Friday, February 11, 2011: Cele Store (Manor, TX)

It had been far too long since we made our first visit to Cele Store, so we found a Friday night that worked for the most people - and made sure it was one of the two Friday nights per month when they have live music. Our party of 18 made the easy drive from Austin for our 7:30 reservation and, after mingling and taking photos and getting drinks, we finally made our way to our tables in the back, beside the house band.

It was most people's first time, and it didn't disappoint. The music was familiar and easy to sing along with. The joint was packed. The family-style food was piled high. And the pictures were snapping like kickoff at the Super Bowl. Our waitress handled our big, loud party masterfully. We got seconds of the meats (then they ran out). And then we made our way to the dance floor, where we, no doubt, frightened the regulars.

Folks, if you've never been to Cele Store, you've gotta go. They only serve BBQ on Friday nights, and the atmosphere is quite simply unlike any other. Go when the band is playing, stay as long as you can, and soak up the experience. It's totally worth it. (Here are the first few pics. LOTS more to come.)