Two notable Texas pitmasters — Chuck Charnichart of Barbs B Q in Lockhart and Jonny White of Goldee’s Bar-B-Q in Fort Worth — are bringing their barbecue to New York City. Kirbee’s will open in Greenpoint at 55 McGuinness Boulevard South, between Engert Avenue and Newton Street, in the mid-to-late summer.
Kirbee’s will showcase Charnichart’s and White’s distinct takes on smoked meats. Hers adds South Texan and Mexican flavors and spices, while his is more of the modern approach: the brisket rub is made with tumeric and paprika.
The menu will be split into Barbs and Goldee’s plates: the former through items like pork ribs with lime zest, brisket with Mexican spices, pork stew, and that green spaghett; the latter with smoked turkey, properly seasoned brisket, coleslaw, and potato salad. White teases a mash-up of the two restaurants’ desserts: the chocolate pudding (Barbs) and banana pudding (Goldee’s).
Kirbee’s (a double-reference to the name of White’s dog and the pink video game character) will operate as a casual Texas barbecue restaurant, featuring cafeteria-style ordering and cut-to-order meats and foods served on red trays lined with butcher paper. It’ll be open for lunch on Fridays through Sundays.
Kirbee’s 20-to-24-seat space is in the former Peeps Kitchen space, which closed last fall, situated between McCarron and McGolrick parks. The two are working with design company Bolt, envisioning checkerboard floors, wood paneled walls, red-and-white exterior, and a sign simply stating that it’s a barbecue restaurant.
“We’re actually going to be using smoker ovens,” White says, as opposed to offset smokers often used in Texas. “It’ll taste exactly like Texas, it’s just going to be one of those things where the purists are going to be upset.” But “our food here should be more consistent,” he says; they’ll use post oak wood chips.
Barbs opened in 2023 in Lockhart, considered Texas’s barbecue capital, and quickly garnered attention for Charnichart’s vibrant smoked meats with Mexican and South Texan flair. The restaurant was named one of Eater’s best new restaurants of 2023, was a James Beard finalist in the Best New Restaurant category in 2024, and was just awarded a rave three-star review in the New York Times this week. Charnichart also won Michelin’s Young Chef award in 2025.
Goldee’s opened in 2020 in Fort Worth, right before the pandemic, and snagged the No. 1 slot on Texas Monthly’s barbecue list in 2021. The group expanded with Ribbee’s, its rib-focused offshoot in 2024. Later that same year, White and co-founders Jalen Heard and Lane Milne were named as some of Food & Wine’s best new chefs in 2024. The three published the restaurant’s cookbook in October 2025.
White tells Eater that he sold his Goldee’s ownership share to Zain Shafi, who had run Pakistani barbecue truck Sabar BBQ in Fort Worth, in December 2025.
Kirbee’s is in an out-of-the-way place as far as Greenpoint is concerned, yet it will likely pull the same kind of lines as they did in Texas. Since Kirbee’s isn’t legally allowed to give away free beer to people waiting in line (as they did in Texas), they’ll sell dollar beers — ideally Lone Stars and Shiners. For a later date, the two are toying with adding a dinner menu. White mentions potentially burgers and avocado margaritas.
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SOURCE: https://ny.eater.com