quote:

It's not just Tootsie... "real" Texas BBQ is generally just salt, pepper, and smoke.

Agreed. During my 6 year stint in TX, chasing excellent brisket both on the road and at home, I figured out early on this was it. Still have friends trying to overcome quality of meat, wood or technique with the spice drawer. Won't happen, and may actually be a detriment.

Watched this episode last night, great story. They had just gotten really hot when we moved to McKinney and we just never made the trip down there on a Friday night to be in line Saturday. Or got up at 0-dark-30 for that either. Sorry about that, after this show I suspect the lines have gone from long to forever.

quote:

Originally posted by corsair:

I have no problems waiting in-line for good barbecue. I've stood in line many times and come up empty...

Went to Killen's in Pearland after a funeral, they were also quite good, wouldn't say top-20 but, they fed the family and everyone was happy.

BBQ is one of the few things I've ever, ever been willing to wait on line for 2+ hours for. Someone will pop in and declare that stupid, but they just haven't been there or are vegans.

I agree with Killen's - we went out of our way on a trip back from Port Arthur and stopped there, waited, got a variety of stuff and it was good but not great. Disappointing with all the hype around this place circa 2016.

For any of you watching the video and puzzled by the bucket of free beer, many of the places with long waits do that. The beer is free, but they are carrying around a "tip" cup that gets a $5 +/- tossed in. I've never seen anyone actually take a beer and not pay, it's just a way to distribute on the lawn. Also a great excuse for a beer at 10:00 a.m.

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
But either way (Texas/Beef of Southern/Pork), it shouldn't need sauce. If your BBQ has to be covered in sauce, it's usually a sign you've done something wrong.

Or a fork/knife, just fingers and roll of paper towels.

Man, I miss TX.

Some don't consider El Paso to be a part of Texas but there is definitely no great BBQ here.

quote:

Originally posted by Georgeair:
Still have friends trying to overcome quality of meat, wood or technique with the spice drawer. Won't happen, and may actually be a detriment.

I like my pork BBQ and pork ribs with spice rubs. But that's a different style of BBQ from another region of the South.

And either way (Texas/Beef of Southern/Pork), it shouldn't need sauce. If your BBQ has to be covered in sauce, it's usually a sign there's something wrong.

Lots of folks are so used to dousing BBQ in sauce at sub-par BBQ joints (usually to add some moisture back to meat that's been overcooked to begin with, and then reheated for serving which dried it out further, and that is often bland to begin with so needs the flavor kick to boot) that they never can appreciate quality BBQ meat for what it is. Even when faced with quality BBQ they instinctively reach for the sauce, similar to the folks who cover even the best steaks in A1 out of habit, or who salt their food before tasting it.

I get puzzled looks from friends who I invite over for some smoked pork/beef, and when they ask where my BBQ sauce is I respond "It doesn't need any." But the lightbulb usually comes on after they try it.


And yes, I realize that this is probably blasphemy for those who subscribe to the very wet style of Kansas City/Memphis/Carolina/etc. BBQ, where everything is slathered in sauce, even the good stuff. That has its place, and if you like it, good for you.

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
Some don't consider El Paso to be a part of Texas but there is definitely no great BBQ here.

There used to be. Chris’ Brisket. I don’t know if he’s still around anymore, but we went to him for years, and it was the real deal.

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
Some don't consider El Paso to be a part of Texas but there is definitely no great BBQ here.

Yeah, "Texas"-style BBQ is predominately a Central and East-Central Texas thing.

quote:

It's not just Tootsie... "real" Texas BBQ is generally just salt, pepper, and smoke.

Sort of....
S&P for sure, however the real art is how the pit master uses and controls the heat.
Go to Lockhart, Kreutz and Smity's uses the hot and fast method, as their briskets are done in 5-6 hrs, their brisket can be almost falling apart; Snow's is very similar, Tootsie has a real feel for heat control. Black's initially cooks their brisket on a rotisserie, cools them down, then final few hours in a smoker. Salt Lick does all their hot smoking in the back, and the grill up front is merely for appearances. Louie Mueller, Franklin, Micklewaithe and others do the low and slow smoke method at 12+ hours.

I was referring to what supplements the flavor of the meat, being just salt, pepper, and smoke, with no other spices, sauces, or flavor additives.

But you're right that heat is absolutely a critical component to the overall cook.

RougeJSK, you had mentioned how people who've only been exposed to mediocre at-best barbecue, reflexively reach for the sauce. Kreutz in Lockhart used to be proudly anti-sauce and anti-forks; they had big signs and was apart of their slogan. Apparently after enough confrontations with customers, they now offer a sauce and have utensils.


Funny story: we were at a show and our sales director comes to us and wanted good barbecue for dinner. He's paying, no problem, off we went. We sit down and get a couple of heaping trays and everyone is chowing down. After a solid 10-minutes everyone has come up for air with big smiles, I look over at our director while smiling, he's taken his slice of brisket, folded it into a canoe with a giant stipe of sauce running down the middle I look over at him WTF?!? I love sauce man, sauce makes the meat better.... head-slap, smh.

Their website states they are closed due to the pandemic.

quote:

Originally posted by Archie Teuthis:
Nobody does brisket like Texas.
Is it the local beef, the wood, pit type, sauce or what? Just wonderful.

It is the method. Low heat, long cook times (with variations), salt and pepper and sometimes a light uses of a few other spices. Smoke of course, but many hardwoods provide suitable smoke. Sauce is just a condiment, it barely comes into at all. The meat is cooked without sauce.

Snow's consistently gets high reviews, as does Black's and Franklin. For some reason, Texas Monthly doesn't rank Killen's as high, but Killen's is good. I wonder if there isn't some personal animosity there with Killen.

I haven't had Snow's and Franklin - the lines are too long and they are too far away to risk not getting there early enough. Of the places in Houston, which I know better, Truth is very good, and there are two others that also top-notch. Black's is undoubtedly superior barbecue, and I would go out of my way to eat at Black's.

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
Some don't consider El Paso to be a part of Texas but there is definitely no great BBQ here.

Yeah, "Texas"-style BBQ is predominately a Central and East-Central Texas thing.

The theory is that Texas style of barbeque came out of the German immigrants' meat markets that also started to sell cooked meat as well as being a meat market. The Germans settled in Central Texas.

quote:

Originally posted by corsair:
I recently went to Corkscrew, Spring, TX for a mid-week lunch, very solid, line got big after 12:30, made it real easy with family in the area. Tejas Chocolate I've heard/read good things, need to get out there, heard there's a diner there has an exceptional CFS. I have family in Brenham and Truth is very good, well worth it's ranking. Went to Killen's in Pearland after a funeral, they were also quite good, wouldn't say top-20 but, they fed the family and everyone was happy.

This is the 4th city I've lived in Texas and the 2nd city in the Houston metropolitan area. When I moved here in 2016 Corkscrew's meat was as good as it is now, but their sides were subpar. They upped their game on their sides prior to the 2017 Texas Monthly rankings and made Top 10.

Tejas blended their two businesses - BBQ and chocolate shop. After you're starving from waiting in line smelling the BBQ they route you past their chocolate counter before you order BBQ (i.e smart business strategy). I thought the BBQ was every bit as good as Corkscrew.

Which diner did you hear about for Chicken fried steak? I like to ride my motorcycle on the backroads and sometimes get over to Tomball. I've been to Mel's Country Cafe for their excellent CFS. My coworker tells me that I need to try Goodson's CFS. The problem with eating CFS during a motorcycle ride is that I don't want to get sleepy with a belly full of CFS and crash on the drive home.

Killen's in Pearland is good, but not in the same league as Tejas or Corkscrew. The first time I lived in Houston there were zero good BBQ joints in Houston, but Killen's and Garret's Gatlin's changed that plus showed other restaurateurs that the crowds would be there for something even better. I'm really grateful to Killen's and Garret's Gatlin's for that because I was really sick of the Houston metropolitan area having mediocre BBQ.

EDIT: fixed my error between Garret's and Gatlin's. Greg Garret owns Comp-tac holsters and Greg Gatlin owns Gatlin's BBQ.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: tatortodd,

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
Yeah, "Texas"-style BBQ is predominately a Central and East-Central Texas thing.

Pretty much. Going East from El Paso, Midland or Odessa is about where it seems to start.

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:

quote:

Originally posted by corsair:
I recently went to Corkscrew, Spring, TX for a mid-week lunch, very solid, line got big after 12:30, made it real easy with family in the area. Tejas Chocolate I've heard/read good things, need to get out there, heard there's a diner there has an exceptional CFS. I have family in Brenham and Truth is very good, well worth it's ranking. Went to Killen's in Pearland after a funeral, they were also quite good, wouldn't say top-20 but, they fed the family and everyone was happy.

This is the 4th city I've lived in Texas and the 2nd city in the Houston metropolitan area. When I moved here in 2016 Corkscrew's meat was as good as it is now, but their sides were subpar. They upped their game on their sides prior to the 2017 Texas Monthly rankings and made Top 10.

Tejas blended their two businesses - BBQ and chocolate shop. After you're starving from waiting in line smelling the BBQ they route you past their chocolate counter before you order BBQ (i.e smart business strategy). I thought the BBQ was every bit as good as Corkscrew.

Which diner did you hear about for Chicken fried steak. I like to ride my motorcycle on the backroads and sometimes get over to Tomball. I've been to Mel's Country Cafe for their excellent CFS. My coworker tells me that I need to try Goodson's CFS. The problem with eating CFS during a motorcycle ride is that I don't want to get sleepy with a belly full of CFS and crash on the drive home.

Killen's in Pearland is good, but not in the same league as Tejas or Corkscrew. The first time I lived in Houston there were zero good BBQ joints in Houston, but Killen's and Garret's changed that plus showed other restaurateurs that the crowds would be there for something even better. I'm really grateful to Killen's and Garret's for that because I was really sick of the Houston metropolitan area having mediocre BBQ.

The good ones in Houston now are Truth (on Washington), Roegel's (on Voss), and The Pit Room (on Richmond), in that order, for me at least. Truth will sell out on a weekend, so beware.

Tootsie’s/Snows Cooked briskets are available on Goldbelly.com. It takes some checking to find them available. I have one coming next week that I ordered a couple of weeks ago.

quote:

Originally posted by jhe888:
The good ones in Houston now are Truth (on Washington), Roegel's (on Voss), and The Pit Room (on Richmond), in that order, for me at least. Truth will sell out on a weekend, so beware.

I haven't tried any of those. I used to have a doctor in the Heights so I always went to Gatlin's (not sure why I called it Garret's in my last post). Then, I was told Pinkerton's was good so I tried it and wish I would've went to Gatlin's. Don't know what was wrong with the Pinkerton staff taking orders, but they made a 6-person line 20+ minutes and the BBQ was average.

quote:

Originally posted by Jeff Yarchin:
Tootsie’s/Snows Cooked briskets are available on Goldbelly.com. It takes some checking to find them available. I have one coming next week that I ordered a couple of weeks ago.

Saw that mentioned somewhere and looked last night. $120 plus shipping for 3-4# is a little hefty even for me since I've done several brisket cooks this summer.

Now, I did pay Goldbelly $85 for two whole muffulettas from Central Market, but that was pandemic rationalization.

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
Some don't consider El Paso to be a part of Texas but there is definitely no great BBQ here.

But I bet the Carnitas are killer!!

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:

quote:

Originally posted by corsair:
I recently went to Corkscrew, Spring, TX for a mid-week lunch, very solid, line got big after 12:30, made it real easy with family in the area. Tejas Chocolate I've heard/read good things, need to get out there, heard there's a diner there has an exceptional CFS. I have family in Brenham and Truth is very good, well worth it's ranking. Went to Killen's in Pearland after a funeral, they were also quite good, wouldn't say top-20 but, they fed the family and everyone was happy.

This is the 4th city I've lived in Texas and the 2nd city in the Houston metropolitan area. When I moved here in 2016 Corkscrew's meat was as good as it is now, but their sides were subpar. They upped their game on their sides prior to the 2017 Texas Monthly rankings and made Top 10.

Tejas blended their two businesses - BBQ and chocolate shop. After you're starving from waiting in line smelling the BBQ they route you past their chocolate counter before you order BBQ (i.e smart business strategy). I thought the BBQ was every bit as good as Corkscrew.

Which diner did you hear about for Chicken fried steak? I like to ride my motorcycle on the backroads and sometimes get over to Tomball. I've been to Mel's Country Cafe for their excellent CFS. My coworker tells me that I need to try Goodson's CFS. The problem with eating CFS during a motorcycle ride is that I don't want to get sleepy with a belly full of CFS and crash on the drive home.

Killen's in Pearland is good, but not in the same league as Tejas or Corkscrew. The first time I lived in Houston there were zero good BBQ joints in Houston, but Killen's and Garret's changed that plus showed other restaurateurs that the crowds would be there for something even better. I'm really grateful to Killen's and Garret's for that because I was really sick of the Houston metropolitan area having mediocre BBQ.

Goodson's is the established local hero for CFS in the NW Houston / Tomball corridor.
But you might also try Hickory Hollow by the Sam Houston race track on BW8, served on a pizza platter, good crust, nice tender meat (de-grissled).

I see you mentioned Mels, that is some good burgers and fries too!

HK Ag

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:
Which diner did you hear about for Chicken fried steak? I like to ride my motorcycle on the backroads and sometimes get over to Tomball. I've been to Mel's Country Cafe for their excellent CFS. My coworker tells me that I need to try Goodson's CFS. The problem with eating CFS during a motorcycle ride is that I don't want to get sleepy with a belly full of CFS and crash on the drive home.

Goodson's! That's it. Next time to visit family, I'll have to head over.

One of the routines I have after powering down a heavy meal is to take a walk around the neighborhood to get the blood flowing through my gut. Learned that my first year driving around the territory as a sales rep, ate a burger for lunch and 30-minutes down the road I'd start dozing. We went to Lockhart ate at two of the major barbecue places, we had to include a 2-hour walk around town, checking out real estate before eating at the second place.