chron. 

"There's so much potential at that location and so much love from the people of Glen Rose, and we're going to bring it back."

The 52-year-old restaurateur said it will not become a second location of their Ennis steakhouse, which opened in 2020. Instead, he emphasized it will be "100 percent Loco Coyote," but with a vision to open the restaurant on weekdays as well as weekends, expanding the menu and hosting more live music performances.

"Kind of surreal"

An appraisal and other legal and financial steps must still be completed before the sale can close, Ruston said, but he is eager to reopen the restaurant as soon as the deal is finalized.

"It's still kind of unreal, so we're just super excited to get going and serve the community of Glen Rose and surrounding areas in the county," Ruston explained.

Ruston said he, his son and several Ruston Cattle Company staff members even volunteered at Loco Coyote Grill during its final weekend. Concerned that the restaurant's brand could be "tarnished" before his family could complete the purchase, he said they stepped in to help the restaurant get through its final weekend as smoothly as possible.

As for the menu, Ruston said he plans to preserve Loco Coyote's staples and bring back longtime favorites while introducing select Ruston Cattle Company dishes that fit the restaurant's existing style.

"This is definitely not a steakhouse or that more fine-dining type of experience, but we're going to be loyal to what Loco Coyote is supposed to be. We're just big believers that you can have a Loco Coyote and still have that top-notch service and experience," he said.

"It's going to be a destination venue that people are going to want to come back to."

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