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    Vera's Backyard Bar-B Que

    4.6 (50 reviews)
    InexpensiveBarbeque
    Closed Closed

    Vera's Backyard Bar-B Que Photos

    VERA'S BACKYARD BAR-B QUE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Good for groups
    Good for kids

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    Zainab F.

    The texture of that barbacoa was unreal! So juicy, tender, and not too fatty. I didn't get to see the underground smoke pit when I went but it's really cool how they use this traditional method to make delicious food. The service was friendly and they guided us on what the popular options were and were really accommodating. The decor inside was fun to look through and the ambience was very casual and chill. We got the cachete, birria, charro beans and they even came by to give us some samples of carnitas! FYI the salsas and onions were a separate charge. The barbacoa they give you in its purest form I believe so for more taste you gotta add in some salt/salsa. The other meats were well seasoned and I especially loved the birria!

    We made it to Vera's !
    Krystal C.

    Holy smokes.... Literally. If you get a chance check out the only spot left in the US smoking their meat underground. This James Beard top 50 Texas BBQ joint does not disappoint! During our top 50 Texas BBQ trip we found ourselves here on a Friday morning. We got to meet the pit master himself and he was awesome. Everyone there was very nice and helpful. We ordered carnitas and beef cheeks with amazing tortillas and hot sauce. Both were melt in your mouth delicious. I just wish we could have ordered more, but this was one of three BBQ stops for the day! Love that you can see the smoking pit outside and if you wait long enough you might get to peak inside!

    Carnitas
    Garrett O.

    Enjoyed my first visit to Vera's. Family and I have tried their to-go quite some time ago, but it was our first time dining in on a Sunday ~11am. Plenty of parking, friendly staff, and a cozy environment that felt a lot like the signage out front. Lots of character dating back 50+ years, and you can tell they've perfected the art of barbacoa, salsa, and various other meats. I appreciate that they drain their meats prior to serving and it's clear they're just trying to make customers happy by offering suggestions (not likely pushy sales folks at other shops). By the time we got there, they were unfortunately out of green salsa and brisket, but my hats off to anyone that was able to enjoy it. Hopefully we'll be back earlier in the day/weekend to try it next time. Everything else that we had (lengua, cachete, carnitas) was delicious, and my personal favorite was the carnitas. I'd definitely order it again, and don't forget the homemade flour tortillas!

    Awesome carnitas tacos!
    Robert M.

    I came here and was surprised about how few people were there. It opens at 6 and I was there a bit before 9. Perhaps everyone had gotten their breakfast tacos already! The place is clean and small. You almost immediately place your order on the right when you come in. A couple folks ahead of me waiting on food so it didn't take long at all. I was an idiot in high school: I took four years of French. So when in the RGV I'm always at a bit of a disadvantage. Fortunately the owner/manager was fluent and intermediates between the staff and us. They were all super friendly and helpful. This guy definitely had pride in his place as he should. I decided to order only two tacos. Definitely order more if you have any hunger. I really just wanted to sample and they were the perfect size. If I were hungry it may have been about 1/2 what I wanted. First up I had a carnitas taco with cilantro and onions in a crazy good corn tortilla. Wow that was good! I think it was just an awesome piece of smoked meat and was in love. Unfortunately the barbacoa was on the other side of the spectrum. It was absolutely something I did not like and I've had a lot of barbacoa. Either something was way wrong with this or I'm just not in tune with Valley barbacoa. I suspect the former but hope the later. Don't let my miss keep you away, just try something else.

    Menu
    Elsa C.

    Doing the Texas Monthly Top 50 BBQ spots in Texas and of course Vera's Backyard Bar-B Que in Brownsville in on the list. This place has the BEST Barbacoa de cabeza!! The flour tortillas, you get 9 for $3.00, are delicious and the size of a medium pizza, wow! The corn tortillas are the size of street taco corn tortillas but you get 18 corn tortillas for $1.50 Everything here is delicious so bring your appetite and come early. My party of 3 and me arrived around 7:15am on a Saturday. This place is only open on Friday 6am-2pm, Saturday and Sunday 5am-2:30pm. So the process is that you walk in the menus are posted on the mall but if you need help the nice people working will help you and answer any questions, yes they speak English and Spanish. We ordered 9 corn tortillas, full order of flour tortillas, some Barbacoa de cabeza some lengua(tongue) and some brisket with a few of the different salsas on the side. They allowed us to bring in our coffee and our own bottle water. We got lucky as the owner/Pitmaster Armando was sitting in the dining room so we were able to talk to him about the history of the place and about his life. Part of the best thing about eating here is the charm of talking with Armando. It brings joy to my heart when we travel and talk to the small business owners and I realize that part of the beautiful thing about traveling and eating great BBQ is also helping these small places keep their doors open. The prices here at Vera's Backyard are nice and fair and all their food is delicious. The place is nice and clean inside and the people here are wonderful I highly recommend this place.

    Cheek, habañero salsa, and cilantro
    Wilma J.

    I've spent a lot of time looking for a place that made traditional barbacoa, also known as barbacoa de pozo and is baked in a hole underground. This is the way my grandfather use to make it in the ranch when us kids were growing up. Not many places on this side of the border makes it like this anymore. Cooking it like this gives the barbacoa a distinctive smoky earthy flavor. If you're new to trying barbacoa try the cheek and tongue, those are the less fatty of the parts although once in a while I enjoy the fattier "mixed" version. I also like their mollejas aka sweetbreads and brains. I can eat pretty much anything but ojos...Ojos(eyes) are considered a delicacy and they are available here as well, I haven't felt that adventurous lately but when I do, I'll give them a try. Vera's serves all this up on Sundays as well as carnitas, brisket, carnitas, lamb birria, and menudo. I like the fact that you can sit and enjoy your barbacoa in the restaurant, usually barbacoa places just serve it up to go. Here they even have warm tortillas that you can buy to make yourself some tacos. They also have condiments you can purchase to go along with your barbacoa, fresh chopped cilantro, onions, and 2 different salsas, a green salsa on the mild side and a habañero for those that like it hot. They also have hot coffee and sodas by the liter for you to wash your grub down. Lines get long and out the door about 8-10 so plan accordingly. By 11ish you're risking not getting any of the real good stuff;cheek meat. We usually get there about 9ish and have been lucky enough to beat the lines and have a place to sit and enjoy our hot barbacoa! Barbacoa on Sundays is just the thing to do with the family. You have to come see Mr. Vera. He is always happy to hear how much you enjoy his food.

    The menu & price list.  One pound easily feeds at least 4 people.
    Lisa A.

    We finally got to try Vera's and it was perfection! We got a pound each of carnitas and cachete (cheek-meat barbacoa), a pack of corn tortillas, mild, red salsa, and chopped onions/cilantro. The barbacoa was pretty lean and had a pleasant, smoky taste, more like brisket than other barbacoa that I've tried. It was quite tasty, but I think the carnitas were even better. Moist, succulent, pork with just the right seasoning. The bits of fat were delicious and just added to the experience! Ordering at the drive-thru was quick and easy and our food was carefully packed to stay warm and mess-free. We look forward to a return visit!

    The product rocks!
    Juan S.

    Excellent pit Barbacoa fresh tortillas and outstanding habanero hot sauce! Hot coffee good and strong too!Barbacoa Es Con Madre

    Barbacoa Lineup. Cachete (Cheek), Ojo y Paladar (Eye & Pallet), Jeta (Jawline), Lengua (Tongue), Mollejas, (Sweet Breads), Mixta, Mix
    Jmj G.

    Vera's Backyard Bar-B-Que in Southmost Area; Brownsville, Texas keeping beautiful traditions alive since 1955. Vera's has brought the Southmost Area in Brownsville, Texas their finest Smoke Mesquite Barbacoa de Poso "Underground Pit". Crafting delicious moist cows head beef. Smoked Cheek (Cachete), Tongue (Lengua), Jawline (Jeta), Palate (Paladar), Sweet Breads (Molleja), and Mix Cheek & Tongue (Mixta Cachete y Lengua). Last but not least! The main contender! The Eye ( El Ojo). Stated to be "The Caviar" on the cows head. Which truly it is. Their Ojo (eye) meat is Cream of the crop. Its delicacy of uniqueness which is flattered over in its mouth watering taste. Your taste buds will be asking for more. Vera's Backyard Bar-B-Que is operated by the legendary Armando Vera (Owner & Pitmaster) and family. Born and raised in a majestic Mexican food paradise Brownsville, Texas. Don Armando was taught to attend the fire pit at the age of twelve. Fully inspired by his mother and father. The Vera's started their cooks has a need to provide to their family. Which has now become Nationally known as a master in its craft. Their legendary underground pit fire is truly a landmark for the city, the state and the country. It's a representation from where we come from. Overall, cherishing tradition that our grandparents have passed over through generations. If you're in need of recapturing tradition. Feeling and tasty traditions. Vera's Backyard Bar-B-Que will give you that and more. Cherishing familia and customer service. Your going to be right at home. Special thanks to Vera's Backyard Bar-B-Que and their awesome hospitality. Saludos y abrazos to the beautiful people of Southmost Area in Brownsville, Texas. Gracias for the love. YouTube Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CT7E-UF5fc4&t=57s This review was not sponsored nor a paid advertisement. This is a pure honest customer experience. It's all for the love of the food and bringing you closer to food that feeds the soul. Vera's Backyard Bar-B-Que Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/VerasBackyar... JMJ Gratification Social Media Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jmjgratific... Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jmj.gratific... Yelp: JMJ Gratification YouTube: JMJ Gratification Twitter: @JGratification

    The smoked cabezas have been removed from the pit and are ready to be cut up and separated, according to the cut of meat.

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    2 years ago

    Great food!!!! Definitely will be back any time in Brownsville for sure. Staff was friendly and very helpful.!

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    4 years ago

    What a great way to start the day barbacoa tacos for breakfast. Menudo for my hangover was delicious.

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    4 years ago

    Awesome BBQ place with plenty of options to choose from, perfect for making some BBQ tacos! Service was fast and friendly!

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    7 years ago

    Just ate the most amazing Mexican bbq. Get the combo with brisket, Carnitas and Barbacoa. Such good food.

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    Rudy's "Country Store" and Bar-B-Q - Catered lunch by Rudy's - Chicken, brisket, potato salad, beans, Rudy's sassy bbq sauce

    Rudy's "Country Store" and Bar-B-Q

    3.6(76 reviews)
    4.2 mi
    $$

    We had delivered. The bag was sealed well/tamper proof. We really liked the Turkey, great flavor…read moreand not dry at all. We will, definitely, get the New Potatoes and Rudy's Beans again too. They're rather expensive for the amount you get. We got smallest sizes and was plenty w all the other food. The "Sissy" sauce and Original Rudy sauce don't taste like a lot of BBQ type sauces. We liked the flavor of the Sissy sauce best but both were good. 2 things we won't get again- The corn on the cob was chewy and tasted way overdone. The flavor was good if was cooked properly. We, also, got the Brisket. We compare every brisket we have to Willie's in Alamo because have never had bad brisket at Willie's over several years. The Rudy's brisket was more like jerky, dry and chewy. The flavor was good though and we do like jerky, just was hoping for Willie's style brisket. Whe

    Today, we tried Rudy's BBQ via the drive thru. My son presented his active duty military ID and…read morepresumed she had applied the discount. Upon looking at the receipt it was not applied so we asked the cashier and she was dishonest and said it only applied to the dine in process. Please do not talk without knowing or informing customers about the facts on the matter. It makes you look incompetent and a big fat liar. As far as the food nothing special compare to the delicious Terry Black BBQ in Austin. Also overpriced for what they are serving. I do not recommend this place. I would drive up to Austin and pay a much higher price for BBQ and be satisfied, happy and full.

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    Rudy's "Country Store" and Bar-B-Q - Clean up after yourself!

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    Rudy's "Country Store" and Bar-B-Q
    Rudy's "Country Store" and Bar-B-Q - Souvenir cup for discounted refills

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    Souvenir cup for discounted refills

    Vera's Backyard Bar-B Que - bbq - Updated May 2026

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