The sound of sizzling brisket and a warm greeting by shift manager Jasmine Myers – “Hi, welcome to Big Lee’s!” – gives off that small, local barbecue joint feeling.
But Big Lee’s - Serious About BBQ in Ocala is anything but small. In fact, it has blown up on TikTok in recent months, amassing a total of about 242,300 followers and 3.7 million likes, bringing customers from as far as Texas to Ocala just to try their food.
The restaurant is owned by Rashad Jones, a Food Network Celebrity chef.
Myers, 25, has been working at Big Lee’s for three years, and she said the recent increase in virality has been interesting to watch.
“It’s been unreal, people from all over are coming to Ocala to try Big Lee’s,” Myers said. “It’s truly changed how we operate but we still keep that same quality of service of food.”
Big Lee’s popularity and the traffic it has brought to Ocala are just a glimpse of the area’s changing business demographics. From 2023 to 2024, Ocala’s population increased by 4%, making it the nation’s fastest-growing metropolitan area, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The once primarily agricultural area has been booming with new businesses – including restaurants – in recent years. For those born and raised in Ocala like Myers, the change from the quiet, rural town to the now more densely populated area has been a drastic change for her to watch, she said.
The business growth in the area has brought in more traffic, as well.
“The growth in traffic has been tremendous,” said Myers. “There have been noticeably more accidents as more people come to live in Ocala.”
As the cost of living increases each year, those looking to move to Florida have found that Ocala is a cheaper alternative to some of the state’s more expensive cities, such as Orlando and Tampa.
For high school senior Nyla Minifield, who moved to Ocala from Gainesville in the eighth grade, the rise in population has impacted her community. She describes how area leisure attractions have become overcrowded but adds that there is also excitement surrounding the new businesses opening.
“It used to be more of a land-based city, but there definitely are more businesses now than land,” said Minifield. “There used to not be a lot for children to do around here but now there are more attractions, they are very overpopulated though. It is exciting to see more business; we even have a Crumbl cookies now.”
Despite the overwhelming traffic of Ocala and the increasing popularity of Big Lee’s, the restaurant still finds ways to show up for the locals who have been supporting them before fame.
“They still know me by my first name here, “ said Minifield.