Where Should We Have the Next MeatUp? POLL

[Panhead John]

At the last MeatUp in October, I asked some the attendees where they’d like to hold our next one in April 25’. Someone suggested Houston as a possibility, on the North side. LSG Grillz is located in that general area and they suggested possibly doing a tour of the factory while we’re there. There’s also “at least” 3 top notch BBQ joints in the area, Tejas Chocolate + BBQ in Tomball, Corkscrew BBQ in Spring and Bar-A-BBQ in nearby Montgomery, Tx. 58limited and myself have eaten at both Bar-A and Tejas BBQ…they are 1st rate! Corkscrew recently earned a Michelin award and is a Top 50 in Texas and Tejas BBQ is also on that Top 50 list. Also, some of the best chicken fried steak you’ll find is at Goodson’s Cafe in Tomball, not BBQ but great food, I’ve eaten there and can verify.

Also a possibility is a return to San Marcos and I think we all know how great that was! There’s still plenty of great BBQ spots some of us haven’t been to yet. I can think of 3 or 4 I haven’t tried yet that some members went to…and probably vice versa.

Last but not least, is a return to the great state of Louisiana…specifically Lafayette. As you might recall, we held the October 2023 MeatUp there and had a blast! Lafayette boasts some of the best Cajun food in the country and is considered the heart of Cajun Country. In addition to the great food we also had a hoot going on the swamp tour. There’s plenty of other attractions and things to do in town, you won’t get bored, I garontee cher!

I’d like for anyone who has been to one of the MeatUps as well as anyone who might even be thinking about attending one, let us know your thoughts! I have absolutely no bias towards any of the locations, I’ve had a hoot at all of them. Please give us your honest choice of where you’d like to go. Most votes wins. I’ll vote myself only in case of a tie. I’ll give the poll a couple of weeks to simmer, then go from there…

[Mosca]

I’m okay with either Texas location, but I’d also suggest Austin. A food lover could spend a week there and not get to half the places they’d want to try, not just bbq but also Tex/Mex.

[TripleB]

I really enjoyed the MeatUp in San Marcos. Central Texas BBQ is great. But for my next MeatUp I would like to go somewhere other than Texas. Now, I'd come back to Texas at a later date, but for now I want to try different parts of the country for their Que. North Carolina, South Carolina, Kansas City MO, Florida, etc. I'd go to Lafayette, but I've been to NO 4 times and not sure if there'd be much difference between NO and Lafayette.....but that is an opinion out of ignorance.

[TripleB]

LA Pork Butt Mutton sounds great. The lamb chops at Barb B-Q were fantastic.

[Draznnl]

Be careful what you ask for when you put Florida on your list.

[mrteddyprincess]

I've been to Owensboro, KY specifically to sample the mutton. I'm glad I went and I had fun, but I don't think there's enough BBQ there to host a meat up. There are two main restaurants that serve mutton, and that's about it. I will add that the Bluegrass Hall of Fame is really cool (if you like Bluegrass music).

B

[realdocBBQ]

What about the DFW area? Easy to fly in/out of, definitely lots to do and there are some top-notch Texas top 50 BBQ places there, also. Just a thought. I'll try to make it wherever we land, regardless.

KCMO has some great places, too, if anyone wants to do a 'mini-Meat-Up' maybe. It's only like 3h from me.

[LA Pork Butt]

As a Dallas resident we have thought about it, but traffic is heavy and congested. these places are pretty spread out and finding a relative inexpensive for everyone to stay will be a challenge. Otherwise y’all come.

[LA Pork Butt]

Houston or San Marcos would be good and for those who want to experience something other than barbecue, Lafayette would be a great culinary experience. But, remember Mosca contended that something like 75% of the experience was getting to know the people from the Pit. If that is true, wherever we go will be a great event, but I think for those fro outside of the state of Texas the BBQ will be the big draw. What do the folks from outside of Texas say?

[TripleB]

I don't know about 75%..... I enjoyed meeting the group and putting a face with their avatar, but I went for experiencing the BBQ. The chats, the comradery and Dave's smoked sausage 58limited was just icing on the cake.

[Panhead John]

TripleB Soo, you didn’t really like us huh? 😂

[TripleB]

Panhead John I liked you all a lot more after I left Texas 😂

[captainlee]

I'm ok with any place.

[CaptainMike]

I'm just hoping I can make the next one.

[Panhead John]

Me too Mike!

[CaptainMike]

I gotta lotta plates spinning right now, we'll see.

[Sweaty Paul]

+1. I’d like to get to one too. Will continue to follow the thread.

[Jfrosty27]

I would love to attend another meet up. I went to the one in VA and had a blast. Well, orher than falling in the hotel shower and getting a nasty bump on the head anyway. 🙄🤦♂️

I don’t travel via air anymore so the closer to Milwaukee, WI the better. Other than that, I’ll do my best to get to wherever the group decides.

[Panhead John]

Jfrosty27 VA? Did you mean the one in North Carolina that WayneT put on?

[Jfrosty27]

Panhead John. Oops. Right. NC.
I guess that hit in my head was worse than I thought!

[klflowers]

I have some family obligations so I am not sure I can make the spring one, but my vote would be LA. If it is back in TX and I can make it that would be fine too. Wouldn't the traffic in Houston match that in Dallas though?

[klflowers]

realdocBBQ most educated people know that. Like us.

[TripleB]

klflowers Ouch....I know it was Louisiana. I was just joking. I mean, who in the world would go to Los Angeles for BBQ, right?

[klflowers]

TripleB I was just joking too

[RonB]

So John, exactly how many bedrooms do ya have in your Houston home? Asking for a friend.

TX would be my preference. I'd rather have Q than Cajun. Having said that, my participation is still very iffy...

[Panhead John]

RonB 2 bedrooms, but if you snore or hog the covers I’m kicking you to the garage! 😂 I definitely thought about the traffic in Houston before considering it. But, with us being on the far North side, well away from the core of Houston, it wouldn’t be bad. If we got a hotel in or near Spring, Tx. the bulk of the traffic is headed south on I-45 in the morning and North in the afternoon.. 4-7 pm. One of the places, Corkscrew BBQ is in Spring, so we might be 10-15 minutes away. The other 2 places would involve East and West driving, away from the traffic of I-45. Anyway, I hate traffic as much as anybody and I wouldn’t even consider it if traffic was going to be a concern, trust me. Even though I’d only be 45 minutes from home, I’d stay in the hotel for the weekend. This isn’t to sway anybody, just to alleviate any traffic concerns you might have.

[Uncle Bob]

And traffic in that northern area ain't anywhere near what Dallas offers.

[Draznnl]

I haven't read all the comments PJ, but I wanted to remind you that Tejas received Bib Gourmand recognition from Michelin too. Don't ask me why I remembered that.

Okay, now I've read all the comments. If, and that's a very big if, I can swing a Meat Up in the spring, I'd prefer Louisiana. I can cook good barbecue, but the only thing I know about Cajun cooking is that first you make a roux.

[Panhead John]

Would love for you to make a MeatUp Draz! Actually Tejas didn’t receive a Bib Gourmand, you might be thinking of Truth BBQ where 58limited and I ate recently. But Tejas was ranked #6 in the 2017 Texas Monthly Top 50 edition. They’re still in the Top 50 from the 2021 edition.

[Draznnl]

Okay, Panhead John you made me look it up. https://guide.michelin.com/en/texas/...ejas-chocolate

[Panhead John]

How did I miss that?! In this case I’m perfectly fine with being wrong! 🤓 Ain’t the first time I’ve screwed up.🙄

[yakima]

As an aside. Some of us should think about a Northwest meat up, Maybe based on a member's place, doing our own cooking. Oregon, Washington, with motel/rv facilities.

[Uncle Bob]

All ya gotta do is make it happen. Seriously, if someone takes the reins, does the basic organizing decisions/choices then others will join in and help. The biggest "risk" you'll have is more folks will say they'll join in than will actually end up joining, but that's normal.

[TripleB]

Yeah. Northwest seafood, smoked fish. Best oysters in the US...IMHO.

[tamidw]

Northwest would be good.

[SheilaAnn]

Personally, I would love a west coast meat up. “Cuz there ain’t no party like a west coast party, cuz east coast got no game!”

sidebar: Will AR be doing the conference again?

[OC Sandy]

Hear! Hear! Or is that here, here?

[Mosca]

If I recall, Meathead said he lost a lot on that one, and I think he said would have even had it not fallen through due to Covid, but that part I’m not sure of.

Damn, the one I missed in the Bahamas, I still regret. But it was at the end of the month, and I was absolutely essential to closing out the month; it couldn’t be done without me (aside from the fact that those 5 days accounted for half my income each month).

[Skip]

Mosca we went to the Bahamas Meat Up. It was fantastic! Green Turtle Cay is far from any commercial Bahamas location. It was fun telling Family and Friends we were going to the Bahamas...they had no idea. Lol

[RichieB]

SheilaAnn I'm going to respectfully disagree. 1st no gatherings have been on either coast to my knowledge. You can have an enjoyable experience on the East Coast. Manhattan, Boston for starters are cities you won't be lacking activities. Culture, food not too bad in both. I'm sure the same could be said for California. I've spent time business and pleasure in various areas of California. A beautiful state and people. Realistically, it won't happen on either coast.

[SheilaAnn]

RichieB I was just quoting a rap song…… it was a joke.

[RichieB]

OK I'm not rap do I didn't get it. Yo, yo, yo. Did I get that right?