New Orleans Pitmaster Known for His Smoked Meat Inventions Will Lead New Downtown Restaurant

A local pop-up chef and pitmaster known for smoked meat creations like meatloaf sausage and a pastrami banh mi is set to lead the kitchen for two promising downtown restaurants, a craft brewery called Brewery Saint X and a barbecue restaurant, Devil Moon Barbecue.

The two restaurants will share a kitchen led by Shannon Bingham, the chef behind St. Roch Market food stalls and pop-ups Emmylou’s BBQ and Buttermilk, he announced on social media Thursday. Bingham’s handing the reigns to Emmylou’s over to a longtime colleague, so it will continue on, and Bingham will focus on the brewery and restaurant as well as continue to run Buttermilk as a catering business.

The restaurants are housed in a newish apartment tower on Girod Street at the edge of the Warehouse District and CBD (the area real estate people are still trying to make us call the South Market), by Willa Jean and Maypop. They’re backed by a Virginia-based restaurant group (Neighborhood Restaurant Group) and the Domain Companies, the developer behind local Atelier Ace spots like Bar Marilou, Seaworthy, and Josephine Estelle.

The restaurant group was keen on expanding to New Orleans, apparently, with one executive who’s from Baton Rouge and another who was immediately attracted to New Orleans’s beer scene, according to Biz New Orleans. The brewery will focus on traditional lagers, which is hugely refreshing given the current IPA-centric beer world, though it will also produce “hop-forward ales and experimental sours,” to keep everyone happy.

Devil Moon is likely to follow a similar menu to Emmylou’s, which covers an expansive range of barbecue styles including Texas-style brisket, Carolina-style pulled pork, and St. Louis-style ribs, as well as ropa vieja, beef cheeks, and jalapeno cheddar sausage. Emmylou’s is also popular for its Frito Pie and awesomely creative specials, like the aforementioned meatloaf sausage sandwich served on a bun with mashed potatoes and gravy. Bingham also does a popular smoked butternut squash sandwich for vegetarians.

Bingham will give a preview of Devil Moon Barbecue through a series of pop-ups over the next few weeks. The team is kicking off the series to coincide with LSU’s opener, this Sunday, September 4, in the parking lot at the corner of Loyola and Julia Streets. Following this Sunday’s event, there will be two more Saints game day pop-ups, on September 18 and October 9.

Devil Moon Barbecue and Brewery Saint-X are expected to open at 1100 Girod Street this fall.