Texas BBQ

[Underdog 28654]

53 minutes ago, Patricio Swayze said:

Probably accurate.

I was thinking:



But neither of us are black.

Starsky & Hutch, then. 

[NoName 16352]

16 minutes ago, Underdog said:

Starsky & Hutch, then. 

i imagine them more like these guys

[jimmyjazz 45958]

[Underdog 28654]

Cagney & Lacey

[Ten Bears 2481]

On 4/15/2023 at 3:27 PM, NoName said:

Holy cow. You were 100 percent correct, as usual. That's some fantastic bbq. Brisket was phenomenal. Carnitas were porky as hell. That's a great sausage. I'm going to go eat a bite of leftovers now. If you go, don't sleep on that cobbler. Also those are two of my favorite sides ever - their potato salad is amazing and that poblano mac is in the running for the best side in Texas BBQ. House tortillas.

Don't mess with parking on the street or across of it. Go park off of Virginia Ave...follow the sign. Drive around and go in the back entrance.

edit to add info on the line: when i got there at like 1115 on Saturday there was 1 person ahead of me in line. by 1130 there were like 5-8 groups in line, but still went pretty fast. they have a ton of seating options, like 3-4 different "sections" so just pick one somewhere and if it's busy at the front by the bathrooms just keep going back. but you better go soon, those guys are going to blow up in the next few months.

 

 

But how was the sauce?  I was told that is the most important part.

[Tylerocks 2553]

I've got a handful of customers out on 529.  Will make a lunchtime venture out soon!

I've driven past that place like 50 times in the past year.

[Enemy07 296]

You guys were not lying. Kreuz fell off. Brisket was not as good as I remembered but the sausage was on point.

[Butch Had Not 2971]

I just started reading Franklin's Manifesto.  Good read so far. 

[Patricio Swayze 17058]

Butter’s. Fucking delicious. Pinche elotes.

[deadshank 24653]

1 hour ago, Patricio Swayze said:

Butter’s. Fucking delicious. Pinche elotes.

My hat is off to you.

[Patricio Swayze 17058]

Hahaha. That was for 5 people and there was a bit left over. Including one cup of elotes.

[deadshank 24653]

6 minutes ago, Patricio Swayze said:

Hahaha. That was for 5 people and there was a bit left over. Including one cup of elotes.

We have a Kate Moss wannabe over here.

[Anton Chigurh 3319]

Tried going to the Big Country Air Show in Abilene (which was an absolute cluster, couldn’t even get in).

Went to The Shed instead.

It was pretty solid, but not spectacular.

[Mo Horn 8843]

1 hour ago, Anton Chigurh said:

Tried going to the Big Country Air Show in Abilene (which was an absolute cluster, couldn’t even get in).

Went to The Shed instead.

It was pretty solid, but not spectacular.

Speaking of Abilene, I'm going to be there for a wedding in July. I'd this the best in town, or what would Surly recommend. 

Edited April 22, 2023 by Mo Horn

[GreenspointTexas 9602]

18 hours ago, Mo Horn said:

Speaking of Abilene, I'm going to be there for a wedding in July. I'd this the best in town, or what would Surly recommend. 

The Shed or jays bbq shack

[ruitxn 296]

10 hours ago, GreenspointTexas said:

The Shed or jays bbq shack

Pass on the que and go to Perini  Ranch Steakhouse in Buffalo Gap.  

[Mo Horn 8843]

6 hours ago, ruitxn said:

Pass on the que and go to Perini  Ranch Steakhouse in Buffalo Gap.  

Thanks, but looking specifically for bbq. I'm due the food is great, but I can get stuff like that around here. Don't get Texas bbq often, so looking to indulge, even if it isn't the best in the state

[conVINCEd 21469]

Perini Ranch is unique and 100% worth a stop. 

[DalTxHornFan 3101]

On 4/22/2023 at 12:45 PM, Butch Had Not said:

I just started reading Franklin's Manifesto.  Good read so far. 

My son got that book for me on Father's Day a couple of years ago.  It changed my approach (and my fear) of taking on a brisket for a party.  I used to always just do pork shoulders and sausage because I knew that I had those dialed in.  Brisket was always hit or miss.  Franklin's method on brisket has worked every time since then.

[Texzilla58 4736]

Thanks, but looking specifically for bbq. I'm due the food is great, but I can get stuff like that around here. Don't get Texas bbq often, so looking to indulge, even if it isn't the best in the state

I would go to Perini all the time if it weren’t 3 hours away. It and Mary’s Cafe in Strawn are the only Texas restaurants I will make a day trip for. I don’t know where you are but I doubt it’s common where you be.

Perini Ranch is so fucking great as a restaurant in terms of food, ambiance, the location, everything. It’s so good I would have no issue with an early lunch there and a later dinner the same day. Or staying in in one of their cabins. I for one see no value and little enjoyment in the high end overpriced steakhouse experience with a prime cut sitting bare on a white plate. That same prime ribeye at Perini Ranch is an ethereal dinner, in a convivial joint, with great hospitality and great sides and drinks. It is everything I missed about Texas all the years I was a Texpat around the country.

Just my 2 cents.

[Jerry Callo 8703]

On 4/22/2023 at 6:11 PM, Mo Horn said:

Speaking of Abilene, I'm going to be there for a wedding in July. I'd this the best in town, or what would Surly recommend. 

Here's a fairly recent Texas Monthly article.  If it were me, I would go to both The Shed and Jay's BBQ Shack.

[utee94 15823]

Lulz. 

Poster on the Texas BBQ thread: I'm looking for some Texas BBQ suggestions in Area X

Surly on the Texas BBQ thread: Here's a suggestion for NOT A BBQ Restaurant in Area X

Poster: Thanks, but I'm specifically looking for Texas BBQ in Area X, but thanks anyway for the suggestion

Surly: Oh yeah, you should definitely go to NOT A BBQ Restaurant in Area X.

Poster: Uhhhhh.....

Edited April 24, 2023 by utee94

[DoobieWah 1443]

1 hour ago, Texzilla58 said:

I would go to Perini all the time if it weren’t 3 hours away. It and Mary’s Cafe in Strawn are the only Texas restaurants I will make a day trip for. I don’t know where you are but I doubt it’s common where you be.

Perini Ranch is so fucking great as a restaurant in terms of food, ambiance, the location, everything. It’s so good I would have no issue with an early lunch there and a later dinner the same day. Or staying in in one of their cabins. I for one see no value and little enjoyment in the high end overpriced steakhouse experience with a prime cut sitting bare on a white plate. That same prime ribeye at Perini Ranch is an ethereal dinner, in a convivial joint, with great hospitality and great sides and drinks. It is everything I missed about Texas all the years I was a Texpat around the country.

 

6 minutes ago, utee94 said:

Lulz. 

Poster on the Texas BBQ thread: I'm looking for some Texas BBQ suggestions in Area X

Surly on the Texas BBQ thread: Here's a suggestion for NOT A BBQ Restaurant in Area X

Poster: Thanks, but I'm specifically looking for Texas BBQ in Area X, but thanks anyway for the suggestion

Surly: Oh yeah, you should definitely go to NOT A BBQ Restaurant in Area X.

Poster: Uhhhhh.....

 

 

Fair assessment, but you have to admit that he's damned passionate about it. 

[Hermanator 7050]

5 hours ago, Mo Horn said:

Thanks, but looking specifically for bbq. I'm due the food is great, but I can get stuff like that around here. Don't get Texas bbq often, so looking to indulge, even if it isn't the best in the state

100 percent FACT you cannot get anything like Perini Ranch around where you live. I don't give a shit where in the world that is. 

The BBQ ribs at Perini are some of the best I've ever had. Better than pretty much any of the BBQ places in Texas I've been.  When I was at Dyess we'd go out to Perini on Friday nights for a whole rack of ribs and some catfish. 

[Mo Horn 8843]

OK, now I need to go to Perini. As I said, we're in town for a few days for a wedding and just looking for a place for lunch. This sounds like a place I want to go and take time to enjoy. If I don't make it this time, I will put it on my bucket list. 

[NoName 16352]

i guess it wasn't a political statement after all...lol

Barbs-B-Q is Firing Up Change in Texas’ ‘Cue Capital

https://www.austinmonthly.com/barbs-b-q-is-firing-up-change-in-texas-cue-capital/

Quote

Joining her in the endeavor were Alexis Tovías Morales, Charnichart’s childhood friend from Brownsville, and Haley Conlin, a North Dakota native who’d also made her rounds in the Austin barbecue circuit. With only three weeks’ notice, the trio of reunited colleagues created a buzz that even surpassed the name on their employer’s marquee. The crowd that gathered that weekend in August prompted something much more than just a one-off spectacle, and soon, Barbs took to the road serving in places like Austin’s Nickel City and Best Little Wine & Books in Lockhart. 

With the encouragement of White and the Goldee’s crew, Barbs began scouting a permanent home, but their respective residences across the state presented a geographic question mark. Would Charnichart stay in Fort Worth, where she’d finally busted through the creosote-stained glass ceiling that once shielded barbecue’s old boys’ club? Or head further south, where so many bad memories still lingered like the pungent aroma of post oak smoke after a 16-hour shift? 

“Alex and Haley were still in Austin, and I wasn’t going to do it without them,” Charnichart says. “Austin didn’t really feel right, but I’d started going to Lockhart regularly for Mill Scale [the smoker brand] events over the past year. It was affordable, and there were all these small businesses cheering each other on. They were having a creative moment.”

After months of searching, Barbs-B-Q opens this spring on Market Street, right in the heart of Lockhart’s downtown square.

they are going to be open one day a week though?!

Quote

In a field notorious for running employees into the ground, Barbs will only be open one day a week (Saturday). The rest of the time, they’ll be developing new menu items, producing videos on their popular YouTube channel, hosting how-to barbecue classes on the cooking and preparation of different meats, and lending out their restaurant for other up-and-coming chefs to host pop-ups.

 

Edited April 24, 2023 by NoName

[Deej 76797]

16 minutes ago, NoName said:

In a field notorious for running employees into the ground, Barbs will only be open one day a week

How well do you have to pay your employees for them to live off one day a week wages? They're still going to be run into the ground between their M-F job and working on Saturday. 

[tx 3 putt 76964]

One day a week = you better be damn, damn good 

[DallasSooner 279]

Look i'm wrong all the time and probably will be in this case, but it just sounds strange.  One day a week and some vegan sausages. Good luck with all of that!

[NoName 16352]

29 minutes ago, Deej said:

How well do you have to pay your employees for them to live off one day a week wages? They're still going to be run into the ground between their M-F job and working on Saturday. 

22 minutes ago, tx 3 putt said:

One day a week = you better be damn, damn good 

guessing they roll with those 3 to start off. 1 day a week is tough to make a living, kind of expected it to be the usual 3 or even just 2.

i am going to assume they have some alternative revenue streams or that some of them will keep their full time job(s) and that is why they are starting on just 1 day a week?

 

[jimmyjazz 45958]

If you don't own the property, then anything short of 6 days a week makes little sense.  You're paying rent 24/7.

Obviously, if they're bringing in revenue w/o any added cost the rest of the week, that equation changes, but it sure sounds unlikely.  Good luck to them.

[Jerry Callo 8703]

Barbs-B-Q is going to have an interesting existence.  I don't think it'll work with one-day a week for barbecue.  However, Lockhart might be the only location it would - they are clearly counting on barbecue tourists to make it work.  People will travel to Lockhart for barbecue and Saturday would have the most people.  Still not convinced that it will work, though.  I want to check it out, but there will probably be a crazy line with all of this publicity.

Hope it works for them.

[Hermanator 7050]

Quote

producing videos on their popular YouTube channel, hosting how-to barbecue classes on the cooking and preparation of different meats, and lending out their restaurant for other up-and-coming chefs to host pop-ups.

Sounds like this is their plan for revenue the other 6 days. How much is the demand for bbq classes on YouTube and way out in tiny Lockhart? How many pop ups can there be out in Lockhart?

Might be an interesting angle if you're doing it in a large metro area, or even outside the state of Texas where BBQ places of this quality and style are non existent. Not going to be the case in Lockhart I wouldn't imagine. Why don't they go do this in say Colorado or Utah or something? Hell even the south out in the Carolinas or Tennessee where they'll stand out with their brisket and sausage. 

[utee94 15823]

Agree, it seems like a strange plan but if their BBQ is good, then I'll certainly give them a try.

[Texzilla58 4736]

Barbecue is a hard business to make a profit with regardless of model, but 1 day a week is a real challenge. Can you cover your nut in just one day when you can have zero leftovers?

LENDING your store out to others for pop ups doesn’t sound like it’s part of the major rev stream. Bbq classes are also spotty. Her model seems perfect for a food truck based venture.

I grew up as a retailer being taught that all people are green like money and one must do anything to avoid alienating anyone. If you’re looking to be a highly visible center of LGBTQ life, as the article suggests, then you risk alienating a lot of your potential customer base especially when there are so many alternatives to visit. Vegan proteins don’t seem like the right products for this particular market.

Chuck is a righteous pitmaster and I hope she earns her bones to be the next Tootsie, and can pay her bills with her model. I’ve had her cooking at Goldee’s and she has mad skills at coaxing consistent greatness doing dozens of briskets at a time, a skill I marvel at with any great pitmaster.

And to the point about taking it elsewhere. She would absolutely kill it in a place like Boulder or Ft Collins, or Santa Fe/Taos (would love her South Texas mexicue mashed up with New Mexican food) or the SF Bay Area or Reno. Her barbecue is so good it would be the best for miles around in 90% of Texas and the US. As for Utah, not only have I doubts there is a single decent bbq joint in the state, I’m not sure there is a decent restaurant of any type there.

It will be an interesting story to watch and I look forward to the first surly reviews when she launches.

[RMac5 1551]

Do these other states have oak wood readily available?

[jimmyjazz 45958]

As it turns out, one can smoke Q on different woods than oak.

[BlueGreySky 1007]

On 4/23/2023 at 1:40 PM, GreenspointTexas said:

The Shed or jays bbq shack

Was back in TX for spring break this year.  Jay's was awesome.

[Texzilla58 4736]

As it turns out, one can smoke Q on different woods than oak.

I agree. Though I avoid mimosa, cottonwood, and chemical treated lumber. I have cooked on these and can attest they can make you swear off eating any food for weeks.

[Native Horn 3504]

8 minutes ago, Texzilla58 said:

I agree. Though I avoid mimosa, cottonwood, and chemical treated lumber. I have cooked on these and can attest they can make you swear off eating any food for weeks.

When I was a kid, I had enough smashed up balsa wood from crashed rubber-band airplanes to cook an elephant.

[DallasSooner 279]

On 4/25/2023 at 9:31 AM, Texzilla58 said:

Barbecue is a hard business to make a profit with regardless of model, but 1 day a week is a real challenge. Can you cover your nut in just one day when you can have zero leftovers?

LENDING your store out to others for pop ups doesn’t sound like it’s part of the major rev stream. Bbq classes are also spotty. Her model seems perfect for a food truck based venture.

I grew up as a retailer being taught that all people are green like money and one must do anything to avoid alienating anyone. If you’re looking to be a highly visible center of LGBTQ life, as the article suggests, then you risk alienating a lot of your potential customer base especially when there are so many alternatives to visit. Vegan proteins don’t seem like the right products for this particular market.

Chuck is a righteous pitmaster and I hope she earns her bones to be the next Tootsie, and can pay her bills with her model. I’ve had her cooking at Goldee’s and she has mad skills at coaxing consistent greatness doing dozens of briskets at a time, a skill I marvel at with any great pitmaster.

And to the point about taking it elsewhere. She would absolutely kill it in a place like Boulder or Ft Collins, or Santa Fe/Taos (would love her South Texas mexicue mashed up with New Mexican food) or the SF Bay Area or Reno. Her barbecue is so good it would be the best for miles around in 90% of Texas and the US. As for Utah, not only have I doubts there is a single decent bbq joint in the state, I’m not sure there is a decent restaurant of any type there.

It will be an interesting story to watch and I look forward to the first surly reviews when she launches.

For her to run the kind of business she laying out there in that article she would have to be getting free rent.  No way it works financially.  Now if she has someone who likes her story and her spin on BBQ life and says hey I got a space and you can come use it I can see this working.  I can't imagine any other way you can run a bbq business one day a week and make it pay rent on a downtown business any where these days. 

[Deej 76797]

2 hours ago, DallasSooner said:

For her to run the kind of business she laying out there in that article she would have to be getting free rent.  No way it works financially.  Now if she has someone who likes her story and her spin on BBQ life and says hey I got a space and you can come use it I can see this working.  I can't imagine any other way you can run a bbq business one day a week and make it pay rent on a downtown business any where these days. 

I find it hard to believe a pitmaster could be bad at business. Is that even a thing?

 

 

[DoobieWah 1443]

Too soon, but...

How much did you divest?

😆

[Texzilla58 4736]

All that time huffing grease and wood smoke eats the brains of a lot of these pitmasters. Business sense is as rare as diamonds amongst that crowd.

[DallasSooner 279]

1 hour ago, Deej said:

I find it hard to believe a pitmaster could be bad at business. Is that even a thing?

 

 

I wish I had that sign.  John used to talk to me on twitter a lot, always treated me good.  I know he had his enemies for a lot of good reasons I'm sure.  I miss our interactions. 

[NoName 16352]

6 hours ago, DallasSooner said:

For her to run the kind of business she laying out there in that article she would have to be getting free rent.  No way it works financially.  Now if she has someone who likes her story and her spin on BBQ life and says hey I got a space and you can come use it I can see this working.  I can't imagine any other way you can run a bbq business one day a week and make it pay rent on a downtown business any where these days. 

i can absolutely see a universe where they make good money on classes

i think there is also (way?) more to the story on location/rent - for the reasons you outlined

[hobbes2702 13034]

On 4/12/2023 at 2:10 PM, jimmyjazz said:

I saw Two Bros featured on a food show today.  I'm heading to San Antonio for business next month -- are they worth a lunch?

It’s just ok. Ribs are usually great, sausage is good. Brisket is so hit or miss. They do have an incredible spinach dip app thing though

[Texzilla58 4736]

i can absolutely see a universe where they make good money on classes
i think there is also (way?) more to the story on location/rent - for the reasons you outlined

Barbecue classes are pretty common these days. Lots of joints do them. Tender’s does them for $80 a head for a 3 hour class, to basically make your lunch. Blair House does a 3 day bbq camp that’s crazy expensive. For most it’s a little sideline biz that is a little extra revenue. I don’t think they are mad profitable.

[Seasick Sailor 3747]

Any idea what the line at Franklin would look like on a Wednesday at 11:00? 

[dcbc 14485]

5 hours ago, Seasick Sailor said:

Any idea what the line at Franklin would look like on a Wednesday at 11:00? 

Long but distinguished.