Regarding sides- beans at Pit Room are outstanding!
Texas Monthly 2017 Top 50 BBQ Joints
443,976 Views |
2661 Replies |
Last: 3 yr ago by agfan2013
Didn't someone post Tootsie's mop sauce? Can you post it again?
The most interesting thing to me is the age of the restaurants and their pit masters. TX monthly alluded to this in their article saying how the average age of the top 50 has decreased from the 2013 to 2017 lists. seems like half their list opened 2010 or later.
On one hand it's weird to me to see these hipster 20-30 year olds like Aaron Franklin or Travis Heim unseating the blue bloods of BBQ. But on the other hand, I see it in many other fields how the older generation gets stuck in their ways and gets passed up by time/technology/whatever you want to call it.
On one hand it's weird to me to see these hipster 20-30 year olds like Aaron Franklin or Travis Heim unseating the blue bloods of BBQ. But on the other hand, I see it in many other fields how the older generation gets stuck in their ways and gets passed up by time/technology/whatever you want to call it.
I've had 12 of them.
Franklins
La BBQ
Fargo's
Lockhart Smokehouse
Pecan Lodge
Gatlin's
Snow's
Cooper's
Kruez
Hutchins
Killen's
Louie Mueller
From the list, I cannot believe Black's is out and Lockhart Smokehouse is still in.
My top 3 is Franklin's, Pecan Lodge, La BBQ.
Franklins
La BBQ
Fargo's
Lockhart Smokehouse
Pecan Lodge
Gatlin's
Snow's
Cooper's
Kruez
Hutchins
Killen's
Louie Mueller
From the list, I cannot believe Black's is out and Lockhart Smokehouse is still in.
My top 3 is Franklin's, Pecan Lodge, La BBQ.
Highly doubtful that they will ever be open other than Saturday. The original Lexington meat market only served BBQ on Saturday only because it coincided with the sale at the auction barn. Doubt the BBQ tourists can generate enough demand to be open more than one day a week. Folks in LeeCo don't go bananas for it as it's just normal BBQ and won't generate enough local demand.Mustang1 said:
Will Snows ever be open more than just Saturdays or is that tradition never changing? Just wondering how that came to be.
Kerry opened up Snow's to resurrect BBQ in Lexington as a part time gig. The guy works a couple other jobs...
Glad to see that I'm not the only one that thinks Lockhart is a head scratcher. Didn't see the big deal at all when I was there.
I think you'd only be abused on the "we don't know **** about bbq thread". Anyone that knows Texas BBQ knows that Salt Lick is the winner of most over rated bbq in history award. How do you cook a decent brisket on a ****ing grill...you don't!AggieOO said:Salt lick sucks. Seriously. I'd rather eat Rudy's.willie wonka said:
None of the Elgin guys. No Salt Lick. We owe those guys a lot.
I've never understood the love for that place.
I will now prepare to be verbally abused.
Unless it's a lot better than 5 years ago, I completely agree. No place in Lockhart was worth a **** IMO back then. My wife's family lived there until 2013 and they moved to Taylor (home of another very over rated place...).Quote:
Black's top ten? C'mon, man. It's not comparable to Top Ten places like Snow's, Franklin,
See my above statement. Totally agree. I've been dozens of time and while above average for sure, they aren't near as good as the Snows/Franklins of the world. I think this is more about the tradition of the place because I've never had outstanding bbq here.Quote:
Louie Mueller still in the top five? Their brisket was not worth having the one time I went.
Agree. Not in my top 100. Lots of hype when they opened. Their pickles are their best item...and their sausage which they get from another restaurant.Quote:
Lockhart Smokehouse in Dallas is a joke.
Does anyone know how Texas Monthly chooses which BBQ places to try out for the list, and how many they went to? Is there an 'entry' fee that these places give Texas Monthly to be eligible for the list?
Wicked Good Ag said:
I know this thread will continue to discuss brisket but what sides do you always get at some of these locations
One thing at Truth is our kids love the mac and Cheese and it is decent to me but their collared greens and corn pudding are great
What sides/ desserts are a go to item at some spots ?
I usually get sausage and white bread for my sides
kylewhitener said:
Does anyone know how Texas Monthly chooses which BBQ places to try out for the list, and how many they went to? Is there an 'entry' fee that these places give Texas Monthly to be eligible for the list?
Quote:
How We Did It
This is the fifth time that Texas Monthly has created a list of the top fifty barbecue joints, beginning the noble pursuit in 1997. We've refined our process since then, acquiring a barbecue editor, Daniel Vaughn, in 2013. Vaughn did most of the legwork in getting the current list started, traveling 65,000 miles and dining at over 400 places. Last fall, Vaughn put a handful of staff members, restaurant reviewers, and freelancers through barbecue camp. There, Vaughn trained the 'cue crew on the finer points of flavor, bark, smoke penetration, and fat rendering. Then, armed with score sheets, Vaughn's two dozen eaters set out across Texas. Over six months, they covered 23,000 miles, visited more than 350 places, and got two speeding tickets (jury is still out on if those can be added to the expense account). The resulting list had 29 newcomers and 21 old-timers. There is no hard data available on the amount of Tums ingested during the making of this list.
I saw him mention three visits to certain joints, so it wasn't a one off at all the places on the list, it would seem.
I believe Daniel Vaughn visits each place and two other reviewers also visit each place. All three on separate trips. All the pitmasters are going to know who Daniel is, but they won't necessarily know who the other two are.Quinn said:
I saw him mention three visits to certain joints, so it wasn't a one off at all the places on the list, it would seem.
Been keeping a running list on my phone over the past couple years of my own personal rankings:
John Mueller ***he gone***
LaBBQ
Blacks
Buzzies
Joseph's Riverport BBQ
Hutchins
Evie Mae's
Kreuz Market
Stanley's
Kerlin
Coopers Llano
Pecan lodge
Whups
Corkscrew
Fargo's
Meshacks
Meat U Anywhere
Ten50
Lockhart Smokehouse
Stiles Switch
Millers in Belton - Meh
I'm hoping to checkout Black Box in Georgetown where John Mueller is now because I thought his BBQ was amazing on my 3 trips to his old place.
I don't look at these lists as be all end all or anything but they do a pretty good job. I've definitely got some new to me spots to checkout over the summer.
John Mueller ***he gone***
LaBBQ
Blacks
Buzzies
Joseph's Riverport BBQ
Hutchins
Evie Mae's
Kreuz Market
Stanley's
Kerlin
Coopers Llano
Pecan lodge
Whups
Corkscrew
Fargo's
Meshacks
Meat U Anywhere
Ten50
Lockhart Smokehouse
Stiles Switch
Millers in Belton - Meh
I'm hoping to checkout Black Box in Georgetown where John Mueller is now because I thought his BBQ was amazing on my 3 trips to his old place.
I don't look at these lists as be all end all or anything but they do a pretty good job. I've definitely got some new to me spots to checkout over the summer.
I need to make it out to Snow's at some point. This list though will make that difficult to do now. Maybe ill go when the weather forecast is going to be bad
I don't think this list will change it that much. Snow's was in the top four in 2013, and it was the number once place before that.AggieStout said:
I need to make it out to Snow's at some point. This list though will make that difficult to do now. Maybe ill go when the weather forecast is going to be bad
Snow's is about an hour from College Station, so I made my trip one Saturday morning when I was in town for a basketball game. I'm guessing that's a better time to do it than football season.
Agree with Bryan below. It's been legit for a while now and anyone familiar with TM has known of them. Heck, Franklin has openly talked about how good Snows is for years. It might increase the lines a little near term but they've always had a pretty large following.AggieStout said:
I need to make it out to Snow's at some point. This list though will make that difficult to do now. Maybe ill go when the weather forecast is going to be bad
i've had 5,, snow's, roegels, killens, gatlin's, fargo
OregonAggie -
By all means, check out Black Box in Georgetown. John is back and I can attest that his brisket, sausage and spare ribs are the best. I need to go back and try the beef ribs and turkey.
I don't get the beef rib craze...it's brisket on a stick!JR_83 said:
I need to go back and try the beef ribs and turkey.
brisket on a stick sounds awesome.agcrock2005 said:I don't get the beef rib craze...it's brisket on a stick!JR_83 said:
I need to go back and try the beef ribs and turkey.
OregonAggie said:
The only omission I'm surprised about are Buzzie's in Kerrville and Blacks. Those places are great.
I thought Buzzie's was underwhelming. Ok bbq at best. Black's is above average, but I don't know that I'd call them great.
dragmagpuff said:Mustang1 said:
Will Snows ever be open more than just Saturdays or is that tradition never changing? Just wondering how that came to be.
Tootsie, the 82 year old postmaster still works 30 hours a week as a maintenance lady for the local school.
Actually, she works for Giddings ISD, not Lexington.
I think a lot more people are on your side of this argument than mine, considering it's being cooked at damn near every good bbq place in the state right now!AggieOO said:brisket on a stick sounds awesome.agcrock2005 said:I don't get the beef rib craze...it's brisket on a stick!JR_83 said:
I need to go back and try the beef ribs and turkey.
agcrock2005 said:I don't get the beef rib craze...it's brisket on a stick!JR_83 said:
I need to go back and try the beef ribs and turkey.
I just enjoyed noting that between the two meats he mentions going to a BBQ joint to try, the one you took issue with was the beef.
I usually don't do bbq while waiting for connecting flights, but I do have to say that in DFW, Salt Lick >> Dickey's.agcrock2005 said:I think you'd only be abused on the "we don't know **** about bbq thread". Anyone that knows Texas BBQ knows that Salt Lick is the winner of most over rated bbq in history award. How do you cook a decent brisket on a ****ing grill...you don't!AggieOO said:Salt lick sucks. Seriously. I'd rather eat Rudy's.willie wonka said:
None of the Elgin guys. No Salt Lick. We owe those guys a lot.
I've never understood the love for that place.
I will now prepare to be verbally abused.
Had Pit Room again today. Their free pickled veggies are legit, meat is always pretty good but not great.
I'm lacking 10 (!!) from this Top 50 list.
The tip top of my to do list already included:
Cattleack
Smoking Oak
Bodacious (Downtown Longview)
Vera's
Top 5
Already on my list (but moving to the top):
Paynes
Harris
4-T's
Flores
Wasn't on my list:
Baker Boys BBQ
The tip top of my to do list already included:
Cattleack
Smoking Oak
Bodacious (Downtown Longview)
Vera's
Top 5
Already on my list (but moving to the top):
Paynes
Harris
4-T's
Flores
Wasn't on my list:
Baker Boys BBQ
And you pay for the bone....agcrock2005 said:I don't get the beef rib craze...it's brisket on a stick!JR_83 said:
I need to go back and try the beef ribs and turkey.
Of course you pay for the bone - the restaurant pays for the bone. It's no different than pork ribs.
Good beef ribs are hard to beat in my opinion. I've had beef ribs at Louie Mueller, Corkscrew & Killen's that are as good as any other meat you'll find anywhere else.
I'm a fan of places that offer short ribs. It makes it a lot easier to get a taste of a beef rib without having to invest in a 2 pound gargantuan. Tejas does some really good short ribs.
Good beef ribs are hard to beat in my opinion. I've had beef ribs at Louie Mueller, Corkscrew & Killen's that are as good as any other meat you'll find anywhere else.
I'm a fan of places that offer short ribs. It makes it a lot easier to get a taste of a beef rib without having to invest in a 2 pound gargantuan. Tejas does some really good short ribs.
I feel like short rib tastes different than a big beef rib. I've tried them for the reason you give, but I don't think it's the same.
I've done big beef ribs at Pecan Lodge, Black's, Killen's, and tried a little at Louie Mueller's, and I've found that I'd just rather have brisket. I think the meat is as good or better and it's a lot easier to eat.
They look awesome, though! More power to whoever wants 'em.
I've done big beef ribs at Pecan Lodge, Black's, Killen's, and tried a little at Louie Mueller's, and I've found that I'd just rather have brisket. I think the meat is as good or better and it's a lot easier to eat.
They look awesome, though! More power to whoever wants 'em.
You gotta get that sweet Facebook profile pic.
No wai! I was making a point if he believes it to be the same as brisket, and now you are paying for a massive amount of weight you can't eat... That is all.CDub06 said:
Of course you pay for the bone - the restaurant pays for the bone. It's no different than pork ribs.
Such a better cut of meat than brisket - it gives you more options. Anyway, also now popping up at some of these high end places is pastrami beef ribs. Someone explain this before my face melts off. Must try...agcrock2005 said:I think a lot more people are on your side of this argument than mine, considering it's being cooked at damn near every good bbq place in the state right now!AggieOO said:brisket on a stick sounds awesome.agcrock2005 said:I don't get the beef rib craze...it's brisket on a stick!JR_83 said:
I need to go back and try the beef ribs and turkey.
Glad to see Roegel's in Houston make the list. Really good BBQ and Russell and Misty are great folks. You guys in Houston need to give it a try. Misty also makes a killer banana pudding.
Featured Stories
See All
Texas A&M adds former Florida DE T.J. Searcy via transfer portal
by Cade Draughon
Texas A&M adds former Georgia DE Sam M'Pemba via transfer portal
by Cade Draughon
55:57
2d ago
6.6k
rca21978
Twas the night before Christmas - Albert Regis and TAMU Football
in Billy Liucci's TexAgs Premium
64
PGAG
Twas the night before Christmas - Albert Regis and TAMU Football
in Billy Liucci's TexAgs Premium
40
Gladiator 96
SIAP: Edgerrin Cooper gets shoutout from Annie Agar
in Billy Liucci's TexAgs Premium
34