Torgseye
Well-known member
- Joined
- Dec 11, 2014
- Location
- London, UK
Great photos too!
Austin TX
- Thread starter gaspipe1
- Start date
gaspipe1
Full Fledged Farker
- Joined
- May 23, 2011
- Location
- Cranford...
OK here are my thoughts and a quick tip guide to what my experience was like in Texas.
First off, they say everything is bigger in Texas. It’s a lie. The only thing bigger in Texas are their hearts. What an amazing bunch of people as a whole. From the workers at the Q joints to the drunk college kids at 6th Street. Central Texas will always have a spot in my heart.
Now to the nitty gritty… Franklin’s. I arrived there at 7:45AM on a Friday morning w/ potential of rain. You may want to get there a little earlier if you expect good tailgating weather. I was about 20 in line. There are a bunch of chairs that you can grab and as it was said… first come first serve. Another great thing is I was under that awning, provides some shade and helps if it rains. BTW there is a twitter feed just for the line.. @FranklinBBQline I chit you not.
Doors open at 11… I was eating at 11:30. I wish I was that big heavy set bald guy. He most love his job everyday at 11AM. He opens the doors and everyone stands up and cheers. He must feel like a rockstar. BTW I do not know his name… but what a great guy. I asked him earlier on while online if I could see the pits. He said no problem right after you eat I will take you in the back.
Once you are inside you are tempted to have someone split off from your group and grab a table. DO NOT DO THAT. By the time you get your food that table will be turned over already. It was wild. When we got our food we could have sat any where we liked. So respect the sign and please wait till after you are served to sit down.
It’s amazing how much of the honor system is still in place at a lot of the establishments here. I could have easily got away w/ not paying for beer and free soda. The people there are just so nice. It’s really a different business mindset. I’ll go into more detail later.
And now the food… I hope I do NOT get boo’d off for my opinions, but here we go. The bad: I did not like the sides. I also didn’t find anything spectacular with the pulled pork. To be honest I think I make better pulled pork then every BBQ place I have ever eaten at. And I attribute that to Chris Lillie’s recipe. Perhaps a road trip to the Carolinas will be in order so I can change my thoughts. Was I disappointed, not at all. I didn’t come here for pork or sides.
The GREAT: The brisket was amazing, simple enough. Was it the best I ever had? I will say this, I really do not know. It’s amazing. It’s a 95++. This is how I think of it: I can tell the difference between a $20 bottle and a $50. But I can not tell the difference between a $50 and a $70. ALL the brisket I had on my trip was a $50bottle of wine and higher. They are all 95+ on a rating. I loved it. It brought me back to Fette Sau when I first tasted a 95+ brisket for the first time in my life. I thought this back then and am now convinced you do not need to go to Texas for amazing brisket. Is Franklins better than FS.. perhaps. Is it head and shoulders… of course not. Every place I went to on this road trip had 95+ brisket, I could not nor would want to just pick one. I think TM should just have a “Lone Star” award/sticker and should be awarded to the great places. A single star, either you have it or you don’t.
The sausage was amazing… although I did sample better more on that later but I would 100% get it again. Also the turkey. I was sooo glad I did a last second decision and ordered some. It was delicious and a welcome change to my 48 hour beef binge.
Next time I go my plate will be brisket, a hot link and some turkey. My new fav sides are cheap white bread (or cracker), raw onion and a pickle/jalapeño. Perhaps a pork rib or a beef rib to share. But that would be it.
The Line: I didn’t look at it like a line. Mind you I woke up early to get there and was drinking crown and coke till, well till it was time to eat a Best Worst from a street vender (btw, awesome!!!) and I loved it. You have two ways of looking at that line. A) as a line that you can sit, read a book or listen to some music or B) a tailgate. I chose the latter. I met some interesting people and everyone is supper nice. From two Jersey kids living in a Subaru and trekking across the country, another young married couple visiting from DC and flanked by a student waiting online for some lunch. So to the people that say I would never wait 3 hours for food, I have to agree but this just isn’t food. It’s an event, the same way you may go to a football game and wait 3 hours before the coin is tossed.
About Franklin’s. I am a huge fan of the guy. I really think that this is done with love and he is not about the almighty dollar. I do not care if he’s maken money on TV or books. He can easily raise prices and he will still sell out. It might take him 2 more hours but he will sell out. Also he will not open more locations. He could easily turn this into a franchise. But he says he won’t b/c the quality will suffer. He could easily accept a $5mm deal from a restaurant group with 10% royalties. They would open up a bunch across the country and a few in Vegas. So something tells me for this guy to not want to do that it’s a love thing. (BTW, he’s a better man than me. I would have sold out) Of course this is just my opinion and not facts, but I have seen this done with some great restaurant names like Il Mulino and Nobu.
Mis FYI:
• At a certain time before the doors open they come around and offer beers for $3.
• There is a CVS right around the corner (water run)
• There is a coffee stand in the parking lot
• The Tipsy Texan is a huge sandwich here and also a cocktail book I saw at a bar
• Just ask someone if you could see the pits.
• Each pit ran at a different temp. from 260 to 290
This was a long write up and I hope it makes sense. If there are any questions please ask. I will post some more regarding the other great places I went to. I think If I posted a 10 page review people will get bored… Next up will be my short visit w/ John Mueller Meat Company.
First off, they say everything is bigger in Texas. It’s a lie. The only thing bigger in Texas are their hearts. What an amazing bunch of people as a whole. From the workers at the Q joints to the drunk college kids at 6th Street. Central Texas will always have a spot in my heart.
Now to the nitty gritty… Franklin’s. I arrived there at 7:45AM on a Friday morning w/ potential of rain. You may want to get there a little earlier if you expect good tailgating weather. I was about 20 in line. There are a bunch of chairs that you can grab and as it was said… first come first serve. Another great thing is I was under that awning, provides some shade and helps if it rains. BTW there is a twitter feed just for the line.. @FranklinBBQline I chit you not.
Doors open at 11… I was eating at 11:30. I wish I was that big heavy set bald guy. He most love his job everyday at 11AM. He opens the doors and everyone stands up and cheers. He must feel like a rockstar. BTW I do not know his name… but what a great guy. I asked him earlier on while online if I could see the pits. He said no problem right after you eat I will take you in the back.
Once you are inside you are tempted to have someone split off from your group and grab a table. DO NOT DO THAT. By the time you get your food that table will be turned over already. It was wild. When we got our food we could have sat any where we liked. So respect the sign and please wait till after you are served to sit down.
It’s amazing how much of the honor system is still in place at a lot of the establishments here. I could have easily got away w/ not paying for beer and free soda. The people there are just so nice. It’s really a different business mindset. I’ll go into more detail later.
And now the food… I hope I do NOT get boo’d off for my opinions, but here we go. The bad: I did not like the sides. I also didn’t find anything spectacular with the pulled pork. To be honest I think I make better pulled pork then every BBQ place I have ever eaten at. And I attribute that to Chris Lillie’s recipe. Perhaps a road trip to the Carolinas will be in order so I can change my thoughts. Was I disappointed, not at all. I didn’t come here for pork or sides.
The GREAT: The brisket was amazing, simple enough. Was it the best I ever had? I will say this, I really do not know. It’s amazing. It’s a 95++. This is how I think of it: I can tell the difference between a $20 bottle and a $50. But I can not tell the difference between a $50 and a $70. ALL the brisket I had on my trip was a $50bottle of wine and higher. They are all 95+ on a rating. I loved it. It brought me back to Fette Sau when I first tasted a 95+ brisket for the first time in my life. I thought this back then and am now convinced you do not need to go to Texas for amazing brisket. Is Franklins better than FS.. perhaps. Is it head and shoulders… of course not. Every place I went to on this road trip had 95+ brisket, I could not nor would want to just pick one. I think TM should just have a “Lone Star” award/sticker and should be awarded to the great places. A single star, either you have it or you don’t.
The sausage was amazing… although I did sample better more on that later but I would 100% get it again. Also the turkey. I was sooo glad I did a last second decision and ordered some. It was delicious and a welcome change to my 48 hour beef binge.
Next time I go my plate will be brisket, a hot link and some turkey. My new fav sides are cheap white bread (or cracker), raw onion and a pickle/jalapeño. Perhaps a pork rib or a beef rib to share. But that would be it.
The Line: I didn’t look at it like a line. Mind you I woke up early to get there and was drinking crown and coke till, well till it was time to eat a Best Worst from a street vender (btw, awesome!!!) and I loved it. You have two ways of looking at that line. A) as a line that you can sit, read a book or listen to some music or B) a tailgate. I chose the latter. I met some interesting people and everyone is supper nice. From two Jersey kids living in a Subaru and trekking across the country, another young married couple visiting from DC and flanked by a student waiting online for some lunch. So to the people that say I would never wait 3 hours for food, I have to agree but this just isn’t food. It’s an event, the same way you may go to a football game and wait 3 hours before the coin is tossed.
About Franklin’s. I am a huge fan of the guy. I really think that this is done with love and he is not about the almighty dollar. I do not care if he’s maken money on TV or books. He can easily raise prices and he will still sell out. It might take him 2 more hours but he will sell out. Also he will not open more locations. He could easily turn this into a franchise. But he says he won’t b/c the quality will suffer. He could easily accept a $5mm deal from a restaurant group with 10% royalties. They would open up a bunch across the country and a few in Vegas. So something tells me for this guy to not want to do that it’s a love thing. (BTW, he’s a better man than me. I would have sold out) Of course this is just my opinion and not facts, but I have seen this done with some great restaurant names like Il Mulino and Nobu.
Mis FYI:
• At a certain time before the doors open they come around and offer beers for $3.
• There is a CVS right around the corner (water run)
• There is a coffee stand in the parking lot
• The Tipsy Texan is a huge sandwich here and also a cocktail book I saw at a bar
• Just ask someone if you could see the pits.
• Each pit ran at a different temp. from 260 to 290
This was a long write up and I hope it makes sense. If there are any questions please ask. I will post some more regarding the other great places I went to. I think If I posted a 10 page review people will get bored… Next up will be my short visit w/ John Mueller Meat Company.
gaspipe1
Full Fledged Farker
- Joined
- May 23, 2011
- Location
- Cranford...
You will love it. A can not wait to go back. No more BBQ Crawls for me, next time I go I'm all in for that one location for the day. And make room for desert!
^^^Great review, and pretty much matches my experience as well. I loved the brisket and sausage especially - sides were just kinda there. IMO Franklin's is about the brisket and the experience of the place more than anything else. The line is part of the deal - folks can make whatever they want out of it - it can be fun or not, and we, like you, chose to have fun.
I'm very interested to see your review on John Mueller's - I had a great meal and overall experience there.
I'm very interested to see your review on John Mueller's - I had a great meal and overall experience there.
gaspipe1
Full Fledged Farker
- Joined
- May 23, 2011
- Location
- Cranford...
BTW, I just thought about this and is a good tip. If you are looking to rent a car this is what I did.
I needed a car for Sat morning road trip to Snow and Lockhart. So I rented a car friday evening was like 4PM from Hertz in Austin. They offered a free pick up so that was cool. Hertz closes Sat at 3PM (I think). So we rented the car for a 24 hour period (1 day fee). But I told them that I may not make the 3PM cut off. they said I can park the car in the lot and drop the keys in the mailbox.
As long as the car was there before Sat 4PM it will be considered a 1 day rental. I was told that it's on the honor system. As long as this car was there before they open on Monday it was ok. I didn't need the car on Sunday so I did drop it off on Sat.
My advice: 1) do NOT pay for the gas option. I spent $40 and returned the car with a half tank. I was told that I would only need to pay for what I used. That is clearly NOT the case. So just fill up the tank b4 you drop it off.
2) take pics and video of the car in their lot. I did a video walk through of the car at the end, showing the miles and gas meter.
3) if the car has any damage before you rent it make sure you have a manager mark it down on a form and get a copy of it, I would also video the damage. If they refuse to do a walk through insist on it. And if there is damage ask for another car, if that is not an option force them to document the damage.
Good luck and enjoy!!
AlwaysSmokey
is Blowin Smoke!
- Joined
- Feb 10, 2014
- Location
- Smithvil...
Sounds like you had a good time, and a nice vacation. I wouldn't worry about getting any boo's, honesty is best. :thumb: Besides, everyone knows the best Barbecue in Texas is at my place!!
I'm looking forward to your other write ups.
I'm looking forward to your other write ups.
gaspipe1
Full Fledged Farker
- Joined
- May 23, 2011
- Location
- Cranford...
OK so here is Part 2.
So it was about 12:30 and we just finished eating at Franklins and wrapping up our tour of the pit area. Unfortunately for us we had to go back to the Dreskill Hotel for a 1PM checkout. I begged for a 3PM checkout but it was just not possible. So we Uber back to the hotel to pack up and checkout. BTW Uber everything in Austin, it's quick and cheap.
We check into the ATT Conference Hotel, and Uber a car to go to La Barbecue or John Muller's. I picked John's place b/c 1) I was always interested in his story, 2) I don't want to say I “feel bad for him”, but I always like to root for the underdog, 3) I wanted to try his beef ribs and 4) I thought there was a better chance getting food at John's rather than La Barbecue.
We get out of the car and before the car can pull out John starts yelling at us from across the street. I was like what the hell did I do already. But he was actually alerting us that he sold out of all, but sausage and didn’t want us to lose our ride. The man was already looking out for us, I knew I liked this guy for a reason.
His place was very quiet as in sound. It couldn’t have been more different then Franklin’s. I’m sure people hate to be compared to others, but it was very quiet, tranquil like. There were some people sitting and eating and before we left, some more showed up.
His sausage was great, better then Franklins, I really loved it. I was so pissed that we had to go to the hotel and missed out on his beef ribs, but that gives me a reason to come back :icon_smile_tongue:
His smoker was wild, something I’ve never seen before. It was in the shape of an L. If you look at the picture, his firebox was under a chamber. Not sure if that was a direct heat for grilling or perhaps there is a “slide trap door” like on other horizontal smokers to allow the smoke/heat into the chamber. But what made this different was where the elbow was. The smoker had a 90* turn to it, it fit right in the corner perfect. And the exhaust was to the far left so it’s not a reverse flow. I wonder if you are losing grate space in that corner since some kitchens will have a laze suzy there or bi-fold doors for access.
The good: the sausage was great. John seems to be selling out every day and I hope he does well for himself. The bad: he seemed quiet, dare I say “sad like”. I just really hope that he was tired from a long day at work and not depressed. I know this last part has nothing to do w/ BBQ and probably shouldn’t be said. But like I said I like his story and would hate to see his talents gone wasted. Besides he needs to stay in there till I come back to sample his beef rib.
Next post will be Sat morning on our way to Snow’s.
So it was about 12:30 and we just finished eating at Franklins and wrapping up our tour of the pit area. Unfortunately for us we had to go back to the Dreskill Hotel for a 1PM checkout. I begged for a 3PM checkout but it was just not possible. So we Uber back to the hotel to pack up and checkout. BTW Uber everything in Austin, it's quick and cheap.
We check into the ATT Conference Hotel, and Uber a car to go to La Barbecue or John Muller's. I picked John's place b/c 1) I was always interested in his story, 2) I don't want to say I “feel bad for him”, but I always like to root for the underdog, 3) I wanted to try his beef ribs and 4) I thought there was a better chance getting food at John's rather than La Barbecue.
We get out of the car and before the car can pull out John starts yelling at us from across the street. I was like what the hell did I do already. But he was actually alerting us that he sold out of all, but sausage and didn’t want us to lose our ride. The man was already looking out for us, I knew I liked this guy for a reason.
His place was very quiet as in sound. It couldn’t have been more different then Franklin’s. I’m sure people hate to be compared to others, but it was very quiet, tranquil like. There were some people sitting and eating and before we left, some more showed up.
His sausage was great, better then Franklins, I really loved it. I was so pissed that we had to go to the hotel and missed out on his beef ribs, but that gives me a reason to come back :icon_smile_tongue:
His smoker was wild, something I’ve never seen before. It was in the shape of an L. If you look at the picture, his firebox was under a chamber. Not sure if that was a direct heat for grilling or perhaps there is a “slide trap door” like on other horizontal smokers to allow the smoke/heat into the chamber. But what made this different was where the elbow was. The smoker had a 90* turn to it, it fit right in the corner perfect. And the exhaust was to the far left so it’s not a reverse flow. I wonder if you are losing grate space in that corner since some kitchens will have a laze suzy there or bi-fold doors for access.
The good: the sausage was great. John seems to be selling out every day and I hope he does well for himself. The bad: he seemed quiet, dare I say “sad like”. I just really hope that he was tired from a long day at work and not depressed. I know this last part has nothing to do w/ BBQ and probably shouldn’t be said. But like I said I like his story and would hate to see his talents gone wasted. Besides he needs to stay in there till I come back to sample his beef rib.
Next post will be Sat morning on our way to Snow’s.
gaspipe1
Full Fledged Farker
- Joined
- May 23, 2011
- Location
- Cranford...
There is a ton of tex-mex spots. Just look for the lines, or go on yelp and you will see reviews. Or my personal fav, walk on 6th after last call. I'm sure you will find something that is amazing lol
gaspipe1
Full Fledged Farker
- Joined
- May 23, 2011
- Location
- Cranford...
I’m not even sure if people are still interested or if I deserve to keep writing about this, but I just been tied up with crap day to day things.
So here is my story for Sat. As I mentioned before, you can do well with renting from Hertz for a weekend rental. Our first stop was to Snow’s. And as one of the brethren told me I would pass Southside Market, but leaving so early it was closed. We got to Snow’s was before 10AM. There was really no line and we could have ordered what we wanted. Knowing that after, we’re going to 3 spots in Lockhart so I ordered small amounts and no sides. The ladies that served you are so nice. We chatted it up for a bit and they knew b/c of the amount of BBQ we ordered that we were doing some BBQ crawl.
After ordering we headed down to the outside and ate. Other than the dam flies (I think we sat near the dumpster in all fairness) everything was nice. It too was quiet but, very different from Muellers. It just seems very tranquil there. Anyway after we ate we spoke to one of the young men that helped. He chatted with us for a while, was a great guy. He introduced us to Miss Tootisie and all the rumors we hear about her are true. She is so nice and friendly. Taken pictures with us, opening pits as she shows you around. I have to tell you she is hands on… and when I mean hands on I mean ON. While I was talking to the guy I would see her go and grab wood and tend to the fire. I warned the young man, you may want to get back out there before you get in trouble but he said it was ok and not to worry.
This is the lowdown: the food was amazing and the people welcome you with open arms. I am so glad and still a little shocked that I was able to go visit her. I mean the chances of eating at Franklins are a lot higher being that he’s in Austin. But to schedule a day, rent a car and drive off to snow’s to eat BBQ for breakfast… it’s just a tougher sell to non BBQ people. It was an honor to eat her food and her being in her 80’s something that I will cherish for life.
Back on the road… Lockhart, here we come. On the way we pass a Southside Market… well what do you know. Seems they have 2 locations! This place was great.. it was a hybrid of fast food meats traditional BBQ. They had a huge long smoker with the firebox on the inside! That was their warming smoker. It was wild seeing that b/c of the safety issues. They also gave us a tour and they had some J&R (Oylers) I think. They had amazing sausage, simple as that. That was all that I ordered and their Orignal was out of this world. I will 100% be ordering from them online. This is what I think of this place, I love it. I wish I could get the North East territory. It’s probably as close as you can come to having a capitalist’s bbq place without being a sellout. Again, I loved it.
Lockhart, what can I say… it’s amazing? The place is old school, with high “sidewalks”. You can picture the cowboys walking on the sidewalks that look more like a backyard deck with the horses tied up with the non paved streets. Again the people are so nice. There were some cool antique shops that we stopped in to break up the feasts. Here are some of the things I noticed between the 3 joints we went to ( kreuz, smitt’s and blacks) without saying how great each places food was. They’re landmarks.. I would expect nothing but perfection from them.
Blacks looked like an old school saloon from the outside. They had a buffet table where you tell the servers what you wanted. Everything looked so good.. shame we didn’t taste their desert
Smitt’s: this was the original location of the Kreuz brothers. The story that I heard was that when the father died he gave the restaurant to the two sons and the building to the daughter. As the brothers made a ton of cash the sister was still charging them low rents. She asked for an increase (modest from what I was told) and the brothers left and opened their own place down the block. Now onto what I thought… What I really liked was the choice of beef. You had prime rib, brisket and clod. We tried all 3! And the prime rib was great!!! Loved it! Less fat but amazing taste and moist as hell.
Kreuz: it’s pretty much the same as Smitts, but I also ordered the pork chop here. Dam that was insane, a tri colored pork chop… who knew? Again an amazing place, and as TM says stay on the right side for the “A” slicing team and ask for a picture with Mr. Perez, what a gentleman! I put Kreuz and Smitt’s on par. I did have some potatoes here that were really exceptional.
Smitts and Kreuz: here is what I loved about them both… they have a smoker with a non enclosed firebox. I never even understood this until I was there and saw it with my own eyes. They have the cheap Louisiana style hot sauce. Pour some on your plate and then drizzle some of their salt/pepper/ground hot pepper rub on it. Break meat, dip, eat and repeat. Also the crakers.. dam bbq is so good on a cracker w/ raw onion pickle or jalapeno pepper on it.
I think that sums it up, excuse my poor writing and if anyone has any questions please feel free to ask!
Thanks,
Gaspare
So here is my story for Sat. As I mentioned before, you can do well with renting from Hertz for a weekend rental. Our first stop was to Snow’s. And as one of the brethren told me I would pass Southside Market, but leaving so early it was closed. We got to Snow’s was before 10AM. There was really no line and we could have ordered what we wanted. Knowing that after, we’re going to 3 spots in Lockhart so I ordered small amounts and no sides. The ladies that served you are so nice. We chatted it up for a bit and they knew b/c of the amount of BBQ we ordered that we were doing some BBQ crawl.
After ordering we headed down to the outside and ate. Other than the dam flies (I think we sat near the dumpster in all fairness) everything was nice. It too was quiet but, very different from Muellers. It just seems very tranquil there. Anyway after we ate we spoke to one of the young men that helped. He chatted with us for a while, was a great guy. He introduced us to Miss Tootisie and all the rumors we hear about her are true. She is so nice and friendly. Taken pictures with us, opening pits as she shows you around. I have to tell you she is hands on… and when I mean hands on I mean ON. While I was talking to the guy I would see her go and grab wood and tend to the fire. I warned the young man, you may want to get back out there before you get in trouble but he said it was ok and not to worry.
This is the lowdown: the food was amazing and the people welcome you with open arms. I am so glad and still a little shocked that I was able to go visit her. I mean the chances of eating at Franklins are a lot higher being that he’s in Austin. But to schedule a day, rent a car and drive off to snow’s to eat BBQ for breakfast… it’s just a tougher sell to non BBQ people. It was an honor to eat her food and her being in her 80’s something that I will cherish for life.
Back on the road… Lockhart, here we come. On the way we pass a Southside Market… well what do you know. Seems they have 2 locations! This place was great.. it was a hybrid of fast food meats traditional BBQ. They had a huge long smoker with the firebox on the inside! That was their warming smoker. It was wild seeing that b/c of the safety issues. They also gave us a tour and they had some J&R (Oylers) I think. They had amazing sausage, simple as that. That was all that I ordered and their Orignal was out of this world. I will 100% be ordering from them online. This is what I think of this place, I love it. I wish I could get the North East territory. It’s probably as close as you can come to having a capitalist’s bbq place without being a sellout. Again, I loved it.
Lockhart, what can I say… it’s amazing? The place is old school, with high “sidewalks”. You can picture the cowboys walking on the sidewalks that look more like a backyard deck with the horses tied up with the non paved streets. Again the people are so nice. There were some cool antique shops that we stopped in to break up the feasts. Here are some of the things I noticed between the 3 joints we went to ( kreuz, smitt’s and blacks) without saying how great each places food was. They’re landmarks.. I would expect nothing but perfection from them.
Blacks looked like an old school saloon from the outside. They had a buffet table where you tell the servers what you wanted. Everything looked so good.. shame we didn’t taste their desert
Smitt’s: this was the original location of the Kreuz brothers. The story that I heard was that when the father died he gave the restaurant to the two sons and the building to the daughter. As the brothers made a ton of cash the sister was still charging them low rents. She asked for an increase (modest from what I was told) and the brothers left and opened their own place down the block. Now onto what I thought… What I really liked was the choice of beef. You had prime rib, brisket and clod. We tried all 3! And the prime rib was great!!! Loved it! Less fat but amazing taste and moist as hell.
Kreuz: it’s pretty much the same as Smitts, but I also ordered the pork chop here. Dam that was insane, a tri colored pork chop… who knew? Again an amazing place, and as TM says stay on the right side for the “A” slicing team and ask for a picture with Mr. Perez, what a gentleman! I put Kreuz and Smitt’s on par. I did have some potatoes here that were really exceptional.
Smitts and Kreuz: here is what I loved about them both… they have a smoker with a non enclosed firebox. I never even understood this until I was there and saw it with my own eyes. They have the cheap Louisiana style hot sauce. Pour some on your plate and then drizzle some of their salt/pepper/ground hot pepper rub on it. Break meat, dip, eat and repeat. Also the crakers.. dam bbq is so good on a cracker w/ raw onion pickle or jalapeno pepper on it.
I think that sums it up, excuse my poor writing and if anyone has any questions please feel free to ask!
Thanks,
Gaspare
Just read all of this. Great reviews - THANK YOU! I'm going to Austin soon and still toying around with itinerary. A couple takeaways from your notes for me - I may now try harder to do Snow's. I also definitely want to go to Lockhart but I was more thinking just picking one of the three and having lunch. Lastly, seeing your location, I think we are fellow Union County Brethren. I'm in Springfield 
Sallenthornton
Knows what a fatty is.
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2013
- Location
- Fairbank...
I just did the Lockhart tour today. After eating brisket, ribs and sausage, I have to say that Blacks was the best overall. Compared to Franklins, there was no comparison. I will take Franklins brisket any day over what I just ate in Lockhart. Smitty's was the worst. The brisket was so tough, that I threw it out (along with the other 3 in my group). Glad to say that I did it, but probably won't be going back. My next stop is the Salt Lick.
gaspipe1
Full Fledged Farker
- Joined
- May 23, 2011
- Location
- Cranford...
WOW!! I'm sorry to hear that. Like I said I couldn't just pick 1 place, I thought they're all amazing.
BTW there are actually 4 BBQ spots in Lockhart. and when I spoke to two different locals they all preferred the 4th spot (forgot the name).
BTW there are actually 4 BBQ spots in Lockhart. and when I spoke to two different locals they all preferred the 4th spot (forgot the name).
Sallenthornton
Knows what a fatty is.
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2013
- Location
- Fairbank...
The 4th place is named Chisholm Trail. see were going to go, but it wasn't recommended by the locals I talked with. I have numerous pictures of my tour of Lockhart, and have video of the brisket that we threw away, but I do not know how to post them.
