Bucky Moonshine’s

Dallas, United States

4.7

Closed now

20 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards
Free Wi-Fi

Contacts

QR code, vCard

Telephone:
+1 214-748-6901
Website:
www.buckymoonshine.com
Address:
2912 Elm St, Dallas, TX, 75226
Deep Ellum
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
1.5 miConvention Center Station
1.6 miUnion Streetcar Station
2.5 miGreenbriar Streetcar Station
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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations
No
Delivery
No
Take-out
Yes
Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Accepts Apple Pay
No
Accepts Bitcoin
No
Good For
Lunch
Parking
Private Lot
Bike Parking
Yes
Wheelchair Accessible
Yes
Good for Kids
Yes
Good for Groups
Yes
Attire
Casual
Ambience
Casual
Noise Level
Average
Alcohol
Full Bar
Outdoor Seating
Yes
Wi-Fi
Free
Has TV
Yes
Dogs Allowed
Yes
Waiter Service
Yes
Caters
Yes

Today

Today 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Closed now
Local time (Dallas) 05:24 Wednesday, 11 June 2025

Business hours

Monday 11:00 am – 3:00 pm
Tuesday 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Wednesday 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Thursday 11:00 am – 12:00 am
Friday 11:00 am – 12:00 am
Saturday 11:00 am – 12:00 am
Sunday –

Description

Specialties

After 12 years Chef Ivan Pugh decided that the Alligator Café idea needed a creative twist and created Bucky Moonshines. Having grown up with the name Bucky he wanted this concept to be more personal and a home away from home. The menu which still has many of his Alligator Café signature dishes also expands to many places he called home in the South. So the new menu has things such as Chicken n Dumplins, Biscuits and Gravy, Ribs, and homemade Mac n cheese. It also offers a full bar with over 40 flavors of Moonshine, and Live Local Music featuring some of the best acts in Dallas and Deep Ellum. The space also has been opened up for large groups, has a brand new outside covered and heated patio where the bands play most nights. It is also full service, has its own free parking lot and is dog and bike friendly with its easily accessible patio. For people who love the Alligator Café this offers more choices and a cool Deep Ellum vibe but the quality and standards are kept up to par having Chef Ivan at the helm and the atmosphere is fresh and hip with a focus on Art and music.

History

Established in 2004.

Having started 5 minutes from Deep Ellum, Chef Ivan wanted a restaurant in his old neighborhood and stomping grounds and has created Bucky Moonshine. a Full and unique bar with live music but with an eagle eye focus on high quality soul, cajun, and southern food. full service, full bar, free parking and unique outside seating protected from the elements.

Meet the Business Owner

Ivan Pugh S.

Business Owner

Chef Ivan started his career in fine dining as a line cook in 1991 but moved to being a caterer and personal chef in 1994 till 2001. He did a couple of years as a Food and Beverage Director in the corporate restaurant world which immediately drove him to open his own restaurant. The seven years as a caterer and personal Chef allowed Ivan to develop his original recipes which he is now sharing with you at Bucky Moonshines and his first restaurant the Alligator Café in Casa Linda where he is executive chef and a working chef at Buckys which he is using to evolve his menu.

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20 reviews of Bucky Moonshine’s

No registration required
Place rating: 4
Dallas, TX
Great food and our server was super nice as well. Everything was fresh and fast … It just kinda threw me off that this «manager» or whoever he was. Was in the corner on a business call like yelling and complaining lol. Just awk. Guess we went at a weird time.
Place rating: 5
Ada, MI
I’m in town on business and planned visit a different local joint for dinner. Apparently, few folks here in Dallas don’t eat after 3pm because several places were closed. I couldn’t have lucked out more because this place rocked. «Moonshine» was a pleasure to meet and Caroline know exactly what I wanted to eat… because I didn’t. I never opened the menu and asked for their second best dish, moments later Caroline delivered their Atchafalaya with blackened catfish and shrimp étouffée. I was just in New Orleans last week and I would put this dish up against anything I had there. The bread pudding topped off the experience. I WILL be back the next time I am in town… I must try their best dish… apparently the banana pudding, made in-​house is killer too.
Place rating: 5
Dallas, TX
Had the best moonshine margarita and moonshine hurricane ever! The service here is great I’ll be back for the food!
Place rating: 5
Red Oak, TX
This is a great place to eat some really good food. It has been rescripted as Bucky Moonshines in order to add brisket, chicken and dumplings, short ribs, sweet potatoes and some other Southern cooking dishes; but at it’s core, it’s still very Cajun. Everything you loved about the previous menu remains and so it was with our lunch. I love the blackened Atchafalaya Catfish with dirty rice coupled with Shrimp Etouffe. At lunch, it’s $ 11.00 for this slice of Louisiana heaven with a beautiful buttered and grilled baguette. My husband had a bowl of dark roux seafood gumbo, bread and fried okra. Delicious. That’s what I came for. Maybe I’ll try those short ribs next time.
Place rating: 5
Dallas, TX
You know – it got better. The service was amazing. I had the Catfish Pontchartrain – AMAZING. I like creamy spicy sauces, so this was right up my alley. The catfish was blackened. The tiny little crawdaddies were all over the place. I also had some Boudan Balls, Chicken and Dumplings and Banana Pudding.
The meal could not have been any better. Love this place.
Once again I applaud them for having their own parking lot with enough parking for their patrons. Making Deep Ellum easy.
Place rating: 4
Addison, TX
Cool place… me and my wife went last Friday 5÷27÷16 The waitress was very nice. Sat outside on the patio very good band playing southern blues/​Rock. The only complaint was there was a ton of kids on the patio I don’t know if it was just the night I went or every night but it took away from the date night feel. The food was good… Collard Greens were EXCELLENT! Dirty rice was also good. The price was the best part I had a hurricane, Fried pickles and two entrées and the bill was only $ 45 bucks! My advice is go there thinking drinks on a patio not date night and you will have a great time. I will defiantly go back the music and the food were good and the price was even better!
Place rating: 5
Clovis, NM
Second time here. Got the fried green tomatoes which were delicious and the remoulade sauce had a great kick. Had the fried oysters with red beans and rice instead of fries. I preferred the smaller pieces because they were more crisper, the tartar was nice but wishes for a little more tartness, and the cocktail had the great kick you in the mouth zing! The red beans and rice had a great flavor with nice heat in it. Did not have to dress them up at all. It was such a small platter of food, yet extremely filling. Overall, still a great place to eat at with authenticity in the food.
Place rating: 5
Dallas, TX
Place is clean, Great service and great Food! Great hangout spot for friends and family! Food is authentic and made with love. I will definitely be coming back to try all the other great menu options.
Place rating: 4
Irving, TX
Moonshine Flight was fantastic and so was the shrimp and grits. Maybe slightly better than my own. From 1 Louisianan to another, pretty awesome food. The table had crawfish and shrimp poboy, Shrimp platter and the best of all was the shrimp and grits. Everything was reasonably priced as well ($$).
Place rating: 5
Nacogdoches, TX
I had the best bowl of gumbo of my life and the bread pudding is on point! The ambiance is great, the manager is hilarious, and the service is wonderful. I cannot say enough nice things about this place.
Place rating: 5
Washington, DC
Music will have you jammin’ as you dine on the chef prepared cuisine. Delicious!
The gumbo is superb. I had the blackened salmon and it was prepared perfectly. Not dry at all.
The parking, service, location and parking are great!
Place rating: 4
Rowlett, TX
This place was so worth the drive. Excellent, friendly service and the food is fantastic!
Place rating: 4
Terrell, TX
Several friends and I enjoyed delicious drinks and food at this great restaurant. We ordered moonshine cocktails, of which they have many flavors. ‘Pecan pie’ moonshine was a favorite and next time we’ll try ‘apple pie’ flavor!
We selected for our appetizers fried pickles, fried green tomatoes, and chicken wings-​all of which were delicious. For main course, our table was filled with plates of catfish, shrimp, dirty rice, red beans & rice, macaroni & cheese, collard greens, blackened catfish Pontchatrain, and more wings! Our taste buds were dancing a jig and we were all doing our own personal happy dances.
A most hospitable, gracious, and charming gentleman named Moonshine, with his authentic Cajun accent, made us feel as if we were at a café in NOLA. It was such a delicious and fun afternoon!
Give this place a try. You’ll be glad you did!
Place rating: 5
Urbandale, IA
Cocktail Todd, the bartender, is the type of employee you want. He went above and beyond. Great guy, very good service. I had gumbo and it was great. I highly recommend this place. I will be back 100%. In fact I tried, but they’re closed on Sunday.
Place rating: 5
Laredo, TX
In a nutshell, food, drinks and service were all excellent.
I took the bartender Kenny’s advice and had a blood and honey beer which was superb. After his drink suggestion worked out, I decided to follow his advice and had some pulled pork sliders and their Mac and cheese, which were all excellent. I followed everything up with an order of their bread pudding with bourbon sauce that was fantastic. Excellent service from Kenny all around. This dude is spot on awesome.
Place rating: 5
Frisco, TX
Where do I start. Free parking. Really does that exist in Deep Ellum? So I ordered the fried green tomatoes as an appetizer being the southerner that I am. Hands down gave Grandma a run for her money and was a hefty serving of 8 large green tomatoes. Entrée was the Shrimp Pablano. It came with dirty rice and read beans and rice. Was superb, then I had 3 grown folks drinks. Mind Eraser, Long Island, and Sangria it was only $ 45. I couldn’t believe I thought I was under charged.
Place rating: 5
Dallas, TX
This was the former Alligator Café and now renamed and re-​concepted by the original owner and chef. Although some of the menu items are gone, all my favorites are still there.
The new items on the menu really shine! On separate occasions, I’ve enjoyed the Chicken ‘N’ Dumplings and the Boneless Short Ribs, both as a Slider and on Dirty Rice served with the excellent Garlic Green Beans.
There is now a full bar featuring craft beers and specialty moonshine cocktails. On recommendation from the bartender, Caroline, I tried one of the moonshine cocktails. It was called «Drunk Punch». Besides being delicious, it was quite potent!
The atmosphere is very relaxed, not only at lunch but in the evenings, even when they are featuring entertainment, such as live bands, DJs, or open mic night. This is a great place to enjoy some delicious food and drinks in a very «chill» environment.
Place rating: 4
Jersey City, NJ
Had lunch here on a Saturday afternoon. The menu is a mix of comfort foods from the south and southwest. Shrimp and grits, Shepherds pie, fried seafood and poboys are a few of the items.
The food was surprisingly good. Kind of like a slightly upscale diner. I had the baby back ribs with collard greens and sweet potato. My wife had the atchafalaya — blackened catfish with shrimp étouffée and dirty rice. Both dishes were cooked perfectly.
It doesn’t have the trendy veneer of a lot of Dallas restaurants and that’s probably why the entrée prices are in the $ 8 to $ 16 range.
The service seemed adequate but there were only 4 or 5 other tables with customers. Not sure how they’d do with a packed house.
They also have their own parking lot so that’s a big plus in Deep Ellum.
Place rating: 4
Irving, TX
This was my first visit to Alligator Café but by no means is it my last. There are a few more things I need to explore on the menu. We got there early on a Saturday evening and it was chilly. There was live music as we drove and parked in the free parking lot. It was much too cold for the patio seating so we ventured inside.
I asked our server what does she recommend and she happen to mention Atchafalaya which was what I was contemplating anyway. I’m glad that is what I ordered. The dish was 2 well fried catfish fillet covered with crawfish étouffée. A lovely dish served over tasty dirty rice. The food was delicious, the service wasn’t the best but adequate. I will be back because there were more items I need to try and soon.
I would recommend highly.
Place rating: 5
Dallas, TX
This has quickly become one of my favorite places in Dallas. My boyfriend and I wandered in a couple of months ago while we were walking around Deep Ellum. When we passed by, there was a nice guy who was working the parking lot who invited us in. We wanted to walk a little more, but said that we would come back. It turns out that they own the parking lot, and if you are going to Alligator Café, you can park for free.
We circled back, and went inside. They had live entertainment that was really soulful, and set a great vibe for the place. The singer welcomed us as well, when we were seated.
Our server was amazing. Just super friendly and welcoming. She made suggestions of some her favorites. We got a small side of alligator, the boudain balls, and the blackened catfish pontchartrain. The catfish was amazing. It was full of flavor, and they do not skimp on the crawfish in the sauce. I also enjoyed a couple of hurricanes. He had one of their $ 3 beer specials. The owner came out and talked to us for a few minutes, which we really appreciated.
We have since been back twice to see the same performer, Drin, play. If you like soulful, jazzy, music, then you need to go on a night when she is there. Each time we try something new on the menu and hang out. The vibe is so relaxed and inviting that we always feel at home. Btw, they have that hard root beer on tap. I can’t remember the name, but it is really good.
If you are in the area, you should definitely stop in!