Better Know a District: Hill Country BBQ
It’s no secret I’m from Texas. My Texas pride went through the roof when I moved here in 2006. I’ve mentioned my roots repeatedly on this blog, I say “y’all” and am not ashamed of it, I have Texas bookends on my shelves, a stained-glass Texas flag on one of our windows, and I have this Texas cookbook sitting proudly in my kitchen. I love Texas.
When I first heard about Hill Country BBQ, it immediately became next on my ‘Better Know a District’ to-do list. I knew everything I needed to know about Hill Country when I’d heard that they have Shiner Bock on tap and had Blue Bell ice cream for dessert.
Alla & friends joined me for an evening of Texas. A few things that immediately stood out after we were seated & drinks were ordered:
- Gigantic Texas mural behind the state;
- Cowboy boots lined up at the bar
- Shiner Bock served in a mason jar
The food ordering system is a little wacky. Even though a waiter takes care of your drink order, you’re on your own with the food (which makes tipping a tad confusing?) When you are first seated, the waiter will give you a card which you carry with you for the rest of your meal.
You have to order your meat by weight (a half pound, for example), and you order your sides in individual helpings or larger helpings, for groups. It’s basically cafeteria-style (just like how it’s done in Texas.)
Hubby and I shared a half pound of dry brisket and 3 sides: mac and cheese, green bean casserole, and sweet potato. The brisket is served in kraft wax paper, the sides in paper cups, and you eat your food in a paper basket (you get to use real silverware, though.) If you prefer to eat your meat sandwich-stye, they also throw in some sliced bread.
The brisket was on the fatty side (as you can probably tell in the picture above), but that aside, it was the best brisket I’ve had in town - especially the flavorful char on the ends. BBQ sauce is served in squeeze bottles on the table right next to the rolls of paper towels. The whole experience is a little messy, a little frustrating, and a bit expensive (I can understand why Yelp reviews aren’t so hot), but the food is SO good. I especially loved the mac & cheese, green bean casserole & the BBQ sauce. The brisket would have been out of this world had we not received a huge hunk of fat, which needlessly made our meat more expensive.
Didn’t snap a picture of it before we inhaled it, but the vanilla Blue Bell ice cream was the piece of the meal that really transported me back to Texas. Man, I miss Blue Bell. Washingtonians are really missing out on good ice cream by not having Blue Bell available in every freezer aisle.
For me personally, Hill Country is the next best thing to hopping on a flight to Texas. I can’t wait to go back (to Hill Country AND to Texas.)
