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I just got back from a little BBQ road trip in the USA

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Post  colin.irwin Fri Apr 20, 2012 2:34 pm

I managed to wangle a one week road trip from New Orleans through Houston, Austin and San Antonio and then up to Memphis before heading back to New Orleans.

My aim was to sample BBQ and Mexi / Tex Mex food - my 2 favourites.

http://www.shizzling.com/2012/03/road-trip-day-7-houston-to-austin-outer-space-to-stellar-brisket.html is my account of Ruby's, the first BBQ place we visited in Austin.

I'll be adding blog posts covering Iron Works BBQ in Austin, plus Black's and Kreuz' Market in Lockhart and a brilliant place in Memphis called Tom's BarBQ.

I also took along a semi pro video camera and managed to get pit tours at Ruby's, Black's and a quick whizz around at Tom's. I'll be editing the footage down and posting on Youtube. Incidentally, here's a video I shot and edited of the New Orleans RoadFood Festival, which features Central BBQ from Memphis and Louie Mueller Barbecue from Taylor, Texas - https://youtu.be/j189dTz3Trk .

The thing I really loved from the Texas BBQ places was the structure of the brick BBQ pits. In fact, I've ordered loads of blocks and some ironwork to make my own block BBQ over the weekend and early next week.

colin.irwin
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Post  Mack Fri Apr 20, 2012 6:27 pm

Very Jealous Colin!

Did manage to vist a few joints around Atlanta on a recent trip... just wish we had more BBQ places here in the UK.
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Post  colin.irwin Fri Apr 20, 2012 7:19 pm

I got into BBQ about 5 years ago when I went to a conference in Memphis. An American guy I met at the conference, who has become a good friend since, took me round a couple of the 'tourist' BBQ places and also to a smaller local joint away from the centre of town.

It got me interested in cooking BBQ myself which is why I got one of your Frontier smokers. I've had a lot of fun with the Frontier and people love it when I cook pulled pork and smoked chickens for garden parties at our house.

This most recent trip inspired me even more - especially the brisket you get off the brick pits at the Texas BBQ joints - so I'm building my own brick pit in the back garden. I'll start it off with charcoal and wood but if I can find a good supply of wood I may well go wood only once I get the hang of it.

BTW - are you still selling the coconut briquettes that are pressed into cuboids? If so I may well order a load from you on Monday.

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Post  Blaq Sun Fri May 04, 2012 6:16 pm

I just got back from Texas myself a couple of weeks ago and insisted that i had to have the best brisket in TX. Being based in Austin whilst i was there i managed to make it to Lockhart where Smitty's, Blacks and Kreuz's is based and got BBQ from all 3 of them to do a side by side comparison.

My friends all took part in the experience so all the food arrived at more or less the same time.

Firstly let me say that there was very little between them, they were ALL amazing.

From Smittys we got fatty brisket, sausage and pork ribs.
From Kreuzs we got lean brisket, sausage and smoked turkey.
From blacks we got lean brisket, fatty brisket, prime rib.

All were very lightly seasoned but quite salty, all were extremely moist and tender.

The smoked turkey was amazing, juicy, tender and full of flavour. The prime rib was falling off the bone and amazingly succulent and the fatty brisket was soon being devoured wihtout mercy.

All in all a real treat, especially as i got to go to Smittys which has been around for years and their walls were covered in soot and ash from their myriad smokes.

It really gave me something to aim for in terms of what my brisket should come out like. One of the tips the guy at Smittys gave me was not to go for the largest briskets but ones weighing in about 12 - 14 lbs.

I also tried a place in Austin called Rudy's (not Ruby's) and it was good, but not quite in the top boys league.

Scoring ...

Blacks ... 9
Smittys ... 9
Kreuzs ... 8.8
Rudy's ... 8

On my next trip out i will be going to two other places who are currently contesting for the #1 spot in Texas BBQ.

Hope to make it out to Grillstock also to pick up tips and advice as well as some damn good food Smile

Q.
PS i know those scores are subjective, but that's what my tastebuds were telling me.

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Post  Blaq Sun Fri May 04, 2012 6:18 pm

Hi Colin Smile

Did you manage to get to Smittys as well?

Q.

colin.irwin wrote:I managed to wangle a one week road trip from New Orleans through Houston, Austin and San Antonio and then up to Memphis before heading back to New Orleans.

My aim was to sample BBQ and Mexi / Tex Mex food - my 2 favourites.

http://www.shizzling.com/2012/03/road-trip-day-7-houston-to-austin-outer-space-to-stellar-brisket.html is my account of Ruby's, the first BBQ place we visited in Austin.

I'll be adding blog posts covering Iron Works BBQ in Austin, plus Black's and Kreuz' Market in Lockhart and a brilliant place in Memphis called Tom's BarBQ.

I also took along a semi pro video camera and managed to get pit tours at Ruby's, Black's and a quick whizz around at Tom's. I'll be editing the footage down and posting on Youtube. Incidentally, here's a video I shot and edited of the New Orleans RoadFood Festival, which features Central BBQ from Memphis and Louie Mueller Barbecue from Taylor, Texas - https://youtu.be/j189dTz3Trk .

The thing I really loved from the Texas BBQ places was the structure of the brick BBQ pits. In fact, I've ordered loads of blocks and some ironwork to make my own block BBQ over the weekend and early next week.

Blaq Sun
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Post  colin.irwin Fri May 04, 2012 6:47 pm

Hi,

No we didn't - the plan was to move on from Lockhart down to Luling but the afternoon went a little awry as my friends and I went into meat comas.

I'll definitely be going down there again though - you could spend a week down there, with Austin as your base, and go to a few great places each day.

colin.irwin
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Post  Blaq Sun Fri May 04, 2012 9:09 pm

Mmmmm ... meat coma ... that is pretty much what happened to me also. And yes Austin is a great base for going BBQ hunting Smile

I plan on going to Luling and Lexington on my next trip Smile

Q.


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