– Pitmaster Aaron Franklin of Austin’s Franklin Barbecue has been nominated for the Best Chef; Southwest award by the James Beard Foundation.

– Austin and Lockhart take the #1 and #3 spots on this list of best barbecue cities in America from Thrillist

– Will and Nichole Buckman of Corkscrew BBQ in Spring sat down for a chat with the Houston Press:

– Southern Living ranks their ten favorite Carolina barbecue joints.

– Noted North Carolina pitmaster Ed Mitchell has closed his restaurant in Durham, but plans to reopen in another location in the future.

– A patriotic resident of San Marcos, Texas fought the grilling gestapo and won.

– Anybody looking for smoked trachea?

What a deal (photo: @lewbryson)

A photo posted by First We Feast (@firstwefeast) on Feb 14, 2015 at 2:26pm PST

 

– Burger Mary educates some Aussies about the history of Texas barbecue in Rhythms Magazine. 

– Austin pitmaster Evan LeRoy of Freedmen’s will travel to Australia to be the featured cook at the Carnivore’s Ball in Melbourne. 

– Locals are raving about Texas style barbecue joint City Butcher in Springfield, Missouri. 

– A cool illustration depicting some barbecue joints surrounding Austin:

 

– You’ve already missed it, but you could have gotten 84% off of your bill at Vitek’s in Waco on Tuesday thanks to the McLennan County Farm Bureau.

– The Houston Chronicle looks at the pros and cons of brick pits versus the newer rotisserie smokers.

– The Houston Chronicle lists several barbecue joints on their list of great road food around the state.

– Gatlin’s BBQ in Houston will move their operation to a mobile unit next month until they’re able to open in their new location this summer. For now, they are closed except for catering.

– They’re serving boneless beef short ribs at Tin Roof BBQ north of Houston:

 

– The Smoking Ho tried City Market in Luling and found some barbecue worth returning for. 

– The South Austin Foodie visits Brown’s BBQ trailer in Austin. 

– Texas BBQ Treasure Hunt took a Valentine’s Day road trip through barbecue country in Central Texas and the Hill Country. 

– Sadly, Tommy Hallett of Tommy’s Bar-B-Que in Gun Barrel City has passed away. 

– Ronnie Killen of Killen’s Barbecue in Pearland is playing with sausage again:

 

– Tickets for the Red Dirt Festival (on 05/02) are on sale, but the VIP tickets are already sold out.

– The Houston BBQ Festival (on 04/23) tickets are also on sale.

– On March 1st, Kreuz Market in Lockhart will be open for business on Sundays.

– There’s a retail building boom in Bryan, Texas and the new Kreuz Market is a big part of that.

– Hart’s Firehouse BBQ of Lampasas and Hico is profiled.

– Kansas City style barbecue joint 18th & Vine will open in Dallas in the spring.

– Back Home Barbecue is open in Dallas, but only for dinner. They don’t start serving from the drive-thru until 4:00pm:

 

– Sadly, the first taste of smoked brisket that some in the Middle East ever ate came from Wendy’s. 

– Starbucks is testing a barbecue brisket sandwich for their new grab-n-go menu. 

– Andy Staples visits a Texas style barbecue joint in Phoenix called Little Miss BBQ for his column Punt, Pass, and Pork. 

– Because of its “distinct class of stimuli,” fat is being considered as a sixth essential flavor by scientists. 

– They’re selling brisket at market price in California: