Opie's Barbecue

It's been a minute since I have sung the praises of Opie's Barbecue out in Spicewood, about 40 minutes southwest of Austin. Why go stand in line at a well-known place in town for 4+ hours when you can take a nice drive instead? 

The meat "coffin" is right inside the door; the meats are smoked adjacent to the main building. In addition to your Texas standards (brisket, beef + pork ribs, sausage), they have turkey, chicken, pork chops, and sometimes specials like prime rib.

The massive beef rib was my friend's, and the rest is mine (pork ribs, jalapeno sausage and brisket)!
 I always get food for at least 3 meals!

If you are into butterbeans, you will die for Opie's! Friday, Saturday + Sundays only.
Do not miss out on these! 

Not only are the butterbeans killer, the tater tot casserole and zesty corn are delicious too!

And they are super-nice people too! Opie's is on Hwy 71, right by the turn to Krause Springs in the Texas Hill Country.

Old School BBQ Spots: Salt Lick and Opie's

In the past month, I have been to both Salt Lick BBQ in Driftwood (where I hadn't been in years) and Opie's BBQ in Spicewood (where I go a couple times a year).

You've probably heard of Salt Lick Barbecue. What started fifty years ago in Driftwood, about 30 minutes southwest of downtown Austin on FM 1826 now has multiple locations and legions of fans.

I'll admit, I was not really one of those fans. Until now. I hadn't been to the actual Salt Lick restaurant in probably ten years because it was never my favorite barbecue. And while I think I'd still pick Opie's as my pick for 'cue AND their sides are killer, I was really extremely pleased by a recent venture out to Salt Lick for a friend's birthday gathering on a Saturday afternoon in early June. I did learn, that if you're a group of ten or more, you can make a reservation and bypass the crowds. And there were crowds waiting, even at 3:30 pm, though I think many were there for the wine tasting room. But we didn't have to wait at all for a table! We were seated in the main building with this amazing meat pit by the entrance.

Salt Lick's iconic meat pit

Salt Lick is like a regular restaurant where you order off a menu. I had Thurman's Plate, which comes with brisket, sausage, and a pork rib, along with cole slaw, warm potato salad, and pintos. While I didn't love the sweeter glaze on the ribs, as you can see it's got a nice smoke ring, and it was really tender. All the meats were good and the sides underwhelmed me. Not a lot of flavor to the slaw or potatoes, but it's really about the meats, right? A couple of us talked about how we hadn't been there in ages, and we were all pleasantly surprised. You can buy meats by the pound, but mostly, they sell plates like this. Keep in mind too, Salt Lick is CASH ONLY and BYOB.

Thurman's Plate at Salt Lick

Many people aren't familiar with Opie's, and I like to think of it as my hidden gem. It's as good as the Lockhart places and even the Driftwood one, and it's the place I always recommend to people seeking barbecue around Austin. Nothing against Franklin BBQ, but why would I stand in line for a minimum of three hours when I can take a nice drive out Hwy 71 to Opie's, about 45 minutes to the northwest of downtown Austin.

While Salt Lick sells mostly prepared plates of food, Opie's meat is all by the pound. When you walk in the main door, you are right by the huge meat vault/locker and there's a board above it listing cuts and prices. They always have the standards, and usually have some more special cuts like pork chops or fancy beef cuts. I stick to the basics, and ever since Artz Ribhouse in Austin closed, Opie's is my go-to place for baby back ribs. You tell the man with the large knife what meats you want and he grabs them for you; if you're eating there, they can slice up everything before wrapping them in butcher paper. Some things are by the pound like the brisket, others like the chicken are sold in half-chicken quantities only.

Opie's meat vault

Pictured here is a half rack of baby backs, a sausage link, and smoked chicken, along with spicy corn and the most amazing butter beans you've ever had! (Only available on Fridays and Sundays as far as I know, and they are free, on the condiment bar along with the pintos, pickles, onions, and bread.) This ended up being food for three days for me.

Baby back ribs, sausage, + chicken along with spicy corn and butter beans

One of the things that my friends and I like about Opie's is the quality of the sides, not just the butter beans. The spicy corn has a lot of zip to it; there's tater tot casserole which are shredded potatoes and cheddar cheese. But really, the butter beans are so velvety tender, it's hard not to fall in love. They have great cobblers and brownie bars for dessert too. I digress from the meats though! The baby backs are always tender with a black pepper rub on them. The sausage is a fairly fine grind, has a nice casing on it, and isn't greasy. This is the first time I have had the chicken in a long time, and it's just so moist and flavorful. Would make a great chicken salad.

So there you have it folks, lots of meaty goodness. Texas is all about barbecue, and everyone is bound to have their favorites and their opinions, I am no exception. And while barbecue joints are always going to be all about the meats, it never hurts to find a place where the sides are winners too. Grab a friend, take a little drive, and maybe you'll discover your new favorite barbecue spot.

Brown's Bar-B-Que Trailer

On a recent warm winter's day, I stopped by the Brown's Bar-B-Que trailer at South Lamar and Mary for lunch. Parked in front of Corner Bar, they've got a picnic table which was filled with people basking in the sun, enjoying the lovely smells that a barbecue trailer brings. And I hear they give bar patrons free barbecue on Sundays!

Looking at the menu, I went with the three meat plate with brisket, pork ribs, and chicken and added a sausage link for extra cost; cole slaw and potato salad were my sides. I had heard particularly good things about their chicken from a couple of people, and was excited to try it. 

I talked briefly with the cutter, and he did say they use post oak to smoke their meats. I was not asked if I wanted lean or moist brisket, but decided to go with what they gave me. They wrapped everything up, handed me a small brown lunch bag and I toddled home. I think the three meat plate was $16, because my total with the extra sausage was $19+ change.

Arriving home just a few minutes later, I found the white butcher's paper fairly drenched in grease. The main culprit was the brisket, and what turned out to be an extremely fatty piece. If you look closely at the top part of the brisket, you can see the fat cap just beneath the crust. The crust that was on the bottom I liked, as it had a sweetness to it, and was not heavy on the black pepper; I have felt some other barbecue places often over-pepper the crust. The meat itself, was, for lack of a better term, very "beefy" tasting. Not really bursting with any particular flavor. We were not off to the best of starts.

The sausage was an extremely fine grind, and there was no snap to the casing when you cut into the link. It also seemed over-smoked, as the casing was pulling away from the interior meat. The flavor was decent, with a touch of black pepper. I don't know if it's "their" sausage or where it's from.

The pork rib was very tender, and had a sweet glaze on the exterior; good flavor and not too fatty. I'd eat these again, though they don't come close to my favorite, the departed Artz Ribhouse or current fave, Opie's in Spicewood.

And then the chicken thigh. While the skin was not crisp, the meat was extremely moist and juicy, and bursting with flavor and a nice smokiness, without being overpowering. This was definitely the winner of the four meats I tried! I would love a smoked chicken salad made from these, but really I'd be happy just eating another *plain* thigh.

The sides were average: the cole slaw was chunky, sweet, and vinegar-based, and the potato salad was more like mashed potato salad with a sweet twang. And I can't even remember how the sauce tasted.

While I linked to their Facebook page above, they don't really seem to keep up with it, as their last posting was from August. I think they're closed on Mondays, but not totally certain. But when you make your way over to Brown's be sure to get the chicken! I'll be back for more!