Cartwright's BBQ, Bastrop, Texas

We had heard good things about this place and another in Bastrop so we decided to give them a try. The other place, Old Town BBQ, seems to have disappeared. No sign of it at the corner of Pine and Main, so we doubled back and hit Cartwright's on the freeway. We had a nice lunch around noon on September 16. They were doing a steady business at their drive through the whole time we were there. This place has a long history as Bastrop Meat Market and only recently (relatively) moved to their new digs to concentrate on BBQ.

The first bite of my brisket and I knew this was a great joint. Tender with smoke flavor through and through. I was starting to think I didn't get enough brisket, then I tried the ribs. Nope, I needed room for ribs, too, because they were delicious. Tender and smoky with a nice crust. The only problem was they were not hot through. Sort of as they had been sitting off to the side somewhere and not in the pit. Same problem with the hot sausage. It was neither hot in spice or temperature, but very flavorful and the right mix of wet and dry. The tater salad was the best I had this trip. Sweet mayo base with just a hint of mustard. Lockhart and Luling had better look out. Bastrop is on the BBQ map and Cartwright's put them there.

A lot of joints aren't open 7 days. This is a great stop when other places aren't open. Come to think of it, this is a great stop when they ARE open!