Friday, November 11, 2011

Three Little Pigs

Three Little Pigs is a food trailer that does not take its place alongside a gaggle of other trailers in a gravel parking lot like so many other Austin food trucks. It sits in an asphalt parking lot alongside East End Wines on Rosewood Avenue. A couple of tables and a brick pit that held a whole pig earlier that day form a cozy outdoor dining area.



I came for the whole hog that Scrumptious Chef just wouldn't shut-up about, but started in with a regular menu item of pork belly sliders. The pork belly was thick cut with a perfectly crisp crust on every surface. The fat was rendered soft instead of remaining chewy like so many other pork belly dishes I've had elsewhere. Even at $7, I'd get it again in a heartbeat.



The star of the day was supposed to be that whole hog. The trouble with it was all about expectations. I was imagining a whole hog on display that I could choose my preferred cut. No hog was in sight and I soon learned that it had already been completely broken down. Instead of getting to choose some of the good outside brown that I'd grab immediately at an old fashioned pick pickin', I was instead given barely seasoned inside meat. The sauce and potatoes on the side were both great, but the stringy meat that I got was held together with a bit of chewy fat. At $9 it was a bit disappointing. Being next to a great beer and wine store was quickly taken advantage of with a few cold ones as we watched the sun go down over Austin. Any more pork on this night and I may not have had enough room for all that smoked meat at the next day's festival.

- BBQ Snob

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Daniel, in the blog post about the shindig I mention that the crispy hide is available along with fried out pork cracklins-by request

http://www.scrumptiouschef.com/food/index.cfm/2011/10/28/East-Austin-Soul-Food-Joint-Set-To-Throw-A-50lb-Pig-On-Their-Barbecue-PitParty-At-Three-Little-Pigs?adminview=true

hate that you missed out on the crunchy, crispy bits as they really married well with those buttermilk mashers.

BBQ Snob said...

I asked about specific cuts, but I got the short answer that it was already chopped and mixed. They didn't seem interested in special requests, so I just let it come however they wanted to serve it. I'm sorry I missed those crusty bits too, but the pork belly made up for it.

RL Reeves Jr said...

If you're in Austin before December get on by Odd Duck Farm To Trailer on south Lamar.
They're closing at the end of this month but they put out a pork belly sandwich to beat the band.
Right up there with 3 little pigs.

DISCLAIMER:

Each joint is judged on the essence of Texas 'cue...sliced brisket and pork ribs. Sausage is only considered if house made. Sauce is good, but good meat needs no adornment to satisfy. Each review can only be based on specific cuts of meat on that particular day. Finally, if the place fries up catfish or serves a caesar salad, then chances are they aren't paying enough attention to the pits, so we mostly steered clear.

-THE PROPHETS OF SMOKED MEAT