Our next stop was Smitty's was originally named Kreuz and it dominated the Lockhart BBQ scene for decades. But when the founders died, their children couldn’t agree on the future of the business. So one sibling took the original name and built a big, brand new BBQ business out on the highway. The other kept the original location and renamed it Smitty’s. We started downtown at Smitty’s.
Even though it was less than an hour after our first BBQ meal, we knew the overly stuffed feeling that was in our future was going to be worth it as soon as we walked in.
We are now comfortable with the Texas BBQ experience—bingo hall environment, no plates, no forks, raw onions on the side and piles and piles of sliced white bread. BBQ in 
100 years ago.
We came in the entrance of Smitty’s and walked down a long, black hall hung with hundred year old photos and grease dripping down the walls. The hall ended at a room full of huge age-blackened brick smokers. At the end of each smoker was a roaring open fire on the floor directing smoke into the pits. It looks like Dante’s
You get your food, and head out into the community room where you pick up your sides at a different register. It’s like a cousin in feel to Louie Mueller – same sense of stepping back in time to a place that may actually never have existed except in our collective imaginations – but much brighter and more crowded than Louie’s.
Once again, we detour from the brisket/rib/sausage plan and the boys substitute prime rib for pork ribs, since beef ribs aren’t available, and the pitmaster is singing the praises of his prime rib. Caveat Emptor. It ends up being a critical mistake that unfairly colors our impression of what is either the first or second best BBQ place in the state. Fortunately, we correct it later by going back and getting ribs, at which point, Smitty’s more than redeems itself.
The boys agree that the brisket at Smitty’s is slightly better than City Market. Steve declares that it has the perfect ratio of fat to meat, combined with the perfect crust due to expert and judicious sauce mopping. If you don’t understand this term, proceed immediately to Applebee’s and order the baby back ribs – you deserve ‘em.
But then things start to go downhill. The sausage is suitably juicy and greasy and has good flavor, but the group agrees that it suffers slightly because it’s stuffing is ground too finely so it has a grittier mouth feel. The prime rib is ok, but not amazing. The potato salad is good but too eggy to compete with City Market. The BBQ sauce is hugely disappointing. It would be good on French fries (since it’s basically spicy ketchup) but not for BBQ.
At this point, we decide we may have given Smitty’s short shrift by not getting ribs, so back to the pit room we go for a half pound of ribs. With grease dribbling down his chin, Steve declares them outstanding--smoky, dripping juicy, lightly sweet, perfect solid consistency coupled with the ability to pull away from the bone cleanly. Even though they are pork, not beef, Smitty’s has achieved rib perfection.
The ribs inspire a very serious discussion about how to rank the different places. How much should sauces and sides factor in?
Overall assessment: The ribs change the ranking. Smitty’s is now declared the journey’s winner thus far based on the brisket and ribs. But you have to know to bring your own sauce.
The rating: Smitty’s is as absolutely, positively, worth a special trip.
No comments:
Post a Comment