Vacation Ideas ?

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Blacks BBQ in San Marcos.
I worked in Texas for the better part of a year and they had arguably the best brisket of all of the places we ate. the ribs, chicken and sides were all top notch as well.
 
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Sounds like a Plan, You won't regret a Texas BBQ Road Trip, Besides tasting the BEST BBQ in the country you will get to see some beautiful country and cities and meet a lot of wonderful people.
Lockhart, TX BBQ Capitol of the World Just so many great places all over the state, Just can't go wrong.

Gary
 
Here is another, look up their web site
“Kerry Bexley and Tootsie Tomanetz have cooked up something special at Snow’s BBQ in Lexington!” –TexasCountryReporter.com

In Lockhart there are several very old BBQ places , Just so many all over the state.

Gary
 
Myself, I'd go to Robert's ( tx smoker tx smoker ) place. You won't have to stand in line for two hours, the food will be authentic, great Texas BBQ, and then there's the pool! I can understand the BBQ pilgrimage, we did that about ten years back. We had a friend who lived in Austin at the time and paid her two teeners to get up early and stand in line at Franklin's for us. You've got a ton of great local recommendations here, but if you're like me, you want to eat at the places you've seen on TV, which is why I threw out the Salt Lick. Call in advance and find out when the music happens, you can make the trip there last for more than just a great meal. Oh, bring cash too, that's a requirement. RAY

 
Not as hot as August!! Dog days of August are real, Robert

You Texas folks only THINK you know what hot is! I'll give it to you that it gets a little warm there in the summer months, but if you want HOT just come out to the desert, only slightly cooler than hell itself. RAY
 
Do the pulled pork challenge. Get PP from North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and finish up at the Rendezvous in good old Memphis TN!

Dave

Oh, how I wish I had enough time to do that epic road trip! Unfortunately I don't think we'll have time for that this year. But it's definitely something we'd enjoy doing.

I wanna hear about Jamaica!!! How was the jerk? All my friends and family say it is highly overrrated. I say they went to wrong places. I am determined to make some killer jerk. Even have the piemento wood and whole allspice.

The Jerk is amazing ! We had it every day, sometimes twice a day. At our resort (Grand Palladium, Montego Bay) they have 2 jerk huts on the beaches. Everything is freshly made and the sauces are to die for.

Making sauce and seasoning at home is a lot of work, but probably worth it! Hubby ended up buying 7 different kinds of sauce and spices to bring home.

If you're going to Franklin's you'll be 25 minutes from me. Come on by and I'll cook you up some really good Q. I also have a pool that Aaron is lacking and in July, you may find that appealing :emoji_astonished:

Louis Muellers (or something like that) in Taylor TX is an institution that goes back way before Franklin's and is known to be some of the best BBQ on the planet. Their beef ribs are to die for!! But I could do some of those ribs for you and not charge you an arm and a leg for them.

Another place that's hugely popular is Coopers in Llano. Be prepared to stand in line though, possibly a line longer than Franklin's is known for. Coopers never runs out though as far as I know.

Then there is Black's in Lockhart. They have been around a LONG time and are also known to have some of the best Q you'll ever eat.

There's a couple for you,
Robert

Amazing! I would LOVE to come visit you! I'll send you a PM closer to our travel dates.

I'd like to hear more about your experience in Jamaica. Mrs. Red and I are booked for our first Caribbean beach vacation in June. We're staying in an all-inclusive in Dominican Republic...but a resort in Jamaica was on our short list. Any tips or experiences that a noob should know about vacationing in the Caribbean?

And I'm with Dan...Texas in July is gonna be a hot mother! But it'll be a lot fun of too, if you can bear the heat.

Red

You're going to love your vacation! DR is really nice, and the food is much better than in Cuba, but not quite as good as in Jamaica.

The people in DR are very friendly, you won't have any issues.

Tip your maid really well, and not just with $$. We usually bring some really nice chocolate bars, some colouring books and crayons, school supplies, some really nice shampoo and conditioners.... stuff that we take for granted and is not available to them.

The only thing I would say to watch out for are the sales people. Some resorts will have a "traveler's club" or something like that, which is almost like a time share business and they will try and talk you into purchasing it. They can sometimes be pushy, and once you agree to go to their presentation, you will waste 3-4 hours of your day and regret all of it. Just be firm but polite and let them know you are not interested. Or just lie and say you already are a member!

Poor hubby is dealing with a bad case of sand flea bites.... (i don't have a single bite!) When you get there, look at people's lower legs, and if they are covered in red bites, then stay off the beach when the sun starts to go down. And bring some bug spray.
 
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You're going to love your vacation! DR is really nice, and the food is much better than in Cuba, but not quite as good as in Jamaica.

The people in DR are very friendly, you won't have any issues.

Tip your maid really well, and not just with $$. We usually bring some really nice chocolate bars, some colouring books and crayons, school supplies, some really nice shampoo and conditioners.... stuff that we take for granted and is not available to them.

The only thing I would say to watch out for are the sales people. Some resorts will have a "traveler's club" or something like that, which is almost like a time share business and they will try and talk you into purchasing it. They can sometimes be pushy, and once you agree to go to their presentation, you will waste 3-4 hours of your day and regret all of it. Just be firm but polite and let them know you are not interested. Or just lie and say you already are a member!

Poor hubby is dealing with a bad case of sand flea bites.... (i don't have a single bite!) When you get there, look at people's lower legs, and if they are covered in red bites, then stay off the beach when the sun starts to go down. And bring some bug spray.

Wow lots of good tips there PoukieBear...Thanks!! Always helps avoid bad experiences to get advice from folks who've already been there done that...

Red
 
Yep Coopers in Austin is the best Q I've had at a public place. And the Riverwalk in San Antonio is fun. The Alamo was meh but had to check it out once (block checked) If you do the Riverwalk in December, it's great lit up
 
Well, of all the places mentioned thus far, the most iconic (not necessarily the most famous) are Black's in Lockhart, Louie Muellers in Taylor, The Salt Lick in Driftwood, and Cooper's in Llano.

I've never been to the Coopers in Austin but if it's the same stuff as in Llano, I'd agree with the above assessment.

I've also never eaten at The Salt Lick but have driven by it many times. The setting is out of a storybook. It is just gorgeous!! Food is supposed to be pretty darned good too :emoji_wink: Once again I cannot swear to this about Salt Lick, but can for Cooper's. The food is done open pit versus in a smoker so it's a bit of a different BBQ experience but still outstanding!! If you go to Cooper's be VERY careful. They are world famous for their pork chops and one of them will feed about 8 people :emoji_laughing: They are huge. You walk up to the pit and see all this gorgeous food sitting on a grate over the fire and you want a little of this, and a little of that, and a chunk of a couple other things, then some sides, and of course dessert. Next thing you know it's a $40 lunch and more food than you'll ever eat unless you're in training for an appearance on Man vs Food. They probably go through more to-go boxes than they do food...but it's fantastic!! You'll eat good leftovers for a week

Now to the final nugget on this one. One place you can go for excellent BBQ, great service, a really nice environment, and a menu that is far more than just basic BBQ staples is Casa TX :emoji_wink: You may have to wait a couple hours but you won't do it standing in line. You can do it lounging in the pool with a cocktail, glass of wine, or a margarita, and some great company (that will be Tracy. I'll be cooking).

Reporting from just north of Austin,
Robert
 
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We'll be making a trip to Bama in the fall and plan on stopping in Waco to visit some friends.

No we're not going to see Chip and whats her name at magnolia. We do want to check out Homestead Gristmill. We and our friends from Bama buy our grits from them. I'll forges so that is an added bonus to this stop. Since we get good Q all the time at home we'll be saving the bulk of our food adventure for several days in New Orleans.

 
While not food related cause you sometimes need a break a trip to San Antonio is a must. Go spend some time at the Alamo and then the river walk you won't regret it. Happy Birthday and have a no-cookin good time.

Have to agree with this. I did it the opposite though when I went to TX. Started in San Antonio did the Alamo and Riverwalk then went to Franklin's for my birthday!

Also if you want to go to a little touristy place you can go to Gruene as well.
 
If you make it to Fredericksburg and like wine, you'll be in heaven!! Many many places out there making some world class wine. It is also home to Opa's sausage, which I have had and it's excellent.

Robert

Love Opa’s Jap & Cheese. I’d pay good money for that formula.

Opie’s out on Hwy 71 in Spicewood is an option.
 
Hubby and I just got back from a wonderful week in Jamaica. He's already obsessed with our next vacation, and told me that I could choose where to go for our anniversary in July. He definitely was NOT expecting me to blurt out "TEXAS" ! Can you say BBQ Road trip!?!?

I already know we need to spend a day waiting in line at Franklin's BBQ, because DUH!
Tell me where else I need to go :)
Kruetz BBQ in Lockhart(right outside Austin), City Market in Luling, Coopers in Llano & New Braunfels.
 
If you're going to Franklin's you'll be 25 minutes from me. Come on by and I'll cook you up some really good Q. I also have a pool that Aaron is lacking and in July, you may find that appealing :emoji_astonished:

Louis Muellers (or something like that) in Taylor TX is an institution that goes back way before Franklin's and is known to be some of the best BBQ on the planet. Their beef ribs are to die for!! But I could do some of those ribs for you and not charge you an arm and a leg for them.

Another place that's hugely popular is Coopers in Llano. Be prepared to stand in line though, possibly a line longer than Franklin's is known for. Coopers never runs out though as far as I know.

Then there is Black's in Lockhart. They have been around a LONG time and are also known to have some of the best Q you'll ever eat.

There's a couple for you,
Robert
There is also a Black's BBQ in New Braunfels, TX..same family., the son Kent runs it. I live right behind the place.

HT
 
You have a lot to think about already, and haven't even scratched the surface. Kinda all depends which part of the state you are looking at for the road trip.

Gary
 
my son in-law is from Dallas - he like this place too Kreuz Market. has a brisket from there - good and very Texas style.

sorry took a couple days for the name to come to me.
 
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