Mike:

Living in Houston, I frequent Goode Company a good bit. Never had the duck - my failing. Brisket is not bad, ribs are better ---- pretty good actually; Sausage is ok as well. Like the jalepeno bread.

You really want to go to Pizzatola's in Houston. Best ribs in town. Good brisket and and sausage. But the ribs are worth the trip.

I'll try that next time I'm in Houston Thanks.

I'm certainly no expert; being a Utah native.

Heck, I never really liked rib's until I went to Texas. I cannot ever remember eating brisket before going to Texas!

Well, about 1 1/2 years ago, I opened an office in Midland. My employees took me to a place called KD's. When I arrived, I wondered why all of these Rig Worker's were lined up out the door- in a barn no less!

After eating there, I soon found out why. I got my first taste or real ribs and chopped brisket. And, it was by the pound! The only bad part of it was when I picked up the tab

You Texan's sure know how to barbeque! My mouth waters as I type this!!!

As I mentioned in my last post above my son, Adam, and I made a quick run to Columbus, Ohio to pick up a motorhome I bought on ebay. And it was quick, 1900 RT miles, including paperwork, inspecting, etc MH, and back home in less than 44 hours. Nice MH, but a helluva drive, we ran thru nearly constant hellacious thunderstorms for over 300 miles coming back thru Tenn. Not a trip I'd like to make everyday driving a motorhome.

#69) At any rate, not to waste an opportunity, we stopped at Jim Neely's Interstate Bar-B-Q, 2265 South Third St, Memphis, Tn on the way up. Neely's is widely reported on the net, in the print media, and TV as one of "THE" Q joints in Memphis so we entered with high expectations. These were not to be met....My overall grade B---.

Since I had a eater helper (well, he's more than a helper, weighing about 180 of solid muscle and bone attached to a teenage appetite) we ordered a wide selection off the menu, knowing we couldn't eat it all, but wanting a cross section sample. The best thing that can be said about Neely's is that the prices are very fair, and the servings are HUGE. You won't go away hungry if quantity is your goal.

We ordered a small plate of pork ribs, a large plate of beef ribs, a large order of sliced beef brisket, and an order of rib tips. All that, and I mean each order is LARGE, and 2 iced teas for $45.61 including tax without tip.

Waitress was very friendly and helpful. We asked, at least twice, for the brisket to be sliced thick. That didn't make it back to our servings where the slices were less than 1/8 inch thick.

Just like at Cozy Q in Memphis which I reported on earlier, all the meats were served covered in sauce. I really would prefer no sauce unless I put it on there. Next time I'm in Memphis, I'll try to remember to make this clear.

The brisket was poor, slight Q flavor, and somewhat overcooked. We ate less of it than any of the 4 dishes.

The beef ribs might have had promise but were seriously overcooked. These ribs are considerably smaller than the beef ribs we get in Texas at the places that have them. The large plate had 4 ribs on it.

The small order of pork ribs was 4 or 5 if memory serves. They were well overcooked too, but not as badly as the beef. Fair, with nothing remarkable about them.

The best by far of the 4 dishes was the rib tips, which are as the name implies, the ends of the pork ribs chopped off and Qed. This was the only dish which was cooked correctly and they were quite good. The plate was FULL. I didn't count but I'd say there were at least a dozen rib tips on it, each tip was, on average, about 2 inches by 2 inches, and good for several tasty bites. If it wasn't for other joints to try, I MIGHT go back for another plate of rib tips.

The sauce was fairly good IMO. Adam didn't like it as much as I did, but he hasn't been exposed to some of the sauces that I've had to suffer thru. Tomato based, sweet, with a bit of spice to it, just a little heat which helped counter the sweetness. Very good for a tomato based sauce IMO. Neely's didn't ask me but I'd prefer it less sweet but it is what it is.

All of these plates came with 2 sides, out of the 3 available, potato salad, barbecued beans, or cole slaw. They were all quite good, the beans being the best, but a bit sweet, then the slaw, and then the pot. salad. We only ordered the sides on 2 of the plates since we just wanted to try all 3. The portions of the sides were generous, just like in the meats, the largest I've seen at ANY Q joint.

Unfortunately, I can't recommend the joint because of the overcooked Q. Maybe we caught them on a bad day, but it was about 6 PM on a Thurs. when we got there, and I can't GUESS whether their cooking would be more accurate at another time. If you're hungry and want value for the money, go here, if you want good Q, I'd try another joint.

On the way back from Columbus, Ohio, Adam and I pulled in for a lunch break off of I71. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on your POV, right there next to Love's Truck Stop was.....

#70) Hog Wild Pig Crazy Bar-B-Q, Exit 55 on I71, near Sparta Kentucky. My overall rating C-





We went in to the small dining area, and I attempted to order from a somewhat surly Blonde Lady in the window. I asked for a rib plate because it had sides. She said, "No ribs, we're out." "OK, how about a pound of brisket plate with some sides?" "We don't sell it that way, you can order sides below (on the menu)." At $6 a pound, I decided to pass on the sides and just ordered the pound of brisket. Not off to a good start.

In short, the brisket had a halfway respectable flavor but was overcooked and crumbly. Not really acceptable by my standards. Of course, we were in Kentucky, maybe they like it that way?

I guess the best thing to mention of a poor place to eat would be that they had 3 sauces all tomato based, one with chipotle (not hot but decently flavored), one hot, which was not really hot but spicy enough to be interesting (and the roast beef, I mean, brisket, needed it), and the regular which I didn't try.

There's a McDonald's not too far away, I'd go there before I come back to this joint. I don't like attitudes when I've done nothing to deserve them and the Q certainly didn't offset them.

Gatlin's in the North End of Houston is world class.
Lulling City Market in Houston on Richmond Ave. is very good.
I've eaten at the original LCM for 50 years always a treat.
Pizzatola's in Houston always a old choice.
Cooper's in Llano is adequate overall, their pork chops are excellent.

For those in the Dallas area.

http://www.dallasnews.com/ente...t-worth-vote-now.ece

Hmmmm, lots of names there I can try in the future. I've tried what I consider the top contenders. In fact, I think Pecan Lodge has better Q than Hutchin's but I voted for Hutchin's because of the format and Hutchin's having my fav Q, "All You Can Eat".

Top Eight in DFW area, according to the DMN
http://www.dallasnews.com/ente...t-worth-vote-now.ece

I've eaten at the top 4 and have not eaten at any of their competitors in the "competition". I'll have to try them shortly.

While I like Hard 8, it is not in the class of the other 3 of the top 4 IMO. If they really have people who know Q, the winner, easily, will be Pecan Lodge....unless one of the joints manages to cook the voting books.....could that happen in Texas........hmmmmm?

Gato, I had to be in SA for work yesterday. Just so happened that HCR called Thurs to tell me that the accurizing job on the gf's rifle was done.
Finished work, went to HCR and then, Went to Coopers in NB.
Very disappointing. The place has been yuppified !
The brisket was not flavorful, lacked smoke flavor and NO smoke ring at all.
The sausage was marginal.
As usual, got the sauce on the side. Tomato juice, a little vinegar and not much more.
Of the few beers they had , most were yup beer.
Maybe the one in Llano is better(I hope), but not this one.
If TM gave them a good rating, then the rating system IS cooked !
The quest continues .

Thanks for the report, another one I can skip.

The original Cooper's is in Mason and is owned by a different individual than all the other's which are owned by the Wootans, with the "original" to their family being in Llano.

I think their method of holding the meats in a separate warming pit can lead to dried meats.

I haven't eaten at any of them but the Llano location and that was before I became more analytical. I remember it as being good, but not great and I seem to recall the meat being a bit dry.

DMN Texas Final Four

http://www.dallasnews.com/ente...t-worth-vote-now.ece

Final two:


http://www.dallasnews.com/ente...t-worth-vote-now.ece

That link takes me back to the final 4.

By clicking on the "votes", I see that Hard 8 and Hutchins are the top two. Not that I don't like Hutchins, I do very much, but it isn't Pecan Lodge IMO. Hard 8 isn't deserving of being in the top 4, maybe the top 8.

There is an excellent interview with the pitmaster at Kreuz's in Lockhart in the January Tex. Monthly. Paints a nice pic of a man who has learned his craft. I'm going to have to go back there and try it again.

There is no really good bbq north of the OK border with Texas. And here in Iowa, there is NONE, even though we grow all the pigs.
Hell, people rave about Famous Daves, which is one step above high school cafeteria food. Once you have eaten in Texas, you will be spoiled for life, especially on Brisket. War story; I was driving through western KY and asked if there were any good bbq places in town. The man said, yes, "Conner" bbq, down this street 4 blocks. I drove down there, and sure enough, there was a big sign that read; "CORNER" BBQ. It was good, but not Texas. The Smoke House in KC is good, but again,, nothing compares to Texas. Wish I was there.

quote:

Originally posted by lavaca:
You really want to go to Pizzatola's in Houston. Best ribs in town. Good brisket and and sausage. But the ribs are worth the trip.

I'll agree with you on the ribs for sure, but the brisket is pretty bland and about three hours after eating the sausage I am belching FIRE!!!!!

The sides there are just awful, I don't think they use any seasoning at all in the beans.

Very good sauce though.

Goode company to me is very average on the Q, but they have the best chocolate pie in the world.

My favorite Q in Houston has got to be Lyndon's on Hollister. Very good Q and the best Pinto Beans I have ever eaten!

.

Finally, we have decent Q in S Texas.
Hatfields in Rockport. Better Brisket than I have found in some time.
I am spoiled eating a family members pork ribs, but theirs are pretty good.
A very welcome addition to the Coastal Bend.

JTex:
I'll have to try Lyndon's. To be honest, at Pizzatola's I've always focused on ribs. Tried the other stuff, but it's a rib joint. And the ribs are great.

quote:

We went in to the small dining area, and I attempted to order from a somewhat surly Blonde Lady in the window. I asked for a rib plate because it had sides. She said, "No ribs, we're out." "OK, how about a pound of brisket plate with some sides?" "We don't sell it that way, you can order sides below (on the menu)." At $6 a pound, I decided to pass on the sides and just ordered the pound of brisket. Not off to a good start.In short, the brisket had a halfway respectable flavor but was overcooked and crumbly. Not really acceptable by my standards. Of course, we were in Kentucky, maybe they like it that way?I guess the best thing to mention of a poor place to eat would be that they had 3 sauces all tomato based, one with chipotle (not hot but decently flavored), one hot, which was not really hot but spicy enough to be interesting (and the roast beef, I mean, brisket, needed it), and the regular which I didn't try.

That would never happen in Memphis. BBQ is taken real serious here.

Sauces come in a wide variety. It's like each place has its own take on it. Same with slaw. A joint might have more than one version. And all kinds of meat get the treatment.

The big downside of course is, the city is the 2nd worst nationally for violent crime. So, there's trade-offs for great Q...

quote:

Originally posted by lavaca:
JTex:
at Pizzatola's I've always focused on ribs. Tried the other stuff, but it's a rib joint. And the ribs are great.

Me too. Pizzatolas is for ribs for sure. I think you'll be pleasantly suprised by Lyndon's especcially if you like pulled pork and Pinto Beans.

Hutchins or Hard Eight?

http://www.dallasnews.com/ente...t-worth-vote-now.ece

I think I'll stick with Hutchins. Thirty miles closer and frankly, I didn't like Hard Eight's menu, and they look a little pricey.

Hard to believe Hard 8 is ahead in the poll. They must be telling their "faithful" to vote and vote often.

They probably should not have beaten Lockhart's and they definitely should not beat Hutchin's. Their location may give them exposure to more voters than Hutchin's tho.

FWIW, the first Chevy Silverado commercial (the one with the bull in the trailer) in the Super Bowl had a flash shot of one of my reviewed Q joints, Taylor Cafe, in Taylor, Texas. Used to be a whore house.....seems fitting.

Lockhart coming to Plano. That will be in my driving radius for Q.

http://www.lockhartsmokehouse.com/07-08-13-plano.html

It's Hutchins.

http://www.dallasnews.com/ente...cue-joint-is-....ece

The Hutchins scene in case you've never been.
http://www.dallasnews.com/ente...1417268#ssTop1417255

We are going to be staying in Austin for a week in March. I'd like to hit a couple of their BBQ joints during the stay.

Any advice on where and when to go would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!!!

While I haven't eaten there yet because of the wait involved, right now the ne plus ultra of Q is widely considered to be Franklin's. Since you know when you'll be there, you can go to their website and order in advance if they are not already sold out. Note: the take out orders are often sold out a MONTH or more in advance, so I'd do it now if you want to try the best. You only have a 15 minute window to pick the order up last time I looked. However, the alternative is a several hour wait in line. Personally, I wouldn't wait for the second coming for several hours.

I have tried Stiles Switch which is darn good Q.

I thought the Salt Lick in Round Rock was very good, but we had a great waiter/bartender which helped the experience. I haven't tried the original in Driftwood, but it is a not a bad drive if you avoid the damn rush hour traffic on 35.

I hear that John Mueller's trailer is worth going to but haven't been there. Equally with his sister's LA Barbecue.

Lambert's downtown, which some people consider to be a Q joint (I don't) is a fairly high end and expensive restaurant which has good food and live music at times. When I was there, the downstairs bartender was a real pro.

Another non-Q joint is Uchi's, which sells some unique and excellent sushi but they ain't giving it away.

Personally, if I had some spare time, I'd also STRONGLY consider going to Louis Mueller's in Taylor, about 35 miles one way, one of my all time favorites.

You can be in the Q tasting hall of fame if you go to Snow's in Lexington but it is about 55 miles away and only open on Saturdays until sold out, usually about 1 to 2 PM. They open around 8 AM. Q for breakfast should be a Texas tradition.

I want to warn you about the HORRIBLE traffic in Austin. Plan ahead and unless absolutely necessary don't be going with the flow at rush hours or even against it on 35. If you don't, you will likely spend an hour or more on the scenic interstate going a very few miles. If you're staying in a hotel, be sure it is on the side of town where you'll be spending most of your time, you really don't want to fight the traffic to get where you need to be. You have been warned.

I like the Salt Lick in Driftwood, but I didn't find the Q outstanding.

I like the location, and how it smells downwind when you get within about two miles of the place.

I didn't like the busses of tourists coming to get the t-shirt and get their picture taken.

You have to bring your own beer.

Damn Texas's local options for alcohol..... ......of course, you can bring your own favorite beverage and it is a helluva lot cheaper.......

The Salt Lick in Round Rock has beer and cocktails. I might mention it is basically right by the major league minor team's ball park. If you're of a mind, one could have Q and go to a ball game weather permitting.

I'm getting out of order here, but the other review is not important, after all it was in Mississippi.

Last Sat, we had to go to south Ok City to pick up a Wachtelhund puppy from graybird, a member of this forum. It was a complicated time sequence because we had to drop our daughter off early in the morning so she could go on the school bus to a softball tournament in Longview, Tx (about an hour an a half drive south of us). We did so and started for OKC. Due to the recs of Dr. Lane Easter, DVM earlier in this thread, I was anxious to try Dieter Bros. Q on his rec (not to mention he offered to buy but we couldn't schedule on such short notice).....we did so about 11 AM....and the review follows:

71) Dieter Brother's Restaurant, 401 E Hwy 82, Lindsay Tx. My overall rating B

This is a couple of miles W of I35 and with sincerest apologies to Dr. Lane (especially because he had offered to buy ) I simply didn't know if we would have time to even go there, much less schedule a meeting. As was, we went in, visited the bathroom facilities (the hardest part of getting old and driving is the piss stop) and I ordered a selection of their Q to go. We ordered a pound of brisket sliced thick, a pound of pork ribs, and a pound of German Sausage.

The brisket and ribs were both in the same category, both old style pit Q cooking, with little or no rub, letting the smoke and heat do their magic. I found the brisket to be decent for it's type, tender, with little Q flavor. The ribs were a tad better but nothing outstanding compared to the more modern rubbed versions.

BY FAR the star of the trio was the German Sausage. As I have often pointed out, I am not a fan of the "Texas" style of sausage, wherein it is dripping with fat when you bite into it. This sausage, on the contrary, was somewhat dry, suffused with good spice flavors, and a REALLY FINE product. This joint is about 200 mi from my location and I'm thinking of driving over there for round 2...that's how good this sausage was. If it had some heat in a version, I might move.....

Since we were traveling, and there was 2 of us, my wife and I, I also ordered a pint of slaw, and a pint of pot. salad. The slaw was really good, with a slightly sweet base that set well on the tongue. The pot. salad was not a favorite of mine because they seemed to use a sweet pickle in the mix and the slightly sweet base flavor was not to my taste. Others may find it excellent.

The sauce was tomato based, somewhat sweet, with a decent amount of spices in it, and this was the hot version. Fair, but firmly middle of the road.

Kind of an odd review, the Q that we normally review wasn't noteworthy, but I'd go back for the sausage in a NY second.

As an aside, I asked the 2 very friendly servers and another person in there if they knew Dr. Lane Easter, Vet? They looked at me like I was speaking Swahili and said, "uh, no." But hell, the horses probably like him.

A good chance you can make your own place the “best damn BBQ joint in Texas”. I stumbled over Aaron Franklin’s YouTube series. At least a dozen topics, from smokers, to woods, to meats, to recipes, to techniques, etc. Franklin is the current King of the Mountain in Texas Bar-B-Q.

In a few weeks I’m going to try his Thanksgiving turkey technique on some pheasant and chukar I have in the freezer.

The entire series is very informative.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gybrM6EQ6fg

A few weeks back I had to make a trip to Decatur, Al and then on to Charleston NC to pick up some ebay items I purchased. A geographic fact is that if one travels from my area to most places on the Central and Northeast coast then one goes through Memphis. I try to take this as an opportunity to try some of their famous Q joints. This trip, it just didn't work out.

I left home with some trepidation because we were in the middle of a damn cold spell, and I was concerned about icing on the roads as I went East. It was about 22 degrees when I left, stayed there all afternoon, and was a balmy 21 and windy when I got to Memphis. Bottom line, driving around I couldn't find my first location, Charlie Vergo's Rendezvous downtown. I knew it had to be around somewhere, but there was NO place to park close and I didn't want to walk 4 or 5 blocks in that weather. So I skipped it and headed E towards Alabama.

It got later, I got more tired, and I called Adam to let him find me a Q joint in Corinth, Miss. He quickly came back with the Rib Shack, which I quickly found out I couldn't find. Too bad, because it has decent "net" reviews. It was pushing 9 PM so, after driving across and back across Corinth unsuccessfully looking for the Rib Shack road, I wheeled into Taylor's Escape, which was on the main road, Hwy 72 and advertised Q and catfish on the exterior. So I had ribs at....

72) Taylor's Escape, 1401 Hwy 72 W, Corinth, MS My overall grade B---

They didn't have brisket, so I ordered a slab of ribs. Kind of odd, little smoke flavor but a heavy rub which made for a thick layer on outside of ribs which pulled off in sheets. Fairly dry exterior but the ribs were not seriously dried out. Not bad really, but a bare shadow of Q. I ate maybe 3 or 4 of the 8 or so there and left them.

Sauce was ordinary tomato based.

Maybe the catfish is good, I wish I had gotten it instead but if I am ever in Corinth again, I probably won't find out. Not recommended for Q, at least.

On the way back, I tried to eat at the Germantown Commissary in Germantown which is a community on the East side of Memphis. I arrived about 1 PM, it looked really promising, but I had a trailer and boat hooked to my truck, and I couldn't find a place to park close enough that I thought it would be secure. I drove the area at least 3 times and finally gave up. It looked darn good and I am sorry I missed it and will try it again next time I'm in the area.

Trip took 54 hours and 2100 miles. There were only 2 other instances of note. On way from Decatur to Charleston, I had to go around Atlanta which I knew was going to be a nightmare from prior experience. Houston and Dallas traffic has nothing on Atlanta. I was driving 90 in the fast lane and just keeping up with the bumper to bumper traffic. I don't mind driving fast, I just like more than about 50 feet to stop if things go wrong in front of me.

Both on the way over and back, but especially on the way over, I saw more geese in one area about 17 miles E of Little Rock than I have ever seen anywhere, this includes Saskatchewan, Eagle Lake, etc. There were hundreds of thousands of geese on the fields. It was amazing, this with the weather about 22 degrees. I suppose maybe they had been pushed South by the weather.

That's all folks....

Article on Franklin Barbecue with a sauce recipe. That picture of the sliced brisket is about to make me drive to Austin.

I wish you had called. Could have parked at my house and I would have taken you to the Commissary. I live about 3 miles and am just off 72. Try me my again. If you need my number PM me!

Jim:

I appreciate that and it is not that I am anti-social (well....maybe a bit.... ) but when I am on one of these trips, especially on the way back, I'm tired, irascible, dirty (I usually sleep in the truck if it is only a day or two), and, in general, not fit for making nice (indeed, I'm sure some would say, "How can we tell the difference?"). Not to mention, I don't know exactly when I'll be somewhere until a few hours before and I hate to call someone I really don't know and say, "Meet me here and buy me lunch." That's just not me.

I'll tell you what, the next time I come to or through Memphis, unless it happens to be in the middle of the night, I'll do my best to get together with you at the GC and I'll buy. Deal?

In the interim, we're plannning on some dog hog hunting and frying fish on my place this Saturday, come on down. It's supposed to rain, but the rain drops really don't dilute the beer or Margaritas much. We're about 6 hours drive from Memphis and not far out of the way of the route to Houston or College Station.

If I didn't have the grand kids this weekend I would come see you. Call me anytime, if I can't make it I will say so. Was out teaching one grand daughter some shooting today.

Fun stuff!