Don O.'s Texas BBQ blog

Congrats to Aaron Franklin

2012-01-23T15:33:00.000-08:00

Congrats to Aaron Franklin who will be on the cover of the new issue of Texas Monthly. Damn it. Like waiting in line an hour for his BBQ isn't enough already! Hah! Just kidding. He deserves every bit of praise he is getting. I'm just happy I have a brisket and a half of his fine smoked meat in my freezer.

http://www.texasmonthly.com/2012-02-01/webextra6.php

Off the Bone BBQ, Dallas, 1/20/12

2012-01-21T08:05:00.000-08:00

Once again the convenience of Off the Bone BBQ to Lamar Street nightclubs came in handy. We stopped by about 8:30 pm to grab a bite before hitting a local club and found the little joint very busy indeed. The dining area was full and the tiny kitchen/ordering area had about 10 people waiting inside, about the most you could fit in there. It took about 15 minutes to get our order in and another 10 minutes or so to get our food. Good things come to those that wait! As usual I got half a rack of babyback ribs, with NO sauce. If you don't specify that, they come swimming in it. As they are wet mop ribs, they have plenty of sauce flavor already.

My half rack was tender, moist, and delicious with just the right amount of sweetness from the wet mop. Just about perfect ribs. The to-go box also came with several pieces of small sliced bread which was the prefect compliment. My buddy Marc had a sausage sandwich which he proclaimed was excellent and he also had high praise for the beans. I later heard rumors they have added sliced brisket to the menu and I shall have to investigate that next time I am in. Previously, they had only had chopped, mixed with a lot of sauce which was more sloppy joe than BBQ. I hope the rumors are true!

Franklin BBQ MEAT PORN!

2012-01-19T22:02:00.000-08:00

Through methods I refuse to divulge, my buddy Dave and I obtained two whole briskets from Franklin BBQ to feed our smoked meat habit. Dave cut off half a brisket and I carved up the remaining brisket and a half for our respective freezers. It warms up wonderfully with a brief spin in the microwave and retains all of its smokey goodness. While slicing, the words "my precious, my precious" were heard in a strange voice we didn't recognize. During the process (and in-between nibbles) I snapped away and the results can only be described as MEAT PORN! Review the following photos at your own risk. Click on them for the full effect. You have been warned!!

I now have almost 7 pounds of Franklin brisket in my freezer along with a healthy supply of Kreuz jalapeno cheese sausage. I may not leave my house for some time. Oh, and be aware I also have guns. Lots of guns.

Franklin Barbecue, Austin, Texas 1/19/12

2012-01-19T13:00:00.000-08:00

Only my second BBQ meal of 2012 and I get to eat at my favorite place. Oh, and it gets even better! The lines and wait time at Franklin BBQ are legendary and this trip was no exception. We arrived at 9:50 am, a full hour and 10 minutes before opening, and were number 15 and 16 in line. By the time the doors were opened at 11 am, there were more than 60 people waiting. Yes, it is insane, but so is the BBQ. It was a beautiful day for January, temperature in the 70's, so waiting outside was no problem.

As the doors opened, mumbles of "the gates of heaven are opening" were heard and the outside line became an inside line.

After about another 15 minutes, we finally got our chance to order and I scored 1/2 pound of fatty brisket and a couple of pork ribs. I'm still getting the hang of my new pocket camera but even if I was an "arteest" I could not convey to you how great this was. It was "stand-in-line-waiting-1-hour-and-25-minutes" good. I'd gladly do it again tomorrow, but now I don't have to! You will have to see the next post for the details there.

Sadly, this day was the swan song for the legendary Dublin Dr Pepper which has been on tap at Franklin. They were on their last supply of syrup and when it is gone there will be no more. Fitting that I had my last Dublin D.P. at Franklin, a place that recognizes and produces greatness. R.I.P. Dublin D.P.!

City Market, Luling, Texas 1/18/12

2012-01-18T21:15:00.000-08:00

My first trip of 2012 was a short but merry adventure and I'll be enjoying the aftermath for a few weeks to come! My buddy Dave in Austin was kind enough to build me a nice new computer and that forced me to make a road trip and a few "side trips" since I was in the neighborhood. Of course side trip number one was down to Luling and Lockhart for dinner and some to-go boxes. Dinner was accomplished at City Market in Luling, and, as always, was magnificent. Brisket, ribs and sausage were just as excellent as they always are and we left with very happy tummies.

After dinner we took the short trip up to Lockhart to load up with a couple of boxes of Kreuz jalapeno cheese sausage and this time I was not disappointed. Lately they have been "out" several times when I stopped by, but this time I left smiling. They have raised the price, slightly, to $1.60/link or $40 a box, but that's still a far cry from the $5.25 a link they charge for the same stuff at Lockhart Smokehouse in Dallas. It freezes great and I'll be enjoying that wonderful sausage for quite awhile.

Bacon bandages

2011-12-29T10:50:00.000-08:00

Have an ouchie? Put the power of BACON to work for you!

As seen on Amazon.com

Bacon Vodka!

2011-12-05T18:11:00.000-08:00

No, it's not BBQ but it is smoked meat. Sorta. Saw this link over on The Field Lab blog. Everything's better with bacon!!

http://www.bakonvodka.com/

Texas Monthly BBQ fest, Austin, Texas

2011-10-30T22:19:00.000-07:00

sampled 10/30/11

Woo hoo!! What a marvelous time was had by all at the second annual Texas Monthly BBQ Festival in Austin, Texas. I do hope I never miss another one. I had planned to attend last year, but was surprised, like many, when the first one sold out in just a few days. This year I was better prepared and jumped right on it as soon as the VIP tickets went on sale. The VIP tix were more expensive, but they got you inside a full hour before the regular tickets. Any BBQ eater would know that was well worth the extra money and it certainly was!!

Scott wimped out, but my buddy Dave from Austin was game and we made it down to the fest site about 45 minutes before opening. After checking into the VIP area, we found ourselves standing in a long line awaiting the appointed hour. There was something funny about standing in a cattle line to eat BBQ, but being bathed in smoke from some nearby pits stopped us from laughing much.

Finally the noon hour arrived and we were off to BBQ heaven. We had planned, first off, to hit Snow's and Franklin's booths, to compare two of the most celebrated attendees at this year's event. We did that and found Franklin's the easy winner.

After that it was just like trick or treat for BBQ hounds. We went from booth to booth collecting samples, then tasting and scoring on the provided cards. I really wanted to walk up to each booth and shout, "Trick or treat, trick or treat, please give us some good smoked meat!" Dave convinced me that would be a bit silly. At first, things were very easy. There were few lines and most were very short.

We began sampling two booths at a time, snapping photos as we went. At 1 pm they opened the gates and the hordes descended. After that the lines got SERIOUS and finding a spot to eat was tough. I wish they would give the VIP ticket-holders an extra 30 minutes with the extra charges. The picture below shows the line for Snows snakeing back 100 folks deep, or so.

After the gates were opened we started sampling just one booth at a time simply because the lines and the wait were too long. Jimmie Vaughan and band started up a bit after 1 pm and provided some fine background music for BBQ chomping. I have to say there was a lot of blues on the sound system throughout the afternoon along with Bob Wills and other "Texas" music and whoever did the mix did a great job.

The booths were interesting and all the servers were very friendly. Some were better prepared than others. The smartest thing I saw were those who included cards or marked paper in their sample dishes. That made it easy to keep track of whose food you were eating. With 22 booths to sample, that became more important as the day went on. Some booths included sides, others just meat, some added sauce, others had it on the side. We tried to sample just the meats, without sauce. If you want sauce, Man Up's "Getting Sauced" is the event to hit! Speaking of which, I ran into Drew and Brad and said "Howdy" but we were quickly drawn back to the business at hand, which was eating BBQ! I'm sure the BBQ snob was there somewhere, but I never saw him.

Inside the adjacent center, we spied the BBQ First Aid station. They seemed to be well prepared with "heart starters", antacids, and all your BBQ first aid needs.

We managed to eat at 21 of the 22 booths. There was some great meats, and some average meats, as well. How did we do it? Simple. I prepared as if for a big BBQ cookoff judging session. I fasted the previous day, we took only a bite or two from each meat before scoring, we brought along ziploc bags for saving the extra meats we liked (which were most of them), and then moved onto the next booth. We could have sold a BUNCH of ziploc bags when folks saw us bagging our leftovers! The one booth we missed?? Smitty's Market from Lockhart. Smitty's has a history of disappointing me, despite being a top rated joint. I was not surprised when they were OUT OF FOOD by the time we hit their booth at about 2 pm.

As we finished up, we sat down and tabulated our scores and made our judgement calls for the "People's Choice Awards". My actual scorecard is shown below.

There were a few TOUGH calls to make. Vencil Mares' Taylor Cafe came VERY close on brisket to being my favorite. They were the only booth which allowed you to select your own pieces from the tray. I picked out a nice piece with a large streak of fat and it just about melted in my mouth. It was some very nice brisket. I still had to give it to Franklin, even though Franklin had only brisket samples and no other meats. On ribs, Big Daddy's had a very nice rib, and deserves an honorable mention. Taylor Cafe's turkey sausage was also very nice. There were only a couple of beef ribs on offer, but Louie Mueller's was very smart to present their offering in a separate basket, with a card, to highlight their offering. It was good, too!

If there was an "overall" rating, for the best presentation of multiple meats, I think I would have given it to Taylor Cafe.

I really had a blast and can't wait to do it again next year. There are three more posts below, showing the booths and food from almost every participant. Enjoy, and remember you can click on any photo for a larger version.

Texas Monthly BBQ fest, the pictures #1

2011-10-30T21:31:00.000-07:00

Pictures of most of the booths and food, part 1. Click on the pictures for larger versions.

Texas Monthly BBQ fest, the pictures Part 2

2011-10-30T21:25:00.000-07:00

Pictures of booths and food from most of the participants, part 2. Click on the pictures for larger views.

Texas Monthly BBQ fest, the pictures Part 3

2011-10-30T21:18:00.000-07:00

More pictures of booths and food from the participants, part 3. Click on the pictures for larger views.

Black's frozen brisket

2011-10-14T08:47:00.000-07:00

Last month, I picked up some bargain frozen brisket at Black's in Lockhart for just $6 a pound. I finally got around to thawing out a chunk and had it for dinner last night with some Kreuz jalapeno cheese sausage. Now I wish I had bought more! The freezing didn't hurt things a bit as the brisket was full of smoke flavor and the fat was melt in your mouth delicious. I need a bigger freezer!!

I assume this is just brisket that is left over after business that they just cut up and package and freeze in 1 pound chunks for mail order sale. I guessing after a certain time in the freezer, they discount it. I do hope I am lucky enough to run into that situation again, sometime!! It makes for some good eatin'.

Lee-Mo's Smokehouse, 9/28/11

2011-09-29T18:18:00.000-07:00

Visited about 1:30 pm, 9/28/11

As threatened after my last visit, I returned to Lee-Mo's this week to sample their ribs and re-sample their brisket. Unfortunately, the ribs I had were overcooked, then sat in a warmer too long, making the outside very chewy. The result was that the meat fell off the bone, then you had to chew on it awhile. There was not much flavor and zero smoke. I also got a half pound of brisket to go, and it was moist and tender. However there was zero smoke flavor and it came across as the all too familiar roast beef. I will say the fat was well rendered and the meat was tasty with the addition of some Dr Pepper BBQ sauce. Their house sauce remains way too sweet for me, and seems to be made up with a heavy percentage of honey. The highlight of the meal was their home made potato salad. Having sampled that before, I doubled up on that!

2011 Calories and Cholesterol Tour!

2011-09-22T17:17:00.000-07:00

We had an abbreviated tour this year, 3 1/2 days, with 8 BBQ stops. 5 stops we had eaten at before 3 were new joints for us. Scott got his first taste of Franklin in Austin and I got my second. We also came home with lots of goodies for future consumption. I scored 2 pounds of fatty brisket to go at Franklin BBQ in Austin, plus a box of 25 links of jalapeno cheese sausage from Kreuz in Lockhart. Black's in Lockhart was having a sale on frozen fatty brisket at the bargain basement price of just $6 a pound, so I had to grab a couple of pounds of that as well. So this week's good eatin' will continue for another week or so, at least. Woo hoo!

As usual, the festivities began as we turned south on the fabled Pickle Parkway, or as I like to call it, the BBQ parkway to Lockhart. They have not quite completed the last few miles to Lockhart, but based on the bridges and flyovers that seem to be completed, it will not be long now. Read on for more details and don't forget you can click on the pictures for larger, mouth watering versions!

Best Quality Meat, Temple, TX 9/22/11

2011-09-22T14:00:00.000-07:00

Best Quality Meat, Temple, TX visited 9/22/11 about 1:15 pm

This is another place we have tried to hit several times in the past, but never managed to be there on the right day or time. Today was the day! This place is located just off the highway on the west side of I-35 just as you go onto the overpass at Temple. You can see their sign from the upper deck of the freeway, but it is easy to get off and circle back under the elevated highway.

As we came up we noticed a sign offering a bargain pulled pork sandwich and I was worried we might not get a full BBQ offering. Wrong! On enquiring inside they had a full compliment of brisket, ribs, sausage, pulled pork and chicken on offer. Scott and I split a to-go order of brisket, ribs, and sausage with beans and tater salad. On pulling the brisket the gentleman apologized for the limp brisket. It was definitely well overcooked and fell apart into small pieces, even as he sliced it. On taste there was no smoke flavor at all, though it would have made nice sandwich meat with some good sauce. The ribs looked nice and were tasty indeed. I thought I detected the taste of charcoal grilling and Scott thought the same. That said, these were tasty ribs that were tender with good moisture content that pulled easily away from the bone. The sausage tasted like standard store bought fare, which was surprising considering the signs touting their home made sausage. The sides were average.

Miller's Smokehouse BBQ, Belton, TX 9/22/11

2011-09-22T12:40:00.000-07:00

Miller's Smokehouse BBQ, Belton, TX visited 9/22/11 about noon

http://www.wildmillers.com/

This is a place we had tried to visit several times before, but never managed to get by when they were open. Today we managed it and I'm glad we did! For the record, Tuesday through Saturday from 10:30 am till sellout are the things you need to keep in mind.

This is a tiny little storefront operation but is a perfect example of good things coming in small packages. One little lady was up front taking orders and money, one man, Mr. Dirk Miller, I assume, was in the back cranking out orders and delivering to the waiting customers out front. There may have been seating for about 20 inside, maybe. Many folks got food to go and stood by til their goodies were brought out front. Sadly, no ribs except on Friday. I went with a 2 meat plate with brisket and jalapeno cheese sausage with the standard sides, beans and tater salad. Despite a busy lunch rush we had our food in a few minutes and it was mighty tasty. The brisket was tender, moist, and had NICE smoke flavor. The fat was perfectly rendered and was very tasty. I didn't leave a bit of it. The jalapeno cheese sausage was exceptional. I have to say it rivaled the best of Kreuz or Black's that I have tasted, and they are my favorites. The sides were average, but Scott though his tater salad was very good.

This meal blew away what we had at Schoepfs a few days earlier. While this place probably has much more restricted hours (and the presence of a nearby "sold out" sign for BBQ suggested they often run out), it is well worth the few hundred extra yards you have to travel. While dining we heard the owner talking about the fact they have moved their deer processing and taxidermy business down the street and would soon be moving the BBQ operation to a larger site as well. Fortunately they seem to have a well kept website which will make that info easy to find.

Big Papa's Smokeshack BBQ, Luling, TX 9/21/11

2011-09-21T18:37:00.000-07:00

Big Papa's Smokeshack BBQ, Luling, TX visited 9/21/11 about 5:30 pm

I had first heard about this place on the Man Up blog but I never heard back when I asked them about the location. Then one of my racquetball buddies was telling me about a place he stopped at on the way back from Shiner. He didn't recall the name, but when I sent him the link to the Man Up pictures he said "That's it!" We took a reconnoiter Monday and found they were only open Wednesday through Sunday, closed Monday and Tuesday.

We arrived about 5:30 on Wednesday and were informed they only had sandwiches or ribs and brisket by the half pound. We settled on a half pound of brisket and ribs and waited on the nice wood deck patio for our order. Everything looked good on arrival, but the ribs were definitely undercooked. They were very tough and chewy and difficult to separate from the bone. I think it was very telling when we received 3 ribs, Scott and I tried one each, and neither of us wanted the third. The brisket was better. It was tender and moist but the fat was not completely rendered. There was zero smoke flavor in the brisket and it was essentially roast beef. Their sauce was a thick mustardy sauce, but not quite as mustardy as City Market. It added some nice flavor to the meat and was good for bread dipping. I think a brisket sandwich with sauce would be the ticket here, but only if you come by when City Market is closed. Those in the know will head 5 minutes north on 183.

Grandma's Bar-B-Q, Luling, TX 9/21/11

2011-09-21T15:00:00.000-07:00

R.I.P. Grandma's. Sorry we never got to know ye.

City Market, Luling, TX 9/21/11

2011-09-21T12:33:00.000-07:00

City Market, Luling, Tx sampled 9/21/11 about 11 am

While folks in Austin were, no doubt, still standing in line at Franklin, we were in the door at the smokey pit room at City Market. We timed our arrival for about 11 am, knowing the line starts to form for the lunch rush about 11:30. We just had a couple of folks in front of us so there was almost no waiting. As usual I loaded up with half a pound of brisket, 2 ribs, and a sausage ring. The brisket was just a tad chewy but I lucked into a delicious brisket end dripping with smokey goodness. Meat candy indeed! That was one of those slices where the smoke flavor stays with you long after you have finished your meal. The ribs were divine, juicy, tender spare ribs with a nice sweet bark. As good as it gets. The sausage ring was flavorful with a nice moisture content and a perfect snap to the casing. I just wish they had jalapeno sausage because I like a little more of a spicey kick. Still, it was great sausage. The prices here are also lower than almost any other great Q joint. $9/lb for both brisket and ribs and $1.80 for a hot link. Still one of my favorite joints, even if it has slipped a bit below Franklin.

Kreuz Market, Lockhart, TX 9/21/11

2011-09-20T18:31:00.000-07:00

Kreuz Market, Lockhart, TX sampled 9/20/11 about 6:15 pm

We have eaten at Kreuz many times before and consistency has always been an issue. Tonight was no exception. The brisket was tender but dry. Scott said his was too salty, but mine was not. The fat was well rendered and tasty. Surprisingly, their always reliable jalapeno cheese sausage was not reliable tonight. It had an off taste, something I have experienced before when I have left their links in the fridge for too long. I don't ever remember taking a few bites of a Kreuz sausage and chunking the rest. I guess there's a first time for everything. The rib was the best of the meat tonight and it was tender, moist, and flavorful. The mac and cheese was average and made me realize the mac and cheese I had last night at Black's was much better.

Franklin BBQ, Austin, Tx 9/20/11

2011-09-20T12:23:00.000-07:00

Franklin BBQ, Austin, TX, sampled 9/20/11 about 11:15 am

This was only my second trip to Franklin and my first to the new location (which is actually the OLD location of Ben's Longbranch BBQ which we sampled back in 2006). To be sure of getting our share of the good stuff, we showed up one full hour before opening at 10 am. We found a few folks already waiting. Some had arrived at 9:30 am. The line began to get longer, some of us on the porch, others going down the ramp and along the street. A few minutes before opening, a nice lady came out and straightened up the line and went along with a clipboard to get an idea how many pounds would be sold to those already waiting. They might want to put a chain across the porch with a "line starts here" sign to avoid the scrum before opening. Then they could drop the chain at opening. Just a suggestion. I think there were about 60 folks in line when they opened.

At 11 am the doors opened up and the line snaked inside. I got a half pound of fatty brisket and 2 pork ribs, plus another 2 pounds of fatty to go. My buddy Dave gets "to go" a lot and he says the brisket freezes and re-heats well. I added two bottles of Dr Pepper, not knowing they have the real sugar DP on tap. Thanks Dave. Next time I will know!

Here is the gorgeous sight that rewarded our hour wait.

The brisket was awesome. It was tender, moist, and smokey, with a healthy crust around every slice. Meat candy fit for the Gods. The ribs were perfectly cooked. Check out the bite mark below. KCBS would be proud. Again the meat was tender, moist, and delicious. Their rib rub had a tang I could not quite make out. It sort of reminded me of Cholula hot sauce but it went well with the meat. After about 20 minutes we had very happy tummies indeed.

This was Scott's first trip to Franklin and his reaction was similar to most. He said it is rare that any place lives up to such massive hype and adulation, but Franklin's does. Yes, it does. I passed on sides this time but both Dave and Scott remarked that the beans were good. Dave said they seem to have changed their recipe. Scott said thumbs down on the tater salad. Hopefully when they complete their new pits out back, there will be enough tasty meat that the pre-opening lines will become a thing of the past. I sure hope so. When we left there were still about 50 people in line.

With two trips to Franklin and two solid home runs, I am going to move them up to my all time favorite spot. It really is THAT good.

Black's BBQ, Lockhart, TX 9/19/11

2011-09-19T18:20:00.000-07:00

Black's BBQ, Lockhart, Texas 9/19/11 sampled about 6:45 pm

One of the pleasures of taking our annual BBQ trips is going back to the places we KNOW are good. Black's is certainly one of those. While it is always fun to try new joints, it's places like Black's that serve as the standard by which others are judged. We have never had anything less than an excellent meal there and tonight was no exception. I loaded up with 1/2 pound of fatty brisket, 4 baby backs including a rib tip, and a jalapeno link. As sides I had their mac and cheese and some beans. The brisket was just perfect. Tender and moist with deep smoke flavor from first bite to last. The fat was perfectly rendered and melt in your mouth good. The baby backs were just a tad chewy on the tip but the inside bones left a perfect bite mark. They were tender and moist with excellent flavor throughout. The jalapeno sausage followed the other 2 meats and was just as good. I still think Kreuz has a slight edge in the sausage department but the gap is shrinking. The casing was just a bit tough but the meat was perfectly seasoned and moist with a good spicy kick. The mac and cheese was excellent but I have to give special kudos to the beans. Now I don't know if this was just a pot of beans which had cooked way down or if these were actually refried beans. Whatever they were, they were perfectly seasoned and were perfect for sopping up with a nice big biscuit.

They had a sign on the front door offering frozen brisket for just $6 a pound. If they have any of that left on Thursday when we head out (doubtful) I am going to load up the cooler.

I noticed they have added live western swing music with the BBQ Playboys! Wait a minute, I'm a BBQ playboy!

Schoepfs BBQ, Belton, TX 9/19/11

2011-09-19T14:17:00.000-07:00

Schoepfs BBQ, Belton, Texas sampled 9/19/11

It had been 5 or 6 years since we had last sampled Schoepfs and there have been many changes. They have a nice new exterior, an expanded dining room, and the warming pits are now enclosed. Sadly, the food seems to have declined. The brisket was basically falling apart roast beef without a hint of smoke flavor. The ribs were tough and chewy, but had good flavor. I had to gnaw on them like a caveman to get the meat off. I had the hot sausage and it was flavorful with a good spicey kick but it was dry and the casing was tough. The beans were average but the potato salad was a step above. The sauce had a nice mix of sweet and spicey with a strong vinegar flavor.

I had told Scott I could hold out to Lockhart or Luling to eat lunch. I wish he could have held out. Next year I'm bringing him a pudding cup.

Cowboy's Bar-B-Q, Wills Point, Texas

2011-09-08T16:28:00.000-07:00

sampled 9/8/11 about 12:30 pm

Finally found this place today after a vague first description from Scott several months back. For the record, this joint is located just north of the Hwy 80/4th street intersection in Wills Point, about 1/2 mile north on 4th street, on the left. According to the front door, hours are 11-8, Tuesday-Sunday, closed Monday.

On arrival I found a parking lot full of pick up trucks, always a good sign.

As I had already been driving for an hour back from Lake Fork, I went inside instead of using their handy drive through window. A nice lady took my order for a sliced brisket and rib combo with beans and tater salad. The food came quickly and was piping hot. The food was so hot I had to let it cool a bit. Total was $11.20, which was a good deal considering all the food I got.

The brisket was perfectly tender, very moist, and had a hint of smoke flavor. There were a generous five slices which went down pretty easy. Underneath those brisket slabs were three very nice, big, spare ribs. They were just a tad overcooked, the meat came away from the bone a bit too easy, but they had a very nice flavor. The meat was moist and tender with a sweet glaze on the bark. Having just judged a KCBS event I would offer the opinion that the meat sampled here was as good or better as anything I sampled at the contest. The added attraction is that I know where to go back to get more! The beans were average pintos and the potato salad was pretty average, too. The sauce was a thick, rich tomato concoction, with just a bit too much vinegar flavor for my taste.

This is another good East Texas stop and on a par, maybe a bit better, than Mr. B's in Grand Saline. It would be interesting to sample both of those on the same day for a direct comparison and I may have to take on that task, soon!

Bedford Blues and BBQ 9/4/111

2011-09-04T15:12:00.000-07:00

Another successful BBQ contest down for the Bedford Blues Fest. It seems to be growing every year. This year there were 51 cooks and more than 60 certified judges in attendance. KCBS held two CBJ classes in the area in the last few days, more than tripling the number of local judges. I think it is going to be pretty tough to get in as a judge in years to come, unless the number of competitors increases that fast, too.

This year we were in airconditioned comfort inside the old Bedford Library location. It was perfect! Plenty of room, comfy, and very close to the cooking area for quick delivery. As always, the KCBS staff and Bedford people made the whole process easy to follow.

Overall the BBQ this year was much better than last year. I think I gave one 9 in brisket, ribs, and beans with lots of 8's in every category. I gave very few 6's and 7's (average is 6). The surprise was the small number of entries in the steak category. There were only 8 entries with payouts of $900, $700, and $500 for 1st-3rd. Pretty good odds for the few cookers who participated! I only got to sample 2 of the steak entries and my Mrs would have kicked their butts. If they do it again next year there will be lots more entries, especially with those prizes. One of the brisket entries I sampled had deep smoke flavor and I loved it. Some of the burnt ends were pretty good, too.

As usual, I got to bring home my sampling leftovers. My Mrs has already been in them and has agreed they are much better than last year. It's really a shame there aren't more KCBS events here in Texas, but IBCA and other groups have solid schedules here already. I do like the KCBS process a lot. They are very organized, thorough, and with the training, everyone starts from the same page.

Congrats to all the cooks who participated in this year's event. A mighty fine showing, indeed.

Bedford Blues and BBQ

2011-08-29T19:42:00.000-07:00

Well it looks like I have some serious eating to do on Sunday as a judge for the Bedford Blues and BBQ cookoff. I like a challenge! I believe a fast on Saturday is in order. :) There were only 19 teams last year, this year there are 53!

Turn in times

12:00PM - Chicken
12:30PM – Ribs
1:00PM – Pork
1:30PM – Brisket
2:00PM - Sauce
2:30PM – Ranchers Reserve Top Sirloin
3:00PM - Beans
3:30PM - Potato Salad

BBQ and music

2011-08-28T11:14:00.000-07:00

I just heard the music line-up for the Texas Monthly BBQ fest in October. Jimmie Vaughan is one of the acts so I am a very, very happy camper. The event is completely sold out, more than 2 months in advance. I am looking forward to having some Snows BBQ without having to get up at 7 am!!

The great burnt ends experiment!

2011-08-10T23:15:00.000-07:00

8/10/11

Brisket was on sale cheap again this week ($1.49/lb) so I decided to experiment a bit. My favorite part of most brisket is the burnt ends. That's the part with plenty of bark, some crispy fat, and always the most delicious smoke flavor. As we only use a little bullet smoker, we have always had to cut briskets in half to make them fit. I started wondering, what would happen if you actually cut the brisket up into little brisket "steaks", then go through the same smoking process? The reasoning went, more exposed surface area, more burnt ends, more good eatin'! I figured the main risk was it would come out too dry. However there was an added bonus that it should cut down the cooking time A LOT!

I started out with a 14 pound brisket and cut it up into 11 portions, trying to keep them about equal weight of a little over a pound. The fatty end slabs had to be a little thinner because the brisket is thicker there. As always, I arranged the brisket fat side up, where possible. Most of the lean end went on the bottom rack, the fatty end went on the top rack.

After about a 2 hour smoke (using the usual go-by of 1-1 1/2 hours per pound on brisket "steaks" that were a little over 1 pound) I opened the lid and grabbed a piece to sample. It was cooked, but still very tough, so after a couple of sample bites, back it went on the top rack.

Based on my sample at 2 hours, I was torn on whether to continue on the smoker, or pull some slices, wrap them, and finish in the oven. I decided to just let things run for another 4 hours, re-stoking the coals and adding wet pecan wood every hour or so.

After a full 6 hour smoke this is what I found on the top and bottom racks.

A quick sample piece confirmed good tenderness and smoke flavor, as well as a pretty nice smoke ring.

After that sample I pulled all the meat and let it rest for about an hour before cutting it up. Well, except for one piece that I ate!

As I feared, the lean end of the brisket was a bit dry, but the fatty end was very juicy and flavorful. As usual, there was not as much smoke flavor as my wife seems to get, despite my adding lots of pecan every hour. She just has the magic touch. I don't. The fatty stuff was perfectly tender but the lean could be a bit chewy at times. However the chewy bits usually had the best smoke flavor, a nice bark, and crispy fat bits.

By cutting the brisket into elongated "steaks", it meant the slices were weird little square bits. However every little bite had a bit of bark or crispy fat attached to it, all the way around.

After carving everything up, I have quite a bit of smoked meat to enjoy over the next week or so. I hate to say it, but some of it may need sauce. However some of it won't!

I think if I try this again there are several variations to the experiment I'd like to try. First, smoke it extra heavy for 3 hours, pull all the meat, wrap in foil and finish in the oven. Second, pull the lean brisket half way through, wrap and finish in the oven and leave the fatty brisket on the smoker. Just to see if there is a difference in smoke taste. Third, cut into fewer pieces, maybe 4-6 brisket "steaks", then smoke and oven as usual.

I will say this technique does cut down the cooking time substantially. A 14 pound brisket cooked in the usual way would probably be 20 hours combined cooking time to finish properly. I got some pretty good meat in just 6 hours by chopping it up.

More cheap ribs!

2011-07-31T21:21:00.000-07:00

7/31/11

Pork spare ribs were on sale cheap this weekend, $1.77 a pound, so you can guess what we had for dinner! As usual we chopped up two racks, smoked them for 4 hours, then ate til the meat coma set in. Plenty left over for warming up this week. Yum!

BBQ Benefit for the Stone Family, Sunday, August 14th

2011-07-22T10:12:00.000-07:00

Daniel Vaughn, The BBQ snob over at Full Custom Gospel BBQ, sent me a note about an upcoming BBQ benefit for the family of the young father who recently died at the Texas Rangers game. BBQ from the Pecan Lodge and and Lockhart Smokehouse is part of the proceedings.

info is here:

http://www.eventbrite.com/event/1940775913

Upcoming KCBS BBQ judging class

2011-07-18T10:47:00.000-07:00

As part of the Bedford Blues and BBQ Festival KCBS (Kansas City BBQ Society) is once again offering their offical BBQ judging class in Bedford, Texas on September 3rd. I took the class last year and enjoyed the experience. Info on registration can be found here:

http://www.bedfordbluesbbq.com/bbqinfo.htm

I will not be attending the class, but I am signed up to judge the contest again. Rancher's Reserve has added a top sirloin contest to the festivities so I am looking forward to some good eatin'!!

Hard Eight BBQ, Coppell, Texas

2011-07-02T20:32:00.000-07:00

visited 7/2/11 about 7 pm
http://www.hardeightbbq.com/

This is a small but expanding chain that I have heard mostly negative reviews about. Hence, the lack of a previous visit. On this night they had booked a good blues performer and that added just enough oomph to spur a trip to nearby Coppell through the tortuous DFW Connector construction project. Many folks had complained to me that this place was very overpriced but I found their meats to be very competitively priced at $11.99/pound. I think the trick is to watch the portion size. Two slices of brisket was easily 3/4 of a pound tonight.

This is a big joint and it was hopping. We had to park around on the back side and walk around to the pits in the front. It is laid out like a central Texas BBQ place with the pits and warming pits up front. You choose your meats and hot sides from the warming pit, pay by the pound, then move inside for cold sides and drinks. They even have a separate bean pot in the back with complimentary pinto beans. We loaded up with brisket, pork ribs, jalapeno sausage, and "brush poppers", plus a side of tater salad and some beans.

Our bill was $31 for the tray you see below, plus extra for beer. The meat is served hill country style on butcher paper on a small tray. The place was very busy but my Mrs found a spot down front by the band while I wrangled some beverages. The brisket was crumbling apart and would not hold together at all. It was also very salty and there was zero smoke flavor. A few stringy bits were overcooked to the consistency of beef jerky and almost unchewable, probably outside bits. All signs of overcooking. The brisket basically had the taste and consistency of crock pot roast beef. It would have been great with some brown gravy. I had hopes the sauce would help, or at least cut the salt, but found it thin, and a heavy taste of vinegar and mustard, almost like East Coast sauce.

The ribs were a bit better. Still salty and little flavor from the bark except salt, however they were well cooked, left a nice bite mark and were plenty tender and juicy. The jalapeno sausage had a nice bite and good spicey flavor. Not bad at all. The highlight of the meat was the "brush poppers". These were chicken strips wrapped around jalapeno and onion with bacon around the outside. Those were excellent. The chicken was still tender and juicy and the flavors just popped in your mouth. If there had been some good smoke flavor they would have been a stone home run. My Mrs is already planning on working her magic on this concept.

The sides were better than your average fare. The tater salad was skin on with bits of onion and a mustard base. The pinto beans were perfect consistency, not mushy, not chewy, and had plenty of spicy flavor with bits of ham and peppers. The beans ranked right up there with the best of central Texas joints.

I would be happy to go back if they book some more good blues, but I'll be sticking with the brush poppers instead of the BBQ.

2011 Texas Monthly BBQ fest

2011-07-02T13:30:00.000-07:00

I missed out last year, but I already have my VIP ticket to this BBQ festival for 2011. 22 BBQ joints participating, many of whom I have tried, some I haven't! I am looking forward to an EPIC meat coma!!

http://www.texasmonthly.com/bbqfestival/

Circle H Bar-B-Q & Grill, Emory, Texas

2011-06-30T21:46:00.000-07:00

Visited 6/29/11 about 11:30 am

One of my fishing guides recommended this place for a stop so I checked it out at lunch time between fishing trips. This joint is located near the intersection of US 69 and Texas 19 in Emory and is pretty easy to find. It's just south of the intersection on 69 on the west side. For lunch they have cafeteria style serving with a nice waitress who comes around and refills your tea and fetches sauce and fixin's if you need them.

For this meal I got a 3 meat plate with brisket, ribs, and Pittsburg hot links. The brisket was tender and moist with well rendered fat but zero smoke flavor. Sort of disappointing considering I had some of my wife's great smokey brisket in the fridge back at the motel. The meat was helped a bit by their sauce, which was thin and sweet with a light vinegar base. The ribs were a bit over-cooked to falling off the bone and were helped a bit by a sweet bark. They were tasty, but nothing to make a special trip for. This was the first time I had the Pittsburg hot links. I had always thought they were the standard pink East Texas style, but these were little brown darlings. They had a mushy consistency, almost like mashed potatos, and an interesting if unremarkable beef flavor. There was nothing hot about them, either temperature or spice. I'll stick to the standard pink ones given the option in the future.

Of the sides, the best was the green beans with a nice ham flavoring throughout. The au gratin taters were average. They had excellent sweet tea. If I return I'll probably stick with a rib plate with a double helping of those green beans.

another awesome home brisket

2011-06-25T12:20:00.000-07:00

My wife has really got brisket down. USDA choice briskets are on sale at $1.49/lb again so we just had to do another one. Last night she smoked a 10 pound brisket. 8 hours on the smoker and 4 hours in the oven. I paid a little more attention to her smoking techniques this time and I see how she gets so much more smoke flavor than I do. Anytime the smoke is not absolutely billowing out of the smoker she adds more coals and wood. I'd guess she cooks with almost 50% wood. The result was a brisket with deep smoke flavor, perfectly rendered fat, and very moist and tender. Yes, I'm a lucky man! If that wasn't enough, she also smoked up a bunch of her excellent chicken as well. Sorry, no pictures of the chicken. We ate it!

Hitler misses Franklin BBQ, pretty funny

2011-06-23T22:21:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Swag for sending this hilarious take on Hitler missing out on Franklin BBQ. The only thing I would change is the last line, which I'd change to Bill Miller BBQ! I love the Salt Lick!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaZx6kGs7pg

Lee-Mo's Smokehouse, Yantis, Texas

2011-06-23T15:06:00.000-07:00

Visited about 11 am, 6/22/11

This is a new joint near one of my fishing haunts that has been open a few months. The building is old, but the BBQ joint is new. I got there just as they turned on the "open" sign and opened the doors on a Wednesday. Since they are closed Monday and Tuesday, I had high hopes of some great hot and fresh Q.

The first disappointment is they do not offer ribs on their combination plate, or in any other fashion except on a rib plate or by the rack. I have had this problem at a few other joints and I just don't get it. Folks get a combo plate to sample everything. Their combo plate included pulled pork, sausage, brisket, corn, and two sides. No ribs, no chicken. Hey, it's their joint and they can do it as they like, but I'd sure like to have an option where you can sample all the meat. I suspect I am not alone in this regard.

On arrival the brisket certainly looked nice. There was a burnt end and 3 inside slices with nice smoke rings. The burnt end was truly marvelous. It was cooked to perfection, had a nice smoke flavor, excellent tenderness and moistness, and the fat was rendered to silky smooth melt-in-your-mouth nirvana. Unfortunately the rest of the slices were a little dry and a tad tougher. If I didn't know better, I'd say the burnt end was from a fresh brisket and the other slices came from a warmer after some holding time. The sausage was supermarket fare with no smoke flavor at all. The pulled pork was moist and tender, but again zero smoke flavor. There was no bark in the pulled pork and it needed some sauce. Their sauce was very sweet and seemed to have a lot of honey in the base with a mix of mustard and tomato sauce. It did help out the pulled pork but wasn't really my kind of sauce.

For sides I got the house tater salad, beans, and corn. The tater salad was the highlight with a nice fresh mayo base and onions. I liked it. It definitely didn't come out of a tub. The pinto beans were average and the corn on the cob was hot and juicy, but a bit watery.

I am still disappointed I could not try the ribs with a combo. I plan to hit this joint another time, get a rib plate, and add on a quarter pound of brisket.

I have put Yantis for the location as that is the closest town. It is actually about 4 miles south on Texas 154, just north of the Lake Fork bridge on the west side of the road.

Franklin BBQ in the NY Times

2011-06-19T08:44:00.000-07:00

As if the lines weren't long enough already, here's an article in the NY Times where they mention that Franklin BBQ in Austin has been named best in the nation by Bon Appetit magazine. Wow. Congrats to Aaron Franklin! Thanks to Dave for the tip.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/19/us/19ttpatoski.html

Confused by Lockhart Smokehouse, Oak Cliff

2011-06-18T23:11:00.000-07:00

visited 6/18/11 about 7:30 pm

http://www.lockhartsmokehouse.com/

As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, I was excited about the prospect of Lockhart Smokehouse booking a local blues artist I enjoy and I was looking forward to heading over to give their Q another try. Several other bloggers have been saying they've upped their game so it was definitely time for another go.

The Mrs rode along this time and we arrived around the 7:30 pm start time for the music and headed for the counter to order. The nice lady told me they were out of brisket but still had shoulder, ribs, and rings which was more than I had hoped for at this late hour. We got a half pound of clod, a couple of ribs, and a Kreuz jalapeno cheese ring and they were kind enough to throw in some extra burnt ends and two extra ribs. Alright, a nice start! Then things started getting weird. My wife asks if I would like a fork. As I turned to explain to her about "No Forks, No Sauce, No Kidding!" I see that she is holding two plastic forks. Humna humna humna... Then the nice lady at the counter explains that the forks are a special fundraiser and are available for a $1 donation to the Kessler School fund. Well, ok, we'll take one for wifey, but I like my fingers greasey, thank you very much! I wonder how much they could raise with sauce and plates?

We made our way around to the seating and I was a little surprised not to see the musician set up. Hmmm. After getting our beverages and digging in this is what we saw.

The shoulder clod was not bad. Mostly salty roast beef tasting but fairly tender and moist. The KCBS pull apart test showed it to be a bit undercooked and the fat was not quite fully rendered. I tried chewing a few blackened bits of fat, just to see, and they chewed like rubber. The best bits of clod were the little burnt end bits which had nice smoke flavor that was not overpowered by the salt rub. I wish I'd had a pile of that.

Their ribs have improved quite a bit since my first visit several months back. We had two inside ribs and two ends, including a two bone rib tip. The inside bones and tip were nice and tender and were also a bit salty. If there was any smoke flavor to be had, it was overpowered by the salt. However these were nice and tender, unlike the ribs I had on my last visit. The big end was overcooked, dry, and a bit tough, but three nice bones out of 4 at 7:30 pm is pretty durned good in my book. The jalapeno cheese link was awesome, as always. It's hard to mess up what Kreuz does best, especially when all you have to do is warm it up a bit.

As the staff passed around the room to check on tables, I asked where the music was. The lady told me they had been expecting a very large crowd so they cancelled the musician. Hmmm. Now live music was half the reason we drove 20 miles to get there. Looking at the dining room, there were about 4 occupied tables and a few people seated at the bar. Hmmm. Looking out the door at their sandwich sign it still said "Live music Friday and Saturday nights 7:30". Their website said the same.

So I'm a bit confused by Lockhart Smokehouse. No forks, except when there are, Live music on Friday and Saturday nights, except when there isn't. As we headed out down Davis we passed by Luckie's Smokehouse. They had a two piece band out on the patio and the joint was packed. Hmmmm.

Marcia Ball opines on BBQ!

2011-06-10T23:15:00.000-07:00

http://marciaball.com/

Last night I had a chance to interview the great Marcia Ball as part of my blues radio gig. Coincidently, several years ago, she put out a CD titled "Peace, Love, and BBQ" which she says are three of her favorite things. So naturally, during the interview I just had to ask her for her all-time favorite BBQ joints. She said her favorite is to drive to Lockhart and eat at Smitty's. In town (Austin), she likes the ribs at Artz Rib House and the brisket at Franklin BBQ.

Oh, and btw, she has a nice chicken gumbo recipe on the front of her website!

BBQ and blues!

2011-06-02T14:32:00.000-07:00

I had hoped it might happen and it now looks like Lockhart Smokehouse in Dallas might try bringing my two favorite things together, BBQ and blues. They've booked Joel Foy for Saturday, June 18th at 7:30 pm. That might give me a good excuse to head over there and give them another try!

http://www.myspace.com/iceboyblues

http://www.lockhartsmokehouse.com/

Another brisket, why not?

2011-06-01T22:01:00.000-07:00

6/1/11

Why not, indeed. They're still a bargain, on sale at $1.49/pound, so this time I smoked up a 14 pounder. I do not claim to be a BBQ cook, more of a BBQ eater, but this messing around gives me even more appreciation of those who can do it right.

As this was a big boy for our little bullet smoker, I cut it in half and smoked the thick end on the bottom rack and the point end on the top rack. Fat side up, un-trimmed and un-messed with, except for a thick rub down. After 7 hours on the smoker, with lots of water-soaked pecan wood added, they got another rub down and went into the oven wrapped in foil at 250 for another 4 hours. The result was moist and tender but still lacking the deep smoke flavor I crave. Durn it!

I have to say I noticed a big difference in the USDA select grade I smoked this time versus the choice grade I smoked last time. That makes a very big difference. I think I need to find me some USDA prime brisket, sometime.

Day Tripper

2011-06-01T09:40:00.000-07:00

Chet Garner's TV show often covers BBQ and they now have the episodes online. The Lockhart episode features all 4 Lockhart Q joints.

http://thedaytripper.com/episodes/episode-203-lockhart-tx

The Luling to Shiner episode features both Luling joints and closely follows the route of a trip Scott and I have made. The BBQ part is in the first 9 minutes.

http://thedaytripper.com/episodes/episode-4-luling-to-shiner

Brisket Wednesday

2011-05-18T14:27:00.000-07:00

5/18/11

After my wife and Scott sampled my ribs the other night, my Mrs was nice enough to point out that brisket was on sale for half price ($1.49 a pound) and asked if she should pick one up for further experimentation. Well after my success with ribs, of course! She came home with a 10.6 pounder, smallish, but a nice size because it would not need cutting to fit in our little bullet smoker.

It took me a couple of days to finish off the ribs and I decided to do an overnight smoke starting late Tuesday night. I put the coals on about 11:15 and gave the brisket a good rub down with salt, pepper, a few spices, and my secret liquid. I didn't trim a thing, just rubbed it down and slapped it on the top rack of the smoker.

The brisket went on about 11:45 pm, with lots of hickory and pecan wood which had been soaked in water for 24 hours. I added additional wood every hour or so til about 2:30 am when I decided it was time to leave things alone and let the magic happen.

I got up about 6:15 am to check on things and found the temperature gauge just on the low side of the ideal range. Perfect timing. Here's the yummy sight that greeted me.

Ah yes, that's a great sight to wake up to early in the morning and a sure sign of a great day ahead! Here's what it looked like as I prepped for wrapping.

After another liberal salt, pepper and spice application, plus a bit of secret liquid in the foil, I closed everything up tight and slipped it in the 225 oven for another 7 hours.

About 1:30 I pulled the brisket from the oven and set it on the stove to rest while a ran some errands. I didn't get back til about 3 pm, but it was still plenty hot and here is the delicious sight I unwrapped.

I started slicing at the tip and those delicious smokey bits went away almost as fast as they were sliced. I noticed early on it was a bit too long in the oven as it was difficult to slice except in thicker chunks. I guess if I had to choose, I would rather it be a bit too tender than too chewy. It was close to just right, but just a tad too tender.

As I got deeper in it became even more tender and the smoke flavor was definitely less pronounced. However I remedied that by making sure to drizzle lots of pot liquor over the slices. The fat was perfectly rendered and the meat was moist and juicy throughout.

I think my wife's brisket usually has a bit more smoke flavor than this one had, but she spends more time tending the fire. I know we will enjoy this meat over the next few days, even if I do need to add a bit of sauce now and then. A larger brisket, cut in half to fit our little bullet smoker, would cook a bit faster and would provide even more smokey bits. That's still my favorite part, by far!

Rib-N ... the verdict is N!!

2011-05-14T18:13:00.000-07:00

Well that last two hours seemed an eternity but I have been grinning ever since. The smell of smoked meat permeated the house long before I was able to sink my teeth in. When the timer finally went off, I was a little disappointed to find a ring of liquid around the base of the pan.

I thought I had the foil closed up tightly, but I guess all those juices just had to find a way out. I was worried about having dried out ribs but there was no problem at all. I unwrapped each package almost like a kid at Christmas with ooohs and aaahs and a little nibble here and there. When I finished, this is what I saw.

Be sure to click on that photo above for the bigger version. I started slicing right in the middle, wanting to sample a mid-section piece from each half rack. I kept the ribs separate, so I could judge whether the marinade made a difference or not on each type of rib. I found little difference.

None of the ribs displayed a deep smoke ring, but as discussed previously, that seldom seems to affect the taste. All of these ribs were perfectly tender, moist, the fat was rendered just right, and the dry rub added some nice flavor and a little heat. The one thing that was missing was smoke flavor. I don't know if I didn't add enough wood or if it needs to stay on the smoker longer than two hours. Probably the former, as my Mrs turns out perfectly smoked chicken in that time. Rookie mistake. My main concern was in "leaving it be" in the smoker without dropping the cooking temperature below the "ideal" range. There was plenty of smoke exiting the smoker, but I guess it needs more, for longer.

I was really happy to find none of the meat falling off the bone. It all held well, yet was tender and left a perfect bite mark. In KCBS scoring these ribs would have done very well on tenderness.

I have to admit I did not find a lot of difference in the baby back versus the spare ribs. I was concerned with the baby backs being smaller they might cook too much and dry out. Not a problem either on the top or bottom rack. They all came out great.

After eating way too much, I chopped up the remainder for leftovers.

I found years ago that ribs warm up great in the microwave so you can guess what I'll be munching on the next few days.

Overall, I think the marinade did not add a thing. As well as these turned out, I doubt an overnight or longer marinade would help much versus the 3 hours I did today. In fact I kind of find myself wondering, is this all there is to it? I guess I can understand now why I had so many good ribs when judging cook-offs. Maybe it really is that easy. It also makes me wonder why I get so many bad ribs at BBQ joints.

Rib-N part 3

2011-05-14T13:36:00.000-07:00

Oohh, now for the good part. After 2 hours of smoking it was finally time to take the lid off the smoker. Here's the top rack (marinated).

Here's the bottom rack.

Yes they do look yummy! The next step is the tendering process. Marinated ribs (top rack) on the left, plain (lower rack) on the right.

Each half slab was put in its own wrapping of heavy foil and liberally sprinkled with Obie-Cue rubs again. Then a secret liquid was added, NOT apple juice! Then everything was wrapped up tight and into the oven for another two hours at 250.

Yes, I did have to sneak a couple of bites and they were delicious, if a bit chewy. Now the hard part, waiting for that ticking clock to tick by for another two hours! I am starting to get hungry!!

Rib-N part 2

2011-05-14T11:22:00.000-07:00

Alrighty, things are moving along. I soaked some yard timber (oak and pecan) and some store bought (hickory) while things were marinating. After about a 3 hour soak in the marinade, I coated both sets of ribs with a mix of Obie-Que's Sweet Rub and Obie-Que's Sweet N' Heat. Remember, one set has soaked in marinade, the other has not. As I waited for the rub to set in, I got the coals going and then set on the smoker to get it heated up.

Once I got the rig up to temperature, I put the smaller half-racks on the lower rack and the bigger portions on the top rack. I added some of the soaked wood, closed her up, and now I just sit back and let it do its thing for the next two hours.

Rib-N at home

2011-05-14T08:20:00.000-07:00

5/14/11

My Mrs is busy all day today and Kroger had ribs on sale cheap so I think I will do some experimenting with ribs today. I bought one rack of baby back and one rack of spare ribs and cut each in half for experimentation purposes. Total cost less than $20. I am currently bringing the meat to room temperature, half are plain, half are in a marinade of apple juice and certain secret ingredients. The plan is to use the same Obieque rub on both sets, smoke for 2 hours in a bullet smoker over charcoal with oak, hickory, and pecan wood. Then wrap and finish in the oven for 2 more hours and see how they turn out. I am NOT a BBQ cook, more of an eater, so I'm not expecting much. I'll post photos and update as I go along, just for fun.

I am leaving the membrain on both and the back meat on the spare ribs and will cook them "as is" without trimming a thing.

McDonald's Cafe, Terrell, Texas

2011-04-29T08:04:00.000-07:00

visited 4/25/11 about 4 pm

I have been passing this place on I-20 for some time on my trips out to Lake Fork and with a billboard declaring "Bar-B-Que is our Specialty" it was only a matter of time before I had to stop. The appearance of a smoke shack next to the cafe added to my interest. Well today was the day and I doubt I will need to do so again.

I was seated by a little lady who was obviously not from East Texas. I'm guessing eastern Europe or Russia, based on the accent. On checking the menu I found no way to combine ribs and brisket on a combo plate, which is a little strange. I enquired about the possibility of getting some ribs and was told I'd have to order a rack. I declined and went with their combo plate which included brisket, ham, and sausage. As I was the only one in the place, it was not hard to hear the ominous sound of a sizzling grill after my order went in. Now that's a sound you really don't expect to hear in a great BBQ joint. In fact I doubt most BBQ joints even have a grill.

When my meal arrived everything had been doused in a liberal coating of average tomato BBQ sauce. Straight from the bottle, I would bet. The "sausage" was bland as a hot dog, the ham was just ham, and both were clearly warmed by the sizzling sound I had heard earlier. The brisket had potential. It was plenty tender and moist with lots of good bark and a nice smoke ring. However I was never able to detect any smoke flavor through the thick coating of sauce. The sides were average and went along with the rest of the meal. Even though I never got to try the ribs, I am betting there is better to be found down the road in Canton.

North Main BBQ, again! 4/10/11

2011-04-10T14:37:00.000-07:00

Sampled 4/10/11 about 2:30 pm
http://www.northmainbbq.com/

I just can't help it. No matter how much I enjoy trying new BBQ places, I just can't get anywhere on weekends except North Main. Their food is just too durned good. Today we deliberately scheduled our visit for 2:30 pm, hoping the crowd would be down by then. Nope. The joint was still packed and I was parking back behind the car wash again. Just look at those photos and maybe you can understand. Click on the pix for larger views. If you've eaten there, then you already know. :)

Bubba looks like he has had a good scrubbing and a fresh coat of paint and is ready for the competition season. He still looks nekkid without his brass balls.

North Main increases prices

2011-04-02T15:50:00.000-07:00

Since April Fool's day was over, I decided to break my meat fast with a trip to North Main BBQ in Euless. My favorite local joint and a mere 2 miles from my house. On arrival, I noticed a sign on the front door announcing a price increase as of April 1. I had hopes it was as serious as my post yesterday, but alas, they really have increased their prices. The all you can eat buffet is now up to $15 from the previous $12. Still a bargain considering what great meats they serve. The ribs this day were outstanding, as always, but their brisket and chicken were nothing short of spectacular. The chicken was incredibly moist and tender. As usual, I stuck with burnt ends on the brisket and had some awesome smokey meat, also moist and tender. While I can remember back when the buffet was just $10, it is still an amazing bargain for great BBQ in North Texas.

I Have Given Up Meat

2011-04-01T09:53:00.000-07:00

I know it is unbelieveable, but I will no longer be eating BBQ or any other meat. So that is the end of this blog. You can see my reasons in detail HERE

Best BBQ in Dallas?

2011-02-28T13:14:00.000-08:00

D Magazine is doing one of their annual online polls and this one is on the best food in Dallas. Surprisingly, their BBQ category ranges far afield from Big D proper and even goes as far as Casstevens Cash and Carry in Lillian. There are many fine (and not so fine) joints on their list, but surprise, North Main BBQ in Euless made the cut this year! You can guess who I am voting for, and you're allowed to vote and re-vote hourly through March 13th. No registration is required. I doubt I will do it hourly, but I bet I do vote more than once!

http://surveys.dmagazine.com/bestofbigd2011-foodanddrink

Luckie's Smokehouse, Dallas (Oak Cliff), Texas

2011-02-14T11:54:00.000-08:00

Visited 2/14/11 about 11:30 am
1300 W. Davis St., Dallas 214-943-2300

My little brother lives a few blocks from this joint in Oak Cliff and when I told him I was headed to Lockhart Smokehouse today he said he likes this place better. I had to stop and check it out since it is only a few blocks west of the Lockhart location. So happy Valentines day to me, #2!

First off this place is not your typical BBQ joint. I wandered around a bit before I found out it is a sit down waitress service restaurant, not your usual BBQ buffet joint. Once you find that out and get a menu, you can order to go from the bar, and that's what I did. When I asked for a 3 meat plate, the bar guy told me you can't order ribs on a 3 meat plate. You either get a rib plate, half rack or full rack if you want ribs. Well I wanted to try the ribs, so I got a half rack and a 2 meat plate! I skipped the sides so he upped my brisket to a full half a pound, which was nice. While I was waiting, I noticed a $2500 painting hanging on the wall for sale. Yup, Oak Cliff is yuppieville and your usual dead animal heads just won't do.

When my order arrived in a nice covered aluminum pan the barman took the top off to show me all that food. He asked if I wanted sauce (they have 3 kinds) but after a nibble on the brisket I knew it was not needed. One little bite and I had an explosion of smoke flavor in my mouth. Well alright! As tempted as I was to dive in right there, I figured it would be best to let my previous lunch settle a bit on the 30 minute drive back home. By the time I got there the cab was full of smoked meat smell. Ah, my favorite Valentines day perfume!

The meal arrived back home, still nice and hot. A couple of nibbles of brisket confirmed the first bite was no fluke. Super smoke flavor, tender and moist. Probably the best brisket I have had in DFW. My only complaint was that it was trimmed extremely lean, with only the slightest bit of fat. The ribs were a might overcooked, they had mostly separated from the bone, but they were very tender, and very juicy with a nice hint of smoke flavor. I found myself dabbing juice from my chin, just like at North Main! These were nice big spare ribs, even if they were a bit overcooked. The sausage was not your typical central texas ring, more like one twice that size and cut in half. It had the Ekrich look, but was spicier and was more moist with, again, good smoke flavor. It won't rank with Kreuz but it was not bad, either.

As much as I have crabbed about Lockhart Smokehouse charging $5.25 for a Kreuz jalapeno cheese ring (which is $1.80 in Lockhart) I have to point out that the sausage link here was $6.49! Yow! Their brisket is also priced at $7.99 per 1/2 pound vs $7.50 at Lockhart Smokehouse. However they cut you a deal on a full pound at $13.99 where Lockhart charges $15. Still pretty pricey, but it is very good brisket and not a smidgen of fat, if you love it lean. Their pork ribs are $10.99 for a half rack or $17.99 for a full rack. Total for my 2 meat plate with half a rack of ribs was about $24.50. While I paid more here, I also got a lot more meat and it was mostly better than down the street.

Now as far as I can find, there is no website for this joint just yet. There is a website for a dead place with the same name that used to be on I-30. Don't be confused by the interwebs. This place also does burgers, salads, etc., but I wouldn't bother with those when the brisket is this good. Lil' bro' done good.

Lockhart Smokehouse, Dallas (Oak Cliff), Texas

2011-02-14T11:15:00.000-08:00

visited 2/14/11 about 11 am

http://www.lockhartsmokehouse.com/

Well happy Valentines day to ME! Since it is the day for lovers and mine is out of town, I decided to devote some time to my mistress, BBQ! I finally got a chance to make the trek over to Oak Cliff to try the much anticipated Lockhart Smokehouse and got in a bonus run as well.

I arrived about 11 am and, after a short wait in line, I moseyed over to my table to enjoy 1/4 lb each of brisket and shoulder clod, a couple of ribs, and a Kreuz jalapeno cheese ring. The shoulder was excellent. Tender, smoky, moist and just firm enough to make a good chew. The brisket was not quite as good. It lacked smoke flavor and the fat was not completely rendered, in fact it was a bit stringy and chewy. The ribs had nice flavor, kind of salty, but were also under done and very chewy. They looked tough when I watched them cut them and that knife did not lie. The jalapeno ring was just as good as in Lockhart. Warmed up perfectly with that great Kreuz flavor intact. You'd never know that sausage came by Fed Ex from over 250 miles away!

It's going to be awhile before the locals have this joint figured out. While I was there several asked for sauce and forks. They have a nice new T-shirt with the motto: Wood, Fire, Meat, Beer, but you have to get back in line at the counter to get one. I would think they'd do better selling those at the bar. Though they might not smell as good.

Total price for this feast was $17.10 with water to drink and 4 slices of white bread and some pickles in the package. If the ribs and brisket had been better, it would have been worth the price. Considering I can get as good or better (minus the Kreuz link) 2 miles from my house at $12 for all you can eat, it may be awhile before I drag over to Oak Cliff again. At least for this place!

North Main BBQ, Euless, Super Bowl eve!

2011-02-05T14:44:00.000-08:00

After 4 days of ice and snow (I actually had to spend 2 hours Thursday shoveling ice from my driveway) I was in need of some good Q so I decided a trip to my favorite local joint was in order. I figured since the Super Bowl was just 7 miles south, it might be a good idea to miss the lunch and dinner rush so I split the difference and got there about 3 pm. Good plan, but they were still slammed. Doh! The parking lot was jammed but I managed to find, literally, the last spot behind the car wash and against the fence. I noticed with some amusement cars with both Wisconsin and Pennsylvania license plates in the lot. Inside there was a long line, but I managed to get through with a heaping plate of food and find a small table just as the previous occupants were heading out. Most of the other tables were already full.

Before I got a chance to dig in I was joined by John and Bonnie from Fon du Lac Wisconsin, who, sure enough, were in town for the big game to cheer on their Packers. I didn't notice it at first, but there were at least 30 or more folks in the place with green Bay or Pittsburgh hats, jerseys, or some other paraphenalia. They told me they had come over from their hotel in Dallas to reconoiter a way to the stadium before the big day. We chatted a bit and I noticed they both had chicken and brisket on their plate, but no ribs. I suggested they might want to try the specialty of the house and later on they did.

My meal was a perfect plate (two actually) of happiness. The ribs were tender and juicy as always and I used a bunch of paper towels sopping the trickle of grease on my chin. I stuck with burnt ends only for the brisket and it was awesome as well. A few bits were chewy, but the smoke flavor was deep and lasting. One bit had a beautiful sugar cookie of fat which just melted in my mouth leaving a deep smoke taste. Yum! I had a little sliced chicken breast and it was moist and tender, as it usually is. The potato salad was average, as always, but was a nice compliment to the meat.

My new friends from Wisconsin finally got a couple of ribs and after tasting, the first words out of Bonnie's mouth were "Oh my God!" That pretty well sums it up. After that they went back and got more ribs.

No pictures today, but I was happy to see so many visitors enjoying my favorite local joint. I asked the Packer duo where they had heard of North Main and they said they had just googled around for restaurants near the stadium and liked all the reviews they saw. Hooray for the internet!

Holy hot links, Batman!!

2011-01-30T22:23:00.000-08:00

Lockhart Smokehouse is updating their website to get ready for their opening this Wednesday and they finally have a menu page. I notice they are asking $5.25 for a single Kreuz sausage link and $5.50 for the jalapeno. Compare that to $1.50 and $1.80 in Lockhart! Holy mark-up, Batman!! Maybe it's a typo and will change. Yeah, that's it. It's a typo. Sure it is.

Update 1/31

Hah! They took all the prices off their menu page today. Hah!

I had planned to go over for opening day, but I believe I will just wait til next week. I don't think I want to stand outside waiting in 20 degree weather.

The top ten ways to tell if you are eating too much BBQ

2011-01-26T12:03:00.000-08:00

The top ten ways to tell if you are eating too much BBQ.

10. You can't find a shirt without grease or sauce stains.

9. You drop three times daily and salam towards Lockhart.

8. The hematologist tests your blood and declares it sweet or spicy.

7. Your significant other starts rubbing charcoal behind their ear instead of perfume or cologne.

6. Your cholesterol test breaks the equipment.

5. You'd rather have smoked brisket than steak or prime rib.

4. You use BBQ sauce at breakfast.

3. You see a truck pulling a BBQ pit and you do a U turn and follow them.

2. You read a BBQ blog (or worse yet, write one!)

And the number one way to tell you eat too much BBQ:
1. You fart and it smells like wood smoke.

Lockhart Smokehouse opening next Wednesday!!

2011-01-26T11:15:00.001-08:00

Wooo Hoo! A date has finally appeared on the Lockhart Smokehouse website!! Wednesday, Feb. 2nd!

http://www.lockhartsmokehouse.com/

Franklin BBQ, Austin

2011-01-19T17:06:00.000-08:00

Sampled 1/19/11 around 11 am

http://www.franklinbarbecue.com/

Well it is hard to write something new about the little Franklin BBQ trailer in Austin. The BBQ blogosphere (as well as print media) has been buzzing about this little joint almost from the moment they opened. All I can add is that all the superlatives that have been written previously are spot on. There are just no negatives to write about their food. Considering I had just eaten at my all time favorite joint just 24 hours before, it is pretty easy to say Franklin was better. I want to eat there a couple of more times (to check consistency) before I push City Market in Luling down to my number 2 spot, but I think it will happen. In addition to my 2 meat plate, I got 2 lbs of fatty brisket to go, and I don't think I got enough.

The brisket had a deep black crust full of smoke flavor with a slightly salty taste. The fat was so perfectly rendered it turned liquid when pinched. The brisket was so tender that the slices stretched apart like an accordion when lifted from one end, but they did not fall apart. Tender, juicy, smoky, brisket nirvana. The ribs were also cooked to perfection. They were tender and juicy, yet not falling off the bone. When you picked one up by the "handles" and took a bite, it left a perfect, effortless bite mark. Rib nirvana. The sides I had were pretty standard beans and mustardy tater salad, but who cares about sides when you have meat nirvana? I didn't try the sausage, so I guess I will have to go back. Darn.

We got there about 10:30 and were number 6 and 7 in line. By the time they opened at 11 there were around 30 folks waiting. Most folks also order meat to go, in addition to their plate, so they tend to run out quickly. Go early to avoid disappointment.

Ruby's BBQ, Austin

2011-01-18T19:40:00.000-08:00

Sampled 1/18/11 about 5:30 pm

http://rubysbbq.com/

After a small fire shut them down a few weeks ago, we had to go by Ruby's to see that everything is alright. It is NOT alright! They no longer serve their wonderful fried potatoes. The lady behind the counter said the fried potatoes had caused the fire and were no longer on the menu. I said "Don't blame the potatoes!!" but, alas, their potato anger continues and they are now mashing them. I guess when someone mashes their finger they will blame the potatoes. Oh well. A sad day at the loss of one of the greatest side dishes I have had at any BBQ joint anywhere.

Despite my breaking heart over the loss of their wonderful side, I knew their brisket would make up for it so I settled on a brisket plate with mashed potatoes and mac and cheese. The brisket was pretty good, as usual, but a tad dry (I bet the potatoes are to blame). It was tender with decent smoke flavor. The mashed spuds were ok, but no rave-up. The mac and cheese was pretty pathetic. Don't bother.

I'll be back at Ruby's again, but I will always be begging for those fried potatoes.

Say it ain't so, Rick! Say it ain't so!!

2011-01-18T14:15:00.000-08:00

Well after my fine meal at City Market in Luling, I backtracked to Lockhart to load up on my favorite jalapeno cheese sausage. I got a few fresh ones off the pit for my buddies in Austin, then went into the dining room and ordered 3 boxes of cold sausage to import back to DFW. The fella rang me up, put together 3 boxes, then went off to the cooler to fill them up. A few minutes later, he came back with the sad sad news that they were ALL OUT! Waaaaaaa! A 250 mile trip and they're out! Waaaaaaaa!! Oh well. I got a refund and now I'm REALLY looking forward to Lockhart Smokehouse opening in Oak Cliff. They will do the importing for me, from now on!!

City Market, Luling

2011-01-18T13:24:00.000-08:00

sampled 1/18/11 around 11 am

Ah, yes, back to my favorite spot in the BBQ universe. Everything was as wonderful as it always is. The brisket was moist, tender, with great smoke flavor. The ribs were perfect tenderness and chin-dripping juicy. Just perfect ribs. The link had decent spice and the perfect moisture content within a snappy casing that was an easy chew. That's why I come back here again and again, because I love their BBQ.

The Lockhart Challenge, completed!

2011-01-17T19:25:00.000-08:00

http://www.chisholmtrailbbq.com/
http://www.kreuzmarket.com/index.shtml
http://www.blacksbbq.com/
http://www.smittysmarket.com/

Sampled 1/17/10

The Lockhart challenge went off as promised on Monday, January 17. The 252 mile trip came off without incident and I rolled into Lockhart about 7:30 pm the previous evening. I prepared as if judging a big BBQ cook-off by not eating anything the previous day. I actually planned to stop by Black's Sunday evening and have a bite of brisket, but found them closed at 7:30 pm, despite the fact they supposedly stay open til 8. I don't know if there was a private party going on or what, but there were lots of cars around and the lights were still on. On the way down to the hotel I noticed Chisolm Trail was still doing business, but I decided to just wait until morning.

I ordered the same thing at all 4 joints, 1/2 pound of fatty brisket, 2 pork ribs, and a ring of sausage. My thinking was I wanted several slices of brisket to choose from, as in a judged contest. I also wanted 2 ribs for the same reason. I got a rib tip at both Black's and Smitty's, so it was a good thing that I also had an inside rib to compare with the other joints. The rings were jalapeno cheese at Black's and Kreuz, but just sausage at Smittys and Chisolm Trail. I brought ziploc bags and a cooler for leftovers.

I rolled out of the hotel about 11:45 am on Monday and headed north up the main drag. Chisolm Trail has a nice drive up window, so I decided right there I would get everything to go and sample at the hotel room. That proved to be a good plan. There were 3 cars in front of me and it took about 10 minutes to get up to the window. Next over to Smitty's and Black's where there was almost no waiting. I got a cup of sweet tea at Black's, but took one sip and it tasted like sludge. I poured it out but kept the souvenir cup for beer back at the hotel. As I pulled up to Kreuz it was clear they were very busy. The parking lot was packed, and they have a huge lot. When I walked in the door I found almost 40 people waiting in line in front of me. Now that was a surprise! It was about 12:10 but I guess around lunch time a few minutes makes a big difference. The line moved quickly and I was out in about 10 minutes or so. I was back at the hotel by 12:30. Passing by Chisolm Trail I noted their lot was packed and they had 5 cars in line at the drive thru. Smitty's gravel lot was similarly full.

Now I want you to appreciate how lucky you are that I had the will power to take pictures FIRST, before digging in. Not only was I hungry, but I had to smell all that BBQ in my truck, plus 4 smoke pits, with nary a bite. You'd better enjoy those pictures!

Just for grins, here's the cost for the same meal at the 4 joints. Chisolm Trail, $8.84, Smitty's $9.70, Black's (minus the tea) $9.78, Kreuz $13.30. Chisolm Trail threw in a small container of sauce, plus 4 slices of white bread. Black's was the only place that handed me a receipt.

Now before the fun begins, let me just say, as usual, this review is for this meal on this day. Experience has shown, over and over, that any place can serve up a great meal or a horrible meal at any given time. The truly great joints are those who serve up consistently great meals time after time. I have eaten at all of these places before and probably will again. I just thought it would be fun to sit down and try all 4 together and see how they compared.

Brisket
Of the four, Black's came out on top for tenderness and for their deep smoky flavor, Chisolm trail was second, again with good tenderness and a slight smoke flavor. Kreuz and Smitty's had a very similar salty taste with Kreuz's brisket being the more tender of the two. I did the standard KCBS pull-apart judging test and Smitty's was definitely tough and chewy. Both Kreuz and Smitty's needed sauce, at least today.

Spare Ribs
Of the four, Black's again came out on top, but Smitty's was a close second. Both left a perfect bite mark and pulled away from the bone just right. Black's had a deep smoky crust of a bark while smitty's had a very nice sweet glaze. Both were very nice ribs, but different. Chisolm Trail's rib was chewy with decent smoke and a salty flavor. The ribs from Kreuz were overcooked and chewy as leather. I do like their pepper rub but these ribs were just too chewy.

Sausage
Sausage was the only category where I was not exactly comparing apples to apples. Two were jalapeno cheese and two were plain sausage. However I was surprised how easy it was to pick my favorites here. Kreuz was easily my favorite. I guess that should be no surprise since I often take cases of the stuff back to my freezer (and shall this time, as well). However Smitty's ring was the clear number 2 of the 4. The two previous times I had Smitty's sausage it was way too greasy for my taste. This time they were spot on, with just the right amount of wet to dry. That was an excellent flavorful link even though it was not as spicy as I prefer. Chislom trail came in next with even less spice. The surprise was I got a bad link at Black's that was clearly inferior to the other 3. It was downright mushy with little flavor at all. Surprising, considering it was supposed to be jalapeno cheese.

So who is the winner? Me. I win because I got to sit down and eat from all four at the same time. It was interesting to compare brisket to brisket and rib to rib. That would have been harder to do had I not taken them all back to the hotel. Testing back and forth between the samples to find the different flavors and textures was definitely helpful and interesting. It would be even more fun to do blind judging from the same spots, plus maybe throw in the two from Luling, just 15 minutes south. Now there's a challenge to look forward to in the future! I guess if I had to choose, Black's would still be my favorite with Smitty's and Kreuz being about equal, and Chisolm Trail being close behind. I think the real deciding factor today was Black's excellent brisket. That is something they consistently have done well, time after time. That won't stop me from buying 3 boxes of Kreuz jalapeno cheese sausage tomorrow! The bottom line is there is some pretty good BBQ in Lockhart and you can have a good meal at any of the 4 places in town. I will not identify the individual photos, try to guess which is which!

The Lockhart Challenge!

2011-01-12T22:25:00.000-08:00

Drew over at Man Up had the question, "What's your favorite Lockhart BBQ joint?" a few months back. We've eaten at all of them, some more than others, and Black's and Kreuz have always been my favorites there. However it got me to thinking, why not sample all 4 in one day for a full on comparison? They are all just a few hundred yards apart, so why not? Next week, I'm going to be doing just that. I haven't decided whether I'll sample them all "in-house" or get it to go and compare them all back at the hotel. Guess that will be a game time decision. However I am only going to have brisket, ribs, and sausage at each joint, and test them back to back, sort of like competition BBQ. I know who the ultimate winner will be. Me! Because I will get to eat some mighty good BBQ. I can't think of a better way to start off my BBQ sampling in 2011!

Close, but no cigar!!!

2011-01-08T23:43:00.000-08:00

So, my little brother lives just a few blocks from the "opening soon" Lockhart Smokehouse in Oak Cliff. He calls me this afternoon to say "My friend just tweeted me that they are giving out free samples!" I figured, being that it was in the afternoon, they probably wouldn't have much left, and by the time I made the 30 minute drive over it would have been a wasted trip. I told my brother to go grab some and let me know how it was. Well, I was right not to jump in my truck for the ride. He was less than 5 minutes away and missed out. I noticed they had a post on their website for free samples at lunchtime today, but I guess he heard too late. Next time!

I am betting they open the week of the 16th, because I will actually be in Lockhart that week! More on the "Lockhart Challenge", later!!

home smoked chicken

2010-12-21T18:57:00.000-08:00

12/21/10

It was 85 degrees here in Texas and my Mrs worked her usual wonders on some boneless/skinless chicken breasts tonight. We were experimenting with some different marinades and basting tonight, hence the different colors. It all was moist and tender with nice smoke flavor. After the chicken came off she did a turkey breast. Yum!

Sammie's Bar-B-Q, Fort Worth

2010-12-18T13:02:00.000-08:00

Sampled 12/18/10 about noon

http://www.sammiesbbq.com/

One of my racquetball buddies finally graduated from college this weekend and he wanted to have a get-together with some family and friends at his favorite BBQ joint in Fort Worth. How could I say no to that? I checked with the BBQ snob and he thought the place was pretty average so I didn't expect too much. As usual the snob was on the mark.

This place has sit down service in the dining room and a nice little lady came and took our orders and delivered them from the kitchen. I ordered a 3 meat plate of ribs, brisket, and chicken along with their hand cut fries and onion rings which ran me just over $17. The brisket was slightly undercooked, a little firm, and despite a decent smoke ring was devoid of smoke flavor. Sort of the usual sliced roast beef brisket we get up here in north Texas. The ribs were a bit chewy and seemed to suffer a bit from holding time. Several folks at the table commented on this and said the ribs were not as good as usual. A couple of us suspected the first few racks may have been left over from Friday. One lady said her set was moist and tender so she must have gotten the good rack. My three ribs were slightly dry and chewy, but not terribly so. Again, no discernible smoke flavor and no flavor added from bark or rub. Now I might have been just a bit biased since I had eaten most of a rack at North Main the day before, but these ribs were nowhere near the league of the ribs in Euless. The chicken was the meat highlight for me and the nicely smoked quarter had some decent smoke flavor and was very tender. It was just a tad dry, but it certainly would have ranked in the IBCA contest I judged awhile back. For sides I got their handcut fries and onion rings, on the recommendation of my buddy, and I was pleased with their quality. Both were excellent and I can see why they are some of his favorites. I don't usually order fried to go with my BBQ, but I think I would revisit this place just to eat those fries and onion rings. They were top notch. The sauce was a thin vinegar base with little taste to it except the vinegar.

Overall this struck me as an average joint, good for a quick friendly meal. It is also the only BBQ joint where I have ever seen a mounted flounder on the wall! Usually the critters on the walls of a BBQ joint have more hair and horns.

North Main closed Xmas weekend

2010-12-12T19:37:00.000-08:00

For those looking for some killer ribs from North Main BBQ in Euless, be forewarned that they will be closed all three days on Christmas weekend.

Dickey's to add jalapeno cheese sausage

2010-12-10T14:20:00.000-08:00

Scott noticed that the Dallas Observer had a scoop on Dickey's new BBQ item, jalapeno cheese sausage. It's going to have to be mighty good to compete with Kreuz and (hopefully) Lockhart Smokehouse's version of the same thing, but I'm sure going to stop by my local Dickey's and try some. According to the Observer, it's available now at the Dickey's in McKinney and will be rolled out nationwide in February.

http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/cityofate/2010/12/dickeys_puts_new_smoked_meat_o.php#more

Natty Flat Smokehouse, Natty Flat, Texas

2010-12-02T21:27:00.000-08:00

visited around 5:30 pm, 12/2/10

http://nattyflat.com/

Ok, I know the very first thing you will want to know is where the heck is Natty Flat, Texas?? Well it's between Lipan and Patillo, just north of Morgan Mill. I'm sure that helps. :) If not, it is about 5 miles south of I-20 on U.S. 281. Not only is there a good BBQ joint there, but also the world's largest largest cedar post rocking chair. I had passed this joint once before, unfortunately on a Monday, the one day they are closed. This time it was a Thursday so I got to eat some meat!

For $11 I got a generous 3 meat plate to go with brisket, ribs, sausage, and tater salad. Honestly, I was not expecting much as this place is a bit isolated from any population and it was late in the day. I fully expected dry brisket and crunchy ribs from sitting in a warmer all day. So much for expectations! The brisket was moist and very tender but certainly not overcooked and there was zero suffering from holding time. There was just enough fat to make me want more and there was a nice, but subtle, smoke flavor. The ribs were similarly tender and chin-dripping juicy, if just a tad overcooked to falling off the bone. Again there was a slight smoke flavor that made it's way past the sweet glaze but they mostly had a nice pork flavor. Pretty nice ribs. The sausage appeared to be Ekrich quality, but it had an interesting sweet taste of maple, almost as if it had been brushed with maple syrup before smoking. A nice change-up for average sausage. The sauce was rich, thick ,and sweet with a nice spicy kick. It made for great sausage dipping. The tater salad was average with a nice mix of mustard and mayo.

Now I don't know if I would make a special trip way out there just to eat their BBQ, but if you are passing nearby on I-20 or you ever have a hankering to see a really big rocking chair, a stop in the smokehouse might just add a little extra oomph to your trip.

Lockhart Smokehouse website is up

2010-12-01T22:43:00.000-08:00

After only hosting a place holder for awhile, the Lockhart Smokehouse website is finally beginning to show signs of life. It's making me hungry already! They are also on Twitter and Facebook, for folks what use such stuff.

http://www.lockhartsmokehouse.com/index.html

IBCA Invitational, October 10th

2010-10-10T23:09:00.000-07:00

After a fun day on Saturday, I headed back out to Trader's Village for the final day of the big IBCA Invitational with hopes of judging more final tables. I got there 15 minutes earlier than Saturday, but the brisket final table had already been filled. No matter. I signed up for the intermediate table as well as chicken finals, then wandered around the swap meet til the time for judging the final table on chicken. The chicken contest on Saturday was actually "Back Yard" Chicken and did not require the IBCA invitation. Anyone could participate. Therefore I was hoping for much improved entries this day, knowing these cooks had qualified due to their previous efforts. Unfortunately, that just wasn't the case. We had 20 boxes to judge at the final table after prelims and intermediate judging was complete. I found exactly one box that garnered a perfect 10 points out of those 20. Exactly the same as the previous day when anyone could enter. It was the only entry with good smoke flavor but it also happened to have perfect moisture, texture, and tasted delicious. It was the next to last entry that I judged, too. It is sort of amazing to me that over an hour after turn in, the good stuff still rises to the top. One of the volunteers told me later he sampled some of the "rejects" from first and second round judges and found better bird than we got at the final table. I think that gets back to the point I was on yesterday. I actually watched as they went out in the crowd to round up additional judges at the last moment when several who had signed up did not show up.

As I left to make room for the incoming brisket entries, I was asked if I was judging finals on brisket. I told the authorities I was on intermediate table. They said I was such a trooper judging all weekend that they would get me on brisket finals and not to worry about the intermediate table. Well alright!

After more wandering around, the time for final judging on brisket approached. They added several additional judges and we ended up with, I think, 11 judges on the final table to judge 21 boxes of brisket. Some had signed up, as I had tried to earlier. Some were added by the venue. Some were added by IBCA. There was even a guy dressed like the Maytag repairman who was there to promote the auction of one of their appliances for charity. Unlike KCBS, you can't pick up the brisket slices, you have to cut them with knife and fork to sample. I found that to be a bit troubling in determining tenderness, but once you start chewing, all becomes clear. Again, I had very high hopes, based on the fact that these were all cooks who had qualified through previous cook-off participation, and based on the high quality ribs I had had from the same folks on Saturday. Again, I was disappointed. Not one single entry had deep smoke flavor. There were plenty of smoke rings, some of the brisket LOOKED beautiful, a lot did not. Of the 21 boxes, I think I scored 2 as a 9, most were 7's or 8's. Much of the brisket was overcooked and turned to mush with only slight chewing. It was sticking in my molars on the first chew. One entry had sauce slathered all over each piece. I sort of wished I had gone to North Main for lunch instead of judging. If this was the BEST, then it really makes me quiver in my boots to think of what was on the preliminary table.

Overall I had a very nice time trying the IBCA judging experience. The people were wonderful and I met some very nice folks. It is a great organization and I plan to support them by becoming a member. They sanction far more contests here in Texas than KCBS, or anyone else, and they are definitely personable and well organized. Even for the judges they rounded up at the last minute, their instructions were clear, concise, and repeated frequently, making for an easy judging experience. I think there are pluses and minuses to both judging systems and I think I will also try to get into a Memphis in May judged contest at some point to learn their procedures as well.

I guess my only complaint is that I really didn't think the food was up to snuff. As with any cook-off, my main complaint is that as a blind judged competition, you don't have a chance to go back and have more at a later date - since you have no idea whose food you are eating! I think that's the biggest advantage to hitting restaurants versus judging cook-offs. Maybe I should start the IBEA (International Barbecue EATING Association).

IBCA Invitational, October 9th

2010-10-09T17:29:00.000-07:00

After several years of being asked, I was finally able to get out to the IBCA Invitational to eat some BBQ and do some BBQ judging. Thanks to Obie of Obie-cue, I managed to be placed on final tables for the Back Yard Chicken, Pork Tenderloin, and Pork Ribs category for day one. To cook in the Invitational, you must reach a certain number of judged points in other IBCA BBQ contests during the year. That means the participants are often winners, or ranked high, in smaller contests throughout the IBCA. It also means there's some pretty good eatin'!

I got there fairly early and had a chance to wander around the grounds a bit as the cooks finished up their entries. I heard different numbers throughout the day, but there were somewhere between 40 and 75 cooking teams for the different categories. I enjoyed wandering through the smoke and snapped a few photos of some of the cooler rigs. As in all of these contests, the rigs ranged from elaborate high dollar contraptions to simple little smokers. All competing on an equal playing field of blind judging. Let the best tastes win!

There were a number of interesting differences between the IBCA judging method and the method I learned at the KCBS school a few weeks back. Each have their strengths and weaknesses, but here's the basic lowdown of the IBCA method I experienced this day. First, there are multiple rounds of judging: preliminary, intermediate, and final tables. We had preliminary judging for the chicken and pork, then straight to a final judging table of 9. For ribs there was also an intermediate judging table. Each meat is assigned a single number score from 1-10 by each judge. No separate scoring for appearance or texture, just a single number score for each meat. The top entries from each round move on to the next judging table, til the final table. Scores from the final table determine the winners. Unlike KCBS, where each judge must have a separate piece of meat, IBCA judges sample direct from the turn-in box, with clean forks and knives, which are then discarded after tasting. That leads to some weirdness like NO PICKING UP RIBS WITH YOUR HANDS! You actually have to slice off a bit of rib meat with your fork and knife, then taste it. I couldn't help mutter over and over, "This is just wrong!" I'm sorry, but I just couldn't get used to eating ribs with a knife and fork. It's just so CALIFORNIA!! Despite all that, I had a great time and I'm headed back tomorrow for chicken and brisket judging.

Most of the judges for the early rounds came from the crowd. Personally, I think KCBS's method of trying to use mostly trained judges is more fair to the cooks. At least that way you get people used to eating lots of cue, where the random crowd member may have only eaten at chains all their life and not know good from bad. You can never train folks to have the same taste, but you can try to have folks with deeper levels of experience who at least have tried a wider range of products. It all comes down to personal opinion and preference anyway.

In all, I sampled 20 chicken entries, 23 pork entries, and 22 rib entries. That may sound like a lot, but most consisted of a single bite, and I prepared well by not eating anything after 2 pm the previous day. It's all about pacing yourself and taking small samples of everything. Of the chicken I tasted, there was only one standout sample and my wife's would have beaten that one. Pork was similarly weak, with only one entry rating a good attaboy. One should have never passed the preliminaries (several judges had the same problem I did, it wouldn't cut with a plastic knife!). Ribs were definitely the standout category here. I have to say I didn't have a bad rib, but not a single one had deep smoke flavor. Most entries seemed to depend on a thick gooey basting rather than let the flavor of the meat come through. Almost all were plenty tender and moist. On the last box, after judging, we were finally let loose to grab a rib by the handles and bite into it proper. I really enjoyed that rib, even if it was not the best one I had all day!

Obie-cue at Trader's Village Grand Prairie

2010-10-09T16:47:00.000-07:00

Obie's spice shop at Trader's Village has an amazing selection of spices and rubs. His wall is full of BBQ trophies and he has 3 American Royal International "Best Rub on the Planet" globes. Here's a few pix from his shop. You can also shop online at http://obiecue.com/

IBCA Invitational

2010-10-08T19:42:00.000-07:00

My fellow KNON buddy, Obie Obermark, has been trying to get me out to Trader's Village to judge in the IBCA Invitational for a couple of years now. Well tomorrow is the day! (and Sunday, too, if they'll have me). I'm looking forward to a mega-meat coma!!

If you're not hip to Obie-cue's wonderful spices, here they are: http://obiecue.com/

IBCA details are here: http://www.ibcabbq.org/

The mountain is coming to Mohammed!!!

2010-10-07T10:24:00.000-07:00

The Dallas Observer reports Kreuz market may be opening a branch in Dallas soon. Oh, if only the jalapeno cheese sausage is as good as in Lockhart!! I sure hope it is!! Thanks to Scott for the tip.

http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/cityofate/2010/10/barbecue_royalty_to_open_smoke.php

Phoenix BBQ!

2010-10-05T22:13:00.000-07:00

I spent a few days in Phoenix, Arizona attending a great blues festival over three days in early October. We had the afternoons off, so of course, I plugged "BBQ" into google and yahoo to see what popped up. I was surprised to see quite a few BBQ joints, even a Dickey's. After a short drive Saturday, we found one of the joints to be extinct, the other two had some pluses and minuses. The one on Sunday was good, but not quite up to Texas standards. Of the 3 joints, none had decent sliced brisket and there seemed to be a emphasis on grilling rather than smoke. If I get back that way I hope to sample some of the other joints in town to see if those trends hold up.

Bobby Q, Phoenix, AZ

2010-10-05T22:00:00.000-07:00

sampled 10/3/10 about 1 pm

http://www.bobbyq.net/

This place was the exact opposite of the down home funky atmosphere of Honey Bear's BBQ I had the previous day. It looks for all the world like a chain, but it is actually just a very nice single location restaurant that has won many awards. Inside it is table service with young pretty waitresses who come and go at a fast pace. The little lady gave me the big build up by telling me all their meats are smoked slowly for 18-20 hours in their own pits. I opted for a 3 meat plate and they brought out some nice hot cornbread muffins to munch on while I waited for my meal. It took about 15 minutes for my meal to arrive, they were bustling, but those muffins were fabulous.

When my 3 meat plate arrived it really looked great. However when I tried to break off a rib, the bone slipped right out in my hand. In fact all 3 bones came loose immediately on grasping. KCBS and most others will tell you that's a sign of overcooking. The ribs themselves were tender and juicy but without any smoke taste. The nice sweet sauce went well with the meat. The sliced brisket looked better, but had the same problem. It sat there in nice slices until you tried to pick up a slice or poke it with a fork. Then it just crumbled away to tiny pieces. So tiny it was difficult to get ahold of with a fork, unless you scooped it. This was spoon-eating brisket! Despite the big build up, there was zero smoke flavor on the unsauced bits I could find, no bark, and no smoke ring. It was plenty moist, but if I had wanted little bits I would have gotten chopped brisket. Again, the sauce was a nice addition to the meat. My third meat was smoked link sausage and I thought this had an interesting twist. It was cut long ways and grilled as a finish, which gave it a bit of charcoal flavor and a bit of smoke. Their sausage seemed to have a heavy pork content because it almost tasted a bit like fried spam.

The sides get special mention because they were top notch. The mac and cheese was clearly made from scratch and even had a bit of baked cheesy crust on top. Just like Mom used to make! The mashed potatoes were nice and creamy with skin bits and obviously had a LOT of butter and maybe some cream in them. Both sides (and the cornbread muffins) were outstanding.

For dessert I opted for the Chocolate Overdose. It is basically like a large ice cream sandwich, between layers of cake and fudge, with hot fudge on top! It was very good, but I did not overdose.

Overall this is a good joint and I would gladly eat here again, however it is not what I consider great BBQ. It is also pretty pricey. The 3 meat plate was $20 and the dessert was $8.

Honey Bear's Bar B Q, Phoenix, AZ

2010-10-05T21:21:00.000-07:00

Sampled 10/2/10 about 3 pm

http://www.honeybearsbbq.com/

This is a small down home chain in the Phoenix area, I think they have 3 outlets. This location had the best rating of reviewers on google and yahoo so I thought I would try here. The menu here is far more restricted than Hap's. They have more desserts than they have plate combos but you can also order meat by the half pound and up, or get a sandwich. I went for a half rack of ribs and a brisket sandwich with sides of beans and tater salad.

The brisket sandwich was massive, but was missing all the smoky crispy bits that Hap's had. It would have been a good meal, all by itself, with some decent sauce slathered on it. As it was, I just sampled the brisket and moved onto the ribs. To me it was just tender, moist roast beef. The ribs were slathered in a sweet sauce but I found one underneath that was partly dry. The ribs were tender and moist, but they had a nice interesting flavor I really couldn't recognize at first. Then it dawned on me that the flavor I was tasting was charcoal, as if the ribs had been cooked on a charcoal grill rather than smoked. They actually tasted pretty durned good! I don't know if it was a grilled finish or if that's how they were made but I did like it. The video on their website suggests they are grilled. I got the same taste through their sweet sticky sauce and I ate up every one of those ribs and wanted more! I opted for their Cowbro Beans and tater salad as sides and both were well above average. The beans were sweet baked beans in a thick sauce and very nice. The tater salad was chunky with a mayo base and a generous sprinkling of sweet pickle bits throughout, another winner.

I wish this place had some better combo plate options so I could have tried more of their meats in one go. Maybe next trip, if I can leave those ribs alone!

Their motto reminded me a lot of House Park in Austin, but I think House Park's is better. "Need no Teef to Eat our Beef"

Hap's Pit BBQ, Phoenix, AZ

2010-10-05T16:00:00.000-07:00

Visited 10/2/10 about 2 pm

http://hapsbbq.com

They have an extensive menu here so I was happy to see a 5 meat sampler plate on offer. After some discussion, I went with brisket, sausage, pork ribs, chicken, and ham. They had lamb on offer and I should have tried that rather than the ham. The brisket was chopped but had plenty of crispy outside barky bits and had nice smoke flavor. I wish I had a chance to get it sliced, but that does not seem to be the way they do brisket in Phoenix. The chicken was tender and moist, but no smoke flavor. The sausage was a nice medium grind with a lot of flavor to it. A very nice mix of spices with just a bit of kick. I liked it very much. The pork ribs were tender and juicy but no discernible smoke flavor. The ham was just ham. Nothing smoky or BBQ'd about it at all. With all that meat to try I just got beans as a side. Their beans were definitely different from the usual Texas fare. There were at least 4 kinds of beans including small limas, kidney, navy and pintos. There was also a bit of ground beef involved. It was a nice different mix and I enjoyed them for a change of pace.

I took about half of this home for later and the smoke flavor of the brisket was much more pronounced after being in the fridge for a bit. It really was very nice smoky chopped brisket! I sure wish I had some more for my late night snack!

Blind Lemon BBQ tour, 9/25/2010

2010-09-25T23:20:00.000-07:00

With my wife off on the road on business and no real blues doin's that I wanted to do this weekend, I told Scott I was heading down to Mexia and Groesbeck to check out some BBQ spots and pay my respects at Blind Lemon Jefferson's grave in Wortham. I told him he was welcome to come along or just read about it later and I quickly got back an e-mail saying "I'm IN!"

I had a racquetball game at noon so we got a late start, 1:30 pm. It was only about a 2 hour drive so I figured we had plenty of time for BBQ-ing on a Saturday. After a few adventures, we made it to Groesbeck, found 2 of the 3 places I wanted to try (Swick's and Kyle's Trading Post), but both were closed. Drat. Back to Mexia, we ate at the one spot we had passed, then hunted for two more, one was closed (Kirby's BBQ), the other extinct (Queens BBQ). Double drat! After that, things got better and we ended up sampling 5 joints with one real find. Lots of reviews and photos below. We will be headed back out 287 in a few more weeks to chase some more joints we haven't tried yet.

Remember, CLICK ON THE PHOTOS FOR A LARGER VIEW.

Pit Stop BBQ, Waxahachie, Texas

2010-09-25T23:09:00.000-07:00

Visited 9/25/10 about 8 pm

http://pitstopbbq.net/

After leaving Alma, we headed up 287 thinking we could reconnoiter a few more places as darkness fell. Unfortunately, we got stuck in a traffic jam as the Texas Motorplex race track crowd left from the day's races. Grrr. We figured that was the end of this BBQ adventure, until we stumbled onto this hopping little joint just down the road a piece. Open til 9 pm! Well alright!

These guys are competitive BBQ cook-off folks and this is their home base. There are trophies everywhere, mostly IBCA. They offer "competition style BBQ", whatever that means. We wrangled up a 3 meat plate, which arrived so quickly I was shocked. We opted for their converted railroad car dining room (nicely air conditioned) and dug right in. Right off the bat we noticed a fruity taste in the mix we couldn't quite put our finger on. We were guessing apricot, but later learned it was a dash of apple juice. Definitely a different taste. The ribs and brisket were very tender and moist, but neither had a lot of smoke flavor. The tater salad was good average chunky style but the beans were exceptional. Some of the best beans I have had outside of Llano. The beans really were tasty. Their sauce was spicy and heavy on the molasses, but without the fruity taste we found on the meat. I should have tried some on the brisket, but we had already eaten up all the brisket before opening up the sauce cup.

This was good stuff, I would definitely eat here again, but I think the apple juice just weirded us out. Plus they followed up Alma's amazing smoke flavor which would be a tough act for anyone to follow. I think when we go back to Alma, we will stop here first and give them another shot.

This was a hopping little place with a big crowd (probably from the race track down the road). They also had a small stage out back with a live country band playing. They encourage their customers to write on the walls and you could spend hours just browsing the wisdom and silliness there. I also loved the little touches like the little pig hanging out underneath the sweet tea!

Alma Smokehouse BBQ, Alma, Texas

2010-09-25T22:43:00.000-07:00

visited 9/25/10 about 7 pm

http://almasmokehousebbq.com/

Alright, now THIS is why we do this. This was the best stop of the day and they were durned near out of food when we got there. After we had some, we understood why. When we got to the counter, the lady told us they were out of just about everything except brisket, chicken and fried catfish. Ok then, we settled for brisket and chicken. Sides? They were out of most of those, too, so we just opted for the meat with some bread and pickles. While we waited for our meal, I pointed out to Scott that I-45 was just outside making this "Highway BBQ". He said since they didn't have a highway billboard the jury was still out. We also noticed two pictures of John Wayne on the wall. In previous BBQ soirees, we have noticed a definite coincidence of John Wayne appearances with the arrival of better than average BBQ. The John Wayne theory continues to work!

When our meat arrived the brisket looked unremarkable, but the chicken was beautiful and appeared to be competition quality. We got a quarter plus several separate pieces of chicken and they were moist, tender and chock full of smoke flavor. Scott pronounced it the best chicken he has ever had at any BBQ joint. I have to concur that it was durned good and almost as good as my wife's smoked chicken. However this was much prettier than hers! Sorry dear. The brisket was very tender, a slice pulled apart easily, but was just a tad dry. It's hard to whine much about that for a 7 pm meal, but the smoke flavor was simply awesome. By far the best brisket we had all day long. More proof that smoke rings and pretty bark isn't all there is to great Q. They're always a good sign, but if they aren't there you'd better shut up and taste it anyway. If you look at the pictures of that brisket, it tells you nothing of the amazing smoke flavor it had. I was still tasting it 30 minutes later, and was happy about it!

We will definitely be making a return visit here, soon, and NOT at 7 pm. We want to sample the rest of what this joint has to offer and see if they have this level of "the goods" on a second trip.

C&C Trading Post, Corsicana, Texas

2010-09-25T22:18:00.000-07:00

visited 9/25/10 about 6:15 pm

http://www.cctradingpost.com/

You know you're at a classy joint when the first sign you see approaching the front door is one saying "no peeing off the porch!" Yup, my kinda place. Inside we learned ribs were a Wednesday thing so we settled for a 2 meat plate with brisket and sausage. Their little dining room had lots of neat old oil boom photos from the 20's. Being your typical all-around country joint, they also had live bait. I wonder if they've ever heard of the rare brisket bass?

After a short wait our food arrived and it sure was nice to see some meat with nary a splash of sauce about! We finally remembered! As you can see from the photo below, there was a LOT of bark on the brisket and it had some nice smoke flavor. The sausage was straight Ekrich but it had been well smoked, too. The pinto beans had cooked too long and were almost refried style beans. The tater salad was watery and is to be avoided. We sampled the table sauce and it was a bit spicy with a honey and mustard base. Not to my liking but Luling fans might dig it.

Overall the brisket was the rave up here and I sure wish it had been Wednesday. I'd like to taste their ribs. If they're anywhere near as good as the brisket, this would be a pretty good meat stop.

Cole's Bar B Q, Fairfield, Texas

2010-09-25T22:00:00.000-07:00

visited 9/25/10 about 5:30 pm

When we struck out on all but one joint in Groesback and Mexia, we decided to make a sidetrip over to Fairfield to hit a joint we had seen a sign for on I-45. Now normally, we don't go looking for BBQ inside gas stations, but seeing the stacks of wood outside and remembering our nice meal at Casstevens Diamond Shamrock in Lillian, we decided to take the plunge. Doh! Once again, being dummies, we forgot to ask for sauce on the side and got a plate full of soaked meat. The brisket was tough and bordered on inedible. The rib I had was very tender and moist, but all I could taste was the sauce, which was not what I wanted to taste. Scott had less sauce on his rib and reported it had little flavor. Sides were very average.

Scott claimed this was further proof of his adage against freeway BBQ and we quickly moved off in search of better things.

Wright's Bar B Q, Mexia, Texas

2010-09-25T21:43:00.000-07:00

Sampled about 4:30 pm, 9/25/10

After several strike-outs on finding open Q joints in Groesbeck, we stumbled back to Mexia and we were HUNGRY! We had passed by Wright's on the way down south and happily noticed that they were open til 6 pm. Inside we ordered up a 3 meat combo and we didn't have to wait long til the nice lady brought us our plate. Damn! We forgot to ask for sauce on the side and the meat was swimming in it. Oh well, we were so hungry at this point we didn't really care.

The rib I had kicked some nice smoke flavor, even through the sauce, but was a bit on the chewy side. The sauce was a rich tomato sauce and honestly didn't add much except to mask the flavor of the meat. The brisket was very tender and also had a nice smoke kick that fought its way through the drenching of sauce. The sausage was average fine grind and nothing to get excited about. The beans tasted a lot like Ranch Style, straight from the can. The tater salad was a very nice creamy style and was well above average. I have a feeling that undrenched, that meat was way above average, but it will take a return visit to prove it. We shall definitely pull a MacArthur, here.

Pat Garret beat us here

2010-09-25T21:29:00.000-07:00

Looks gone and forgotten. Sad. This was between Groesbeck and Mexia. 9/25/10

Blind Lemon BBQ?

2010-09-23T22:21:00.000-07:00

We are off to Blind Lemon Jefferson country this Saturday to hunt for and sample Q between DFW and Mexia and Groesbeck. On checking the route more closely, google maps lists 19 BBQ joints along the trail. Knowing the accuracy of Google maps, I doubt we'll eat at that many places, but we sure will try! Reviews and pix - eventually.

Here Come da Judge!

2010-09-05T13:31:00.000-07:00

I just completed my first experience as a KCBS BBQ judge and I had a blast. This was for the Bedford Blues and BBQ Festival in nearby Bedford, Texas, the same folks who sponsored the judging class I took yesterday. The first step was seating, where they mixed up experienced and new judges, separated husbands, wives, and friends, and basically tried to give each table of 6 judges a similar mix of people. Once that was accomplished, we went through an orientation and learned there was also a sauce category to be judged today. We went through orientation, listened to the judging CD and took the judges oath, then sat down for sauce. Our table had 4 sauces to choose from and only one got high ratings from me. It was thick and spicy and I would love to have more of it. One, I swear, tasted just like spaghetti sauce! One of the other judges on my table liked that one the best.

Next up was chicken. It was easy to tell the experienced teams because their boxes were prepared beautifully. Most were nice compact thighs with a fine glaze of sauce. A few had no sauce, and one competitor made the mistake of entering 2 half chickens! The KCBS rules state that judges must take 1 piece each, in order, with no breaking things apart. That meant the frst 2 judges got the whole box and the rest of us got nada. That means disqualification score on all 6 for appearance, and food and tenderness disqualification on the 4 judges who did not get food. Newbie mistake by someone. Two of my samples had perfect taste and one had perfect tenderness. Some pretty good chicken

The ribs were up next and I was amazed at the quality there. The first box that came out I gave a perfect 9 on appearance. All the rest got 8's or 9's, too. Every single rib was above average on taste and tenderness, with only one getting a slightly lower score due to the thickness of their fruity sauce. All in all a fine bunch of ribs.

The pulled pork was not as good. Most lacked smoke flavor and there was not much bark in most of the boxes. Some were sauced, but that wasn't always a good thing. Several included medallions, some were chopped, some were pulled. It didn't matter much, overall this was the weakest category in this cook off.

Brisket was the last entry we sampled but I have to say I was a bit disappointed. Every entry (except one) included burnt ends to go along with their slices. Only one of the 6 had real smoke flavor and it was off a bit on tenderness. Overall, it mostly tasted like DFW brisket usually does, like moist tender roast beef, not smoked meat. One competitor submitted chopped sauced brisket and it was just not very good.

I have to say, it sure is nice to sit in one place and have them bring you sample after sample of smoked meat. You don't get the travel experience of running around from place to place, but you do get to eat a lot of good food. However, since it is blind judging, you can never go back for more!!! One of the "perks" of being a judge is you get to take leftovers home. I left with several pounds of nice smoked meat which I will be enjoying for the next couple of days. I hope to do this again, soon!!

I'm a KCBS BBQ judge!

2010-09-04T18:54:00.000-07:00

WoooHoo! I just finished the KCBS BBQ judging class held in conjunction with the Bedford Blues and BBQ festival. It was a lot of fun and I even got to eat some BBQ. There were about 30 folks in the class and most of the time was spent explaining the KCBS rules and methods of judging. It all seemed common sense stuff and I look forward to putting it into practice tomorrow as a BBQ judge at the fest. I think I'm on the judges list. I'm getting the e-mails, but I have never gotten anything officially saying "your application as judge has been accepted". I guess I'll just show up tomorrow and see what happens. The worst they can do is send me home and I can go to North Main for lunch.

The class was an interesting mix of BBQ competitors, wanna-be competitors, and folks who just like to eat BBQ (like me). As they brought us various boxes to sample, some had rules infractions that we were supposed to notice (like sauce pools, red tip lettuce, and other no-nos). We graded each box, 6 judges to a table, and the scores varied pretty widely. Once we got the ribs, I figured out all the food had come from the same source, they were just putting it in 3 different boxes and arranging it differently. The ribs were very good. Everything else was sub-par.

Red Barn BBQ,, Colleyville, Texas

2010-09-01T14:07:00.000-07:00

Sampled 9/1/10 about 2:30 pm

This is another one of those places I have driven by many times, but never had an occasion to stop. Well, I can cross it off my list.

The brisket was moist and tender but zero smoke flavor. It definitely needed sauce. The ribs were tender but a bit dry with no smoke flavor or discernible bark. In fact, if I hadn't had a bone in my hand I would swear it tasted like pork tenderloin cooked in a crockpot. Wait, even with a bone in my hand, that's what it tasted like! I knew better than to order my usual sausage so I opted for the smoked chicken as my third meat. False advertising! There was no smoke flavor to be found and no discernible flavor from the rub. It was very moist and tender chicken, it just tasted like it had been baked low and slow, not smoked. The green beans were flavorless and the tater salad was average.

They had a sweet and a mild sauce to choose from and I sampled both. The sweet sauce seemed to have a lot of honey in it and the spicy sauce had a good kick, but had too much vinegar to my taste. I ended up combining the two into a pretty decent sauce and it went well with my roast beef brisket.

Feedstore BBQ & More, Southlake, Texas

2010-08-31T15:22:00.000-07:00

Visited 8/31/10 about 2:30 pm
http://www.feedstorebbq.com/

I passed this joint on the way to another appointment and a made a mental note of its location for a return visit. I was the lone customer at this off hour and they were tidying up the extra room from a big lunch business. I ordered up my usual 3 meat plate, brisket, ribs and sausage, with the sausage being the Feedstore premium link. I should have asked if they made their jalapeno sausage and tried that, but I didn't. Their fine grind premium link was pretty good, but had no smoke flavor. It had more of a ham taste than any other sausage I have had. The casing was just right and the flavor was definitely original. I may have to return just to see about that jalapeno sausage. The brisket was thinly sliced with scant evidence of a smoke ring and zero smoke flavor. Moisture and tenderness were good, but it was pretty much just thinly sliced roast beef to my taste buds. This is the kind of brisket that sauce is made for. The ribs were probably the meat highlight. Moisture and tenderness were right on. The meat pulled easily from the bone but wasn't falling off. There was a nice sweet bark that added just a bit of flavor, however there was no evidence of smoke. I got one inside bone and a rib tip and the tip was just a tad chewy. I enjoyed both ribs, though.

They have 2 sauces available, a mild and a spicy. The mild reminded me a lot of City Market in Luling, with a heavy mustard content, however it was not as heavy on the mustard as Luling. I liked it better than City Market's sauce and it helped out the bland brisket considerably. The spicy sauce was a deeper red and I seemed to detect some chipolte pepper content. It was good and spicy.

The sides were both above average. The tater salad was a nice creamy mustard base with bits of onions and sweet pickle sprinkled within. The mac and cheese had an extra creamy base and was about as good as mac and cheese can get. Bravo!

I did have to take a picture of a framed poster they had on the wall. Sort of the dogs playing poker painting, only it is all Republicans! I have no doubt Nixon has an ace up his sleeve and Teddy Roosevelt will shoot him when he finds out!

If I get back that way I will have to check out that jalapeno sausage.

Click on the photos below for a larger image

North Main BBQ, Euless

2010-08-29T17:55:00.001-07:00

Visited 8/29/10 about 1:30 PM

http://www.northmainbbq.com/
There is a reason this is my very favorite local BBQ joint. Actually, there are a lot of reasons. It is 2 miles from my house. They are two times WORLD RIB CHAMPIONS. They have all you can eat for $12. Their ribs are fantastic. Their brisket, can be fantastic, but is somewhat inconsistent. I think I have the brisket thing figured out, though. Usually, there is little smoke flavor other than around the rim, so from now on, I'm just going to get them to cut burnt ends for me. That's where all the smoke flavor is. The brisket I had today (all from corners) was exceptional. Now I see how that guy from the food network put them on "The Best Thing I Ever Ate" for their brisket. Now I get it. This wasn't the best brisket I ever ate, but now I can understand how it can rank.

The ribs here are just as good as ribs can get. That's all there is to it. I have eaten at dozens of other joints and will occasionally have ribs AS good, but I have never had any better, anywhere. Just look at the moisture and smoke ring in the pictures below. Every bite of those ribs produce a dribble of juice down your chin. Just magnificent.

The chicken today was excellent, too. Great moisture and smoke flavor with a nice spicy rub. Sides are average, but go well with their exceptional meat. They have fine spicy sauce, also, but I had no need of it today. My little plastic cup of sauce remained unused. The meat was just too wonderful to use sauce on.

Sadly, this joint is only open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. But I guess otherwise I would never go anywhere else. It is also BYOB, so if you want beer, just bring your cooler.

CLICK ON THE PHOTOS BELOW FOR LARGER MOUTHWATERING VIEWS!

Late Night Snack

2010-08-28T01:13:00.001-07:00

Ribs with NO sauce from Off the Bone BBQ on Lamar St in Dallas. Picked up about midnight. Man, they were good!

Vitek's BBQ, Waco, Texas

2010-08-21T23:01:00.001-07:00

Sampled 8/21/10
visited about 2:45 pm

We whizzed past this spot on I-35 headed north through Waco, and being determined to disprove Scott's highway BBQ adage, I circled back for a taste. Despite what the sign says, they are durned sure open on Saturday. I opted for the 2 meat plate with brisket and hot link and was served up one of the prettiest boxes I have seen in awhile. This would score high on any judge's BBQ appearance card. Unfortunately, the "hot link" was neither spicy or heated. If anything it resembled a weak and sickly hot dog waiting to go into the pork and beans for beanie weenies. One taste and the rest was consigned to the circular file. The brisket was beautiful with a deep smoke ring, but curiously had little smoke flavor. However if you picked off the end bits there was some nice smoke at the tip of each piece. The brisket was tender with decent moisture but needed some sauce. Here was probably the high point of my Vitek's experience. They had a really thick sweet sauce with a nice punch of heat. One of the better sauces I have had in awhile. Once the dipping got going the brisket disappeared quickly. Scott got a sandwich and I think if we return I'll be going that direction. Sides were decent average mustardy tater salad and nice pintos. They had Dublin Dr Pepper, which is the mark of a class joint.

They are working on a major expansion to this place, probably due to their "famous gut pack", but I think the Q here has some potential. They are not dangerous yet, but could be. I think we'll be back again and I will have to try the ribs.

Scott maintained that since this place is on a side road, not the service road, his highway warning remains valid. The fact remains that it is clearly visible from the highway. So nyahhhh to Scott. :)

Best Quality Meats, Temple, Texas

2010-08-21T22:58:00.000-07:00

Almost sampled 8/21/10

Damn, damn, damn! Why did we stop at that Cowboy BBQ joint? This place closed 10 minutes before we arrived. Next time!!

Miller's Smokehouse, Belton, Texas

2010-08-21T22:56:00.000-07:00

tried to visit 8/21/10

Unfortunately closed on weekends. It's right down the street and around the corner from Schoepfs, but looks like a likely stop on a future trip.

Cowboy's BBQ, Salado, Texas

2010-08-21T22:46:00.000-07:00

sampled 8/21/10
around 1:30 pm

My buddy Scott has a warning. Never eat highway BBQ. I ain't skeered. If it says BBQ I'll try it. However this place just gave him more ammunition. I've seen this joint for several years off I-35 next to the Robertson's Ham Sandwich place in Salado, but I can now cross it off my list. Permanently. Every item suffered from holding time issues. The rib was partly dry as was the brisket and sausage. There was no smoke flavor in anything. There was little flavor at all in either the brisket or rib. A couple of bites was all I needed and I was done. Sausage was from Meyers in Elgin but had definitely been in the warmer too long.

One different thing they do here, not that it's worth stopping for, is sell you the meat by the pound, then the sides are included over on a sidebar. After you pay for your meat and drink, you just help yourself to the sides.

Perez Bar-B-Que, Bartlett, Texas

2010-08-21T22:10:00.000-07:00

Sampled 8/21/10
around 1 pm

This is a joint we had passed many times before on our forays south to the BBQ grounds. Unfortunately, we always passed by during the week when they were closed. Finally we managed to get the timing right! Daniel from Full Gospel preceeded us by a few hours and we found his comments to be spot on, as usual. I opted for brisket and a sausage link. The brisket had been kept in a tub of tomatoe-y sauce and for all the world tasted like crockpot BBQ. I know it wasn't, there were good smokers out front, yet there was nary a hint of smoke flavor. In fact what you mostly got was the flavor of the sauce. Think roast beef sloppy joe and you just about have it. The sausage was much nicer. A good snappy casing with a medium grind low spice beef sausage inside. It was excellent hot off the pit. I doubt it could rival Kreuz or even Louie Mueller's sausage, but it was way better than most. One link would probably make a meal for most folks. As we were on a quest for quantity this day, I skipped the ribs and sides but I think if we get back that way on a weekend we shall investigate further.

There was a pretty good game of dominoes going on out by the pits and by the time we left there were more cars rolling up for lunch. It seems to be the happening spot in Bartlett.

I packed mine away for later and the photo below is after some cooling and travel.