Eating Out: Black's BBQ in Lockhart, Texas

As the cliche goes, time really does fly. About a year ago, I traveled to the Lone Star state with only one goal in mind -- to eat enough BBQ so that my pores would reek of smoke. That didn't exactly happen, as I only visited four places. Call it a mini BBQ crawl, if you will.

I wrote about my experiences with Franklin's and Smitty's, but I never got a chance to write about Black's BBQ -- Texas' oldest, family-owned BBQ restaurant. Well better late than never, right? 

Lockhart is about a half hour drive south from Austin, and I made sure to carve out some time during the short trip. Unfortunately, Kreuz Market was closed (Sunday), so I was a bit disappointed that I wouldn't get to complete the "holy trinity" of BBQ in Lockhart. 

Other than the kid who tried to sell Girl Scout Cookies by the front entrance, what stood out about Black's BBQ upon entering the restaurant was the seemingly endless row of side dishes. Beans, mac and cheese, green beans, the list goes on. It was tempting, but I had to resist. This was second lunch and my stomach could only hold so much food. I had already visited Smitty's BBQ a few minutes earlier!

The guys working the restaurant were real friendly, and immediately made me feel at home. Unlike Smitty's, where nobody cracked a smile and the atmosphere was more akin to a mortuary, eating at Black's just felt like eating at your relative's house in Texas. Except that this relative loves to hang deer head and giant long horns on the wall.

We ordered a giant beef rib and a couple of spare ribs to go along with a few slices of brisket. Everything was excellent. Good smoky flavor, tender meat, and nothing was dry. The giant beef rib was the clear winner -- the peppery flavor from that crusty bark sent shivers down my spine as I gnawed on the giant dino-sized bone. Black's BBQ is definitely worth a visit, and one of my favorite BBQ restaurants thus far. 

BBQ Lover's Dream: The Texas BBQ Mini Crawl

By Dru Chai

When I started this blog back in May of 2011, I knew BBQ was big. But I didn't know it was THIS big -- as in Texas BBQ big. The Lone Star state may be the largest in the U.S., but it still has that small-town feel. Everyone I met in Texas was so nice, generous, and down-to-earth. As a native Californian who had never been to Texas, I was expecting a ton of people wearing cowboy boots and hats, gnawing on some BBQ, all the while wrangling some horses in their dude ranch.

Of course, while all of that still holds true in Texas, I arrived simply for the 'Q. After reading, watching, and hearing about it, I was finally going to try authentic Texas BBQ. Although Bludso's in Compton, CA has a fine rendition of Texas BBQ, I was ready to try the real thing. Would it be everything as I had hoped for? Or would it be a huge disappointment? It was a little bit of both. I could write and nitpick about every little detail of every BBQ bite like a KCBS certified judge, or I could simply enjoy and soak in the entire experience and pay homage to BBQ. It was most definitely the latter.

Gnawing on a giant beef rib at Black's BBQ (good, despite my odd-looking face)

Although there are hundreds, if not thousands of BBQ restaurants in the state Texas, I knew that whatever place I chose was only the tip of the iceberg. Naturally, as a tourist, I chose the touristy locations. Though BBQ enthusiasts will always have their own opinion on what constitutes good BBQ and which restaurant has it, I was determined to try for myself. With only a couple of days in Texas and a limited driving radius, I selected the following restaurants:

- The Salt Lick in Driftwood

- Franklin BBQ in Austin

- Smitty's Market in Lockhart

- Kreuz in Lockhart (closed)

- Black's BBQ in Lockhart

By no means is this a full-blown BBQ crawl, but more of a mini one. Very mini. No doubt, you'll find many BBQ blogs that extensively document each and every BBQ restaurant in Texas. This was merely dipping my California toe into the Texas BBQ waters, as I hope to travel back again in the near future for either second visits or for new experiences. So what did I think of each restaurant? Well, I'll be writing more detailed posts in the upcoming weeks (but probably months) about my Texas BBQ experience. For now, check out some of my quick critique thoughts and pictures on Facebook.