Most Texans love to eat barbecue, and barbecue restaurants are sprinkled throughout the Lone Star State. How do you choose a good one?
I’ve eaten in dozens of Texas barbecue restaurants, and when I’m scoping out a new barbecue joint, I look for three signs
Sign number one. Check out the parking lot. Pickup trucks should outnumber sedans by at least three to one. Most working people in Texas drive pickup trucks, and these folks know their barbecue.
Jim’s Barbecue in Waskom, Texas, is a good example. I’ve often eaten at Jim’s, and pickup trucks always outnumber sedans.
Sign number two. Good Texas barbecue joints usually shun paper napkins in favor of big rolls of paper towels. If you walk into a Texas barbecue restaurant and see industrial rolls of brown paper towels on the tables, you can be sure you’ll eat some good Texas barbecue.
Sign number three. Good Texas barbecue restaurants always offer these three side dishes: baked beans, potato salad, and coleslaw. Texans have never understood the principle of the leafy green vegetable, and you should be suspicious of any barbecue restaurant that offers broccoli, brussels sprouts, or arugula lettuce salads. Too many vegetables is a sign that the restauranteur is conflicted about being in the barbecue business.
Good Texas barbecue restaurants share another common feature. Generally, they serve their customers sweet, iced tea in jumbo-sized plastic glasses— 20 ounces or more. In addition, the server comes by every five minutes and refills the glasses. When you’ve eaten at a good Texas restaurant, you will be satisfied with the food and well-hydrated because you drank two or more quarts of sweet iced tea.
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| What’s wrong with this picture? Image credit: Houston Food Finder |
