No More Meat (Until Thanksgiving)

I went to Austin this weekend and I ate meat. Lots of it. Even though I began to crave a salad, or greens, any greens at all, after my third meal of barbecued meat and sides (including brisket for breakfast -- Dr. Atkins would have been proud), I fully understand why Texans take so much pride in their meat.

We headed straight from the airport to Rudy's, a chain barbecue joint designed in the fashion of a country store. Upon learning that this was my first visit to the restaurant, the guy at the counter shouted out "We've got a rookie" in the intonation of "Hey batter, batter" and promptly assembled a trio of meats for me to sample. Kitsch factor aside, the meats were delicious and it was with some difficulty that we ultimately settled on a half-pound of moist brisket, a half rack of baby back ribs, a pint of creamed corn, and banana pudding. An early welcome, holiday weight! I was especially delighted with the oak smoked ribs, which came coated with a flavorful dry spice and needed none of the famous "sause" (purists they were not, barbecue-wise or grammar-wise).

The next day, we drove down a desolate highway to Lockhart, the "BBQ Capital of Texas," fully intending to indulge in a progressive barbecue tasting. We stopped first at Black's BBQ, a small family-owned (since 1932) wood-paneled joint with decor (also seemingly since 1932) reminiscent of the Country Bear Jamboree at Disneyland. Although we were out of our element (was it my Blackberry? or my t-shirt with the rhinestone Longhorn on it?), the staff was friendly and welcoming, clearly accustomed to barbecue-loving tourists from all over. We picked up ribs, baked beans, creamed corn, and candied sweet potatoes. Although we didn't care much for the baked beans, the ribs were wonderfully smoky and the candied sweet potatoes and creamed corn were fantastic teasers for Thanksgiving, and we washed it all down with A&W root beer. I very much wanted to head to Kreuz Market next, but my stomach had by then taken on the distended dimensions of a goose being prepped for foie gras, so we headed back to Austin so that I could at least enjoy some Mexican vanilla ice cream at Amy's.