"BBQ Tour" of Lockhart TX


 
T

TravisH

TVWBB All-Star
The opportunity presented itself for a friend and myself to make a "BBQ Tour" Lockhart TX, self-proclaimed BBQ Capital of Texas.

Capital is right, there must be a dozen BBQ joints there. Amazing considering Lockhart proper occupies only about 1 mile of Hwy 183. But limited ourselves to the Big 3 - Kreuz, Smitty's, and Black's.

We arrive just after 1pm, enough time we guestimated to avoid any previous-day's leftovers and the crowds.

From each place we ordered 1 lb of lean Brisket, 1 lb of Spareribs, and 1 'ring' of Links (~ ¼ lb) 1 ring for each of us. The thinking was that 1 lb would be enough of a sample size to be tested here-n-there vs a single bite/piece.

Black's was the only one to provide sauce, the others don't offer it, so no sauce was used in testing.

We took the samples to a neutral location for the taste testing.

Below is our opinion of the fare for that day.


Black's
Link - good flavor
Brisket - good flavor, nice smoke ring, the only true 'lean' cut from the flat.
Ribs - excellent, just shy of FOTB, looked great
Sauce - good flavor, kinda like a vinegary Sweet Baby Rays.


Kreuz
Link - good flavor, a little after-taste heat flavor
Brisket - not quite 'lean', good flavor, good smoke
Ribs - just shy of FOTB, peppery, good smoke


Smitty's
Link - mealy, crumbled when cut, very little flavor, 'formed hamburger'
Brisket - the fattiest 'lean' brisket we had, very tender, good flavor, mild smoke flavor
Ribs - almost FOTB, little flavor, mild smoke flavor


Overall, we liked Black's the best followed closely by Kreuz. Kreuz had the best smoke flavor of them all.
Smitty's I would be the most reluctant to try again as nothing had a good smoke flavor (mild at best) and their Links were a disappointment. If going back
just for lunch, I'd definitely go to Black's.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by j biesinger:
sound like fun!

we just were at Hill Country in NYC, its supposed to be just like Kreuz's. You can see some pics here. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Agree, especially with the serving counter and paper service. They all use the same brown paper.

Kruez is very large but the others are hole-in-the-walls, though they look much larger on TV.

Silly me, I'd didn't take a camera!


BTW (as some of you may recall), I've always considered my brisket a 'disappointment' and less than 'perfect'.

Relatives, friends, and neighbors tell me I'm crazy, that I'm too critical.

Based on the results of my "BBQ Tour", I've finally accepted that my brisket *IS* pretty good. Not the best I've had but certainly at the level that I would be totally confident to put mine up against commercial product.
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Travis,

I've favored Smitty's over the other 2 for years so I was surprised with your review. I've always found the sausage at Smitty's to be very good. Give them another try next time you drive by.

Paul
 
Travis-

thanks for the reviews. I'll have to try them all someday. Is it relatively close to Austin? Can't recall if it is or if it's the one in the middle of nowhere.

Anyhow, I also agree with you on our self-evaluations. I'm VERY critical on myself. And on food in general. But, I've cooked tri tip more than anything, and people always tell me it is excellent...which I don't usually believe...but after a couple trips up the coast, trying tri tip around Santa Maria and other areas and being very disappointed, I'd say I make a pretty decent tri!

Thanks man
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Paul K:
I've favored Smitty's over the other 2 for years so I was surprised with your review. I've always found the sausage at Smitty's to be very good. Give them another try next time you drive by. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>uh ... okay, if you insist.
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<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Tim L.:
Is it relatively close to Austin? Can't recall if it is or if it's the one in the middle of nowhere. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Lockhart is about 20 miles south of Austin. Just take Hwy 183 south.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I've always found the sausage at Smitty's to be very good. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Me too. Though their sausage - and the other's - can be inconsistent.

I do like Black's the best overall, though I'm not saying much, finding 'Texas barbecue' to be wildly overrated (I'm speaking of the commercial Q only).

I did - do - want to try the place you, Paul, mentioned in a post some time back. Just south of the center of Lockhart...? I searched for the post a couple weeks ago when I was in the area but couldn't find it. It was a last minute, get-there-now-or-get-gone sort of moment so I moved on.
What was the name and location - and is it still there?
 
Google BBQ Lockhart TX and zoom in on the Google map for the locations.

We also wanted to stop at The Salt Lick in Driftwood and Louie Mueller Barbecue in Taylor (both also near Austin) but we OD'ed on BBQ in Lockhart and couldn't bring ourselves to add those side trips.
 
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