Betty Rose’s Little Brisket

ABILENE: Betty Rose's Little Brisket
1055 North Judge Ely Blvd.
Abilene, TX 79601
(325) 672-3500
Open Sun-Thur 11-9, F-Sat 11-10
www.bettyroses.com

Betty Rose's doesn't have much going for it in the ambience department. It was tough to find the front door of the joint tucked into the corner of a retail center. Ordering is done at the counter, but there's no meat carving to witness. After a few minutes my Texas trinity plate was ready.

A soupy side of beans had a pleasant bite from the heavy black pepper, but the slaw was sad and soggy. Brisket was underseasoned with hardly a lick of smoke. "German sausage" on the menu, but what a I received were some sad slices of a cheap fatty link like Hillshire Farm. Germans everywhere should take offense at the association. The real bright spot was the well smoked rib. It was just barely dry, but not in a bad way. The meat was tender with good flavor, and compared to everything else on the plate, they were pretty good to look at too. Ribs alone just aren't worth a special trip to Abilene.

Rating **