The four meat plate with a link of boudin brought a smile to Posse faces at Ray's Real Pit BBQ Shack in Houston. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse)

In a previous post, careful readers might wonder about the heading over the itinerary of our weekend trip:

"Houston Redemption BBQ Tour"

What's that all about?

Flash back to the Posse's first Gulf Coast tour two years ago. It was disappointing. The only good barbecue we found was in Galveston, 50 miles away.

"Houston, we have a barbecue problem" was the headline on that chapter of our BBQ Chronicles. Some of our smoked meat brethren in The Bayou City are still upset at us.

So, one of the main goals of our most recent tour was to see if Houston had redeemed itself, in a barbecue way.

Or, would that billboard along I-45 near downtown about a dinosaur exhibit prove true?

"Best ribs in town
Houston Museum of Natural Science"

While finding good smoked meat in the city proper is still a challenge, we can report that, yes, the greater Houston area certainly has found barbecue redemption.

Beef ribs at Killen's BBQ in Cypress. (Photo ©Daniel Goncalves/fotobia.com)

Five of the six joints we hit served solid barbecue. One, Killen's Barbecue in Pearland, might just be the best place in the state.

(Note: Because of an internal communications snafu, Posse members actually ate at 7 places last weekend. While the main body went to The Brisket House location in Deer Park, one member went to the location in Houston. The food at both received good reviews.)

The only real disappointment, food wise, was Virgie's Bar-B-Que, located in the city. We didn't like it two years ago. Ditto last weekend.

"I thought we might have been wrong the last time, but we weren't," said Posse co-founder Chris Wilkins.

Texas Monthly rates Virgie's among its Top 50 in the state. The Posse can't figure out why.

Houston Redemption BBQ Tour

Friday 6/27
7:45am: Leave Dallas

10:30am: CorkScrew BBQ, 24930 Budde Rd., Spring, 832-592-1184. Open Tues-Sat 11am-til the meat runs out. Website: http://www.corkscrewbbq.com (Texas Monthly Top 50)

1pm: Virgie's Bar-B-Que, 5535 Gessner Dr., Houston, 713-466-6525. Open Tues 11am-2pm, Wed-Fri 11am-6:30pm, Sat 11am-5:30pm. Website: http://www.virgiesbbq.com (Texas Monthly Top 50)

3pm: Brooks' Place, 18020 FM 529, Cypress, 832-893-1682. Open Wed-Sun 11am-til the meat runs out. Website: Website: http://www.brooksplacebbq.com (Texas Monthly Top 50)

7:10pm: Detroit Tigers @ Houston Astros, Minute Maid Park.

Overnight in Houston, Club Quarters Houston hotel

Saturday 6/28
10:30am: Killen's BBQ, 3613 E. Broadway, Pearland, 281-485-2272. Open Tues-Sun 11am-until they run out of meat. Website: http://www.killensbarbecue.com

1pm: Ray's Real Pit BBQ Shack, 4529 Old Spanish Trail, Houston, 713-748-4227. Open Mon-Sat 11am-8pm. Website: http://www.raysbbqshack.com

3pm: Brisket House, 5775 Woodway, Houston, 281-888-0331. Open Mon-Sat 11am-9pm, Sat 11am-6pm. Website: http://thebriskethouse.com

4:00pm: Head back to Dallas

Brooks Place pitmaster and owner Trent Brooks talks BBQ 101 with the Posse in Cypress. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse)