There are numerous helpful threads on Austin Bbq, but I figured I would dump my recent report here in one place as it might be helpful for future travelers. I know this board has become my go-to resource for any trip planning over the past 10 years. Also, I included some pics for the visual learners. Click on pics for better quality.
My son and I spent 48 hours on the ground in Austin. We hit 7 BBq places. Here’s how it rolled out in order of visits. A ranking at the end of this OP.
Franklin’s
Ok- Here’s the play-by-play: We landed at 10AM on a cold and rainy Thursday, jumped in our rental and we were at Franklin’s at 10:40. We were playing it by ear in terms of the line and considered going to LA Barbecue first and swinging back to Franklin or going to Franklin’s earlier the next morning.
Upon seeing the line just touching the parking lot (thanks, cold rainy day), my son said, now, we do it now. So he jumped out and was in line at 10:45. The line really was fun, hard to believe, but you end up talking to fellow travelers, have a couple beers, and the staff is very friendly and they stop by with very accurate predictions on how long you will be in line based on where you are. Like Disney. Long story short, we were inside at 12:10 and ordered at 12:50. Not bad at all and better than the 4-5 hour waits that are often the norm. We drove by Saturday morning on our way to Micklethwait and on a nice, sunny Sat the line was through the parking lot around the corner and up the street by their take out trailer at 10:45. yikes.
The brisket at Franklin’s. Wow. Other worldly. Despite eating at 6 other top spots, this brisket just stands above. Uncanny. The texture, flavor, smoke, just perfect. The fatty slices were heaven. And the bark. Mouthwaters thinking about it. We packed a cooler along the trip and the Franklin’s from Thursday was still amazing when we reheated it last night upon returning home to ATL. The sausage was also very good. They ran out of ribs about 30mins before we ordered. AND they ran out brisket about two groups after us. Hearing that would not make me very happy after the wait. The sides at Franklin were forgettable.
La Barbecue
Hit La Barbecue immediately after Franklin’s, around 1:45. No line. Weird set up as LA Barbecue basically occupies a counter counter inside a hipster coffee shop/mini-mart/prepared food Quickie Pickie. Least favorite ambience of the trip. Very good brisket, best ribs of the trip. The mac and cheese was very good. Did not try sausage, my mistake, just forgot it is what they do best.
Stiles Switch
Not many of the top BBQ spots stay open past late lunch, so we opted for Stiles Switch at 6:30. Decent evening crowd inside, no line. Third best brisket of the day, and very good pulled pork. The frito pie was a tasty and guilty pleasure. Fun atmosphere, cold beer, good people. Enjoyable. Any other day, I would be talking about it as great BBQ, just tough to follow the first two stops.
Valentina’s Tex Mex
Friday morning breakfast tacos at Valentina’s was one of the highlights of the quick trip. Scratch made flour tortillas are a thing of beauty. Potato, egg and brisket taco and the migas special tacos were so good. Wanted to come back here to try more food later in the day, but it is slightly out of the way and the Austin traffic…yikes. Excellent visit, despite the fact it was a 38 degree morning and Miguel didn’t turn on the heaters in the shed until half way through our meal. Of the places we hit this trip, this is the spot I would most like to revisit again soon.
Louie Mueller
Outside of the brisket at Franklin’s, this was the overall highlight of the trip. Once you get outside of Austin, you feel like you are really in Texas. You can smell Louie Mueller the minute you turn on to the main strip in Taylor. The inside of the building is what I think of when I think of an old school Texas bbq shack. Smokey, dark, the walls caked with years of smoke. Dimly lit, dudes in cowboy boots and hats. And the food…The beef rib, oh, the beef rib. Ours cost $39 and worth every penny. The brisket was also sublime. We got some nice burnt ends that were as good as Franklin’s in all honesty. I really enjoyed Louie Mueller. Everything about it. Glad we made the trip.
John Mueller Black Box
John Mueller seems to pop around a good bit. He’s most recently popping up at Granger City Brewing about 15 minutes from Louie Mueller. He cooks at higher heat than most. Brisket very good. More prominent smoke. Tender. Top few.
Micklethwait Craft Meats
Micklethwait was the lone disappointment of the trip. Our last stop before heading out of town on Saturday. Long line prior to open at 11 am. Brisket was dry, lacked personality. The pork shoulder was average, at best, the ribs were decent. Best sides of the trip, though, excellent smoked mac and cheese and the cole slaw was good. Overall though, poor showing. Maybe just an off day.
Overall Rankings/Food/Setting/Etc
- Louie Mueller
- Franklin’s
- Valentina’s
- La Barbecue - best ribs
- John Mueller
- Stiles Switch (but the frito pie was one of the top guilty bites) - best pulled pork
- Micklethwait
Brisket
- Franklin’s- by a good bit. Uncanny
- Louie Mueller
- John Mueller
- La Barbecue
- Stiles Switch
- Micklethwait - only sides worth talking about
I’ll add more thoughts as they come and some pics will follow below.