Roar of the Crowd

We are well accustomed to the stir caused by our quinquennial story on the state’s top fifty barbecue joints. Typically, this issue elicits more reader response than any other. Last month’s edition, however, was several orders of magnitude greater than anything previously experienced—the result, no doubt, of our playful declaration of barbecue war on the entire South. Our belligerence was in (mostly) good fun, but it riled the hell out of people nonetheless. “Here in the Carolinas, we try to be gracious,” wrote food author Robert Moss, on the Charleston City Paper’s website. “If Mr. Vaughn or Ms. Sharpe offered us a plate of brisket or beef ribs from Snow’s or the Pecan Lodge, we would accept it graciously and say at the end of the meal, ‘My, that roast beef sure was tasty.’ ” On Esquire.com, Jim Shahin wrote, “[Texas Monthly’s] jingoism hoists newly hired TM Barbecue Editor Daniel Vaughn on his own petard—he recently called former Village Voice food critic Robert Sietsema a ‘cheerleader’ for championing New York City barbecue.” These were but two of the strong reactions to WWQ, as the Texanist dubbed it. More, along with some responses to our list itself, are below.

“How on Earth Could You Idiots Forget _______?!?”

Angelo’s Bar-B-Que, in Fort Worth. —David Boltz, via texasmonthly.com
Big Bib BBQ, in San Antonio. —Richard Valdez, via texasmonthly.com
Blue Ox BBQ and Pancake Cabin, in Austin.* —Matt Wernli, via texasmonthly.com
Branding Iron, in Wichita Falls. —Susan Fetterly Palmore, via texasmonthly.com
Cele Store, in Manor. —Jacob Reach, via texasmonthly.com
C&J Barbeque, in College Station. —Eric Aguirre, via Twitter
Country Tavern, in Kilgore.* —Bobby Richardson, via texasmonthly.com
Cowboy’s Bar-Be-Que, in Salado. —Karl Shaw, via texasmonthly.com
Danny’s Smokehouse Bar-B-Q, in Athens. —Nancy Eddy, via Facebook
Dickey’s Barbecue Pit, various locations. —Mark Carroll, via texasmonthly.com
Famous Dave’s, in Amarillo. —Rock Langston, via Twitter
Fitties, in Bastrop. —Chris Winter, via texasmonthly.com
Freedmen’s, in Austin. —Cuatro Kowalski, via texasmonthly.com
Goode Co. Texas Bar-B-Q, in Houston.* —Patrick Powers, via email
Hard Eight BBQ, in Stephenville. —Gary McCullough, via texasmonthly.com
Harmon’s Barbecue, in Cibolo. —Shelly D. Henze, via texasmonthly.com
Hickory Stick Bar-B-Q, in Everman. —Daniel Smith, via texasmonthly.com
Joe Allen’s Barbecue, in Abilene. —Sherry Duggan, via email
Live Oak Barbecue, in Austin. —Koley Porter, via texasmonthly.com
Lonestar Barbeque, in Richwood. —Barbara Powell, via texasmonthly.com
Mann’s BBQ, in Austin. —Jorge Martinez, via texasmonthly.com
Micklethwait Craft Meats, in Austin.* —Mike McKinnon, via texasmonthly.com
New Zion Missionary Baptist Church Barbeque, in Huntsville.* —Mike C. Miller, via texasmonthly.com
Railhead Smokehouse BBQ, in Fort Worth. —Nick King, via texasmonthly.com
Rudy’s “Country Store” and Bar-B-Q, in Leon Springs. —Rebecca Gonzalez Escamilla, via Facebook
The Slow Bone, in Dallas. —David Huff, via texasmonthly.com
Spyke’s Bar-B-Que, in Kingsland. —Jim Wreyford, via texasmonthly.com
Stubb’s Bar-B-Q, in Austin. —Carol Stepp, via texasmonthly.com
Swick’s Bar-B-Que, in Groesbeck.* —Rob S. Carney, via Twitter
The Swinging Door, in Richmond. —Robert Frank, via email
Texas Pit Stop BBQ, in La Marque. —Nikki Garza Burton, via texasmonthly.com
Tom & Bingo’s Hickory Pit Bar-B-Q, in Lubbock. —Taylor Morrow, via texasmonthly.com
The Woodshed Smokehouse, in Fort Worth. —Anthony Spangler, via texasmonthly.com

*Joints marked with an asterisk appeared on our list of honorable mentions.

Our List Also . . .

Brought Some Friends Together . . .

@Farky It appears we soon must meet at @bbqfranklin. @tmbbq has spoken. —Steve Bezner, via Twitter

Threatened to Tear Others Apart . . .

@tmbbq @wacofork I apologize for my neighbor, for he knows not what he writes (or eats, apparently). —Lance Martin, via Twitter

Endangered the Lives of Postal Workers . . .

If the mailman loses my @tmbbq issue, he’s in a world of hurt. —Bubba, via Twitter

Inspired a Parody Twitter Account . . .

@Dickeys DID YOU SEE THIS TEXAS MONTHLY BBQ JOKE LIST? NONE OF THESE SO-CALLED BEST HAVE 250 LOCATIONS OR FREE ICE CREAM. —@BBQROCKZS (Overthetop BBQ Guy)

And Found an Audience With, Perhaps, the Greatest Barbecue Lover of Them All