The kitchen at Spicy Mike's Bar-B-Q Haven has all the essentials: mounds of Hereford Beef, chicken breasts and smoked sausages stored in a towering refrigerator; and a spice rack full of cumin, paprika and all the other seasonings that give the restaurant its name.

And hidden away - somewhere only owner Mike Havens knows - is a loaded Kahr 9 mm handgun. Just in case.

The right to bear arms isn't limited to staff members. Havens estimates a quarter of Spicy Mike's customers are carrying at least one gun when they walk into the restaurant at 6723 S. Western St. Many local eateries ban the open or concealed carry of firearms, but a sign inside Spicy Mike's encourages licensed gun owners to arm themselves before entering the restaurant.

"Guns are welcome on premises," the sign reads. "Please keep all weapons holstered unless need arises. In such case, judicious marksmanship is appreciated."

Open carry is generally taboo in chain restaurants, which typically aim to please customers in both red and blue states. Even Texas-based Whataburger banned open carry in all locations shortly after Gov. Greg Abbott signed Texas' open-carry legislation in June 2015. Whataburger, which has six Amarillo locations, allows concealed carry, a practice banned at national chains such as Sonic and Starbucks.

Some local restaurant owners are less gunshy.

Havens keeps a handgun with him from when he arrives at Spicy Mike's at 4 a.m. to when he leaves late in the evening. If he leaves during the day, he's usually transporting money to a bank. That's reason enough to arm himself, Havens said, and he has no qualms if licensed customers want do the same.

'Not the Wild Wild West'

More than 1.15 million Texans were licensed to carry handguns as of Dec. 31, 2016, according to the Department of Public Safety. Applicants must pass a series of background checks regarding their criminal history, chemical dependency and other automatic disqualifiers.

"If you've got a license to carry, you've done your due diligence, your homework," Havens said. "You know the level of responsibility that comes with carrying a gun."

Tyler Frazer of Tyler's Barbeque said he has armed himself at work since opening seven years ago. Like Havens, he's never needed to brandish the weapon.

As for customers, Frazer generally holds them to a don't-ask, don't-tell policy. He said people rarely walk in with an exterior holster. But if they do? Not a problem, as long as they're licensed.

"I'm fine if people want to concealed carry, as long as they have their license. Same thing with open carry," Frazer said. "I know that Amarillo is not the Wild Wild West, but it just makes me feel more comfortable to have it with me."

Tyler's has become somewhat of an Amarillo Police Department hangout. If the restaurant is busy, there's likely at least one off-duty officer eating with a weapon on his person, Frazer said. That serves as a crime deterrent, as does having chefs with large carving knives in clear view of the counter.

To Havens and Frazer, guns pair with Texas barbecue as naturally as coleslaw or potato salad. But Shi Lee owner Charlottee Brown doesn't want to see any customers packing heat.

She won't know if they have a concealed weapon, but said the barbecue and soul food cafe is a gun-free zone for customers.

"I feel you shouldn't be able to carry guns around in public in a place with too many people. Someone's going to get hurt," Brown said. "You have someone walk in and sit down to eat, and they see that they're sitting by one of their enemies … things are going to go bad."

Rules are less stringent behind the counter. Brown doesn't keep a gun with her at work but said she's planning to get one to defend herself when she's alone in the restaurant. What kind of gun? "Something that hurts," she said.

A sign posted outside Hoffbrau Steaks tells customers to leave guns hidden or at home. The Irving-based steakhouse has five locations throughout Texas, and human resources manager Susan Humphrey said differing political climates throughout the state have turned out a blanket policy intent on keeping clientele comfortable.

"When you see someone walk in with a firearm, it's one more thing our manager has to manage," Humphrey said. "When somebody walks in with a gun out and another guest takes offense to it, that is one more thing the manager has to address - the guest being offended by it, not the actual gun in the holster."

Hoffbrau apprehensively implemented its policy when the open-carry law went into effect in January 2016. Only two customers have called to complain since then, Humphrey said, solidifying Hoffbrau's decision.

'You never know'

On March 12, 1998, 19-year-old Yvette Barraz was beaten to death by the claw end of a hammer by a stalking ex-boyfriend upon leaving her shift at Leal's Restaurant in Muleshoe. Owner Victor Leal didn't know the extent of the ex-boyfriend's harassment, which Barraz reported to the Muleshoe Police Department two weeks before she was abducted.

Leal, who now walks around with a concealed Kimber .45-caliber, makes it a point to have employees walk to their cars in groups, which could have been the first step in preventing her murder. But would a firearm have helped?

Absolutely, Leal said.

"I wish I would have been more aware of (what was going on) and had taken precautions," Leal said. "When you have something like that happen, it makes you realize how real things like that are."

On the night of December 27, 2014, a Chop Chop Japanese Steakhouse employee was taking out the trash when he felt a gun barrel press into his back. The robber walked inside the kitchen, where another employee led him to an office and handed over an undisclosed amount of money. Police never found the suspect. Chop Chop currently has no firearms policy for customers or staff.

The moral of these stories?

"You never know, some crazy person could come in and want to rob you," Havens said. "It just gives you a sense of security, having (a gun) nearby. And I hope I never use it."