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With Rollin’ Smoke, Arkansas Natives Rock BBQ World in Las Vegas

3 min read

MAGNOLIA – Las Vegas barbecue restaurant Rollin’ Smoke, which is owned and operated by Magnolia native John Holland, with help from his brother Dusty Ardoin and father Lee Holland, has reached new heights thanks to the barbecue and Southern hospitality the brothers learned while growing up. Their success has led them to features on the Travel Channel, National Geographic Channel and Animal Planet.

Rollin’ Smoke got its start when owner John Holland decided to move from his hometown to pursue his passion for cuisine. He headed to Las Vegas to be closer to his father, Lee Holland, and enroll at Le Cordon Bleu to further his education in the culinary field.

After making his move to Nevada, he and his father channeled their Southern hospitality into block parties, to which they invited people from the surrounding area to come and enjoy their barbecue.

“I found that there weren’t any good barbecue restaurants in Vegas,” John said in a telephone interview with the Banner-News.

Soon after John graduated from culinary school, one of his block party attendees invited him to sell his barbecue in front of the attendee’s store.

On his first day, John sold a total of three sandwiches within a four-hour period. Despite these confidence-crushing numbers, he kept working, and within the next two weeks had escalated to selling 75 sandwiches in two hours.

He and Lee continued working on the side of the street for the next three years. He learned that to further his operation, he was going to need more space, so he moved to a small strip mall and Rollin’ Smoke was born.

Ardoin moved out to help his brother open the restaurant. For the first three months it was only John, Lee and Ardoin.

Since opening, the restaurant has received a great deal of national recognition. Rollin’ Smoke earned recognition as one of Localeats.com‘s Top 20 Barbecue Restaurants of 2013.

“In the two years we have been open, we have earned the rank of the 9th best restaurant in Vegas, out of over 3,000 (restaurants),” Ardoin told the Banner-News.

The restaurant has been seen on Animal Planet’s “Tanked,” the Travel Channel’s “Barbecue Paradise” and National Geographic’s “None of the Above.”

“Tanked” aired last April and focused on a pig-shaped fish tank made to resemble a grill. The tank was created for the restaurant.

“Barbecue Paradise,” which will air on July 22, will focus on the food that has made Rollin’ Smoke so popular.

“None of the Above” is scheduled to air fall of 2014.

The brothers believe much of their success is due to their upbringing in Magnolia.

“We grew up eating good barbecue” John said.

Many of John’s recipes are his own spin on Arkansas barbecue. His creations include the Outlaw Burger, the BBQ Parfait and a spin on one of his mother’s recipes, Smoked Meatloaf.

“We are very proud of where we come from,” Ardoin said. “The Southern hospitality that we developed back home is working wonders here. These people are not use to it.”

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Information from: The Banner-News, http://www.bannernews.net

(Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, rewritten, broadcast or distributed.)
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