The Definitive Austin Barbecue Guide (Cooper, Franklin: restaurant, fence, eat)

[scm53]

Four time James Beard award winner Ruth Reichl weighs in:

About 15 years ago I stopped in Luling, at City Market, and had the best brisket of my life. I'd never imagined that brisket could taste like that: smoky, fatty, rich and so soft that it simply melted between the slices of white bread. I've been thinking about it ever since.

The other day in Austin, I had brisket that was even better at Franklin's.

[Komeht]

Originally Posted by scm53

Four time James Beard award winner Ruth Reichl weighs in:

Yup on both accounts. LCM has incredible Brisket - it's a 10 on a scale of 1-10. Franklins goes to 11.

[TexasHorseLady]

I'm still not sold on Franklin's. Yeah, I know, lots of people love it, but Franklin's disappointed me when they were in full hype mode and I was predisposed to like them - the brisket we've had there was okay, but nothing to write home about. Clearly Ruth Reichl, whom I love and who is only a rung or so below MFK Fisher for me but who I would never have considered an expert on Texas BBQ (any more than I would consider someone whose background is in Florida, Georgia and NYC - my reaction to the Bon Appetit accolade was to check the author's bonafides and then think, "Oh, honey, we need to get you down here and take you on a tour of all the available BBQ places just in Central Texas before you are qualified to make that call) even if I do agree with her about City Market thinks otherwise. With so many other wondrous choices available both near and a short drive away, why would I stand in line for hours in that case?

As I said above, BBQ is very subjective, and it's also very vulnerable to hype.

[ScoPro]

I never read BBQ blogs, just go by word of mouth from multiple aficionados born & bred in Texas.

And I don't judge a place by one visit.

But no meal is worth a two or three hour wait - life is too short for that nonsense. That's why I haven't been back to Franklin in over a year.

[RooCeleste]

This thread is making me hungry and now I want to get up from my desk, leave my office, and go get BBQ for lunch! I'm NOT a discriminating BBQ eater; if it smells smoky and good, is tender, and I don't have to cook it, I'll usually eat it and enjoy it. BUT one place stands out that neither my husband nor I liked at all -- Southside Market in Elgin. I can't really put my finger on why we didn't like it, but it just did nothing for us. The sauce wasn't good, the meat wasn't impressive. Nada. It was just blah. It might not be on the list for top BBQ places but I've heard a lot about it over the years....we just won't be raving about it or going back.

[AustinGuy]

Jimmy Kimmel visited four of our best BBQ joints and picked his favorite last night:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zh2fl5463BE

I expect lines are only going to get worse at these places after this. Especially during the rest of SXSW.

[scm53]

I'm gonna tell you what we did last TM BBQ festival. Four of us, all stood in line at Snow's, Franklin, Louie Mueller's, and Pecan Lodge (new darling of Dallas). All brought back two servings, put them on the table with numbers. I was the only one who knew which was which. Straight up, head to head - no hype, no wait. Voted 1-4.

Franklin, #1, by a hair over Snow's. LM a close third, and the Dallasites a distant fourth. What sets Franklin apart is the ability to get every trace of the connective tissue and fat out, preserve the Mueller style pepper and salt caramelized crust, and get the smoke flavor all the way through. Even Snow's can't do all three.

But I'm with ScoPro - not worth the wait. Only two times I've had Franklin in the last year was a ticketed dinner and at the festival. The gap between them and other really good places in the area isn't worth the gap in the wait.

[Danbo1957]

I've eaten Central Texas brisket for over 50 years. Franklin's brisket is very good, and it should be: Meyer Organic brisket sold at $17 a pound. Black's definitely is not as good as in years past. This current involvement of younger BBQ "hipster" pitmasters has only done good for the overall quality of area offerings. And those guys' success is the result of paying their dues working in Taylor and Llano, the long hours they put in, and the "respect for the meat". Just recently I had some incredible beef ribs at Cooper's in Llano, where I've had many not so great. I walked out to the pits during the middle of my meal and asked about the difference in taste. The smoke covered guy working told me that they are tinkering with several rib recipes and cooking techniques in response to patrons' requesting "better ribs". Fantastic.

[ScoPro]

Originally Posted by AustinGuy

Jimmy Kimmel visited four of our best BBQ joints and picked his favorite last night:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zh2fl5463BE

I expect lines are only going to get worse at these places after this. Especially during the rest of SXSW.

Kimmel taped the John Mueller segment a couple weeks ago. Saw pictures of him there posted on a UT sports message board the day they taped it. Said infamous sports board (where I hang out a lot) has a sign on the fence behind Mueller as he is showing Kimmel how he spices a brisket.

[TXEX06]

Originally Posted by scm53

Franklin, #1, by a hair over Snow's. LM a close third, and the Dallasites a distant fourth. What sets Franklin apart is the ability to get every trace of the connective tissue and fat out, preserve the Mueller style pepper and salt caramelized crust, and get the smoke flavor all the way through. Even Snow's can't do all three.

Hmmmm how do you know the smoke flavor goes all the way through? Does the smoke ring penetrate the whole piece of meat and can you see it? Is the whole brisket pink inside from the smoke? I ate at Two Bros. BBQ in SA yesterday and the brisket melted in my mouth, had a great bark, and had a great smokey flavor. How do your taste buds differentiate the smoke flavor from the outer layer of meat to the inner layer of meat?