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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">All roads in the Lone Star State lead to barbecue—a slow-smoked way of life. In the hands of talented pitmasters, beef briskets fire a feeding frenzy in every true Texan and fill the butcher paper and plates of more than 2,100 barbecue restaurants.

When you are traveling Texas, don’t be alarmed at the sight of hazy blue smoke wafting above the horizon. It’s just a beacon to a roadside barbecue joint, a symbol of Texas as true as longhorns and longnecks.

The Lone Star State boasts more than 2,100 barbecue restaurants, a clue to the seriousness with which Texans regard their ’cue. Another meaty statistic: These businesses ring up over a half-billion dollars annually, forming a cobweb of commerce that connects a diverse, sprawling state with a common mission—Go forth, Texans, to cook and consume.

Although you can find good barbecue throughout the South, the Texas variety is different from that found in other barbecue headquarters. North Carolina barbecue is mostly pork with a vinegar-based sauce. In Tennessee, ’cue lovers find ribs wet (mopped with a tomato-based sauce) and dry (sprinkled with a paprika rub). In other parts of the Deep South, barbecue often means roasting a whole hog. And in Kansas City, you just might find cookers adding a little honey to their mixture to produce the burnt ends that are so popular in that city. In Texas, barbecue means beef brisket, basted meats, and tomato-based sauce, or sometimes no sauce at all.

Finding good Texas barbecue is easier than precisely defining it. In a state spanning over 261,000 square miles, the definition is debated from the bayous of East Texas to the Panhandle prairies to the border communities along the Rio Grande. In each region, the local barbecue is influenced by other culinary cultures, from Southern to Tex-Mex to Southwest. Cabrito, or barbecued goat, is often served in the western portion of the state, while pork or lamb is a more common offering in East Texas. Cooking styles vary, as well. Out on the West Texas plains, barbecue is usually cooked over a slow fire of mesquite wood, while in southern and central Texas pecan and oak are more common. Farther east, barbecue pits are stoked with hickory.

There is one unifying factor, however, in most Texas barbecue joints, whether the jukebox is playing cowboy, Cajun, or conjunto tunes. The star of most menus remains beef brisket, slow-smoked and sliced. Making the brisket a success is the mark of a true Texas barbecuer. Genuine Texas barbecue is never grilled but is always smoked in a closed chamber or pit, ensuring the blessed union of meat and smoke.

Just how the smoker should be arranged, however, is the topic of endless controversy. In the community of Llano, for example, pitmasters use "indirect barbecuing." Wood, primarily mesquite, is placed in the firebox and allowed to burn down to coals; then it’s transferred to the main section of the pit beneath the meat. Here it flavors and cooks the meat to perfection, imparting a delicate smoky taste that is subtler than that achieved through ordinary smoking. Many barbecue restaurants dish up their meat right out of the smoker with the tomato-based sauce on the side, usually accompanied by a shaker of hot peppers soaking in vinegar to add a tangy kick to the meal.

Unlike other barbecue hot spots like Kansas City and Memphis, there is no single "capital of ’cue" in Texas. Instead the title is shared throughout a part of the state that could be termed the Barbecue Belt, stretching from Llano in the west to Schulenburg in the east. This smoky swath slices through the capital city of Austin and extends to local havens such as Elgin, Lockhart, Taylor, and Luling, small communities where barbecue is the hottest action in town.

Barbecue got its start in this region during the frontier days of the late 1800s in meat markets and butcher shops. Pioneer merchants were determined to find a use for cuts that weren’t selling. On weekends, they began smoking those quickly aging meats, hoping to make them more palatable. It worked. Like an aromatic billboard, the smell of barbecue soon permeated the small towns and captured the attention of those doing their Saturday marketing. Farmers and ranchers in town for weekend trading came by the meat market and found an inexpensive lunch served up on the only plate a butcher had on hand: butcher paper.

Eventually, farm and ranch families began making the meat market a regular weekend stop, dining off the back of their wagons. A sign over the counter of one Texas barbecue spot says it all: "Bar-b-que, sex, and death are subjects that provoke intense speculation in most Texans. Of the three, probably bar-b-que is taken most seriously."

Louie Mueller Barbecue / Louie Mueller’s, located 35 miles northeast of Austin, is one of the most authentic barbecue joints in Texas, with a slamming screen door, smoke-covered walls, and giant fans that provide the only cool breeze on a hot summer day. Not one to waste money on fancy gimmicks like plates, Mueller’s serves up meat on a piece of white butcher paper. And don’t look for menus here, either. There’s a letter board on one wall with the offerings. You can pick from brisket, served regular or extra lean, sausage, pork ribs, chopped beef, or steak. Grab a tray, step up to the counter, and the cook will carve off a slice of meat to satisfy your own proportions. Meats are served with a cup of sauce on the side; the tomatoey broth is spiced with a Texas-sized helping of black pepper. For real fire-eaters, bottles of homemade vinegar and chile sauce top every table. For a side dish, opt for coleslaw, beans, or potato salad, a flavorful mixture of mashed potatoes spiced with celery.

206 West Second Street, Taylor; Tel: 512-352-6206. Open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m.–6:30 p.m.; Sunday 11 a.m.–3 p.m. Meal for two about $12.

Rudy Mikeska’s Bar-B-Q Inc. / Just next to Louie Mueller Barbecue lies Rudy Mikeska’s, a restaurant that serves up equally fine offerings in a more citified atmosphere. During his lifetime, Rudy Mikeska was the dean of Texas pitmasters and a likely candidate for catering any political function. In Texas, the Mikeska name is synonymous with barbecue, thanks to Rudy and his brothers: Maurice, Clem, Jerry, Mike, and Louis. Each man founded his own barbecue restaurant, spread throughout the state. "We’re a very close family," explains Rudy’s son Tim, "but we all do things a little different." Don’t expect to see identical menus or taste identical food.

Rudy died in 1989, but he left a legacy of legendary barbecue that his children Tim and Mopsie continue. Step inside the bright red building and have a look around at the dozens of pictures of Rudy Mikeska and the wheelers and dealers of Texas. You’ll find photos of politicians here posing beside Mikeska at various events he catered. In the cafeteria line, you can order a plate of lamb ribs, but the popular favorites are brisket, sausage, and pork ribs. The sausage, thin links full of peppery fire, is made using Mikeska’s own recipe. Most diners cool the burn with a traditional barbecue restaurant dessert: banana pudding, chock full of banana slices and vanilla wafers.

300 West Second Street, Taylor; Tel: 512-352-5561. Open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m.–8 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Meal for two $16–$20.

Cooper’s Old Time Pit Barbecue / Cooper’s has long been one of the best-known restaurants in Texas. From its huge rectangular pits located by the front door to the dining room dotted with loaves of white bread and jars of jalapeño peppers, this is the real thing. Before entering the restaurant, located about 80 miles west of Austin, you’ll place your order right at the pit, where the pitmaster opens the huge vaults to reveal a king’s treasure: brisket, pork ribs, beef ribs, chicken, goat, sausage, sirloin steak, and pork chops. Name the meat (brisket is the top choice) and the amount, and the pitman will carve it off and drop it on some butcher paper for you to take inside for weighing. Cooper’s also does catering.

604 West Young (TX 29 West), Llano; Tel: 915-247-5713. Open Monday through Thursday 10 a.m.–8 p.m., Friday through Sunday 10 a.m.–9 p.m. Meal for two $15–$21.

Southside Market and BBQ, Inc. / Well-known throughout the Barbecue Belt, the Southside Market in Elgin is also one of the most recognized names in Texas barbecue lore and is definitely the biggest thing in the community of Elgin, located about 25 miles east of Austin. In business since 1882, the market is known for its Elgin hot sausage, sometimes known as Elgin Hot Guts. For generations, Southside was located in a smoky den that spoke volumes about the history of barbecue. Sadly, the business outgrew its old home and now sits in a red tin building with a concrete floor, less atmospheric but one of the largest barbecue restaurants in the state. Spicy but not hot, the all-beef Southside sausage is a favorite in many barbecue restaurants in Texas. Along with links, Southside sells brisket, pork and beef ribs, beef steak, pork, and even mutton. Plates come with potato salad and beans.

1212 US 290 West, Elgin; Tel: 512-285-3407. Open Monday through Thursday 8 a.m.–8 p.m., Friday and Saturday 8 a.m.–10 p.m., Sunday 9 a.m.–7 p.m. Meal for two $14–$21.

Iron Works / When ironsmith Fortunat Weigl opened his foundry in 1935, he probably never envisioned that one day Austin’s movers and shakers would gather here for power lunches. In those days, this was an ironworks shop where the German immigrant and his sons produced handwrought decorative items that were displayed in many stately homes and the Texas State Capitol.

In 1977, the ironworks closed its doors and the shop was transformed into a smokehouse. The building, complete with historic marker, is decorated with hundreds of brands, a reminder of its earlier life. Today, diners fill the restaurant and its picnic tables overlooking the banks of Waller Creek to enjoy tender brisket, smoky ribs, and spicy sausage.

100 Red River, Austin; Tel. 512-478-4855 or 800-669-3602. Open Monday through Saturday 11 a.m.–9 p.m. Meal for two $16–$26.

The County Line on the Hill / Walk into most Texas barbecue joints wearing a coat and tie and you’ll immediately be branded a "city slicker." At the County Line in Austin, though, three-piece suits sit side by side with Wranglers and Levis. For all its gentrified atmosphere, however, this restaurant serves genuine Texas barbecue, with meats smoked for 18 to 20 hours daily then trimmed of any fat. This original location has spawned County Line restaurants around Texas and in neighboring states. Housed in a historic rock building with a 20-mile view of the hill country, diners can sit on the stone patio and enjoy the menu favorites: beef ribs, baby backs, brisket, and sausage. Side dishes are made from scratch daily and include huge bowls of potato salad, crunchy coleslaw, and tasty pintos.

6500 West Bee Caves Road, Austin; Tel: 512-327-1742. Open Sunday through Thursday 5 p.m–10 p.m., Friday and Saturday 5 p.m.–9 p.m. Dinner for two $20–$50. /END/</font>

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