Traveling the Texas Barbeque Trail Pt. 4

Smitty’s Market, Lockhart.

Located at the former Kreus market site which had been selling BBQ since the turn of the century, Smitty’s has been considered as one of the top 5 BBQ places in the US.

Letf: The price sign is stained from years of the smoke in the smoke house.

Right: Customers lined up inside the smoke house for some of the best BBQ in the country.

Left: The L-shape smoke pit along two sides of the wall in the large room is fueled by hard wood burning at both ends.

Right: The wall is caked with layers of soot from years and years of use.


 
Right: Barbeque goodness!

The M.O. for buying BBQ meat at Smitty’s is the same as the others; line up; tell the guy with the knife how much meat you want; you pay by the weight at the end of the line; then carry the meat in butcher’s paper over to the dining room; get the drinks, condiments, etc.; and eat. Just don’t ask for sauce. Smitty’s does not believe in BBQ sauce!

The prime rib was absolutely delicious! I love the coating on the outside, a burnt combination of good seasoning rub, smoking, tender meat, and…fat. This was the first time I had smoked prime rib and it would definitely not going to be the last. It was different yet it was so good. This definitely was not your prime rib from a steakhouse.

The brisket had excellent flavors. It was a bit drier than those I had so far (I asked for extra moist), bit still plenty tender and moist.

We were greeted with mouth full of sweet tenderness when we bit into the ribs. Unlike the other meats, the ribs had a sweet glaze on the outside which in a certain degree helped to keep the moisture inside and the meat tender. The meat was melting in my fingers as I was pulling it off the bone. These were one of the most moist and tender ribs I ever had.

Biting into the sausage was like biting into a juice bomb. After getting through the crunchy casing with a clear snap, the juice oozed out of the skin like a floating stream. The meat was less coarse than those I have tasted during this trip yet it was so delicious with the juice/grease sloshing in my mouth.

If you had squeezed me after this meal, grease would have come out.