Scotch: Current favorite- The Arran (anything by them), Glenmorangie 12yr Lasanta, sherry cask finished. The Balvenie Double Wood, also like Oban 18yr, and The Glenlivet Nadurra (Oloroso sherry cask finished) among others. Neat please.
About meReal name: Aaron
Location: Farwell, Michigan - near Clare (dead center of lower peninsula).
Occupation:
Healthcare- Licensed & Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) at MyMichigan Health, a University of Michigan Health System.
Smokin-It 3D
Weber Kettle with an SNS
Masterbuilt kettle that I call the $30 wonder grill
Bullet by Bull Grills gasser
Anova WiFi sous vide machine
Thermoworks Thermapen and Chef Alarm
Large Big Green Egg, Weber Performer Deluxe, Weber Smokey Joe Silver, Fireboard Drive, 3 DigiQs, lots of Thermapens, and too much other stuff to mention.
Sid P and I ate at Black’s Original’s San Marcos location; it was genuinely awful. Watching the teenage girl cut the brisket was like watching her slicing a block of clay. And the ribs were mediocre. It was so bad that, after eating ribs, brisket, and sides, I suggested to Sid that we continue to a different spot for more ‘Q! San Marcos BBQ was much better. Black’s Original wouldn’t be good BBQ even here in Pennsylvania.
Terry Black’s is absolutely excellent. It’s a big ol’ BBQ machine that feels completely down home. Uncle Bob and l like to talk about turning the art of making great food into the art of selling great food for a profit; the places I’ve been to in Texas seem to address that by limiting days and hours of operation, and availability of product, and exercising strict personal control over the pits. Terry Black’s has addressed it by scaling completely the other way, open 7 days a week from mid mornings to late evenings, and expanding to now 5 locations.
In the end, between the two Black’s, food quality talks and tradition walks. My mantra is that the food either tastes good or it doesn’t, and how it got there doesn’t matter. If yours isn’t as good, go look at what the other guy is doing, and change! Authenticity doesn’t guarantee quality, and progress and business sense doesn’t kill it.
Cheap CharGriller Offset
22" Coleman Kettle
Traeger Tailgater
Jackson Grills Luxe 580 Gas Grill
Weber Q2200 Portable Gas Grill
Some other no name portable gas grill.
Smoke X4 with Billows
Classic Thermapen
Thermopop
Dreams/Future Purchases:
The Good One Open Range (or build something similar)
Grilla Grills - Grilla
At first I thought the same. But she is writing about the business side, not the food side; and the guy she took with her, Clayton Cook, is the manager of Leroy & Lewis, ranked #5 in the Texas Monthly Top 50. Since she defers food comments to him, I’m okay with the credibility on the business side.
TL;DR: The author is a vegetarian who had to rely on a third party taster. "Craft BBQ" is spreading as Texas urbanizes. Some a$$hats are trying to charge $40/lb for brisket. Aaron Franklin did stuff. At least one BBQ reviewer thinks that it's a golden age of BBQ, but old school pitmasters resent the implication that they aren't craftspeople who pay careful attention to the quality of their product. Bad blood in the Black family caused a split in the business. Grandma won't go to Terry Black's.
Large Big Green Egg, Weber Performer Deluxe, Weber Smokey Joe Silver, Fireboard Drive, 3 DigiQs, lots of Thermapens, and too much other stuff to mention.
To follow up what I just wrote, I just finished reading an article in Texas Monthly that addresses the issue of authenticity in Mexican food. José R. Ralat ends his essay, “Instead of focusing on authenticity, let’s ask the most important culinary question there is: How does it taste?”
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