Photograph by Candice
Cousin’s Bar-B-Q
Fort Worth, TX 76133
Hours: Open Mon–Sat 11–9. Closed Sun.
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Texas Monthly rating: 4.25
TEXAS MONTHLY SAYS: Chain alert: Cousin’s has five other locations, including two inside the Dallas–Fort Worth Airport.
In barbecue time there’s before, during, and after. Before our meal at Cousin’s, we studied the brisket’s thin, dark crust. During our meal, the smoky taste made us lose track of our other senses. Ribs were rich. Sauce was tart. Sweet beans really were. After, we wondered where the time had gone.
BBQ SNOB SAYS: 2008: Normally I stay away from chains, but this location made it into TEXAS MONTHLY’s Top 50, so I thought I’d give it a try. There are four stand-alone locations as well as two more in the DFW airport, but a friend and I chose to try the original, which opened in 1983. The strip-mall location is underwhelming, but the smell of smoke inside proved tempting. The sausage was average with little spice, a medium chewy grind, and decent snap, but the brisket impressed with lean slices that all had an intense smoky flavor from the deep black crust. The ribs here were the only disappointment. This joint tries to separate itself from others by using a distinct and thick red spice rub on the ribs before they are smoked. Unfortunately, the rub flavor overpowers the meat, which had a good toothsome tenderness and great moistness. The rub flavor was at first spicy but slowly turned to bitter as it reached the back of my mouth.
