The Good: Same chill, laid back atmosphere as El Sancho with some small tweaks. The picnic…read moretables out back, the old school booths with checkered tablecloths up front, the misters, sun tarps, and Texas-leaning playlist definitely evokes central Texas. The service was good. A bartender noticed my wife and I waiting behind a couple, that was being explained everything about the place and how to order, and offered to take our order at the secondary window. The food came out pretty quickly. We ordered ¼ lbs lean and ¼ lbs moist brisket. They were both good, well-seasoned, and so tender and juicy. The pickles were tasty and abundant too. The potato salad was good, but I don't understand an earlier review that it's too heavy on the mustard! If anything, I could have used more. I'm assuming the recipe may have been tweaked since that review. I also appreciate they didn't skimp on the bread. For those who have spent time in Texas, you know asking for an entire loaf of white bread won't even draw a bat of the eye.
Not Bad: Smoked turkey, when done well, can be so delicious. When done wrong, is like tough jerky that sucks the moisture out of your mouth. The turkey slices today were tender and pretty juicy. I'd like to try it on a sandwich at some point with sauce and slaw.
Not great: The pulled pork ate more like sloppy joe than pulled pork. (To be honest, growing up in GA, I never really cared for pulled pork in TX anyway, but this was different). I imagine they're adding sauce to keep it from drying out, but it just changes the texture so much from fresh pulled pork. There was also something off in the seasoning or maybe the sauce. Speaking of the sauce, I'm not really a fan of this sauce. It's fairly sweet, which is ok, but lacks spice, and has a slightly odd texture. Finally, the beans really lacked flavor and were a little too al dente for my or my wife's taste.
For 1 lb of meat, 2 small sides, and a bottle of coke, our tab was $47 plus tip. For those prices, we were expecting greatness and hoping to be swept back to Austin. Instead, we received decent brisket but were definitely left wanting more.