I was joined by an old friend last weekend on a quick five-stop BBQ roadtrip. Sports photographer extraordinaire Jeff Haynes, who was in San Antonio covering the NCAA basketball regionals for Reuters, had a down day on Saturday so we headed east on Interstate 10.

The original plan was to hit three city markets and see what we found in between. All three joints were threaded together by I-10 between San Antonio and Houston. They had all received five stars from our friend Daniel Vaughn, aka the BBQ Snob, so I knew it would be a tasty journey.

We planned take Hwy. 90 into Luling, stopping at City Market for brunch, then head south down Hwy. 183 to Gonzales Food Market. Then take Hwy. 90 east through Shiner and Hallettsville, head north up Hwy. 77 ending up at City Market in Schulenburg. Nothing goes together better than blue highways and BBQ smoke.

It was 10:30 am when we arrived at City Market and things were already hopping. We shot photos for a while, but the line started building quickly at the twin doors that lead in and out the smoker room and serving counter. In classic central Texas tradition, you get your order in one place and pay in another.

We ordered brisket and ribs. The ribs were very good but the brisket was a little disappointing. It looked good with a nice smoke ring, but didn't have much smoke. We grabbed some sauce, which had a distinctive mustard base and tangy flavor. I usually don't use sauce, but this was very good and helped amp up the brisket.

Judging from the growing crowd, this joint has a loyal following and I can't wait to visit again. We missed out on the beef sausage, which by all reports is spectacular, but we were pacing ourselves. One stop down and more to come. On to Gonzales........

Luling City Market, 633 Davis St., Luling, TX 78648, 830-875-9019,
Open Mon-Sat 7am-7pm.

Photos © Jeff Haynes & Chris Wilkins/The Texas BBQ Posse