Every corner of the Lone Star State offers smoked meats worth a special trip
Of all the regional culinary specialties in the United States, perhaps none is more celebrated than Texas barbecue.
Texans will line up outside their favorite pits starting in the wee hours of the morning. Barbecue lovers wait patiently to get their fill of brisket, spareribs, smoked turkey, and classic sides. Overflowing platters get eaten around picnic tables in courtyards suffused by the scent of smoldering post oak.
Global Air Charters has a long history of transporting clients to and from the Lone Star State. No trip would be complete without a visit to one of these fine establishments. Contact our flight coordinators to arrange your next visit to Texas.
Lockhart
The small town of Lockhart, located between Austin and San Antonio, bills itself as the Capital of Texas BBQ. The town welcomes a quarter-million patrons to its four barbecue restaurants each year.
The building that currently houses Kreuz Market was built in 1999, but the family has been tending the pits in Lockhart since around 1900. Texas-style barbecue leans more heavily on beef than pork, but the bone-in smoked pork chops at Kreuz are not to be missed.
Smitty’s Market comes from the same family behind Kreuz Market. The ordering counter sits darn near in the pit itself. Customers ring up orders of brisket and ribs mere feet from a live post oak fire.
Austin
Lockhart may be the spiritual home of Texas barbecue, but the capital city of Austin has grown the craft into a national phenomenon. Part of that is thanks to Aaron Franklin, proprietor of Franklin BBQ. Dedicated fans consistently line up early to taste the brisket that put new-wave Texas barbecue on the map.
La Barbecue is a female-owned pit — a rarity in the male-dominated world of Texas barbecue — and a favorite amongst Austin locals. Make sure to load up your meat platter with their several varieties of pickles, especially the sweet pepper cucumber kimchi.
Dallas-Fort Worth
Texas barbecue is renowned for its multi-generational pits that have been serving their communities for nearly a century. But that’s not to say it’s stuck in the past. Several newcomers are forging new barbecue traditions, and the best are found in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area.
Founded in 2010, Cattleack BBQ in Dallas smokes whole hogs (much more of a Carolina BBQ specialty) on the first Saturday of each month. Hurtado Barbecue in Arlington serves Tex-Mex-style ‘cue . Don’t miss their smoked quails or the Mexican street corn alongside the more classic BBQ staples.
Lexington
To find one barbecue joint in all of Texas that’s transcended the everyday smoked meats scene to attain legendary status, look to Snow’s BBQ in Lexington.
Named as the top barbecue restaurant in the entire South by Southern Living in 2023, Snow’s is the product of legendary pitmaster Tootsie Tomanetz. The nearly ninety-year-old Queen of Texas BBQ, Tomanetz was featured on the Netflix series “Chef’s Table”, which has since made trips to Lexington an annual rite for the barbecue faithful.
Snow’s opens only on Saturdays, so you’ll want to arrive around 7 a.m. and hope to be seated with a tray of barbecue around noon. Don’t worry, a small bar serving complimentary beers and Bloody Marys will keep you in good spirits while you wait.
Best BBQ in Texas 2024
Whether it’s business, vacation, or barbecue that brings you to Texas, Global Air Charters operates a fleet of ultra-long-range luxury aircraft that will make your journey to the state as joyful as tucking into a plate of brisket. Contact our flight coordinators to get going.
