Get in-depth coverage of news, reviews and conversations about Texas barbecue. It's basically Christmas every day for barbecue-lovers.

Barbecue has become one of Texas’s most popular exports, but an important aspect of meat market–style barbecue is too often lost in translation. I support the brisket evangelists who choose to set up shop from San Diego to Portland, Maine. Most of them understand the value of sausage-making, cooking with all wood, and serving barbecue sauce on the side. Those who take their cues from Central Texas sell smoked meats by the pound like the meat markets of Luling, Lockhart, and Taylor. Some of them, though, need to familiarize themselves with the power of their scales.When eating barbecue alone, which is often when I’m on the road, I ask for a couple ribs, a single slice of smoked turkey, and maybe a slice each of…

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Get in-depth coverage of news, reviews and conversations about Texas barbecue. It's basically Christmas every day for barbecue-lovers.

Texans You Should Know is a series highlighting overlooked figures and events from Texas history. September 4, 1906, was a joyful day in Fredericksburg. On that date, many of the town’s 1,600 or so residents came out to celebrate the blessing and dedication of the new Church of the Immaculate Conception. The church was, and remains, an architectural gem. Designed in a modern, German Gothic style, its rough white limestone walls frame high-arched entryways and tall, elegant stained-glass windows. The spire atop its right-side tower reaches about 130 feet in the air and could be seen for miles from every direction of the Hill Country. A reporter from the Southern Messenger, a Catholic newspaper in San Antonio, noted the “very large attendance of the faithful at…

The post The Architect Behind Texas’s Painted Churches Was So Good, His Peers Had “Steeple Envy” appeared first on Texas Monthly.

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Get in-depth coverage of news, reviews and conversations about Texas barbecue. It's basically Christmas every day for barbecue-lovers.

Jong Kim doesn’t like to stop working. He’s either reorganizing the beverage fridges or running to and from the back with boxes of products to restock. The thin, seventy-year-old man wearing a loose cap, a striped polo tucked into his pants, and sensible black sneakers takes a break to wipe his brow with his forearm and drink water. There’s always something to do, and Kim is going to do it. This was the scene during my visit to Chas Market and Kitchen, an 88-year-old business housed in a concrete-block building. It’s easily missed when seen from Interstate 35 in San Antonio’s Government Hill neighborhood. Even a white sign bearing the words “Taco. Hamburger. Fish Plate,” as fetching as it is in its stark design, is hard…

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Get in-depth coverage of news, reviews and conversations about Texas barbecue. It's basically Christmas every day for barbecue-lovers.

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Read the transcript below. Subscribe Apple Podcasts — Spotify “Well, they thought they got away with it. What else you going to do? That’s why you paid all that money, to silence everything.”—Salem Joseph Sr.Executive producer is Megan Creydt. The show is reported and written by Katy Vine and written, produced, and reported by Ana Worrel. It was produced and engineered by Brian Standefer, who also wrote the music. Story editing and production by Patrick Michels. Additional production by Aisling Ayers. Additional editing by Karen Olsson. Fact-checking by Jaclyn Colletti. Studio musicians were Jon Sanchez, Glenn Fukunaga, and Pat Mansky. Artwork is by Emily Kimbro and Victoria Millner. Theme music is “Entrance Song,” by the Black Angels. Transcript Katy Vine…

The post ‘The Problem With Erik,’ Episode 4: “The $60K Option” appeared first on Texas Monthly.

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Get in-depth coverage of news, reviews and conversations about Texas barbecue. It's basically Christmas every day for barbecue-lovers.

With a mere three ingredients, this fizzy highball with fuzzy origins (both Austin and West Texas lay claim to it) couldn’t be simpler. An explosion in popularity in recent years has inspired a glut of canned versions, but none compare to a homemade ranch water. Evoking a stripped-down, bubbly margarita, it’s dry, bracing, and the perfect refresher for our hot summers. Print Ranch Water This mix of lime, tequila, and Topo Chico couldn’t be simpler. Keyword PartyType CocktailMain Ingredient Tequila Servings 1 Ingredients1 lime2 ounces blanco tequila½ cup Topo Chico InstructionsCut a wedge out of the lime. Squeeze the rest of the lime juice into a tall glass filled with ice.Add the tequila. Top with the Topo Chico and garnish with the lime wedge. NotesIf…

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