When it was insisted I make the drive to tiny Lockhart because "Black's is the Vatican of…read morebarbecue," I rolled my eyes so hard they practically needed chiropractic adjustment. But, I'm open-minded (by open-minded I mean I gravitate to places with at least four and a half stars on Google). Enter Blacks, which looks like an eccentric Heartland cousin's hunting lodge married a school cafeteria. This place would shock those who require microgreens so tiny you need a jeweler's loupe to appreciate them. Ah but, brisket happens. It's a melt-in-your-mouth revelation served on butcher paper like it's no big deal. I took one bite, and basically ascended into a realm of flavor nirvana where time slowed and the only thing that mattered was bark, and each smoky, delicate bite. Skip the "Texas-style" place in Brooklyn. Fly west. Black's in the capital of Texas BBQ. Not even Madison Avenue PR spin could craft a crown more convincingly.

We'd been to Black's previously to dine in, but this time we were passing through Lockhart so opted…read morefor carryout. We bought a couple of sides and a mix of lean and moist brisket. Then we had to deal with the wonderful smell for the hour-long ride home. Service was very fast, as there wasn't a line on Wednesday. Of course, everything was very tasty. However, IMO, everything was overpriced. Seriously, about $9 for maybe a pound of potato salad or slaw or beans and $34 a pound for the meat. Yes, I'm aware of yield... and that the price of beef has risen a lot. Whatever the market will bear, I guess, but this isn't something I'd do on a regular basis.

Amelia, Veronica, and Jadyn were exceptional! The food, the smells, the tastes, it felt like…read morewalking into someone's hospitable home. The ambience outside had me as well. We will now plan trips through the area during their open hours as often as possible. Thank you for everything!

Fresh, REAL Texas BBQ! Tons of cold beer, atmosphere beef,…read morebarbecue sausage, ribs, and lots of sides, including banana pudding and peach cobbler. Non-smoking. & NO bar But do have cooler full of ice cold bottle beer. They also have cool merch for sale.

Iconic historical location. Large scale smoked meats from old pit style smokers. Best known for…read morebrisket , beef ribs (huge) and sausage. Plenty of indoor seating. Excellent sides we had sauerkraut and creamed corn.

Meh. We ordered brisket and a beef rib at the meat counter and then pickles, cheese, onions and…read moregreen beans at the sides counter. They did package up the meat nicely in the butcher paper but I was still underwhelmed by the whole process. The beef rib was the star of the show and quite good. The brisket was.....edible, barely. Another review mentioned how the brisket was both greasy and dry simultaneously and that's a good description. Honestly , I spat out a couple of bites of brisket because it was so dry and I don't waste calories on c*** food. The green beans were slightly better than canned with visible bacon bits, though they did not taste very "country cooked" at all. Prices were SUPER high, especially for the quality. Will not go back.

There has been a lot of hype around Texas BBQ for a while, and I've been fortunate enough to try…read moremany of the well-known spots. I've also seen the rise and fall of some old and new famous BBQ places, whether from quality dropping, prices increasing, portions shrinking, or places simply not living up to the hype. Lockhart has many original and famous Texas BBQ spots, but I have to say, Barbs B Q truly stands out. I wouldn't even compare it directly with other more traditional Texas BBQ places. Yes, it is that good. Maybe because it's located in Lockhart instead of somewhere like Austin, it doesn't feel overly hyped yet, which honestly might be a good thing. This humble little shop operates with very limited hours but offers exceptional quality food. They open at 11 AM, and I arrived around 10:30 AM, but there was already a line. That tells you everything: you need to get there early. They did start letting people in a little early, which was nice. Like many great BBQ places, even if they say they close at 3 PM, there's a good chance the meat will sell out much earlier. The owner and pitmaster was super friendly and passionate. Even with a long line, she still greeted customers and had a quick conversation with each person, which was honestly impressive. As for the BBQ itself, I tried the ribs, brisket, lamb chops, sausage, green spaghetti, and pudding. Everything was perfection. Yes, I'll say it again: pure perfection, even the bread. When it was my turn, it was hard to find seating, so I ended up bringing the food home, but it was still incredibly delicious. This is BBQ on an entirely different level. My suggestion: come try this place before it goes viral and becomes a huge hype spot. I really love and cherish small local businesses like this, and I hope they keep doing things their way even after more success comes their way.

Our second visit to Barbs B Q somehow topped the first--which we didn't think was possible…read more Waiting in line turned into part of the experience. We ended up chatting with other second-timers, all of us swapping favorites and hyping up the meats like regulars. Even though Chuck wasn't out front slicing this time, the crew absolutely crushed it--things were buzzing along smoothly and the quality didn't miss a beat. We arrived at 11:30am Sunday and we got to the counter at 12:06. While in line, we found a Yeti stocked with ice-cold Lone Stars for the 21+ crowd. When we arrived at the counter, and they handed us bite-sized brisket samples while we waited. One look at that glossy, glistening brisket told you everything--you knew it was going to be insanely juicy, and it delivered. The lamb chops were a standout this time--perfectly cooked with a flavorful herbed crust and paired with a mustard-based BBQ sauce that really set them apart. We also tried the "experimental" herbalicious sausage, and wow--it needs to become permanent. Packed with flavor and totally unique. Portions were generous (again), and we walked away with plenty of leftovers--which is never a bad thing when it tastes this good.

A Lockhart classic that's been around for ages as a true OG. While in town to visit Barb's B-Q, my…read morebuddy and I stepped out of line briefly for a quick trip to Smitty's. The firewood sits on the ground as you walk in as a part of their open-fire cooking style bringing smoke into the brick pits. These new school smokers don't do it like Smitty's. As we walked in at 10:30, there was no line. We asked for the simplest order. A single slice of brisket and a single slice of turkey. It was about $12 all in. As we sat down with one of the 4 pieces of butcher paper for 2 slices of meat, I noticed that there are no forks at Smitty's. Just knives. We got to work. The turkey was fantastic. Barbecue turkey is honestly an underrated concept and their turkey was juicy, soft, and would change any Thanksgiving meal to one for the history books. I was extremely disappointed in the slice of brisket though. It was extremely chewy like plastic. Decently seasoned but not tender at all. Probably a bit undercooked. It was worth visiting for the experience, especially to get a picture next to the fire pit, which one of the people on staff was nice enough to take for us. As we walked out, we noticed tons of their awards and recognitions. It's cool to give a classic originator of Texas barbecue a hat tip like we did. RIYL: The originators or fire on the floor

Ordering is a bit confusing unless the line(s) have formed up- one from the street and one from the…read moreparking lot out back. People seem to want to enter in the middle where you check out. Nope! Start at the scale on either end, exit the middle. Good brisket, cut to order, lots of bark. We had some lean and some fat. Liked the sauce they provide. Remember- no forks, so wash up first! We had a half link of the "spicy" sausage. Did t seem spicy, and the casing was tough, near impossible to bite it off or cut it with the plastic knives. I just pushed the meat out and ate it on a cracker. Nice to see a real, old time atmosphere, with old time smokers. Nice folks too.

Look no further for the best bbq in Lockhart! Brisket, ribs, sausages, turkey, chicken and all the…read moreside dishes one could need. All served with homemade bread and a great bbq sauce by a staff that's friendly and helpful.

Overall I give Chisholm Trail a big thumbs down, two thumbs down! The pork ribs were dry, tasteless…read moreand stood out like they were cooked a couple of days ago. The brisket was tasteless as well. A person could probably make better bar b q with a pack of bologna and a bottle of liquid smoke!! The young man who cut the meat acted like he was doing you a favor by serving you. Couldn't care less. A complete zero. On the other hand, the lady at the cash register was friendly and pleasant. She gets a big smile from me. My Big Red soda water was icy cold but you can't hardly screw that up. Left the restaurant disappointed to say the least.

Some of the best BBQ that I've eaten as of late! The food is excellent, service is excellent, all…read morearound great experience with this establishment! Be sure to catch them when you get the chance! You won't regret it!

Place is great! Small town vibe with Big Energy BBQ. Of course the brisket stole the show!! For me…read moreit was top tier quality and the sausage was right behind it. Decided to try some green beans (whoa!) amazing.. and can't forget the coleslaw, a couple drops of that gold sauce... and it was all she wrote. The main thing I liked is how the ladies service behind the counter didn't make me feel rushed to pick what I wanted. Bringing the family next time. Love it

Pre-freeze afternoon visit, 1.24.26…read more Before we decided to visit, I had called to see of they had smoked chicken. The gentleman on the phone said they did but had run out of some of the other meats and had limited quantities of brisked, chopped brisked and smoked chicken. i told him we'd head right over. We got there and 1. were greeted with firendly happy faces, 2. I noticed a small bar area as soon as you enter and 3. even though most people were freaking out about the freeze later this evening, the place was half full which to me, is an indication that this olace must be pretty damn good if it was literally freezing and people were willing to risk it for the brisket. While we waited in line to place our order, I get a callback from the Bloodworth which i though was odd. I answered and it was the gentleman I had spoken to earlier to let me know they were running out of chicken and wanted to know if we wanted him to hild some for us. Ain't that super nice and fantastic customer service??? I told him were already in line and about to place our order. He came out from the back while he still had me on the phone to greet me and we both laughed about it. Super nice guy and turns out he's also the pitmaster. We placed our order for the smoked chicken and also a to go order of brisket to have the following day. We also ordered their 5-cheese mac and cheese and their potato salad. The staff helping us was super helpful and cheery telling us about their menu and how everything is made onsite. Their chicken was moist and tender with a good smokey flavor and well seasoned with sald and pepper. The wife and i split a chicken quarter each and that was more than enough, especially sonce we were also non-stop digging into the tangy, mustard based potato salad and creamy and heavenly mac and cheese. Neither is to be missed! Also, while I'm not generally a fan of bbq sauces, their Gold and Spicy are freaking out of this world. Kudos to the entire staff as they were all incredibly nice, from the two young ladies behind the counter slicing the meats and packing the sides, to the gentleman behind the bar (thanks for asking of I needed another Lonestar) to the pitmaster checking on his customers, it was just such a great, refreshing experience. Glad to have a fantastic option close by to indulge in great tasting smoked meats!

Nice people with really good BBQ. Got there later so we…read moremissed out on trying the brisket, which other customers in there said was great. Tried the ribs and sausage which were both really good. House made sauce was tasty and unique. This is not a commercial place but, a real family small BBQ place that deserves your support. In return you'll get some tasty Q!

From the owner: Welcome to our family run barbecue restaurant, where we pride ourselves on serving mouthwatering…read morebarbecue smoked to perfection. Our signature sausage, brisket, chicken, pork ribs & chops are slowly smoked over several hours with a blend of spices until they are tender and flavorful. That’s what we do here. Our rustic and old school atmosphere transports you back to a time when things were simpler and the food was cooked with care. You'll feel right at home surrounded by vintage decor and the aroma of Maxwell pit-smoked barbecue. Come in today and savor the flavor. We look forward to serving you.