BBQPalooza10: Calm Before The Storm

Every time I reflect on BBQPalooza, it always comes back to the people. Sharing meals and interacting with friends, acquaintances, and the awesome people that make the Texas BBQ community so unique. This year was no different, but obviously sitting here a few days later it is surreal to reflect on what might have been many of our last communal experiences for a while. Saturday was an awesome time as always, and I am going to recap it for you here as always, but it's with a heavy heart that I know all of the establishments we visited a few days back and all the numerous favorites that we frequent over the years are facing their most difficult challenge in an industry that can be full of difficult challenges. Before I get to the recap let me just say....our thoughts and prayers are with the BBQ community and those businesses that are probably experiencing even more hardship than most of us at this very difficult time. We LOVE all you guys and sincerely hope each of you pulls through to the other side of this challenge. If you enjoy reading this blog....may I suggest that 1 day a week during this quarantine you frequent one of the many BBQ spots I have been raving about over the years (almost all are doing to go orders) and replicate some of that BBQ experience at home with your family (maybe throw some good music on the alexa and set up some cornhole in the living room to get the full effect). Let's show some love to these guys! Here's a few suggestions.....

We began BBQPalooza 10 with our earliest departure time ever. 4AM. We wanted to get to Snow's BBQ and be up front so we could complete the day's activities. We were 3rd in line, but we did get there early enough to have some great conversation with Clay as he tended the pits. Ms. Tootsie appeared more remote than usual looking back, and that is understandable. Snow's has the added dilemma of having a bonified Texas legend (very much in the at risk age) that we all want to be protected during this time. After chatting up Clay we had the privilege of having some BBQ "insiders" join BBQPalooza for some feasting. Of course BBQPalooza founder The Oak Texas BBQ and everyone's favorite Truth BBQ employee Cole Parkman were present. As were Yoni from Best BBQ show, Mauro from Texicana BBQ, and Mel and his dad Juan from La Traila. Snow's opened promptly at 8am and we feasted. Brisket, ribs, sausage there is a reason Snow's is the reigning #1 according to Texas Monthly. I can also recommend the pork steak and chicken which I never miss when making the Saturday trek to Lexington! There truly is nothing like a Saturday BBQ breakfast at Snow's, and in my opinion if you haven't crossed it off yet....your BBQ bucket list is severely lacking.

From Snow's we were all a little apprehensive, but followed the direction of our fearless leader The Oak who claimed we had to make the short trek North to all get our first tray from Brett's Backyard Bar-B-Que. What an awesome set up Brett has! Think your perfect Texas backyard hangout: Old beer signs, picnic tables, giant jenga, cornhole, shade trees....Brett's has everything!  We had an awesome time hanging out and waiting for them to open. Now pro tip: Brett's website says they open 10:30am, but we were first in line Saturday and made the order around 11:15...no sweat if you are hanging out at Brett's and enjoying the day (RECOMMENDED), but a little frustrating if you have a long day of BBQ times to keep up with. Once we received our tray we marveled....exquisite brisket, juicy pork steak, the entire plate was AMAZING. Oh yeah...and Brett's is one of those spots you have to order the sides....my personal favorite was the jalapeno cream corn. Despite being full from Snow's, we demolished our tray, gave thanks to Brett and crew, and headed back on the road. If you are ever near Rockdale I have to say that Brett's is a MUST STOP.

Now we were running a little behind and had to head to DandT drive In for our other spot that none of us had ever experienced: Eddie O's. Eddie was running low by the time we got there on most of the meats but we aren't rookies and knew to place a preorder for his beloved brisket empanadas.....HOLY SMOKED MEAT TEJANO GOODNESS! Few bites on BBQPalooza have affected me as much as that brisket empanada did! I CANNOT stress this enough....place a preorder and pick up some of these doughy, salt encrusted, moist brisket filled pieces of TexMex heaven STAT. I could eat those things every day. Fairly certain Eddie's empanadas are the best thing to happen to brisket since salt and pepper. Unbelievably, as good as that was Eddie's barbacoa tacos caused a small argument whether or not they were even better than the empanadas (#Team Empanada). Once we finished our meal we got to hang out and talk with Eddie and get some pics. As is almost always the case I enjoyed his food even more after his hospitality. Eddie O's is a real family love affair, you can see members of his family serving, taking orders, and just hanging out with the customers. Houston is my home too, and few places I have been have exemplified the things I love about Houston more than Eddie O's...what a fantastic addition to the best BBQ community in Texas!

Unfortunately due to time constraints we had to eliminate Blood Bros. BBQ, but you can read my glowing review from last year. Instead we went right down the street to one of my all time favorite places: Pinkerton's Barbecue. First of all congrats to Grant on his upcoming marriage! We saw him pull up and got to say hello on our way out. He and his staff consistently throw down one of the best BBQ trays in all of Texas. Top line brisket, sausage and boudin, and some of the best ribs you will ever find! You can't go to Pinkerton's without grabbing some smoked duck and sausage jambalaya (undefeated as a BBQ side for years now). Another unique aspect of Pinkerton's is the full service bar where patrons can order an old fashioned, a bucket of beers, or just enjoy the tremendous ambiance of feeling like you are sitting at somebody's cabin bar in the Hill Country. Pinkerton's is a personal favorite, and as always....it did not disappoint.

For the second year in a row we closed down BBQPalooza at The Pit Room. One of the few locations with top line barbecue that almost always has food left in the evenings! The Pit Room tacos stuffed in their brisket fat tortillas are legendary. If you just want a traditional trinity, The Pit Room can rival the best....and yet few can come close to their tex-mex taco offerings. After a full day of smoked meats, it's also nice to be able to go right next door to The Patio (owned by the same group) and top everything off with some crawfish. The wives once again showed up at the last stop to help us finish our plates and end a great day with some friends and camaraderie. The Pit Room and Patio is one of the best hang out spots in all of Houston and once we get done with this interesting time would be a perfect place to have a post quarantine party (until then might I suggest some tacos to go? ). 

To recap: We enjoyed an amazing day of old favorites (Snow's, Pinkerton's, and The Pit Room), and I think everyone would agree that the biggest takeaways were the 2 new spots: Brett's amazing tray and Eddie O's dueling empanadas and barbacoa tacos! We continue to be surprised and blown away by new offerings in the world of Texas BBQ every year at BBQPalooza. As I wrap this up I can't help but go back to my initial thoughts. We feel extraordinarily lucky to have been able to enjoy BBQPalooza on Saturday like we did. The BBQ family style gatherings and large community fellowships may be over for the foreseeable future, but we cannot forget about the people that have forged many of those bonds. The Texas BBQ community needs each other now more than ever. I sincerely hope to see some of my favorites like Roegel's, Truth, those we visited this week and others along with the newer school like Eddie O, Brett, Feges and others come out on the other side. I look back at the experience Saturday with thanks and a full heart, and I look forward to one day soon seeing many of you and communally getting together over great BBQ again! Until that time....let's get some take out friends!