Is Cooper's Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que Still Open? Mystery Diners Update
Mystery Diners, Season 3 Fort Worth, Texas
Current status
As of October 2026, Cooper's Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que is open — confirmed via the restaurant's current website/social account, accessed September 21, 2026.
What the source shows: The business's own website (re-checked 2026-09-21) still lists current pit hours (Sun-Thurs 11am-8:30pm, Fri-Sat 11am-9:30pm) and the same Stockyards address; Google Places marked it operational, indicating the restaurant is still serving despite a 2024 last-updated timestamp on the site. How we decide a status →
- Episode Season 3, Episode 7
- Aired
- Address 301 Stockyards Blvd, Fort Worth, TX 76164
- Website coopersbbqfortworth.com
- Show map
© OpenStreetMap contributors © CARTO
About this show's format: Described as staged/scripted by Wikipedia's article, citing a 2012 realityblurred.com report. Surface this note on every record.
What happened after Mystery Diners?
In the 'Barbecue Blues' episode (aired 2013-05-31), owner Terry suspected his signature barbecue recipe at Cooper's Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que in Fort Worth was somehow ending up with rival pit masters around town, and he initially suspected his own chef, Bobby, before calling in Mystery Diners' undercover investigators to work the pit and find the real source of the leak. Hidden cameras instead traced it to Terry's own nephew, Michael, who had been quietly passing along the recipe and preparation steps to competing barbecue joints in exchange for money over a period of time. When Terry saw the footage, he cut ties with Michael and asked him to stay away from the business, while Bobby, cleared of any wrongdoing after being shown to have kept the recipe to himself the whole time, was asked to sign a confidentiality agreement going forward to formally protect the recipe from future leaks.
According to Wikipedia's article on the series, citing its sources, Mystery Diners carries an on-screen disclaimer that its events may be staged or re-enacted for dramatic effect and has been described by a television critic as relying on implausible scenarios and unconvincing acting. Cooper's website, coopersbbqfortworth.com, listed Thursday-through-Saturday pit hours when checked on 2026-09-08, and Google's Places listing marked the business operational that same day, though the site's most recent visible update timestamp on the page dated back to March 2024.
The episode
Also in Season 3
Season 3: 6 of 13 still open · 1 renamed, moved or under new owners
- Closed
- Open
- Open
- Renamed
-
Ep 8Deanie's Seafood
Open - Closed
-
Ep 10Zio Cecio
Open - Open
Nearest restaurants
-
Best Thing I Ever Ate
Closed -
Best Thing I Ever Ate
Open -
Food Paradise
Open -
Bar Rescue
Closed -
Joe T. Garcia’s Mexican Restaurant
Food Paradise
Open - Open
Before you go: Businesses change fast. Always confirm directly with the restaurant — call ahead, or check its own current website or social media — before making plans around anything on this page.
Sources we checked
- coopersbbqfortworth.com http://coopersbbqfortworth.com/
- Google https://www.google.com/maps/search/?api=1&query=Coopers+Old+Time+Pit+Bar-B-Que+301+Stockyards+Blvd+Fort+Worth+TX+76164
- Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mystery_Diners
We work hard to keep every status accurate and dated, but restaurants change fast and our sources aren't perfect. If something here is wrong — a status, a name, an address, anything — tell us what you're seeing and where you saw it, and we'll check it.
Record md-028 · checked by Cal Marchetti.