Iron Works BBQ

3/29/10 Austin, TX. Iron Works is a downtown Austin institution, and for good reason. The building has been around forever, and they've been serving BBQ since 1978. I ordered a 2 meat plate and got charged a whopping $18.19 for pork ribs and brisket. The ribs were fantastic, just the right tenderness and flavor. The BBQ sauce they have on each table is a very good compliment to all the meats. I sampled some of the sausage and it was fantastic as well. Loosely packed and not too greasy, this sausage gets an A. The brisket was disappointing, not bad, but definitely underwhelming. Rudy's beats it, so that should tell you something.

They don't serve sweet tea, and several of us in the group experienced rude employees, but this place makes up for it in other areas. Here's what you do at Iron Works: Get the ribs and/or sausage plate, enjoy the potato salad and beans that come with it (yeah, sides were a-ok), don't make eye contact, make sure you get some pecan pie if you have room and sit outside if it's a nice day. You can see turtles the size of an office chair in the creek outside! Maybe I'll smuggle sweet tea in a flask next time. Iron Works, you're getting a grade with a minus (-), but at least it's an A-.

Rudy's Country Store and Bar-B-Que

3/25/10 Waco, TX. Rudy's is very good. The brisket comes out of the smoker a deep black color. Rudy's puts alot of peppery spice on their brisket and it works great. Almost an acquired taste, the heavy dose of pepper sounds like a big risk, but Rudy's makes it work. Solid A. Their sausage is average at absolute best, but at least they have a jalapino link that they call a "hottie".

Rudy's is different from other BBQ places in that they have a convenience store and gas station. Luckily, it doesn't detract from kick ass que. So, go to Rudy's and enjoy. I'm going to leave it at that because Food Wars is on the Travel Channel right now and they're doing Smitty's vs. Kreutz Market in Lockhart! Perhaps I'll do my own test very soon. In the spirit of full disclosure, I've already done it years ago and Smitty's is still the best BBQ I've ever experienced. Maybe I was turned off by Kreutz initially because when I asked for BBQ sauce, I was told I didn't need it. Now I know you're not supposed to need it, but I like to have some on hand to keep things interesting. Screw them for telling me what I need or don't need. I get that enough anyway. I don't know if it's arrogance or if it's part of their policy to have a-hole employees, but screw them. My apologies to Rudy's for the off topic rant, but something tells me I'll be back to Rudy's before long! Until next time...

Cousin's Bar-B-Q

3/19/10 Ft. Worth, TX. Cousin's reminds me of Pok-e-Jo's. It's cafateria style, chain, clean, festive ambiance with decent bbq and excellent sides. Ordered a 2 meat plate with pork ribs and German style sausage and sweet tea for $13.98. The ribs were ok, a little tough, but did the job more or less. They were meaty, so three of them was a good amount for a split plate. I'm not sure what German sausage is supposed to taste like, but if the Germans were going for unremarkable, grocery store, Ekrich type sausage then they nailed it. I'd say they couqured sausage about as effective as they couqured Europe back in the 40's.

The sides were outstanding. I got some broccoli/rice/cheese souffle thing and despite how it sounds, was awesome. Also got some shell macaroni salad and wow! What a rare treat! Much like Pok-e-Jo's, Cousin's knows the rules. The have good sweet tea, and a big platter of banana pudding for you. I didn't sample it, but perhaps I will next time. Overall I gave Cousin's a B. Sides A+, ribs B-, sausage C- (VERY borderline D grade). I must note that they do have hot links in addition to the German sausage so I feel obligated to sample that in the future in addition to the brisket. Some folks will say Cousin's rules North Texas BBQ. I'd say those folks have never been to Hard 8 BBQ in Coppell.

Green Mesquite BBQ

3/18/10 Austin, TX. Hello and welcome to the first day of SXSW music, get ready for a crowded lunch at Green Mesquite BBQ and More! Wait, where is everyone? I'll tell you where. Threadgill's. After wrestling through the crowd pouring into Threadgill's I made my way to Green Mesquite for some pre-rock n' roll brisket. I won't say much about the brisket other than... The sausage was awesome! Best sausage in town so far. If House Park had theirs just a smidge less greasy and used softer casings they might give Green Mesquite a run. However, as Jim Morrison once said, I am the Sausage King, I can do anything. Everything except brisket that is, at Green Mesquite. Hell, I'm still chewing on it. They have good marketing and it's an Austin institution more or less, so it's cool. The potato salad checks out (good and bland), but the beans are unique. Quite good, a little spicy, and a firm texture. Chili powder maybe? Paprika? Whatever it is, it's definitely worth sampling. The bbq sauce was about standard. Not much to mention there. Great outdoor seating for a sunny 68 degrees in the Spring!

If plans take you to the area, all you have to remember is 2 things: 1) The sausage is yummy and 2) Billy's BBQ is only a couple doors down! Cheers!

Cartwright's Famous Bar-B-Q

3/15/10 Austin, TX, Southpartk Meadows location. Cartwright's is consistantly solid. It's a significant step up from Bill Miller, but obviously wouldn't cut it in Lockhart. The convenient location is great and the bbq doesn't disappoint, so let's get started.

Both brisket and sausage were sampled this go-around and I have to say my hat is off to the sausage. Was pleasantly surprised that the sausage was this good. Just the right not-packed-too-tight consistancy and not too greasy either, this sausage exceeded expectations. Would be through the roof if they made a jalapino version. Spicy bbq sauce help with a bit of kick (sort of). The brisket was good. The extra moist is extra EXTRA fatty. Will likely try the lean stuff next time. The bbq sauce is about average, but they do give you a choice of regular or spicy. There's not much difference between the two though. The pecan pie for $1.25 was good, but as I've said before, who has bad pie? Insert whatever punchline you like there. Until next time, Cheers!

Vitek's BBQ

3/13/10 Waco, TX. Pronounced Vee-Tek, this place has what they call the "Gut Pak". It's similar to the Texas Trash at Up in Smoke in that it's a version of Frito Pie. This one has both brisket and sausage, mixed with baked beans, Fritos, pickles, onions, and jalapinos. It's truly awesome!

The sausage is hand-made by the former owner who is 72. His daughter runs the place now. It's difficult to taste the subtlties in the Gut Pak, simply because you have so many ingredients thrown into a bowl. However, EVERYTHING tasted awesome in this thing and I highly recommend it. Please note that I ordered the small Gut Pak. The big one is over 1 pound and I wasn't about to tangle with it that day... But we shall meet again!

***At this time I'd like to announce BATTLE OF THE BBQ FRITO PIES 2010. In this corner we have TEXAS TRASH from Up in Smoke. And in this corner we have the challenger, GUT PAK from Vitek's. Which one will emerge victorious?? The Texas Trash is available with cheese and sour cream, which got the nod last time. Not so in the future, as I think the sour cream masks alot of the other tastes you are supposed to experience. Up in Smoke is open until 9, Vitek's closes at 6 (boooo). Gut Pack comes in 2 sizes, Texas Trash only 1 size. Tx Trash comes with optional spicy beans, Gut Pack comes with jalapinos. Gut Pack has homemade sausage included, Texas Trash just brisket (might be customized though). I'll say that Vitek's is holding the lead as of right now, but this battle has just begun... My apologies for not exploring the brisket on its own merits, but that will be a task for a future visit. I DID sample the banana pudding and no, do not buy the banana pudding at Vitek's. Kudos to them for having it, but the soul is located in the Gut (Pak)! GAME ON!

Pok-e-Jo's Smokehouse, Inc.

3/10/10 Austin, TX Hwy 71 and Lamar. Like Rudy's, Pok-e-Jo's sets the standard for good everyday bbq. They have sweet tea, they have banana pudding, they give you all the pickles and onions you want. It's as if they had the BBQ restaraunt manual and got a B+ in every chapter. The fact that Pok-e-Jo's really has no achilles heel sets it apart from other establishments and it's because of this that I'm giving it a grade of B++. Everything down to the bbq sauce is pretty good. The green bean cassarole is pretty good and so is the jalapino corn cassarole. The ambiance is pretty good, the parking is pretty good, and yes, the brisket is pretty darn good. The ribs I don't know about, so I guess I'll be headed back to try them. Excuses to go get more BBQ are a dime a dozen and I got truckloads of dimes...

Hard 8 BBQ

3/06/2010 Coppel, TX. It's almost a good thing when you have to wait in line at Hard 8 BBQ because there is so much to choose from and you can take your time to sort out the game plan. I ended up sampling the $8.99 sirloin skewer. Strange choice with all the delicious brisket, sausage, etc. but the sirloin held it's own amongst its traditional compadres. Just enough pink in the middle with just the right amount of pepper/spices on the outside makes for good eats. Each sirloin tip is bordered with a slice of bell pepper and onion, about 6 total on one skewer. It's also available as a chicken skewer. The sirloin is also good with Hard 8's dark, sugary bbq sauce. Dump a bunch of sugar in a bowl of A1 and you'll get the idea. Come to think of it, sugar seems to be a staple in alot of Hard 8 sides. The potato salad was good and sweet. The coleslaw was very good and... well very sweet. And of course I can't write about Hard 8 without mentioning the banana pudding. So unpretentious looking, yet so fancy, it's the gold standard of banana puddings.

My kids will attest to how delicious the white bread and pickles are, but my son doesn't trust one of the stuffed bears on the wall. He's fairly sure that bear is going to roar at some point. Who am I to argue? Even if the bear were alive, it's worth the risk to dine at Hard 8 BBQ. I see a long relationship developing here... Solid A.

Up In Smoke BBQ

3/4/10 Abbott, TX. Up In Smoke is becoming the official I-35 travel stop for a BBQ fix. In this case, I had plans to mainline some Vitek's BBQ in Waco, but they close at 6 pm. Bummer. Which way to go on this one? I could stay bitter, and then never go there in some pointless unnoticed protest... but what if it's that good? They'll get their chance, and they better bring their A game for closing so early, but this post isn't about them.

Turkey! Got the turkey plate this time to change things up a bit. It's true to Up In Smoke standards in that it's minimally messed with (Think opposite of Rudy's). The turkey is quite tender and juicy, and it's very good with their spicy BBQ sauce. The cole slaw is pretty good, and the jalapino beans are rock solid as well. They DO have sweet tea so that's a big plus, but it's average at best. It's always a treat to get that slice of texas toast with the meal at Up In Smoke as well. The next visit will definitely involve Texas Trash instead of turkey, but the turkey is not bad if you're on a health kick for a day.

Bill Miller BBQ, I-35 and Ben White

3/1/10 Austin, TX. Q: How do you make a lunch at Bill Miller's Tolerable? A: Order either the $3.49 special or the #7 double chopped beef sandwich w/ french fries and sweet tea combo and escape only 5 bucks lighter than when you came in. It's pretty simple. At the very least, if you're going to put shit in your mouth, at least you aren't paying much for it.

The chopped beef is average, but you can throw some pico de gallo, pickles, and onions in there and it becomes quite acceptible. The real tragedy is seeing your buddies order $10 worth of old shoe leather and hot dogs. I know brisket is king at these BBQ joints, but at Bill Miller's avoid it like a Georgetown pilot angry that he's got to pay taxes. Plus, you get the added bonus of appreciating real BBQ on your next excursion. C- food, but an A for value if done right.

Cartwright's Famous Bar-B-Q

2/25/10 South Austin, TX. Dave Chappelle was right. BBQ Ribs will put you to sleep faster than any turkey or triptophane or whatever it is white people think puts them to sleep. I took down a pound of ribs from Cartwrights and BAM, no recollection of the following hour. the next thing I knew, I heard the phone ringing and America Idol was on TV. It could have been them aliens from outer space messing with the space-time continuum again, but it was probably the ribs.

The ribs were good. Very tender and extremely salty, B+. Must say I am plesantly surprised with Cartwright's... Or maybe I should just order ribs more often...