Welcome back to Day 2 of my travel adventures/BBQ pilgrimage in Austin, Texas. If you checked out Monday's post, you already know the drill. But in case you didn't, I'm joining the 2010s and doing my first attempt at a travel blog to share my experiences, both for my own record and in case it is helpful to any of you. Oh yes, and in case you're like me and just love reading about delicious BBQ!
If you didn't pick up in the first post, for each day I will have the itinerary stops listed and those will link straight to the section about that stop. So if you ever want to skip over a section, you can always just read whichever ones interest you.
Today is the day. Literally, today is why I planned this tripped. Well, really the trip came about because we found cheap flights to Austin and a very affordable Air BnB, but I digress. This is the main reason I wanted to take this trip. If there was only one spot I could go on this entire vacation, it would be where we are going today.
Yes, dear reader, today we are going to the Holy Land of BBQ and to meet the pitmaster of all pitmasters...
Day 2
Itinerary
First stop: Franklin Barbecue
I'm going to have a hard time containing my excitement on this one. Anyone who knows anything about BBQ in Texas knows Franklin Barbecue, even if they don't know the man behind it, Aaron Franklin.
As Aaron tells it, he started cooking briskets in his backyard, then eventually upgraded to a food truck where he cooked maybe 1-2 briskets a day. He now owns and operates Franklin Barbecue, complete with five 1,000 gallon smokers that crank out over 100 briskets a day! The man literally taught the masterclass on BBQ.
For some backstory, I started getting into barbecue at the beginning of the pandemic. I was working from home, by myself and had a lot of time on my hands. And as they say, once you reach your mid-30s, you either get into smoking meat or World War II history — in my case, it's both.
And as you do these days, when I wanted to learn to barbecue I went to YouTube. Within a few weeks of getting into my new fascination, I discovered Aaron Franklin. After watching a lot of elaborate bbq recipes, with complex rubs and homemade sauces, Aaron's style seemed much more my style. He was committed to a few simple ingredients — salt, pepper, apple cider vinegar if needed — good fire and patience. His approach was simple, yet he was meticulously obsessed with a perfectly trimmed brisket and a fire that was just right.
If you want to know more about more about what I love about central Texas barbecue that is very much Aaron's style, you can read my guide to Texas barbecue.
So the chance to go to Franklin Barbecue and actually eat the food that I had learned so much about is the centerpiece of this entire trip.
The Arrival
If there's one thing Franklin Barbecue has pounced on, it's the power of high demand. They open every day at 11 a.m. and they serve until they're out of food. Generally, that only takes until about 2:30 p.m. Once they're sold out, they're out.
Due to its booming popularity, Franklin's has also become known for people lining up outside many hours before the doors open. People bring coffee, books, beer, chairs and much more as they gather in almost a tailgating atmosphere. At peak times, people have been known to gather in line before 6 a.m. even.
Our Air BnB was close enough to walk there but we got a little bit later start than intended. Our hosts said that people do gather at 6 a.m., but generally, people could make it by 9 a.m. and be ok. As we neared Franklin's, coming down 11th street, we saw the sign — the simple rusted metal sign bearing the name Franklin Barbecue, the one I had only seen on the television.
Much to my relief and surprise, we arrived at 8:30 a.m. and ended up being the sixth people in line! Bear in mind, it's a Tuesday morning, in February. I imagine on the weekends or in peak seasons, it's a madhouse.
Still, the more we waited, the longer the line got, still wrapping around the building, even on a Tuesday.
If you're getting worried about the endurance, don't worry. Franklin's says they have chairs, bathrooms and coffee and they are true to their word. There is a collection of camp chairs they allow customers to use while they wait. And at about 9:15 a.m., they open the inside of the store before service to allow customers to use the facilities, buy drinks or check out the merch.
The Friends You Meet Along the Way
You hear about people making friends in line while they wait for the doors to open, but you never really expect it to happen to you. As the universe would have it, Allyson went to go get a picture of Franklin the same as the gentleman in line in front of us. When they came back, they were already chatting up a storm.
Soon after, we made a fast and fascinating friend. His name is James and he is taking a year off from his work in Canada to move from one side of the country to the other. We met him in Austin as he was making a journey through the states, from New York to New Orleans to Texas to California and then to Vancouver. It's amazing how just sitting in a line, waiting for good food, and suddenly you can make a connection with a complete stranger!
Before you know it, we invited James to eat lunch with us, adding even more food and fun to the outing!
The Experience
In videos about Franklin, they say staff members come out to greet people waiting in line but I didn't think it would actually happen. Well, it did.
One thing you need to know about Franklin: the hospitality is the best I've ever experienced at a restaurant. Full stop. You'd think with 200 to 400 customers, cramming into a neighborhood restaurant every day for 3.5 hours, that it'd be a zoo. And that the staff, especially, would just try to pass everyone through as quick and painlessly as possible, without much fanfare. Well, they do serve you quick and painlessly but they do it with incredible enthusiasm!
Every step of the way, staff came out to greet us and explain what would happen. While you're in line, a staff member comes by to get everyone's order, so that they can better estimate how long their meat will go today. It's also at this point that the staff member will help you in deciding what you want. Franklin Barbecue only sells meat by the pound, which is quite typical in Texas, but can be pretty wild for someone who's not used to it. They'll help you with that. For example, you might say, "I just want to try a couple ribs," and they'll tell you that's about a half pound. Or if you ask, they'll tell you a pound of brisket is probably enough for two people.
From start to finish, from the door greeter to the workers on the line to the pitmaster in the back, every single employee seemed like they were having the best time working. The hospitality is simply out of this world.
When I mentioned it to one of the front of house staff, he told me, "We have a great team and we're just so excited to have you all come and try our food!" What a mantra for hospitality.
The Food (Just get to the food already!!!)
You might wonder if it lives up to the hype. I mean, it's gotta be pretty dang good if people will get in like 3, 4, 6 hours before service to get the food, right?
I'll go ahead and say this is the best barbecue I've ever had (and maybe ever will have). It is perfectly seasoned, cooked perfectly tender and just dripping with fatty goodness. Aaron says he wants every bite to have the same amount of seasoning and the same amount of fat. Well, he did it. Every bite was perfect.
I'll break it down, piece by piece for you:
What we got:
1 lb. of brisket
1/2 lb. of spare ribs (2 ribs)
1 jalapeño sausage
1 standard sausage
1/4 of turkey (2 slices)
A taste of pulled pork (courtesy of our new friend, James)
Ruby Dang pie (also courtesy of our new friend)
The brisket:
I mean, this is why you come to Franklin. And it is as good as you could ever want a brisket to be. We started with a couple of burnt ends. Perfectly crunchy bark and just dripping with fat juices throughout.
The brisket slices simply defied physics. You know it's a good slice of brisket when you can lift it by one end of the slice and it doesn't break apart under it's own weight. Then, if you can pull it apart with just the slightest pull, you've nailed it. This is called the "pull test".
When I picked up a slice of Franklin brisket, I thought for sure it would fail the pull test. It just felt like it could fall apart in my hands and it was so fatty, I thought it was break at the slightest move. But it held together perfectly.
Because of how long they let them sit at a low temperature after the cook, the fat is pure gelatin, but as soon as you by into it, it bursts into your mouth. The seasoning, which is one part salt and one part pepper (and I'm sure some other things), accentuates the meat and fat without overpowering it. You could really tell Aaron's attention to detail — the beef they pick, the trim, the even seasoning, the proper cook — all add up to this perfect slice of brisket.
The spare ribs and the pulled pork:
I knew the brisket would be amazing. What surprised me is how good the pork is. The rib felt just as loose and fatty as the brisket. But when I bit into it, it left a perfect bite mark, rather than totally falling of the bone (which would mean it is TOO tender). The ribs had a more pronounced bark than the brisket, as well as a much stronger taste of pepper, which I love!
I was simply floored by the pulled pork. Pulled pork is easy to make but it's hard to get a good flavor penetration because it's just a thick slab of meat. With Franklin pulled pork, you can taste it all. You get a hint of the smoke, accentuated by the seasoning and finished off by just a bit of sweetness from the sauce they add in before serving.
The sausage:
The best Texas bbq joints make their own sausage. It's kind of a no-brainer if you think about it: you have a bunch of scrap meat that you're probably going to throw out, but instead you can grind it up and turn it into delicious sausage.
It's hard to compare sausage because everyone here does it and they are all so good. I know that Franklin makes it using a combination of pork and brisket. Other than that, I don't know any of the secrets!
The standard sausage was great, but not as juicy as one would expect. Especially considering the way every other meat had been cooked so wonderfully. However, the jalapeño sausage was the BOMB! It's made with cheddar and jalapeño (obviously). The spicy jalapeños and the gooey cheese just take the sausage flavor to the next level!
Turkey:
The staff member in line told us that the turkey was the staff favorite. So if something is the staff favorite at one of the best bbq restaurants in the country, you gotta try it, right?
The turkey is coated in a thick peppery crust and basted with butter. Then to top everything off, it sits in a bath of clarified butter until it's served. Great in all the ways of the other meats described — seasoning, tenderness, flavor. The turkey had the strongest pepper taste of all the meats we had.
It was great turkey but for my money, I liked all the other meats more. Don't get me wrong — we're just splitting hairs of greatness here.
Dessert:
Don't sleep on the dessert! All the great Texas bbq restaurants have great deserts, too.
We split a pie called the Ruby's Dang. It's like a chess pie with sweetened coconut and pineapple. I'm not a desserts guy but this was SO GOOD. The crust was fluffy in all the right ways and the filling was creamy, sweet with a little pop of coconut.
Ruby's Dang pie is in honor of what Franklin Barbecue says is a bbq legend. Ruby's was a bbq joint that people at Franklin used to frequent. When it closed its doors, they let the Franklin crew have the pie recipe. And it is DANG good.
Conclusion:
Franklin Barbecue is, quite simply, everything a bbq restaurant should be. With just a few simple seasonings paired with his obsession with the perfect trim and cook, Aaron Franklin has created some of the best food I've ever eaten, bbq or not.
You will probably spend more money here than most places (most of the bbq is $25-$30/lb.) but you will also get more than your money's worth.
I think the biggest surprise for me was the hospitality and the joy of the experience. I waited in lines in New Orleans for 2+ hours, standing in a crowded line, sweating, grumbling and all to be greeted by overworked and overwhelmed staff.
It's really quite the opposite at Franklin. We enjoyed the experience of sitting in line and taking in the morning. Everyone was friendly and not the least bit grouchy. We even made a new friend!
And to top it all off, Aaron Franklin himself was there to throw the doors open and welcome us to his restaurant. I even got to meet him! The crew was also kind enough to tour us through the smokers.
And if you're wondering if there were leftovers, dear reader, I assure you there were not.
I've broken up this post into two parts because as you can see, I could just go on and on about Franklin's. Be sure to check back tomorrow to learn about Austin's nocturnal mascot and an ill-fated rooftop experience that turns out alright!
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