Smoke Opening

Check out the menu on their new website, and then head over to the opening party.

Cowtown Bar-B-Q

FT. WORTH: Cowtown Bar-B-Q
900 Highway 183
Fort Worth, TX 76114
817-246-7525
Open Sun-Thur 11-4ish, F- Sat 11-8ish

Inside the Ridgmar Farmers Market in Fort Worth sits a long white counter loaded with fresh sides and desserts. One thing they don't display is the meat. It's wrapped up in plastic wrap in the warmer. I was on a BBQ blitzkrieg, so I was just here for the meat. I ordered up a sliced brisket sandwich and a rib sandwich.



While the meat doesn't look putrid in the picture, the taste was nothing to savor. An acidic flavor reminiscent of vomit aftertaste permeated the dry almost flaky slices of brisket. Ribs were mushy and nearly flavorless. The texture had no chance with the storage methods, but the buns were warm, crispy and buttery. I'm afraid I won't have a next time to enjoy the nice buns.

Rating *

Smokey G's

VAN ALSTYNE: Smoky G’s BBQ
U.S. Hwy 75 at Hwy 121
Van Alstyne, TX
903-815-4430
Open Tues-Sat 11-7

Smoky G's is housed in a mobile shack sitting on the edge of a Shell station parking lot just off Highway 75. A crowd of patrons sat beneath the ordering window when I arrived, but my order was quickly taken. No ribs on the bone or sliced beef are available here, but the brisk business makes it hard to argue with the limited choices. Waiting around for my two sammies (about 10 minutes) I chatted with a Van Alstyne local who stops by at least once a week to get a sack of eat and sauce on bread. He mentioned that the service today was a bit slower than usual.

Finally, the owner came to the window with my white bag full of goodness, and I headed back to the car to chow down.

Rib sandwich & chopped beef sandwich


Unwrapping the sauce soaked foil, I found two sandwiches that looked nearly identical. I now realized why he told me the rib sandwich was on the bottom. Neither sandwich had much smokiness, but both were served on crisp buttery buns and had a punch of flavor from the liberally applied sauce. The beef had a bit too much fat for my liking while the rib meat was silky smooth, almost too smooth after having been removed from the bones and shredded. One thing these sandwiches were not lacking is size. They were both huge, and stuffed liberally with about 1/2 pound of meat. I'd return for another sandwich pit stop on my way up north, but I don't think a special trip is warranted. I also can't really rate this joint given the limited menu.

- BBQ Snob