Texas BBQ Posse

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Is the BBQ Posse just ‘a bunch of city boys’?

The Posse works a Moberg smoker full of briskets before eating at Flores Barbecue in Whitney, our No. 7 favorite spot in the state. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) We always knew barbecue commentary was a full-contact sport. So many good joints. So many different opinions. That message came through loud and clear after we published our list of the Texas BBQ Posse’s Favorite 41 joints last week. So far there have been a total of nearly 100 comments on Facebook postings by the Posse and others sharing our posts. And even a few here on our site. Some comments…

The Texas BBQ Posse goes sous vide

Posse member Mike Gagne uses sous vide to reheat a prime rib. (Photo ©Gary Jacobson/Texas BBQ Posse) Now it can be told. The Posse has gone all-in on sous vide. Well, not quite ALL. But we certainly have some strong sympathizers in our group. That became quite evident during a recent email discussion. It began on a lazy Friday afternoon and extended into the weekend. No better time to get philosophical about food. Sous vide, in short, is a method of cooking using sealed bags that are submerged in warm water. The technique was developed by a French chef…

Cooking / Equipment - 05/14/2018

Tejas Chocolate Craftory gets raves from the Posse

Lunch plate of brisket, pork ribs, turkey, brisket burnt ends & three sides at Tejas Chocolate Craftory in Tomball. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) At the Tejas Chocolate Craftory, a sign touting the French onion brisket soup was right in front of me at the order counter. That dish was also the first thing on the menu that caught my eye during a recent visit of the Posse to the Tomball joint, ranked one of the best in Texas. “Gotta order that,” I told my Posse mates earlier, as we reviewed all the offerings. But despite my resolve — and…

Joints - 03/24/2018

Side dishes are better than ever at Texas BBQ joints

Sides like these from Micklethwait Craft Meats, top & middle bottom photos, and Tejas Chocolate Craftory are changing the Texas BBQ scene. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) In the early years of the Posse, we didn’t care much for barbecue side dishes. You know, the standard potato salad, coleslaw and beans that often accompany smoked meat. We even had a no-side-dish rule, meaning we almost never ordered anything but meat. When you hit a half-dozen or more joints on a weekend tour, you want to reserve all your eating space for brisket, ribs and sausage. To us then, side dishes…

Joints - 03/19/2018

A Thanksgiving tribute to Walt and all the grill masters and pitmasters in our lives

Libby & Gunnar Jacobson at the cabin on Grindstone Island in 1991. (Editor's note: Making a nod to Thanksgiving tradition, we're re-running this post, first published in 2013.) With the Posse, I've eaten turkey at some of the best barbecue joints in Texas, including Franklin Barbecue in Austin and Stanley's in Tyler. Their turkey breast is first rate, no question, just like their other smoked meats. But the most memorable turkey I've ever eaten still remains Walt Scheela's, cooked at his cabin on Grindstone Island. The ambiance is important. One of 1,600 islands in Rainey Lake, Grindstone is located about…

People - 11/21/2017

Welcome to our new Texas BBQ Posse website

In Texas, Robert Earl Keen probably comes as close to being the official Bard of Barbecue as anybody we’ve got. You might quibble with his spelling, but not his sentiment: Don't give me no broccoli Or any Swiss fondue Baby if you want to rock me Give me good ole barbeque And what, you ask, puts us in such a mood for song? After seven years of blogging about smoked meats, the Texas BBQ Posse is launching a full blown Web site about our favorite topic. Don’t worry. Our main mission remains the same. We’ll tell the stories of the people and places…

Cooking / Joints / People - 03/31/2017

Lights, Camera, Eat BBQ! The Posse -- briefly -- goes Hollywood

George Clooney and Leo DiCaprio can relax because it's unlikely anyone from the Texas BBQ Posse will challenge them for leading roles in Tinseltown. Still, we had our brush, very briefly, with video fame. And while nothing came of it -- yet, anyway -- the experience was great fun so we thought we would share it with you. About a year ago, the folks at 12 Forward Entertainment in Dallas approached the Texas BBQ Posse about making a "pitch" video for a reality TV show based on the Posse. The video would then be used to sell the concept to…

People - 01/02/2017

The top 10 posts in the history of the Texas BBQ Posse Blog

Our first trip to Snow's BBQ in 2009 was a life-changing event for a group of friends. If a milestone occurs and no one notices, is it still a milestone? That question certainly doesn't rank with the great philosophical barbecue debates -- i.e., foil or butcher paper? -- but it is something we're pondering this week. Why? This is the 400th published post since we launched the Texas BBQ Posse blog in March of 2010, six and one-half years ago. The initial post in our Barbecue Chronicles is still one of my favorites. It was about our first trip to…

People - 10/17/2016

On an eating pilgrimage to Austin, a Californian meets Aaron Franklin and the Posse, and tastes 'the love' of Texas BBQ

Steven Hecht visits with La Barbecue pitmaster Dylan Taylor, 21, who was trained by the legendary John Lewis. (Photo ©Tom Fox) Posse Note: During our barbecue tour of Central Texas last weekend, we met Steven Hecht, born in Texas who now lives in California. He said that he's a regular reader of this blog and he used it to plan his Texas BBQ tour. Of course, after learning that, we asked him to write about his experience. Here is his story: I just returned from my first BBQ Pilgrimage to Austin, Texas and it was a life-changing experience. My name…

People - 01/30/2016

Check out the map of the Texas BBQ Posse's favorite joints

Since 2009, the Texas BBQ Posse has logged over 7,000 miles visiting joints around the state. In early 2010, group member Gary Barber set up an interactive Google map to chart our favorite BBQ joints around the state. Dozens of BBQ tours have followed since then. This map shows the places we'd visit again, an unofficial Texas BBQ Posse "stamp of approval." You can click here to access our Google map of Texas BBQ Posse stops. Enjoy the blue highways of Texas BBQ and follow the smoke!

Joints - 08/24/2015

'Nobody better' in Dallas than Cattleack Barbecue

Lunch sampling of brisket, pulled pork, beer bacon beef sausage & brisket pastrami at CattleAck BBQ. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) There may be some prophets of smoked meat, but too bad there aren't more poets. The Posse could have used one last Saturday because the smoked pastrami that Todd David served at CattleAck Barbecue deserved an ode, if not a sonnet. "That's the barbecue gauntlet right there," Posse member Bryan Gooding said of the pastrami. "Everybody else is going to have to figure out how to do it." Sliced from the lean end, the meat glistened on the tray.…

Joints - 06/15/2015

A very tasty Texas BBQ day: Breakfast at Snow's, lunch at Louie Mueller and dinner at Miller's Smokehouse

Legendary Snow's BBQ pitmaster Tootsie Tomanetz. (Photo ©Daniel Goncalves/fotobia.com) The Posse took it's long overdue 5th anniversary barbecue tour Saturday. Dubbed the Central Texas Legends Tour by Posse co-founder Chris Wilkins, it came 5 years and 5 months after our very first trip in November 2009. It was a one-day roundtrip dash from Dallas, covering 390 miles in about 13 hours. We ate at 3 joints and stopped at a fourth to pay homage to one of the state's cooking legends. A lot has changed since the Posse first started touring. And some things haven't. One of those is the…

Joints - 04/15/2015

In a Hyden brothers barbecue showdown, Kirby wins with his brisket

Randy Hyden (top) of Hyden Family Barbeque in Teague and brother Kirby Hyden of Kirby's Barbeque in Mexia.(Photos ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) You could call them The BBQ Brothers. In fact, we will. Kirby and Randy Hyden, once business partners with a long family tradition of barbecue, now operate separate joints about 15 miles apart. Kirby runs Kirby's Barbeque in Mexia and Randy has Hyden Family Barbeque in Teague. The Posse first ate at Kirby's in the summer of 2013 during a tour of Central Texas places that didn't include Randy's. Ever since, we've wanted to return and rectify that…

Joints - 02/09/2015

More evidence that Lockhart has lost its barbecue magic

Smitty's Market oak wood pile & the Caldwell County courthouse. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) On our way back to Dallas from our recent Houston-area barbecue tour, all 6 Posse members on the trip listed their top 5 joints in the state, in no particular order. Specific criteria probably varied from person to person, but these would be places we'd drive across the state to eat at or recommend to good friends that they do the same. Since then, we've been asked to run each person's top 5. Those lists are below. Three joints mentioned by each of us: Killen's…

Joints - 02/01/2015

Smoked meatloaf is a hit at Texas Smoke BBQ Co. in Sanger

The Posse samples various smoked meats at Texas Smoke BBQ Co. in Sanger. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) In the 5 years the Posse has been on the hunt for the best smoked meats in Texas, we've met lots of people chasing their barbecue restaurant dreams, including a preacher, a city councilman, and former corporate consultants. Jay Coin, the owner and pit master at Texas Smoke BBQ Co. in Sanger, is our first former undertaker. Texas Smoke was the second stop of our recent Denton County tour. We traveled 120 miles in 6 hours and ate at 4 places. Coin's place,…

Joints - 09/10/2014

Barbecue photography the old-fashioned way

Posse member Bruce Tomaso lends a hand with a reflector as photojournalist Guy Reynolds focuses in on Big Daddy's Ribs & BBQ owner Blake Merrell in Little Elm. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) If you follow this blog, you know it regularly features great barbecue photography. Several Posse members are photographers and they bring their equipment -- all kinds of equipment -- when we go on tours. Our recent Denton County tour, though, saw the most unusual piece of equipment yet. Guy Reynolds used a tripod mounted Graflex to shoot portraits of some of the pitmasters we visited. On other tours,…

People - 09/03/2014

Bet the House BBQ in Denton gets high marks from the Posse and football guru Rick Gosselin

The Posse digs into a platter of smoked meats at Bet the House BBQ in Denton. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) Rick Gosselin is one of the foremost football experts in the country. When he says the Dallas Cowboys offense is not yet ready for the regular season, as he did this past weekend, fans -- and the Cowboys -- should take serious notice. The Dallas Morning News columnist also knows barbecue. A couple weeks ago, he emailed us about a new place in Denton, Bet The House BBQ, where he had just eaten. "Brisket was awesome," he wrote, encouraging…

Joints - 08/24/2014

Smoked cheese a highlight at Big Daddy's Ribs & BBQ in Little Elm

A waitress delivers our first course, a four-meat platter at Big Daddy's Ribs & BBQ. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) We called it our Denton County BBQ Tour, but it could have just as easily been named the Lake Country Tour. As we traveled 120 miles in 6 hours to eat at 4 joints on a recent Saturday, we crossed 3 different bridges over Lake Lewisville and drove atop the Ray Roberts Lake Dam. Seeing the water, the boats, the parks, and the nice shoreside homes was a pleasant respite from the heat, which approached 100 degrees. And then we…

Joints - 08/23/2014

Strong reviews for CorkScrew BBQ in Spring...but

Brisket, ribs & sausage at CorkScrew BBQ in Sprint. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) The food is excellent at CorkScrew BBQ, a trailer joint located behind a shopping center in Spring: "This could be a Top 10 joint," said friend of the Posse Bryan Norton, who joined us on this stop in our 35-hour, 610-mile barbecue tour of the Houston area. "I can't stop eating," said Posse member Phil Lamb as he picked from a selection of fatty brisket, pork ribs, turkey, sausage, pulled pork and chopped brisket. Later he said he would have liked more smoke flavor on the brisket and…

Joints - 07/21/2014

High on smoke and creamed corn, BBQ eureka at Killen's BBQ

Pork ribs, brisket, potato salad & creamed corn at Killen's BBQ in Pearland. (Photo by Daniel Goncalves/fotobia.com) Just a week after the Posse's barbecue tour of Houston-area joints, Posse member Daniel Goncalves and his wife, Magda, made a return visit, including a trip to Killen's Barbecue in Pearland, which might just be the best barbecue joint in the state. Daniel says he had a couple of new barbecue revelations while high on smoke and creamed corn. Here is his report: My wife and I decided at the last minute to spend the 4th of July weekend in Houston. The previous…

Joints - 07/14/2014

Some great BBQ joint names, and some great food, too

Clockwise from top left, our stops included Buck Snort BBQ, The First Baptist Church of Bells, Cackle & Oink BBQ and Bull Hollar BBQ. (Photos ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) Had this been an official Posse outing, we would have called it the All-Time Best BBQ Name Tour. Covering 180 miles over 7 hours last Saturday, we ate at Buck Snort BBQ in Van Alstyne, Bull Hollar BBQ in Bells and Cackle & Oink BBQ in Sherman. As names for Texas joints go, that's a whole lot spicier than Franklin, Pecan Lodge and Kreuz Market. Mid-trip, we also ate at the First…

Joints - 04/23/2014

Give customers what they want, says Pit Stop BBQ boss

Award-winning pitmaster Steve Graham and his primary smoker at Pit Stop BBQ. (Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) An experienced competition cook, Steve Graham has filled his Pit Stop BBQ restaurant outside Waxahachie with trophies and plaques. He knows how to cook for a tough audience, judges, even different sets of judges. For example, he said, he always tried to get a look at the judges before he started preparing his meat. Older judges like salt, he said. "In a competition, that first taste is everything," Graham said. So the flavor has to be bold and great. If you read our posts…

Joints - 03/25/2014

In Texas, barbecued bologna is not the new turkey

Pitmaster Terry Massey slices smoked bologna at Lazy S&M BBQ in Joshua. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) A year ago, after our best of Austin tour, we wrote about how turkey breast was making a move to join the royal family of Texas barbecue: brisket, pork ribs, and sausage. We're still not ready to give the big bird equal status, but we order it whenever we see it on menus. A lot of joints in the state are smoking great turkey. On our recent South of DFW Tour, three of the four places we visited served barbecued bologna. Different, we…

Cooking - 03/22/2014

Rave reviews for BBQ on the Brazos from the Posse

Pitmaster John Sanford works the cutting board at BBQ on the Brazos. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) Editors note: As of Dec 2018, BBQ on the Brazos has moved to the nearby Motorsport Ranch in Cresson, located at 9012 Performance Ct. They are open Tues-Sat 10am-3pm. Too bad Posse member Bruce Tomaso didn't make our tour last weekend. We could have renewed our recent wood-versus-gas debate when our first stop, BBQ on the Brazos in Cresson, got rave reviews from everyone present. BBQ on the Brazos uses a gas-fired Ole Hickory smoker. "How many of our tours have started off…

Joints - 03/16/2014

Win a free meal with the Texas BBQ Posse at DFW's favorite joint

UPDATE: And the winner is........... Hutchins BBQ in McKinney. Click here to see photos of the favorite D/FW joint, as voted by Dallas Morning News readers. ORIGINAL ITEM: The Dallas Morning News just launched a new poll for readers to pick their favorite barbecue joint in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. As a bonus, one voter and his or her guest will be treated to a meal at the winning joint by the Posse. Get all the details at The News' Web site and don't forget to Tweet a link to the poll with the hashtag #texasbbqposse to become eligible for…

Joints - 01/10/2014

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