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TX Meatup: What a Great Time!

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    TX Meatup: What a Great Time!

    Wow, I had no idea the Texas crew were actually fun to spend time with! But it turns out that they are. Stacy and I came to the Texas Member Gathering and Meatup (I totally made that name up) in Rockdale for the weekend. We flew into Austin on Wednesday evening and we are flying out on Sunday afternoon. In between, after shopping at Allen’s Boots in Austin and eating lunch at Perla’s (Stacy was jonesing for Gulf seafood), we headed out to Rockdale.

    The Rainbow Courts actually lives up to their billing. Very old motel, nice rooms, great outdoor gathering areas. Met up with Panhead John, 58limited, Troutman, and CaptainMike (plus his wife Collette). We had a great time meeting everyone. And then headed to dinner at Gonzales Mexican Bar & Grill in Rockdale. This place way exceeded our expectations, with food on par with places in San Antonio and Houston, according to our Texas friends. And as good as anything in Northern California, where I am originally from.

    The next morning we went to Louie Mueller’s in Taylor. Nostalgia for days. You can smell 70 years of smoke. You can see 70 years of smoke. We got a beef rib (2.5 lbs!), turkey, sausage, spareribs with coleslaw, potato salad, and Mac n cheese. If you are looking for a great beef rib, this is the place! But everything else we thought was okay, not great. And I would highly recommend not ordering the coleslaw here. Bland and boring was the group verdict. Go here for beef ribs and nostalgia.

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    That evening, we had dinner at Brett’s Backyard Bar-B-Que in Rockdale. They did a special evening just for us and by then the entire crew had arrived, including T-bone, Unclebob, LA Pork Butt, Texas Larry , and their respective others, including Tbones son, Walrusking, the newest member of the Pit. We had brisket, sausage, pork ribs with creamed corn, brisket beans, and tater tot casserole. All the meats were great, but I have to put their sausage at the top, followed by the brisket and the ribs. The creamed corn was outstanding, the tater tots and beans were good. Highly recommended, go here for some really great BBQ in Central Texas.

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    The next day, we went to Miller’s Smokehouse in Belton. We also scouted a possible new location near there for the Meatup. And we visited horses with Lee (@UncleBob’s lovely lady). We had brisket, pulled pork, regular sausage, jalapeño sausage, and Turkey with coleslaw, beans, and Mac n cheese. The brisket was superb, with a beautiful bark and great flavor. The pulled pork was quite good, also, but needed more bark mixed in. Both sausages were good, but the regular sausage won between the two. And the turkey was also very good. The coleslaw was good, better than Mueller’s by a lot. The beans and Mac n cheese were also good. Brett’s beans are better, by a nudge. Highly recommended for some really great BBQ in Central Texas.

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    Last night, after 3 big BBQ meals, we decided to go to Gonzales again. Brendan lives in San Antonio and says Gonzales is on par with most Mexican places there, with the exception of La Fogata. First night at Gonzales I had the Barbacoa and this time I had the Carnitas. Both were superb. Stacy had the Enchilada Verde with chicken and said they were superb (pictured below). The tortillas are made in house. And the refried beans are top notch. Martin, our waiter, was excellent as well. And the Margaritas were big, cold, and tasty! Highly recommended also!

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    All in all, a great time. Stacy and I will be back soon :-)
    Last edited by ecowper; October 24, 2021, 02:20 PM.

    #2
    Here here! And amen to the above review. A great time with great people!

    Comment


    • ecowper
      ecowper commented
      Editing a comment
      Wasn’t it fun!!!!

    • CaptainMike
      CaptainMike commented
      Editing a comment
      Larry, I'm so sorry we didn't get the chance to say goodbye to you and Renae yesterday! It was an absolute pleasure to meet you both and I look forward to the pleasure of your company in the future!

    • Texas Larry
      Texas Larry commented
      Editing a comment
      Likewise CaptainMike. What a pleasure to meet you in the flesh, and meeting Colette was more than a bonus. Looking forward to the next time.

    #3
    Great write-up, Eric. I'm hoping to make next April's gathering. Might even be able to talk my wife into it if there's another horse visit on the agenda.

    Comment


    • ecowper
      ecowper commented
      Editing a comment
      Jim, if we stay at the new place, the horses are about 2 miles away.

    #4
    It was great having you and Stacy in the house !!! Pit membership means and offers a lot of advantages; great food, recipes, place to hang out but most importantly (in my humble opinion) are the lifelong friendships made. Come on back down to Texas any time, the open door and a warm howdy will always be there for you my friends!!

    Comment


    • ecowper
      ecowper commented
      Editing a comment
      Thank you brother, and I totally agree! If, by some chance, you want to come to cold and rainy Seattle, you have a place to stay and we’ll cook some great food together.

    #5
    Any of you doing the big shindig today?

    Comment


    #6
    And just cause I gotta brag a little bit ….. Stacy told me that my ribs and my beans are better than any of the ribs or beans that she had at Miller’s, Brett’s, or Louie Mueller’s. I am somewhat in awe of that verdict, because those 3 places are all superb one way or another. She says my brisket is better than Louie Mueller’s, as well. Gosh, she’s comparing my food to some of the best places in Central Texas.

    Comment


    • ItsAllGoneToTheDogs
      ItsAllGoneToTheDogs commented
      Editing a comment
      I used to make money as a guest on an internet radio program (it was Howard Stern-ish), anyway one day there was a lot of dead space and the only option was to call my girlfriend (not my now Wife). They ended up talking about some things I wasn't comfortable with, but either through ignorance or intelligence everyone I bumped into afterward thought I was a highly talented and well endowed male specimen. Personally I'm more Chris Farley than Chris Pratt... but I was pretty stoked

    • Mr. Bones
      Mr. Bones commented
      Editing a comment
      Tell them sumbitches to cook them beans til they's done...Pics indicate they's WAY Too Wet, Yet ^^^
      Last edited by Mr. Bones; October 24, 2021, 04:51 PM. Reason: Cuz

    • ecowper
      ecowper commented
      Editing a comment
      Apparently there is new jewelry, a cat, and a new car in my future ….. not quite sure how that happened.

    #7
    Sounds like everyone had a great time.

    Comment


      #8
      Glad y'all had fun.i was busy entertaining a bunch of Yankees from NY. Next meat up, I hope!

      Comment


      • Mr. Bones
        Mr. Bones commented
        Editing a comment
        ecowper reckon folks from NY might could be Yankees...
        Last edited by Mr. Bones; October 24, 2021, 05:44 PM.

      • ecowper
        ecowper commented
        Editing a comment
        Mr. Bones you might be right …. I might have even called ‘em damyankees once or twice

      • Mr. Bones
        Mr. Bones commented
        Editing a comment
        Reckon it ain't up to me, jus where, zackly, Fate, Providence, an Th Good Lord might lead em, eventually...

        But: Let It Be Known, fer Th Record> I DO Have my personal Preferences...

      #9
      You missed the point of Louis Mueller’s cole slaw. It’s a pallet cleanser. You can eat anything there, take a bite of cole slaw and then your ready to taste something else. I’ve heard Franklins has something similar, but I’ve never tried had any.

      Comment


      • texastweeter
        texastweeter commented
        Editing a comment
        Mueller's is about the beef ribs anyway. The slaw is just there for decorations. Kinda like the glazed carrot at Bobs chop house.

      • ecowper
        ecowper commented
        Editing a comment
        texastweeter for sure …. Honestly, next time I go to Mueller’s I’m ordering the beef rib and nothing else

      • Mr. Bones
        Mr. Bones commented
        Editing a comment
        Cain't really think, as a cook, of any reason to make bland side dishes...

        Kinda makes one look stoopid, at best...

      #10
      Good stuff! This is what makes this place so special!

      Comment


      • Mr. Bones
        Mr. Bones commented
        Editing a comment
        Well, yeah...

        That ^^^ an yerself!

      #11
      Glad everyone had fun and memorable time. Well, the memorable piece could be dependent on libation consumption.

      Comment


        #12
        Sounds like a blast - pretty envious of that trip, and would love take part some time!

        Comment

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