Salt Lick Barbecue

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: Salt Lick was the first time I got actual utensils let alone metal ones…it left me confused

One of the final places I visited in my mini-barbecue quest was the Salt Lick. I guess wanting to go to the Salt Lick is like when people not from New York rave about Grimaldi’s. This was my introduction to Texas barbecue when I first sampled them at the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party. The first time I thought their brisket was fine and the sausage was out of this world. I however, we ate this at the end of the trip, after eating at a lot of other barbecue places. In short, it is okay.  

The Sauces

Sausage and Turkey

It is a tourist trap no doubt. There are just droves of people there and tour buses parked on the side. It is literally in the middle of nowhere, I was surprised Garmin was able to find it. It is a ranch basically and the inside is a cavernous dining hall. We were hitting our proverbial wall and instead of going by the poundage, we went with 2 combination platters and an extra half order of sausage. The combination allowed us to sample the pork ribs, brisket, turkey and surprise, more sausage. This is too easy to make an immature sausage joke. 

Ribs and brisket

The pit at the Salt Lick is impressive; you cannot be impressed by this. It is an open round pit with a grill and just mountains of meat and sausage just hanging from up above. We just ate barbecue about forty minutes before hand and this sight made me hungry. The Salt Lick differs in which they do not do the low and slow method; they are going for high heat, well high heat for Texas. There is no 200-275; it is more like 300-375. They are using oak like others but in addition they use soaked pecan shells to add flavor and as a makeshift temperature controller. 

sausage

One gripe, they did not have sweet tea or Big Red. How can you claim to be Texas barbecue if you do not have these iconic Texas, specifically barbecue beverages? I mean this is what I have come to know and love, Big Red? I just taste like Red. They did have Dr. Pepper though so I guess you get a pass. The brisket though tender had no flavor. It did not pick up any of the smoke from the wood. It was edible but did not wow me at all. The pork ribs were very good and if I was to eat at the Salt Lick again, this is what I would go for, the pork was able to get a bit more of the smoke and the meat was just right. The turkey was great and question why anyone would not smoke their turkeys for Thanksgiving (I know I do). Maybe it was the combination of beef palate fatigue but we wanted more, regardless the breast meat was supple and juicy. The sausage was good here though very different from the sausage that we had at other places. It was a finer grind, heavier on the salt but good amount of spice. It was similar to a kielbasa in texture, which lead it to have the best snap. The sauce however, is great and I can understand the cult-like following for this sauce. I personally brought back two bottles, and rationing it sparingly. It is a perfect mix of sweet, tangy and salt and just something that makes everything taste better. I guess I will soon be joining the legions trying to crack this recipe. 

Cobbler

I had to do dessert, I mean if the option is out there and it is descent, no matter if I am burping up enough meat to re-taste my meal I will always take a gander at it. I went with the blackberry cobbler with a scoop of ice cream on top. I am glad I did not skip it, this was one of the best desserts I had all trip, the cobbler was full of fruit, flaky crust and ice cold ice cream just melting all over it. Even my friends that were at their limit could not resist a taste of it. Besides, you need a bit of sugar to cut all the salt and fat.

Now that I have eaten a lot of Texas Barbecue, the Salt Lick is more about the atmosphere. It relishes in that Hill Country romantic nostalgia of cooking on an open pit and relaxing with others while eating copious amounts of meat. They do what works for them, using high heat cooking which you lose the smoke essence in the barbecue. However, their methods are warranted given the high volume of business they are doing. I am conflicted, the barbecue let’s face it, is just average compared to what else you got. But at the same time, it is sure a hell of a lot better than the majority of the places here in the Northeast. Though I would eagerly wait in line during the Big Apple BBQ block party, I do not see myself coming back here the next time I come through Texas. Though I will be picking up a couple of bottles of the sauce the next time I pass through the airport. Here is a tip, unless you are desperate for ‘cue do not do the airport Salt Lick, it is all hot/steam bagged, you might as well go to a Famous Dave’s. 

Pit Porn

Salt Lick

18300 FM 1826
Driftwood, TX 78619

www.saltlickbbq.com/

J. Mueller BBQ

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: I don’t drink that much anymore, but I don’t turn down free beer

“This is it? It’s a trailer dude.”

That was my friend’s first introduction to Texas Barbecue. Maybe we should have gone to the more impressive Lockhart or something else but no, I chose to go to J. Mueller’s. I mean, within the Austin City limits, the automatic answer for going to barbecue was not in Austin, was to go to Taylor, Luling or Lockhart. But now, the two most recommended places and need to go are Franklin’s and J. Mueller’s. Nerds might recognize the last name, same family running the famous Louie Mueller in Taylor, he branched out and went to Austin and from the lines, people here are thankful for it. 

J. Mueller is composed of a lot, one that smokes the meat and the other for carving and paying for the meat. Though the man was busy, he had time to mess around with me, answer some questions and pass out some cans of Lone Star on that hot Texas day.

We went with what I dubbed the trinity of Texas barbecue, brisket, beef ribs and sausage. Thankfully, my friends let me order which may or may not have been a bad thing because I always go for moist and ask for maybe a slice or 2 of lean, to see how it is. They were unfamiliar with the ordering system but it is basically like ordering from a deli. Prices are listed out by poundage and you tell them how much you want. They carve it, pile it on butcher paper, throw in white bread, (or crackers, but I really never seen anyone get crackers) and help yourself to the condiments of raw onions or pickles. Since I wanted to pretend to be healthy, I got an order of the chipotle coleslaw. On to the meat porn!

Take me Back to Black's: Black's Barbecue

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: If the butcher paper ain’t transparent by the end of the meal, your ‘cue probably didn’t taste that good

My original plan was to go to Lockhart, Texas and eat at Smitty’s, Kruez and Blacks. However when we got there on Monday, they Smitty’s and Kruez were both closed. Their coals maybe continuously burning, but they were not serving barbecue that day. I was a bit disheartened (actually probably for the best, because I would have ended up leaving Lockhart with gout) but thankfully, the one place that I really wanted to visit, Black’s was open as it should, claiming to be open 8 days a week. The town of Lockhart is fun for a person that grew up in suburban New Jersey. Cliché as it sounds, it looks like a place stuck in time, like when you see old Cold War reels of Reds invading American town, Lockhart is the town they are talking about. Black’s Barbecue has been in operation since 1932 and boasts are being one of one of the oldest, same family ran operation. Kent Black, the current Black runs it and was kind enough to indulge my inner nerd and gave me a tour of their pits and gave me a whole run down of the operation. Oak, aged for a year, pits run about 225 and they do not do no Texas Crutching here. Which, I would expect from a place in business since 1932. 

Rat Cheese-love it

This is the type of atmosphere and aurora that I was chasing for during my trip. You grab a plate and indulge on the cafeteria style spread of sides and desserts and then you order your meat. I loved the fact that they had the little packets of rat cheese and how nice the whole staff was and patient with those that could not decide on what they wanted. Here we got the standard fare, brisket, beef rib and sausage, got the jalapeno cheese and their original. First the sausage, I am a fan of the medium grid sausages, I like the texture. The original sausage unfortunately was that great, neutral tasting and did not pop with any flavor. Thankfully, their sauce is quite good, peppery and acid, it solved the monotonous sausage. The Jalapeno and cheese fared better, slightly spicy and chunks of cheese present it was good. Meat after the jump!

Franklin Barbecue

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: If bacon is a gateway meat, then this brisket is like…an 8 ball I guess?

It is 9:05am in the morning in Austin Texas. It is about 80 degrees and climbing and a slight humidity. I wanted to pretend to be cool and not show up at 9am, wanted to be too cool to show up at 9am on the dot and looking like a crazy person. That changed when I got there and the line was already 20 people deep. Right after I showed up, 10 other people showed up and by 10:30, the line was out to the parking lot as far as I could see. Okay, I did not have my glasses, but the line was very long. This is the typical scene at the line at Franklin’s Barbecue. This may have actually been a toned down line because the UT game was the previous night and otherwise hardcore ‘cue fans were nursing and tired out from an easy UT victory. 

10:30am. They open at 11.

Aaron Franklin of Franklin Barbecue does not have a barbecue generational pedigree story, though his parents owned a barbecue place for a few years. At most, he has a trailer to brick and mortar story, of succeeding. His brisket has been voted, tested as one of the best in the nation. And since no one does barbecue like we do, I will affirmatively say, in the world as well. I was a doubter and thought it was a whole lot of hype but I quickly changed that when I ate there. 

I was going to go light because other barbecue was on the itinerary, I was going to go with a half a pound of brisket, but after a quick taste I had to add a couple more slices. A sausage link, and ribs are part of my standard fare. I got a takeout order for my friends that were not as crazy about barbecue as me and lucky for them, I am only an asshole sometimes. MEAT

Hill Country NYC

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: mason jarred drinks, food on Butcher paper, was Texas style ‘cue the OG of hipster dining?

First time I had anything from Hill Country was during the Big Apple BBQ block party and it started drizzling/raining and we ran for cover, the Hill Country trailer was right there. Even though we tried not to hit up any of the New York vendors, we decided to try the Hill Country Brisket and glad that we did. I decided to go to Hill Country for real this time and Mr. Wells giving it a respectable 2 stars, why not?

Hill Country is modeled after any Texas ‘cue place that I am hoping to experience Labor Day weekend when I venture to Austin. The only formal service you will get is the host bringing you to your table and from there, you get a place card and you have at it. The inside borders a bit on tacky, it is going for that Texas salon look and I was hoping there was a Swayze impersonator. Thankfully, they do not do the weird Lonestar/Roadhouse restaurant crap of peanut shells all over. Despite the Crapplebee’s inspired décor, the tables are pretty Spartan; do not expect a place mat, just a fork and a knife and water served in mason jars, no doubt just trying to keep up with the Brooklynese trends. 

This is all you need, for 'cue...and maybe just life

The table just had a roll of paper towels, hot sauce, a shaker of salt/rub and their barbeque sauce. There barbecue sauce in my opinion was too sweet for my taste, heavy on the molasses but apparently Rick Perry declared it the best outside the state of Texas but let’s be honest here: if he did not specify best outside Texas, he would be done politically. 

Bottom right clockwise: shoulder, sausage, brisket and rib

No matter really, the place is keeping with Texas tradition in which it is counter service and ‘cue is served by the pound. Think of it like a deli, where you can order as much or as little as you want. If you want sides, you go to another counter and get them there, and desserts are at another counter. It somewhat reminds me of a buffet, with getting up and down but the food is a heck of a lot better. I love it that it literally keeps with Texas style ‘cue in which all the meat is plated on butcher paper with a bunch of white bread or saltines and thrown onto a tray. Just wait, give it a few and you will be going to a Michelin star restaurant and they will be serving something on butcher paper. Here is the run down:

Brisket, Moist- Meat from the point of the brisket, it is moist because it is fattier but hey, fat = flavor and the brisket was nice and moist. It was tender, but not pot roast tender that it is falling apart which is good, you want it to be able to stand on its own but the use of a knife to break it apart should not be necessary. The meat had a good enough flavor that it really did not need sauce, maybe some Texas Pete hot sauce if you want some heat.

Brisket Lean- this is the cut that you get pastrami from, has fat just a lot less. Unfortunately, we got some end bits that were just dry, but the lean pieces that were not from the end were fine. I would stick to the moist bits in the future.

Sausage- from Kreuz Market in Lockhart, this was filled with jalapeno and cheese. It is a beef and pork mix, ratio unknown but I could probably look it up. It was juicy and a great snap, not to spicy, I think I would get two of these in the future.

Beef Shoulder- Also known as beef clod, something that should not be missed and the best thing on the plate, it was juicy and had a nice fat striation on the top side and left me wishing I got a half pound instead of a quarter.

Beef rib- was excited for this but ended up being the biggest let down, it was tough and chewy and did not have much in flavor. If I want ribs next time, I will go pork.

Although I see sides as a waste of meat real estate space in your stomach, the sides at Hill Country were pretty good overall:

Mac and Cheese- ziti pasta, it was in a thick and creamy cheese sauce, emphasis on the thick. I prefer the my Mac and Cheese with a runnier béchamel sauce but this was respectable, a little hot sauce helped.

Collard Greens- a winner here, the greens were tender and had a lot of potlikker on the bottom, good for dipping cornbread

Cornbread- It was slightly sweet, so I guess it would be classified as “Yankee” cornbread. Tender crumb and served with an awesome honey butter, I would get this again.

Deviled eggs- on a hot day, these are refreshing, actually these are just good. The egg filling was like eating a savory buttercream.

Finally, no ‘cue experience would not be complete without a staple dessert of banana cream pudding. The pudding was full of banana goodness and the only criticism is that some of the banana pieces were a bit too hard, the pudding needed another night to soften up the bananas, but I am not really complaining because we did finish all of it.

Overall, I like Hill Country. It is a great place to hang out and most of all, it is comfortable. This would be a great place for any group outing, just make sure most of them like meat or they will be picking at the sides.

Hill Country
30 W 26th St
New York, NY 1001
http://www.hillcountryny.com

Taiwan Dispatches: Shilin Night Market

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: Lines in Asian Markets are always a good sign, we are impatient people. See a line, get in it immediately, you can figure out what they are selling later

Lady on Bottom Left- looks like she means business

I have not really written a lot of entries on Taiwan, but I figured that since I will be heading back again this year, I would recount my last visit to one of the most notable markets in Taiwan, the Shilin Market. Taiwan has an underappreciated foodie culture that has just the same fanatic food devotion in any other Asian countries. Taiwan night markets although you could shop for clothing and shoes that may have questionable copyright infringements; the focus if you ever visit a night market in Taiwan is the food. One that everyone hears about is Du Giang-long Market or Snakehead Alley and on instinct and the alluring name, you want to head there and hope for a Blade Runner-esque experience. What you will find there is a lot of tourists some food and cases of snake that do not taste very good and Taiwanese proprietors, waiting to overcharge the happy Mei Guo Ren in eat weird and chewy snake. There is nothing wrong with this, it is just the equivalent of going to Time Square and wanting a Dirty Water Hotdog, you do not really see any New Yorkers really doing this and you are buying a really expensive hotdog. You are much better off of going to Shilin Market, which can be just as touristy, but the food is good and still is frequented by all. 

Baked Bao Zi dude

Shilin Market is a bit of a hike to get to but thankfully the Taiwan subway/metro system was created in Japanese precision, it is clearly marked on the maps and has the names of the stops in English. Getting off the Shilin station, you are disoriented by the massive amount of people, strings of bare lights and stalls and people that are hawking food, tissues and other things at you. Shilin Market area has 2 parts to it, there is the actually market area that is covered, and open during the day and is basically a food court of multiple stalls. There you will find your Taiwanese street food staples like the fried chicken cutlets, meat is tube form and the oyster omelets just to name the popular. However, if you are like me and like the experience of eating on the street in a sea of people, let the bright lights and the throngs of people guide you to the street part of the Shilin Market. 

Pan Fried XLB innards

One of the first things that you should hit up, and jump in line for is the pan fried xiaolongbao (XLB). You will know you are at the right place with the line of people out this stall and pans of XLB being bathed in hot oil. The pan fried XLB are noticeably different not only by the lack of refined folding but it has a thicker skin and a crunchy bottom. The pan fried XLB are designed and made for street eating. They however do not lack any soup qualities as my first bite left me with roof mouth burn and soup dribbling down my neck. 

Pan fried XLB making

Any trip to Taiwan would not be complete without eating a bao zi, basically a meat filled roll and steamed. They can be found pretty much anywhere, but what you won’t find everywhere is baked bao zi that is done up in like this. The bao zi are baked in a tandoori-like oven and on closer inspection (after a few dirty looks from people in line), the process is similar to making nann, in which the bao zi is stuck to the side and the when they are ready, are peeled off. The result is a crispy slightly smoky exterior and a soft meaty interior. 

multiple oyster omelet making

Of course any trip to Taiwan would not be complete without an oyster omelet. It is not an omelet by your local diner standards and is a bit more similar to a crepe. It is a eggy mixture that is combined with oysters, eggs and a starch component that is blanketed over Taiwanese bok choy and smothered in a reddish gravy. The resulting combination of this is a textural and taste symphony that is unlike anything you have consumed. What makes the pancake is not the eggy crisp, sticky, gooey egg and oyster combination but it is that red gravy. The gravy is different from place to place, each putting something different, but they are all consistent with tomato/ketchup (Asian style Ketchup) and sweetness and maybe a slight amount for heat. The sweetness works magically and pairs wonderfully with the slightly bitter bok choy. 

Oyster Omelet

Another unique eat is the big sausage little sausage. The big sausage is composed of gluten rice and peanut sausage that has the similar composition of Cajun boudin and the little sausage is a plump, plum sauce sweet Chinese sausage. The big sausage is butterflied and the small sausage is shoved in and thick aged soy is squirted on top. To compare it to a hotdog is unjust and would not even be comparable, this thing is in a league of its own. 

Big Sausage little Sausage

Of course you’re in Asia, so dumplings are available and everywhere, and can get a bowl full for less than 1 US dollar. Be sure to add a good dose of hot sauce. 

Dumplings

Finally, my favorite street treat, and I guess the most adventurous eat is Pork Blood on a stick, Offal fans, take note. Most of the vendors that have pork blood on stick vendors are not brightly advertised and showing off their goods. You can recognize them by a simple rectangular wooden box that has wisps of steam permeating from the sides. The transaction feels a bit shady, as the vendor reaches into his box and pulls out a skewered rectangular block, but if this is wrong, I don’t want to be right. The block of blood is then coated in peanut sauce, a drizzle of aged soy and in my case, a bit of hot sauce. Surprisingly it is only slightly porky and does not taste minerally at all. The Pork blood is steamed with rice in order to give it some body and results in a gooey, chewy meaty stick and the texture kind of reminds me of being like extremely soft nougat. The crush peanut coating offers a slight sweetness and textural crunch and if you are all for textural foods and can embrace the love of gelatinous textures that Asians are so fond of, then give it a shot, besides, it cost less than a dollar and uhh good source of iron?

Pork Blood on a stick- Mobile Offal

Of course there are many things that I missed or did not take pictures of, like the oyster noodle stew or fried chicken cutlet but I was cursed with only one stomach. For first timers in Taiwan, Shilin is an experience that you should not mix. Despite the sea of people, locals and tourists alike, eating there is not as frantic as you would expect. There are bubbles and moments of serene eating as you stand in a pocket of free space between a juice bar and a Puma store eating a pan fried XLB. Though I am unsure if I will be making the ride out to Shilin Market this time around (got to try the other ones) there is no better way to immerse yourself into Taiwan and see firsthand what a food fanatical country is like. Oh by the way, the dudes with the surgical masks are not performing discount surgery, they are cooking stinky tofu so either steer clear or run towards it your choice, though I think you know what I would be doing. 

Yeah, insert your own inappropriate jokes here

The Meat Hook at the Brooklyn Kitchen

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: Not everyone gets as excited about render duck fat being on sale, weirdos.

The Outside of the Brooklyn Kitchen and Meat Hook. I always wondered,places that have a garage, wtf is in there?


I have no problem going out of my way and actually plan my routes around the city just so I am able to find myself “conveniently” near a gourmet market, sandwich shop, bakery or a butcher shop. To me this is not annoying, but to my friends, I am sure they dread it after we meet up and eat and then they hear me say, “By the way, can we just make a stop over there? We just happen to be near the area!” Although they are mainly too polite to say no, (thanks guys) I know they are generally less than enthusiastic about staring at a meat counter. I am a loser in which I can not describe the level of excitement I get when I am in a butcher shop and I just see a beautiful array of meats. I guess it is like a Meth Head going into a Meth-lab except it is less dangerous and illegal...and not done in a trailer park.  
 

Dickson's Farmstand Meats

 

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: Sandwiches should always be bought in pairs

Like so many others in this great country, my family is the first generation of immigrants. My parents came to the US in the 80s and I was a 90s kid. That meant GI Joe, POGs and supermarket foods. Unfortunately, many of my generation and the generation of my parents have grown up in the supermarket age where food is prepackaged and unfortunately for many children that grew up in suburbia in the 90s, it meant that meat came broken down in a plastic package and Captain Crunch destroys the roof of your mouth. However, thankfully with the help of such places as Dickson’s Farmstand. Meats I can have that 1950s nostolgic butchershop experience and pick up some great meat.

Pretty Meat