How It All Began

    The Amarillo was created in 1988 by Gordon Campbell, a native Texan, and his wife Patty- who named the restaurant after the George Strait song, "Amarillo By Morning."  From the beginning, Gordon has had one goal in mind: To captivate the young and old alike with authentic hickory-smoked Texas barbecue served in an exciting, fun atmosphere.  For Gordon, the Amarillo has never been about personal gain or profits but about seeing happy guests leave with a smile and wonderful memory.  To this day, Gordon can be found 6 nights a week at the restaraunt carefully inspecting every plate of food that leaves the kitchen, rejecting any that doesn't meet his demanding standards.  It is this relentless attention to detail that has brought national acclaim to a little restaurant in Bellevue, Nebraska known as, "America's Single Best BBQ Joint."


What Sets The Amarillo Apart

The woodpile.
    It's simple.  Real barbecue takes lots of wood, and you won't find any bags of charcoal or wood chips at the Amarillo.  This is a seriously authentic hickory smokehouse, and outside sits a massive woodplie: 40,000lbs of Southern Missouri hickory logs contained in a 50' semitrailer.  A new 20 ton load arrives every 90 days.

The Industry leader in unsurpassed meat quality.
    The Amarillo has set a new standard of quality in barbecue restaurants.  For example, it was the first restaurant in the nation to introduce SmartBrand® free-range chicken which boasts the only pure-air chilled system in the country.  The Amarillo's unique method of custom-trimming whole choice briskets is now being adopted in other barbecue restaurants.  And the one-of-a-kind Amarillo sausage is a result of Gordon's background in the natural foods industry.  The sausage, composed mainly of smoked brisket with a bit of pork trimming added, is lean and non-greasy yet suprisingly moist and flavorful.  Of course, ribs are the star of the show at the Amarillo and, as expected, only premium baby-back pork ribs are used.  Visitying Kansas City bbq contest judges declared, "The best ribs in the country are at the Amarillo."

A true, geniune hickory smokehouse.     The vast majority of restaurants today smoke their meats with electric or gas heat.  It's cheating if they do.  The Amarillo is the real thing- a genuine hickory smokehouse that smokes its meat with hickory logs only.  No other heat source is used.

A Texas state of mind.     You won't find any cussin' or fussin' at the Amarillo.  You'll find instead a close family of friends who welcome each new arrival into a celebration of old-time fun.  After all, Texas bbq is not a meal; it's a way of life.