I ate too much BBQ (and salt) in Austin, Texas

August 2024. It’s the first night of the Asian American Journalists Convention in Austin, Texas. An editor in the Voices fellowship meeting room has a styrofoam container filled with Terry Black’s barbecue. As we’re talking about it, someone recommends ramen to us.

And so, I say it: “Thanks, but I’m planning on eating as much Texas barbecue as humanly possible on this trip.”

That I did — in fact, I think I overdid it. By the end of my week in Austin, I couldn’t even look at another bite of brisket. I also realized that good barbecue — which I hadn’t eaten since I lived in Tennessee and North Carolina in my 20s — has a lot of salt. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m in my 40s now and excessive sodium hits different in middle age.

Two months and endless gallons of water to flush the sodium from my system later, here is my ranking of barbecues in Austin with thoughts:

6. Iron Works

Two of my USC students and I ventured to Iron Works out of convenience — it was a block and a half from the convention hotel, the Hilton Austin, and we had a small window of free time for lunch. We ordered two different BBQ platters and found the barbecue to be pretty dry. In fact, it seemed to need the sauce they were selling all over the restaurant. Hmm, interesting. The sides were also mediocre. The pig on the tip jar was cute, though.

5. Franklin’s

Franklin’s has a notorious four-hour wait time and one resourceful AAJA attendee thought ahead, orchestrating a BBQ-to-go operation so we could all skip the line (thanks, Roland!). It was worth it to save time, but the meat didn’t live up to the hype. It was fine, but it wasn’t the amazing experience everyone said it would be (the group agreed). I’m not sure I know how to explain it. Was it overhyped? Or was it because it was takeout? I still don’t know.

4. Buc-ee’s

Ah, the wonder that is Buc-ee’s in Texas. I rented a car after the convention for 2 reasons 1. I’ve always wanted to drive in Texas (again, I lived in the South for many years and knew driving is A Way of Life); and 2. I wanted to go to Buc-ee’s. I ended up at the one in Bastrop and it was GREAT. The only reason it’s ranked #4 is because it’s not exclusively about barbecue, but I had a great time trying all the beef jerkies and getting defeated by the Big Buckin' Brisket Sandwich XXL.

3. Loro Austin

Something great about AAJA conventions is that the more folks you know, the more likely you’ll know someone who once lived in the host city/state and can guide you when it comes to local food. Fortunately for me, Voices co-lead Gwen formerly lived in Texas and talked about how amazing Loro was for months, so when she suggested we head there one night, we were all down. It’s an Asian smokehouse! Very on-theme for AAJA and I got to contribute to my goal of eating as much BBQ as humanly possible. I got the Smoked Beef Brisket, which was incredible, a flight of boozy slushes (a must in 118-degree Texas heat in August) and we got the Wonton chips and dip for the table. A great time.

2. Terry Black’s

I went to Terry Black’s at the end of my trip and I don’t regret the barbecue — I regret the timing. By then, I was burnt out on brisket. I could barely eat it, even though it was so good (I wound up eating it at the Austin airport, so yes, TSA will let you bring brisket and sausage in your carry-on). I asked for a 1/3rd lb. of brisket and the wait staff judged me for it being so little — rightfully so, it was so good I wish I could stomach more. This happens when you’re the Icarus of BBQ and fly too close to the sun, overestimating your capacity for brisket.

1. Cooper’s

Cooper’s has the prime spot, perhaps because it was my first Texas barbecue experience and served as my ELP cohort’s reunion dinner on the first night. When we went, all they had left was a burnt end of the brisket, which was still massive and amazing. They told us we should get 1/4 lb of meat per person and again, we overestimated our meat capacity.

The sides were extremely memorable, including the biggest pickles I’ve ever seen, the cornbread, the banana pudding I insisted on getting, the jalapeno mac and cheese and yes, the Bean Pot (which isn’t my name for it; it had a sign hanging above it that said “Bean Pot”). It’s a big pot o’ beans, next to a pot of simmering BBQ sauce. The beans were smoky and spicy. It’s something I’ll always associate with Cooper’s, so much that everyone I told about it was like, “Mallory, are you obsessed with the Bean Pot?” I just think it’s neat!!

Non-Brisket Honorable Mentions

Until next time.