Adventures of The Four Compadres: 2010

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Hard Eight - Good Clean Finish

There is a time when all good things come to an end. Now is that time for us. We just left the Hard Eight in Stephenville.

We agree that the Hard Eight is good, but unless we were in the area- probably not worth a special trip.

We arrived a little after 1p and the line was out past the building into the parking lot. You walk by the bunker style BBQ pits and up to a pit where they serve the meat.

Instead of buying a sample across the board as we have in the past - everyone was on their own. We have all either "hit the wall" or are bouncing off it. So, we decided to take this one a little easier.

Tim had the Shrimp Poppers, Ribs, Corn Cob, Cole Slaw, Beans, & the free beer. He gave the poppers a 3.5 because they were cold. If they had been hot, they probably could have been as high as a 4.5. For the ribs, Tim gave them a 3.5. Corn, cole slaw, beans, & free beer were an attempt to ease back into some sort of normal diet. Tim's general comment about Hard Eight was; Good, but with three locations it's boardering on a chain.

Greg had the Turkey, Sausage, Shrimp Poppers, Corn, Beans, & the free beer. He also tried my Rib Eye, Brisket, & Onion Rings. For the turkey, Greg gave it a 4. The sausage got a 2. The brisket received a 5. The prime rib got 3.5. And they shrimp received a 3.5, again because it was cold. Greg's general comments were; I'm ready for my fridge (in regards to the free beer). Atmosphere was nice with the smokers right there in the open.

Kirt had the Turkey, Ribs, Shrimp Poppers, sample of my Brisket, Beans, and Nanner Puddin'. For the Turkey, Kirt gave it a 4. The Ribs a 4. The Shrimp 3.5 (better score if they had been warm). Brisket was a 4. Kirt like the beans and puddin' a lot. Kirt's general comment was: Overall good, right there with Buzzies.

I had the Ribs, Brisket, Prime Rib, Shrimp Poppers, Sausage, Onion Rings, & Blackberry cobbler. The ribs were a pretty solid 3, the prime rib was 3.5, shrimp a 3, sausage a 1, and brisket was a 4.5. I was generally disappointed in the sausage and the fact the shrimp was cold. The brisket was some of the best I have had on this trip. My general comment is that I would go to the Hard Eight for the brisket if I was in the area, but not worth a trip just to go eat BBQ there.

The trip has really been a success and all of us have had a blast. We have challenged our digestive systems and probably will be paying for this over the next couple of days at least. I think we also have come to the realization that none of us have a future in competitive eating.

Either later today or sometime tomorrow, I plan on posting a summary that will go over where we actually went and rank them as well as various lessons learned. The rest of the Compadres have also stated that they intend on at least posting some comments. This of course assumes that they successfully figure out how to register and then post their comments. So be sure to check back for the wrap ups, creative comments, and general post trip Tom-foolery.

Blue Bonnet Rocks

Just finished breakfast at the Blue Bonnet Cafe in Marble Falls. We figured that we were at the right place when we pulled up and saw the parking lot was full as well as a line out the door.

In fairly short order we made it through the line and set down to find out that we had in fact picked a great place for breakfast.

While in line, Tim went to try and relieve some of his back pressure. The rest of us were a bit worried after we heard Tim holler that he needed a spoon. For the full story re: an alternate use of those small collectible spoons - ask Kirt. One of several stories shared by the Compadres on this trip that just can't be done justice anything short of live story telling.

We all ordered the eggs with chicken fried steak. Greg and I ordered the Texas Toast while Kirt and Tim ordered biscuit. Now when I say Texas Toast - this is the toast that all other Texas Toast aspire to be. It was obviously baked there at the cafe and was at least 3/4 of an inch thick and easily 1/2 again as large as a normal slice of bread. It was light and just fell apart as you eat it. Kirt and Tim reported the biscuits looked heavy but were just the opposite. Chicken fried steak was the perfect size for breakfast and was excellent. Easily one of the best I've had.

Pretty much everyone agreed that it was probably the second best meal we have had on the trip even if it wasn't BBQ.

We are now headed down the road to the Hard Eight and have agreed to strike Coopers from our list for this trip. After all, we need a reason for a second trip. Not sure that it will be a BBQ Tour, but there is always the possibility it could be.

Talking about second trips, I think there is a high probability we will make another trip in about year or so. Just not sure right now what it will be. Several options being considered are a Chicken Fried Tour, Seafood Tour, Cajun Tour, & Tex Mex Tour. Who knows, we may have stumbled on to a recurring event for the Compadres.

All Compadres Present or Accounted For

Headed down the road for the home stretch. Today will be a much easier day. After yesterday's protein OD - we were a little slow moving this morning. But all the Compadres are well, moving, and doing fine.

Yesterday was quite a bit and we all pretty much went into "protein" comas. After roughly 3 lbs of meat in about 4 hours, the late afternoon nap just barely took off the edge for me. We headed over to a sports bar close to the hotel to watch a couple of games, but didn't stay that long. After a couple of beers and a bowl of chips and salsa - we were done. (Kirt want's it understood that he did not have a beer.) No one was willing to even contemplate an actual meal.

So all in all - it was a good day.

This morning is another gorgeous drive threw God's Country (that would be the Hill Country if you were wondering) and we should be at the Blue Bonnet in a little bit.

Saturday, November 6, 2010

Luling City Market - End of the Road Today

Final lunch at The City Market in Luling.

The City Market in Luling has a bit of family interest in that my father grew up outside of Luling and tells stories about eating at the City Market growing up. My parents still go by and eat there from time to time and my mother swears by their ribs.

So the Compadres worked it into our “plan”. We just left the City Market and found it to be everything that embodies the old time Texas BBQ joint and quite frankly – what a lot of the chains try to unsuccessfully emulate in terms of atmosphere.

Keeping things simple – The Market focuses on just 3 meats. Ribs, Brisket, & Sausage. We all have decided that we real like what we are calling the “Central Texas” grind style of sausage. Additionally, I’m very partial to the style of ribs you find in this part of the country and Kirt calls “Big Ribs”. The Brisket is the style I grew up and now really understand what my father was looking to emulate. It’s a little dry, but very tender, and has a nice solid smoke ring with a light but definite bark.

At the end of the day – and yes, it is the end of the day for us; this has been a great experience.

Here is our rating:

Compadre	Brisket	Ribs	Sausage
Brian	4	4	4
Kirt	4	4	4
Greg	4	4	3.5
Tim	4	3.5	3.5
Average	4.00	3.88	3.75

General Comments:

Tim – The human body is not made to eat 5 meals before 3p in the afternoon.

Greg – I need beer.

Kurt – I’m ready for a nap.

Brian – Yeah, what they said.

Last day of the tour is tomorrow and we have decided that it’s breakfast at the Blue Bonnet followed by the Hard Eight and then home to start our recovery.

Historic Lockhart

The Compadres have just finished up at Smitty's in Lockhart. It's looking like we are approaching the limits of our ability to eat BBQ. Personally, I didn't think it was possible - but it is proof of the fact that too much of a good thing could be bad.

I wouldn't say we are at the point that none of us can eat BBQ anymore. But, there was a 3 to 1 vote to skip Black's and go ahead and go over to Luling to the City Market.

Here is our rating:

Compadre	Brisket	Prime Rib	Ribs	Sausage
Brian	4.5	5	4	4
Kirt	4	4	4	4
Greg	3.5	4	4	4
Tim	3.5	4	3.5	4.5
Average	3.88	4.25	3.88	4.1

General Comments:
Tim - Good food, but Snow's spoiled me.
Greg - Good food, reasonable price, enjoyed the atmosphere
Kirt - Traditional smoke filled hole in the wall with long picnic tables and smoke stained walls.
Brian - Best wet ribs. Prime rib was amazing.

18 miles and 1 Estate Sale Later

Mid-morning snack – The City Market in Giddings.

I think we are all glad we went to the City Market, but none of us felt like it was on par with Snow’s.

With out a doubt, it was the quintessential small town meat market and BBQ Joint.

Here are our ratings:

		Pork
Compadre	Brisket	Shoulder	Ribs	Sausage
Brian	2	3	5	2
Kirt	2.5	4.5	4.5	2
Greg	2.5	4.5	4.5	2
Tim	2.5	4.5	4.5	2.5
Average	2.38	4.13	4.63	2.13

General Comments:

Kirt – Unimpressed. It’s 11:30a and we have spent $80 on BBQ. Damn.

Tim – Okay

Greg – Big letdown after Snow’s.

Brian – Close to perfect ribs. But the rest really wasn’t all that impressive.

Now onto Lockhart & Luling.

BBQ Heaven

Just left Snow’s and 2^nd Breakfast.

Greg called it a religious experience. When Kirt bit in to his rib, he said, “Oh my God! That’s good!” He then shuddered and Tim asked him he if just had an “organism”. Kirt just kind of got this smile on his face and sure looked to me like he was enjoying an afterglow.

It was decided that this would absolutely be worth the drive from Dallas one Sat morning. In fact, Kirt stated that if any of us called him on Fri morning and said “Saturday morning, your driveway, 5:30a, Snow’s”, he would be ready to go.

Tim is of the opinion that there is no reason to go any further. In fact, I think he tried to see if he could get a job tending the pits just so he could sample the meat coming off.

Here is our rating:

		Pork
Compadre	Brisket	Shoulder	Ribs	Sausage
Brian	4.5	4	4.5	4.5
Kirt	5	4.5	5	5
Greg	4.5	4	4.5	5
Tim	4.5	4	5	5
Average	4.63	4.13	4.75	4.88

General Comments:

Brian – Buzzies rub would have made this BBQ nirvana.

Tim – This is as close to BBQ heaven as you can get.

Greg – If they had a Beer Garden, I would never leave.

We got a chance to talk with Tootsie and Cotton for a bit and they were as nice as you could ever expect. In fact, Tootsie signed sauce bottles for us all and gave us a ½ chicken because that was the only thing we hadn’t tried.

That level of service and being treated like just another member of their family is something you just can’t find anywhere else.

Once we told them what we were up to, they told us to that we needed to get over to the City Market in Giddings. The sausage they cooked was made there and Tootsie said the City Market’s pork shoulder was great. So, it’s off to the City Market for our mid morning snack.

It's a bright new day!

The Compradres are headed out for Day Two of our adventure.

Last night was a nice wind down. Played several games of Eucher and Kurt schooled us all. He and I won a game and then we switched up and Greg and I won the second game by sheer dumb luck. It was touch and go, but Greg and I were able to pull out a win to everyone's surprise.

There is a bottle of Eagle Rare that is one shot from being a dead soldier and all but Kirt enjoyed a nice cigar to wind down.

This morning folks seem to be doing well. I know for a fact the Kirt is walking lighter - although there was a period of time yesterday that I seriously considered calling in a HazMat team to clear our room. Greg also seems to be doing well today - although it was a bit touch and go when we got to the hotel. According to Greg, as soon as he stepped out of the Truck - his Colon said "It's time, NOW!". For those of you who of inquired via text - I'm doing well. I have prepared, medicated, and seem to be go to go for now. Tim let us know that he is the only one who has not "worked it all out" since yesterday morning. He followed that up with a warning that he would only tell us all once when it was time to stop. If we didn't stop - he was not responsible for anything that happened next.

We all had our 1st Breakfast at the Hampton and looking forward to Snow's. From my understanding, Snow's opens @ 9a and sell out by 11a only one day a week. So, after our mandatory stop for sweet tea and "senior coffee" - we should be go to go.

Friday, November 5, 2010

Arrival at the Hotel

We just arrived at the hotel all in one place. The drive from Kerrville back up to north Austin was nice. However, Tim missed a good portion of is as he was passed out in a protein coma.

After about an hour or so, we all began to feel a bit better and are finalizing our schedules to support our BBQ run for tomorrow while not missing key football games (Tim would lose his mind if he missed the LSU game.)

Now it's time to go play a little Euchre, smoke a cigar, and enjoy a little bourbon.

Buzzies - OMG!

Just now leaving Buzzies and headed to the hotel.

213 Schreiner Street
Kerrville, TX 78028-4462
(830) 257-4540
http://www.buzziesbbq.com/

Buzzies has been recently voted the best BBQ in Texas for good reason. The food was beyond plentiful and as Tim put it "We were over-served.". I seriously think their idea of a 1/2lb serving and the rest of the world's idea of 1/2lb serving is way off. We each ordered the Friday Special which consists of your choice of 4 meats and 2 sides. Personally, I'm not sure I see the point of the sides as they just get in the way of the meatastic plate that was offered up. Our servings seemed much closer to 3/4 lb of each meat rather than the stated 1/2lb. In fact, Tim is the only one who was able to pretty much finish his plate. According to Tim, he left a 1/2 a piece of brisket because he was full from "duo-din-dum" to his esophagus and just couldn't fit another a piece of brisket. In general, we all are stuffed to the grills and the the conversation in the truck consists mostly of grunts and groans of shear painful contentment.

Buzzies has recently undergone some work because of a fire so it is nice and clean with a new dining room while staying true to the rural BBQ joint look and feel.

The staff was very friendly and helpful, and in general - just "good people". Buzzie himself came out and talked with us as well as showed me to the back to check out his smoker. And let me tell you that it was a VERY nice smoker. According to Buzzie he can cook enough meat at once to serve 5000 people. If our servings were in indication of what Buzzie considers a single serving, I would say it's closer to 10,000 people.

Here is the Compadre's rating:

			Pork
Compadre	Brisket	Ribs	Loin	Sausage	Turkey
Brian	3.5	4.5	2	4	NA
Kirt	4.5	4	3.5	NA	5
Tim	4.5	4.5	2.5	3.5	5
Greg	4.5	4	3	3.5	NA
Average	4.25	4.25	2.75	3.67	5

General Comments:
Tim - Portion's were huge - why did I eat so much?
Greg - Sides are for wussies.
Kirt - Dude, even Rick Roof couldn't eat this much food!
Brian - OMG - this is for one person?

In summary; the portions are incredible, the service is outstanding, and the BBQ was upper tier. We pretty much agreed that the brisket had an excellent flavor but was a little dry to our tastes. The pork loin tasted good, but just too dry. The ribs had some of the best flavor we had ever tasted and probably would have gotten a 5 across the board if it had been just a bit more tender. The sausage was excellent and the turkey was the best anyone who had some had tasted. To be fair, we didn't get to Buzzies until after 3p and that very well could have contributed to the dryness.

Buzzies is well worth the effort to go to if you aren't from the Kerrville and you will not be disappointed with anything you have.

There's nothing finer than a Shiner

Well, we just left the Shiner Brewery. I wouldn't say it was a religious experience for Greg - but he did openly weep.

We didn't stay for the tour simply because they were giving free samples in the gift shop and you don't have to go on the tour to get the beer. So why go through the tour? We understand the fundamentals of making beer, our focus is on the results. Not the process.

Here are our ratings:

	Pilsner	Black	Holiday
Compadre	101	Lager	Cheer	Hefeweizen
Brian	3	4.5	2	NA
Kirt	NA	NA	2	2
Tim	3	4.5	2	NA
Greg	4	4	2	NA
Average	3.33	4.33	2	2

General comments:
Greg - I'm soooo happy.
Tim - What do you mean we can only have 4 beers? Kurt, are you going to use your other token?
Kirt - I'm not a beer drinker. Greg, give me your keys.
Brian - Kirt, you gave your extra tokens to Greg and Tim? What were you thinking? That's like feeding the wild animals.

We are now headed to to Buzzies in Kerrville. Looks like about 2 hours before we get there. This in turn prompted Tim to utter one of his unique sayings.

Timinism - "I'm going to be hungry enough to eat a baby's butt through a park bench."

None of us really understand where that came from, in fact - we aren't sure if Tim understands where that came from.

For those concerned, Kirt has taken the wheel and is in full control of this little adventure. Greg and Tim are now in the back seat. I can't wait to until I hear Kirt threaten to pull the car over.

Quote of the Day

Phone rings @ 9:30a:

Tim; "Oh, that's my office. Guess I should tell them I'm not coming in today."

Nuff Said

BBQ Trip - Pictures

Rudy's BBQ

Just finished up @ Rudy's. BBQ breakfast tacos - excellent 2nd Breakfast.

The Compadres have come up with a highly scientific method and grading process to grade the BBQ on our trip. This grading method is based on years of research and experimentation. The grades are a 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest.

Here is our rating for Rudy's Breakfast Taco:

	Reg	Spiced	Reg	Jalapeno
Compadre	Brisket	Chopped	Sausage	Sausage
Brian	2	3	4	3
Kirt	3	4	4	3
Tim	3	4	3	3
Greg	3	4	4	3
Average	2.75	3.75	3.75	3

General comments:
Brian - The Regular Sausage was my favorite and was spicier than the Jalapeno. The Spiced Chopped was much better than the Regular Brisket.
Kirt - It was good.
Greg - Very reasonably priced, but they said it wasn't past 9a and I couldn't have a beer.
Tim - Okay for chain. Better than Spring Creek.

Next stop - Shiner! Brewery Tour! Woohoo (last part was Greg)

Off we go!

Tejas Date 2010.1105

First Officer’s Log

The away team has returned to the UTT Baby and we are leaving Caroline’s headed out of the Midlothian city system……..

I had seriously considered starting this with a Gilligan’s Island reference instead. I’m comfortable playing Gilligan to Kirt’s Skipper. But that would mean Tim and Greg would be Mr. Howell and the Professor or Mary-Ann and Ginger. Not sure which is more disturbing.

The Compadres have finished up 1^st Breakfast @ Carolines, dropped off my truck, and now loaded up in Greg’s truck to head on down the road. Carolines is one of our regular breakfast meeting places and does a pretty good simple breakfast. Their over easy eggs are pretty close to perfect (not too runny), the bacon is always crisp, and they are one of the few places that will do loose hash browns extra crispy. The biscuits and gravy are also pretty good. It’s pretty much everything you would expect of a good small town café. Good food, reasonable prices, and great friendly service. If you are in Midlothian, it is worth the effort to get over there for breakfast.

Next stop - Rudy’s in Waco for second breakfast.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

The PLAN

The Meeting took place pretty much as scripted and we now have a PLAN.

Kirt actually got there before me, Greg rolled in right behind me and is fairly comfortable that there will in fact be beer at our various stops. Tim did show up after being called and I'm pretty sure I saw clubs in the back of his car. Still not sure if he has actually read any of the emails or the even the blog by now.

It was decided we would venture forth in Greg's Brand Spanking New Ford F150 King Ranch truck (aka "Baby"). Greg decided this not because he cares deeply about the rest of us and wants us to ride in style; spoiled by seats that not only heat your butt, but will blow cold air up it as well. But rather as a matter of pride after Kirt and I railed on him about how he was afraid that we would scar the inside of his purty new truck by (as Kirt put it) "burying one in the seats". Who said a 45 year old man isn't susceptible to peer pressure?

Commanding our merry band of characters will be Capt Kirt, 'cause he is the man with the plan!
Piloting (at least while sober) and acting as our Chief Medical Officer is Knuckles (cause Bones is just too obvious), aka Greg "Dammit Kirt, I'm a PA - not a doctor".
Navigator, resident techno geek, and general wise a** - yes, that would be me.
Token Red Shirt (and you know what happens to the Red Shirt) - Tim, simply because he is a good sport and won't read the blog in order to defend himself.

At 8a on Friday, November 5th; the 4 Compadres will set out on our 3 day mission to explore some of the tastiest BBQ joints in Texas.

To get a proper start to things, we will have breakfast at one of our favorite places to eat breakfast (or least the only one we can consistently agree on) - Caroline's Country Cafe in Midlothian. From there, we will set a land speed record to Shiner in order to make it in time for the brewery tour. If Greg has it his way, we will make both the 11a and the 1:30p tours. Lunch will be whatever we happen to find on our way or in Shiner. After our tour, we will head out to the New Braunfels Smokehouse for dinner.

Saturday morning will find us up early and headed to Snow's in Lexington to get our breakfast and catch them before they sell out. For lunch we couldn't settle on one place, so as my father is fond of saying - we didn't "give into the tyranny of or" and decided to eat at both Black's and Smitty's in Lockhart. For dinner we will find ourselves back in the Austin city limits at either County Line or Subbs (this part is still under discussion and it is entirely possible we may figure out a way to go to both).

Sunday starts off with us getting to Marble Falls for breakfast at the Blue Bonnet Cafe. Yes, I know it's not BBQ, but it is a great breakfast joint and frankly we will probably need something a little different by then. Lunch will find us in Llano at Coopers. To finish our quest, we will land at the Hard Eight in Stephenville.

Well this is the plan, let's see how well it get executed. :-)

For a Google map of our journeys:

View Larger Map

Here is the list of where we will be going:

Caroline’s Country Café

1000 E Main St

Midlothian, TX 76065

Spoetzl Brewery

603 E. Brewery St.

Shiner, TX 77984

http://www.shiner.com/

New Braunfels Smokehouse

1090 N. Business 35

New Braunfels, TX 78130

http://www.nbsmokehouse.com/

Snows Barbeque