BBQ in the News

Joe Cotten's BBQ is a legend in Texas. It's been around for 65 years, and the permanent Robstown location has been open since 1968. Sadly, on Wednesday night that building was burnt to the ground. I was sad to have never made it there to try the 'cue, but they vow to reopen.

Franklin BBQ in Austin will close the best barbecue trailer in Texas for good this Sunday and will reopen on March 12th in their new location on 11th St. just a couple miles south.

A Houston police officer, who was competing at the recent Stock Show BBQ competition in Houston, was arrested and fired after tossing some tear gas into a competitor's tent. Talk about sportsmanship.

Robb Walsh is looking for some help to identify this BBQ joint.

He thinks it might have been in San Antonio. I wonder if it's related to Fresh Air Bar-B-Que, which opened in 1929 in Jackson, Georgia.

The Observer reports that a couple of former Randy White's BBQ servers have filed for sexual harassment after working for several months at the Mesquite location of the local mini-chain.

Thrillist Dallas just featured the Q Card and my side project Meat Soap in the same week. Get the Q Card for great BBQ savings across the state. Get Meat Soap if you want to wash with meat fat.

Those boys from Man Up Texas BBQ are behind the Q Card, and they also recently named their best BBQ in Texas for 2010. It wasn't Snow's or Franklin BBQ.

In a fit of narcissism, I'll provide some links to an video interview I did with Advocate Magazine in Dallas, and another with Splash Media in Addison. These two videos have little in common besides my balding head.

- BBQ Snob

Blue Pig BBQ

OKLAHOMA: Blue Pig BBQ‎
2610 W Broadway
Ardmore, OK 73401
580-226-5557
Open M-Thur 11-9, F-Sat 11-3, Sun(summer only)11-3
www.bluepigbbq.com

Update: This joint is CLOSED.

2011: Although I was wary from some other reviews, this joint is just a block off of I-35, and was too convenient to pass up on my way up to OKC. The two side by side Southern Pride smokers on the front of the building didn't do much to boost my confidence. My wife went in to retrieve the order while I waited in the car with my daughter. She came out with a three-meat plate that included some excellent crispy okra.



Unfortunately the pulled pork was a bit crispy too. It was so dry it resembled a tussled head of hair. Brisket wasn't so dry, it just lacked much smokiness at all. The meat was tender, and the slices well seasoned, but it didn't go much further than a decent roast beef. Ribs were the best item on the plate. Meat separated easily from bone, and the fat layers were nicely rendered. Somehow the smoke found its way onto the pork, and mixed well with the heavy seasoning rub. One out of three isn't great, but the ribs would be worth the one block trek if you're already in the neighborhood. I'll probably be driving past to try Budro's up the road on my next stop.

Rating **

Smokin' Joe's Rib Ranch & RV Park

DAVIS: Smokin' Joe's Rib Ranch
1793 Highway 77
Davis, OK 73030
580-369-2818
Open M-Tues 11-7, Thur-Sat 11-7

Update: With a dejected look on my face while sitting in the parking lot, I learned that Smokin' Joe's took off the week between Christmas and New Year's. This made me lust for what might be the best brisket in Oklahoma even more, so I convinced my wife to stop on our next trip up I-35. Even at three in the afternoon on a Saturday, the joint was packed. As we inched our way up the line, I decided that just a snack was in order, so I went with the three meat plate that featured brisket, pork loin and smoked buffalo wings.



The smoked wings were huge with plenty of spicy sauce and just a hint of smoke. They weren't quite as good as the same dish at Green Mesquite in Austin, but that makes them the second best smoked wings that I've eaten.



The brisket was amazing once again. It was perfectly moist and buttery tender. The smokiness was evident in every bite, and there was nearly a pound of it in this single order. Inch thick slices of pork loin had a thick flavorful rub. The meat was moist, but could have been more tender. The smoke ring was very thick, and the smokiness in the meat was great.



The fact that they do all of this with gas-fired Southern Pride smokers is even more impressive. It just goes to show that if you use plenty of wood, you can still get a good product with Southern Prides. It's just the exception rather than the rule.

Rating ****

2009: I'm used to eating off the hood of my car, but this proprietor just wouldn't have it. Joe came out back and insisted that he pull up a picnic table for my use. I finally convinced him it wasn't necessary and we chatted for quite some time. I guess he found some free time after the extended lunch rush. It was 2:00pm when I got in line, and the place was still packed with more feeding into the line behind me. A three meat combo was available, and besides the standard brisket and ribs, I added on some of the pulled chicken that I'd heard good things about in some online reviews.



I wouldn't have even heard of the place unless Don L. had pleaded by e-mail that I come give it a try, and I'm glad I did. Pulled chicken wasn't very smoky, but it had actually been "pulled" rather than chopped, and the meat was so moist I could hardly believe it was white meat. Brisket slices were thick, juicy and tender with an unctious glean from well rendered intramuscular fat. A nice crust and substantial smoke line lined these slices which unfortunately had all of the fat trimmed off. The meat was smoky throughout, and the flavor was robust. Ribs are huge, and Joe orders the 4 1/2 & up ribs which is outside the normal 4 & down ribs that most joints use. These ribs had a well formed crust with tender meat below. They were definitely heavy on the fat content, but it was well rendered fat, so most had melted into the meat.

The only items that were disappointing were the sausage and hot links that Joe brought out for me in a take out box right before I left. Both links were very similar with a fine grind, grocery store grade flavor, and full of fatty filler. The only difference was a considerable amount of spice added to hot links to bring the pleasing heat.



In our chat, I learned that Joe just opened the place up 18 months ago, but he has built up quite a customer base in that short time. He's dome it by staying true to his smoked meat convictions. Briskets are bathed in hickory smoke overnight, then his first of three daily batches of ribs go on at 7:00 am. He does the three batches so his ribs are fresh throughout the day unlike many urban BBQ joints that store there ribs all day in plastic wrap

Rating ****