TMBBQ Fest 2017



Snow's BBQ Crew

In case you have been living in a cave for the last six months, Texas Monthly released a new Top 50 list. Armed with a new list, Texas Monthly made this year's TMBBQ Fest the biggest one yet. They hosted 30 BBQ joints from all over Texas! There were a lot of places making their first appearance at The Long Center. I have been to all but three of the restaurants. That will change hopefully in the next six months. It is definitely one of my favorite days of the year. I arrived there a couple of hours early and chatted with a majority of the pitmasters and crew. I had no idea what my eating plans for the festival this year, but once I started, I knew I had to eat at every tent. I am posting the journey in chronological order. In the later shots, I will list what the participating barbecue joint brought, but by the time I arrived to the respective tent, they were out of certain items. Here we go:

Franklin Barbecue (Austin) - Brisket, pulled pork, and sausage

Aaron Franklin slicing brisket

2M Smokehouse (San Antonio) - Brisket, pork Serrano Oaxaca cheese sausage, and barbacoa taco

Truth Barbeque (Brenham) - Brisket and jalapeño cheddar sausage

Pitmaster Leonard Botello IV slicing up brisket

CorkScrew BBQ (Spring) - Brisket, pork rib, and jalapeño sausage

Valentina’s Tex Mex BBQ (Austin) - Brisket, pork rib, jalapeño cheese sausage, and barbacoa taco

Cattleack Barbeque (Dallas) - Pastrami, bologna, and jalapeño cheese sausage

Tejas Chocolate Craftory (Tomball) - Brisket, pastrami, Danish rib, chocolate panna cotta shooter, and carrot soufflé

Pitmaster/Chef Scott Moore

Bodacious Bar-B-Q (Longview) - Brisket, pastrami burnt end boudin, and beef bacon toffee bar

Chef/pitmaster Bryan Bingham and Scott Turner

Pinkerton’s Barbecue (Houston) - Brisket and jalapeño cheese sausage

La Barbecue (Austin) - Brisket, pulled pork, and hot guts

Stiles Switch BBQ & Brew (Austin) - Brisket and sausage (beef, Nashville Hot Chicken with brisket fat hot sauce, and smoked orange duck & pork with smoked foie gras aioli)



Pitmaster Bill Dumas on the block

Heim Barbecue (Fort Worth) - Brisket and bacon burnt ends

Roegels Barbecue Co. (Houston) - Brisket, sausage, and pastrami

Micklethwait Craft Meats (Austin) - Brisket, pork rib, lamb and Andouille sausage

Pody’s BBQ (Pecos) - Brisket

Stanley’s Famous Pit BBQ (Tyler) - Brisket, baby back ribs, and jalapeño and cheese sausage

Tyler’s Barbeque (Amarillo) - Brisket, pork ribs, and green chile mac & cheese

The ladies of Tyler’s

BBQ on the Brazos (Cresson) - Brisket, sausage, and slaw

Stillwater Barbeque (Abilene) - Brisket

Terry Black’s Barbecue (Austin) - Brisket, bacon, and Michelada sausage with pineapple, lime & Tajin

Snow’s BBQ (Lexington) - Brisket, pork rib, and sausage

Kerry Bexley and Tootsie Tomanetz

The Granary ’Cue & Brew (San Antonio) - Pork belly, pulled pork, brisket, and pastrami

Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que (Llano) - Brisket, pork chop, and sausage

Hays Co. Bar-B-Que (San Marcos) - Brisket, pork chop, and jalapeño cheese sausage

Louie Mueller Barbecue (Taylor) - Brisket, beef rib, and sausage

Miller’s Smokehouse (Belton) - Brisket, pork rib, and cornbread

Hutchins BBQ (McKinney) - Brisket, pork rib, and jalapeño cheese sausage

Evie Mae’s Pit Barbecue (Wolfforth) - Brisket, pork rib, sausage (German, green chile & green chile cheese), green chile cheesy grits, and Mississippi mud pie sheet cake

Smolik’s Smokehouse (Mathis) - Brisket, pork rib, and sausage

Lockhart Smokehouse (Dallas) - Prime rib and jalapeño cheese sausage

I made it! I hit all 30! I probably will not do that again. Hitting all of them is a lot. I had to make a few water/lemonade/tea pit stops along the way. It took about 3.5 hour to get to every tent. I lost track and almost missed out on a couple of tents. I wish I had a wheelbarrow so someone could have rolled me out of there. I was stuffed like a Thanksgiving turkey. I would not recommend trying to eat it all. Although you get to experience what every participation offers, various meats will start to run out. You might not be able to get the meat that specific restaurant is known for. All in all, it was a fun day. The lines were overall pretty manageable, and the event was not crowded. Everyone brought their game, and there were so many delicious bites to be had. It is like a BBQ reunion for me every year. It was great seeing familiar faces and "meating" new people. The festival brings one giant barbecue family together, and everyone is having a blast. Because I was busy eating, I missed out on some prime picture taking time. I might have to change my approach next year.

One giant BBQ family - folks from Tyler's, La Barbecue, Truth, and Stiles Switch

Until next time, happy smoking...

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Heavy’s Outdoor Bar-B-Que (First Impression)

I drove down to San Antonio to eat at a Top 50 BBQ restaurant. I did not feel like wasting a trip just to eat at one place. I juggled multiple options during the drive to San Antonio and decided on Heavy’s Outdoor Bar-B-Que. Heavy's made the Texas Monthly BBQ list this time around. It is located on Hondo which is about 45 minute drive west of San Antonio. I had to be somewhere at 3 PM so I had to make this BBQ road trip really snappy. When you get there, you will see a brick pit out front, but it is dormant as 2 Southern Prides are doing all the lifting.

The first thing I noticed on the menu was the prices. Everything was really affordable. Brisket/beef was only $11.75 per pound! It is almost unheard of nowadays. I ordered the Texas Trinity ($11.50 for a plate!) with sides of beans and potato salad. The brisket was cooked nicely, and the fat was well-rendered. Other than the smoke from mesquite, there was no flavor. It was missing something. The pork ribs were a little better. Although partially undercooked the ribs were good. The flavors were simple, but they worked. The sausage was the best thing on the plate. The casing popped, and the texture of the sausage was ideal. There was plenty of fat, and you get a lot of garlic and black pepper in each bite. The homemade sides were nothing special to write about.

The dining room at Heavy’s Outdoor Bar-B-Que was filled with locals and blue-collar workers. These folks are showing up for a quality meal without breaking the bank. I get the appeal of Heavy's. A no-frills BBQ joint. I am not in hurry to go back though. It is a little far, but if you are in the area, it might be worth stopping by. I do regret for not trying one of the poultry items. When you heading out that way, double check your GPS. There is also a Heavy's in Devine. Grade: N/A

Until next time, happy smoking...

Address: 1301 19th St, Hondo, TX 78861
Phone:

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