Top 5 BBQ Restaurants in Austin Texas

Trying to come up with a top five list of favorite BBQ places in Austin Texas is virtually impossible. I usually have two reasons to go to Austin. One is for the South-By-Southwest Music Festival, but truth be known, the real reason is for the BBQ. When I was a much younger man and my family was in the meat market business, I would travel within a days drive from Little Rock, Arkansas to find the best BBQ I could and then resell it at our market. Memphis was 5 hours closer than Austin was, but to get Texas BBQ is worth every bit of the five additional hours and then some.

So, when I left the family business to go into the music business, I found myself drawn to Austin for the music scene, but deep down, I was going for the BBQ. Often, I would not even wait until I got to Austin. I would stop at one of the many roadside portable BBQ smokers and buy whatever they were selling at that time. My favorite was the mesquite grilled, pulled pork BBQ sandwich with the best sauces anywhere. I don’t care where you go in Texas, their sauces are basically the same ketchup based sweet sauce, or sometimes mustard based, It really matters not, it’s the best you can get!

I would consider myself an expert on Austin’s BBQ scene for two reasons. First, I love the smoked flavor BBQ that comes out of that region, I talking about real smoked flavor. Whether it’s smoked with hickory, mesquite, apple or oak, it matters not, it’s all good to me. Second, I have eaten at most of the BBQ joints in Austin over the past 30 years. I do have my preferences as to pork over beef, ribs over brisket but I really do like it all. I have compiled a list of my top five favorite BBQ restaurants, as hard as that was to do. I hope it will give my readers a good overall picture of the diverse BBQ scene in Austin. There are several that I could take replace on this list and I can assure you, many local Austonians, would agree with the replacement as well.

Iron Works Located on 100 Red River St. The place is very rustic, but when you walk in, the smell will keep you there (happily) until you get your order. It really is not much to look at, but the baby back ribs are to die for. They are also known for their beef brisket and sausages, and I have heard that many people drive for miles to get their brisket, but I use to drive 6 hours for their ribs. Side orders are just OK, nothing to write home about, but you will leave there with a smile on your face, if you like smoked meat. Lest I forget, you will be hot in the summer (no AC) and cold in the winter unless you get to sit by the wood burning fireplace. Their sauce is a great ketchup based thick sauce.

Artz Rib House Located on 2330 S. Lamar Blvd. Here is my personal take on Artz. Go for the ribs and stay for the music. Unlike, Stubbs (see listing), their music has a very local bluegrassy banjo feel. However, it is some of the best picking you will hear, if you like that kind of music. Their sauce is also a real good ketchup based sauce. Their ribs are absolutely my favorite anywhere, because I love the mesquite-grilled ribs. Again, the sauce is good but I like the way the flavor of the ribs and I never use the additional sauce they give you. Plus, unlike Iron Works, their sides, beans and cole slaw is great as well. If ribs are not your thing, my son always gets the hamburger and says he has never had a better one anywhere.

Salt Lick 360 Located on 3801 N. Capital of Texas. This place made my list for a very different reason. It is one of two on this list that has great atmosphere and location. Their new location, new as in it was not their when I made my trips down for our market, which has been several years. But anyway, this location is beautiful and if you are fortunate enough to be able to sit out on the patio, depending on the weather, you will thoroughly enjoy it. The pulled pork sandwich is what I have at Salt Lick and it is absolutely delicious. What makes it special is their sauce. They have a mustard base sauce and it makes you want to kiss your brother, it is that good. Also, their potato salad is amazing. Be prepared to wait. I have never been there when I did not wait at least 45 minutes.

Stubbs Located at 801 Red River St. This is a hard one to place among my top 5. The fact that it is Stubb’s BBQ, could be swaying my opinion, as it is one of the biggest tourist draws in Austin. It’s almost like The Bluebird restaurant in Nashville, you go for the music and the food is good too. However, this BBQ is REALLY good too! Their sauce is ketchup based sauce and is nationally famous. It is good but it is not the best of these others on my list. But there is just something about Stubb’s that keeps me going back. Maybe the fact that the first time I stopped there to eat, I found out just by happenstance that Willie was playing at their amphitheater that night, all I had to do was kill an extra 2 hours there, and I could see Willie Nelson. I don’t drink alcohol but it was still an easy task. First of all my wait for a table was almost an hour, so that killed one of those hours, then we just took our time eating and that was really easy. I have had their sampler and that comes with smoked brisket, sausage and chicken. The brisket was just good, nothing to write home about, but the sausage and chicken was real good. Since that time, I usually have the pulled pork and it is better than most, but I have had better.

CountyLine on the Lake Located at 5204 Ranch Rd. This will be an easy review. Great Bread, real good Texas smoked BBQ, The scenery is the best anywhere from their back deck. It overlooks, what they call a lake, I thought it was a river, but anyway, huge trees surround it. It is breath taking, if you can get back there. It is always crowded, but I found it to be worth the wait. The side dishes, beans and cole slaw are good, but not great. The sauce is another real good ketchup based sauce.