Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Monday, January 30, 2012
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Wild Blue Barbecue (Los Fresnos, TX) is closing.
Wild Blue Barbecue, in operation since 2005, is going out of business. The Brownsville Herald has the story (Hat tip to my friends at the Texas BBQ Posse):
Wild Blue Barbecue owner and pitmaster Abraham Avila is throwing in the towel. The acclaimed restaurant will close Feb. 4. Despite repeatedly making the list of Texas Monthly "Top 50 Barbecue Joints" and being invited in 2011 and 2010 to the exclusive Texas Monthly Barbecue Festival in Austin, business has not been consistent enough to keep going, said Avila. He opened the restaurant on SH 100 between U.S. Expressway 77/83 and Los Fresnos in 2005. While some months have been strong, others have been poor, Avila said. "Making very little is not enough," he said. Avila, a trained chef who graduated from the Pennsylvania Culinary Institute in Pittsburgh, said he’s got plans for a new restaurant in Brownsville but offered few specifics. He said he also hopes to reopen Wild Blue in a year or so — in Brownsville. Despite the disappointment of having to close in Los Fresnos, it’s been worth it, Avila said. "I don’t regret it," he said. "I met some of my dearest friends who I never would have met if I hadn’t had that restaurant."
Wild Blue Barbecue owner and pitmaster Abraham Avila is throwing in the towel. The acclaimed restaurant will close Feb. 4. Despite repeatedly making the list of Texas Monthly "Top 50 Barbecue Joints" and being invited in 2011 and 2010 to the exclusive Texas Monthly Barbecue Festival in Austin, business has not been consistent enough to keep going, said Avila. He opened the restaurant on SH 100 between U.S. Expressway 77/83 and Los Fresnos in 2005. While some months have been strong, others have been poor, Avila said. "Making very little is not enough," he said. Avila, a trained chef who graduated from the Pennsylvania Culinary Institute in Pittsburgh, said he’s got plans for a new restaurant in Brownsville but offered few specifics. He said he also hopes to reopen Wild Blue in a year or so — in Brownsville. Despite the disappointment of having to close in Los Fresnos, it’s been worth it, Avila said. "I don’t regret it," he said. "I met some of my dearest friends who I never would have met if I hadn’t had that restaurant."
Woodshed Smokehouse set to open in Fort Worth.
On Wednesday, February 1, a new BBQ restaurant will open its doors in Fort Worth: Woodshed Smokehouse.
From its website: "Located alongside the scenic Trinity Trails off S. University Drive & I-30 in Fort Worth, the Woodshed Smokehouse at 3201 Riverfront Drive is a concept that has been over 3 years in the making. What celebrity chef & local Fort Worth entreprenuer Tim Love envisioned to be as a modern riverside bar-b-q joint hosting a warm & friendly atmosphere and great smoked meat, has turned into something way more than he could ever imagine. It is now, clearly, the ultimate backyard party. Chef Love's vision of Bar-B-Q might have you slightly confused. This is not your traditional Bar-B-Q. This is Chef Love's Bar-B-Q! With three smokers, two rotisseries, two wood grills, and six different kinds of wood, one glance around the Woodshed and you will find that Chef Love takes his meat seriously. With flavors bursting out of every possible turn, whether it's a pig roasting on the spit, the Spicy Korean Beef scent wafting from the grill, or the stack of pork ribs basting in the smoker, your senses and your pallate are in for one big culinary treat."
On February 1, 2, & 3, Woodshed will open at 4. Starting February 4, hours will be as follows:
Breakfast: Open at 7am (coffee and pastries available)
Lunch: 11am - 4pm
Dinner: 4pm – close
Here's the menu. Check 'em out on Facebook & Twitter.
As we hope for all BBQ joints that open up, good luck, WS!
From its website: "Located alongside the scenic Trinity Trails off S. University Drive & I-30 in Fort Worth, the Woodshed Smokehouse at 3201 Riverfront Drive is a concept that has been over 3 years in the making. What celebrity chef & local Fort Worth entreprenuer Tim Love envisioned to be as a modern riverside bar-b-q joint hosting a warm & friendly atmosphere and great smoked meat, has turned into something way more than he could ever imagine. It is now, clearly, the ultimate backyard party. Chef Love's vision of Bar-B-Q might have you slightly confused. This is not your traditional Bar-B-Q. This is Chef Love's Bar-B-Q! With three smokers, two rotisseries, two wood grills, and six different kinds of wood, one glance around the Woodshed and you will find that Chef Love takes his meat seriously. With flavors bursting out of every possible turn, whether it's a pig roasting on the spit, the Spicy Korean Beef scent wafting from the grill, or the stack of pork ribs basting in the smoker, your senses and your pallate are in for one big culinary treat."
On February 1, 2, & 3, Woodshed will open at 4. Starting February 4, hours will be as follows:
Breakfast: Open at 7am (coffee and pastries available)
Lunch: 11am - 4pm
Dinner: 4pm – close
Here's the menu. Check 'em out on Facebook & Twitter.
As we hope for all BBQ joints that open up, good luck, WS!
Friday, January 27, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
QOTD: What Texas BBQ joint was your biggest disappointment?
Yesterday, I asked which Texas BBQ joint was most exceeded your expectations. Naturally, I follow that up today by asking which one most disappointed you. Whether you had grand pre-meal expectations or even low expectations, which one was your biggest letdown?
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
QOTD: What Texas BBQ joint was your most pleasant surprise?
I don't know about you, but I go into pretty much any BBQ joint with low expectations. That way, if it's even okay, I'm not really disappointed. But, regardless of your expectations, some places go way above and beyond. So, whether it's a place you thought would be good but was actually fantastic or a place you thought would be bad but was good, what Texas BBQ joint most exceeded your expectations?
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q Giveaway!!!
Our friends at Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q (Atlanta, GA) have been kind enough to let us give away some of their stuff. We're particularly excited about this giveaway. as the brothers behind Fox Bros. are Texas natives. They're also an affiliate of The Q Card. If you're in the ATL, you're probably well aware of Fox Bros. If not, you can learn all about them via their website, their Facebook page, & their Twitter feed.
Courtesy of Fox Bros., we're giving away 3 prizes, each of which will go to a different winner (So, 3 lucky winners, if you're keeping score at home.). Prizes are...
(1) Package of BBQ sauce, wing sauce, & dry rub (See picture below.)
(2) Bottle of BBQ sauce
(3) Bottle of BBQ sauce
As always, we give you several ways to get your name in the hat, and you can do any or all of them one time. For your chance(s) to win, you can...
(1) Follow Fox Bros. on Twitter
(2) Like Fox Bros. on Facebook
(3) Retweet any tweet of mine about the giveaway
(4) Email me the type of wood that Fox Bros. uses to smoke their meats.
You can find this information by going to this page of Fox Bros.' website! Contest runs through February 13. I'll announce/notify one winner on each of the next 3 Tuesdays. Good luck!!!
Monday, January 23, 2012
Sunday, January 22, 2012
QOTD: Which is worse: tough pork ribs or dried-out brisket?
This is an easy one for me. There is nothing I hate more on a BBQ plate than a tough, chewy pork rib. There is nothing worth doing with it. On the other hand, if I get some bone-dry sliced or chopped beef, at least I can get some sauce, pickles, & onions and make a passable sandwich out of it. What say you? Which one would you rather have: a tough, chewy pork rib or dried-out brisket?
Saturday, January 21, 2012
The Big Chop at Cooper's
Cooper's Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que is home of The Big Chop. This is Brad's from last Saturday in Llano:
Friday, January 20, 2012
Jacob hits up Stiles Switch BBQ (Austin, TX)
As he usually is the day a BBQ joint opens in the Austin area, our man Jacob hit up Stiles Switch BBQ & Brew on its opening day. His thoughts & his pictures:
"All the photos are from my trip to Stiles Switch on the opening day. I waited too long to write a proper review, and now I can't remember correctly to do it now. What I do remember is that the beef rib was amazing, the brisket and sausages were very good, and the pork rib was awful (though to be fair the pit master knew it was bad, and kept trying to bring me out more to taste, although they all where horrible cuts of meat to begin with, and overcooked and unevenly seasoned.) They need to work on the pork rib and most likely even work on a new source of ribs because they were puney and poor to begin with. Still they were very friendly and great people. This place shows amazing promise and I would say it has all the potential it needs to be top 3 in Austin."
"All the photos are from my trip to Stiles Switch on the opening day. I waited too long to write a proper review, and now I can't remember correctly to do it now. What I do remember is that the beef rib was amazing, the brisket and sausages were very good, and the pork rib was awful (though to be fair the pit master knew it was bad, and kept trying to bring me out more to taste, although they all where horrible cuts of meat to begin with, and overcooked and unevenly seasoned.) They need to work on the pork rib and most likely even work on a new source of ribs because they were puney and poor to begin with. Still they were very friendly and great people. This place shows amazing promise and I would say it has all the potential it needs to be top 3 in Austin."
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