Followers and foes of Houston’s Turkey Leg Hut can quickly catch a brand new documentary detailing the restaurant’s downfall.
The controversial eatery has confronted a number of blows regardless of its reputation in Houston’s meals scene. Now, Hillionaire Productions will uncover what led to its present shutdown in “The Rise and Fall of The Turkey Leg Hut.”
Rumors and scandals have plagued the restaurant, which first gained traction for its strict costume code just a few years in the past. Since its first backlash from prospects, Turkey Leg Hut has undergone management struggles, arson, and chapter, amongst different points.
Hillionaire’s creator, Jami McCoy-Lankford, stumbled upon the thought to provide the documentary. She initially reached out to the founders of Turkey Leg Hut, Nakia Holmes and Lynn Worth, to debate a property buy. Nonetheless, after talking with them in regards to the meals spot’s tumultuous journey, she determined to take it upon herself to carry the reality to the forefront.
“If I don’t do it, someone else will,” McCoy-Lankford mentioned to the Houston Chronicle. “It’s about doing it in good style… we now have the chance to set the document straight right here. That is what occurred, irrespective of who’s at fault.”
Regardless of receiving the founders’ blessing and participation within the documentary, McCoy-Lankford later confronted pushback from Holmes about their reported settlement. Holmes informed the Chronicle that she determined to not transfer ahead with the undertaking, an replace unbeknownst to the producer.
“I need to make clear that I’m not concerned within the documentary related to Turkey Leg Hut. I’ve not signed any agreements, nor have I given permission for my identify or story for use. Whereas I used to be approached in regards to the undertaking throughout a tough time in my life, I made the choice to not transfer ahead,” Holmes mentioned in a press release.
She added, “This has been an extremely emotional and private chapter for me, and seeing my identify hooked up to one thing I don’t need to be part of has been deeply hurtful. My story is mine to inform. Nobody can share it the best way I can. Sadly, some individuals see your ache as a possibility for revenue. That’s not integrity, that’s exploitation. I simply need peace, therapeutic, and to be unnoticed of something that I didn’t authorize.”
Turkey Leg Hut received its begin on the Houston Rodeo car parking zone in 2015. Its strategy to turkey leg creations led to the 2017 opening of a brick-and-mortar location within the metropolis’s Third Ward. With celeb company and a media frenzy surrounding its costume code, the restaurant took off.
Nonetheless, the homeowners confronted marital points that impacted the restaurant’s operations. Holmes and Worth introduced their separation in 2023. The bitter cut up sparked a fireplace on the eatery the next 12 months, for which Worth nonetheless sits in jail on arson expenses. After chapter and a failed well being inspection, along with claims that Worth offered marijuana on the premises, Turkey Leg Hut formally closed in November 2024.
McCoy-Lankford has emphasised that her intentions with the documentary are usually not malicious. She needs to spotlight Turkey Leg Hut’s significance and influence in Houston’s meals scene and Black neighborhood, whereas nonetheless acknowledging how its troubles got here to mild.
“It’s extra of a teachable second for me than it’s placing them on blast,” defined McCoy-Lankford. “(Turkey Leg Hut) did lots for the tradition, the meals tradition and the restaurant tradition within the metropolis of Houston, they actually put Almeda, that entire avenue, on the map… we are able to’t take that away from them.”
The documentary will function interviews with earlier workers, well-known patrons, and early traders. McCoy-Lankford additionally acknowledged that she’s going to communicate with Worth in regards to the restaurant whereas in federal custody. Though Holmes presently stays uninvolved with the undertaking, the producer will proceed with its growth.
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