First time visiting Texas. BBQ crawl. We ate six joints in five days.

We came down to support family at the Houston Iron Man. I talked my wife into going down early for BBQ. Here is our Itinerary, line size, and wait times.

Unfortunately, we only had one day in Austin due to other commitments:

Arrived in Austin at 1:00 a.m. on Tuesday/Wednesday (late arrival due to airline delays).

Wednesday:
Franklin’s: (7:45 arrival, three groups of people ahead of us in line; first group arrived at 6am).

Leroy and Lewis: (11:50 arrival, 20-30 people ahead of us in line, 40 min wait).

After a 30 min. Gander in the Mill-scale retail store.

Kreuz (2:15 arrival, walked right up to the meat counter)

Bonus (not BBQ, but tasty)- drive to Houston through Brenham. Stopped at the Blue Bell Creamery. $1.00 ice cream scoops!, as someone from out of state, this was the best ice cream I ever had.

Thursday:
No BBQ 🙁 – Iron man things and sightseeing day.

Friday:
Bar-A-BBQ (10:10 arrival, No line until open at 10:45).

Saturday:
Corkscrew: (10:30 arrival, 60-75 people in line, 2 hours).

Sunday
Truth: (10:45 arrival, the first and second group in line arrived just as we did).

Rankings. Although I feel I have to say something about rank. Honestly, most of this is splitting hairs and up for debate. We loved certain aspects of all.

Personal overall Top three:
1.) Bar A BBQ.
2.) Franklin
3.) Truth

Best Brisket:
1.) Leroy and Lewis: Foil Boat Brisket Bark is good.
2.) Bar A: Perfect seasoning; juicy, fat render was perfect.
3.) Corkscrew: solid bite, excellent cook and seasoning.

Best sausage Link:

Disclaimer. These are Unofficial results. I choked under pressure and forgot to order sausage at Truth

1.) Franklin (jalapeño cheddar): Snapped like a pickle, flavor was on point, spicy but not too spicy.
2.) Bar-A (House and Jalapeño cheddar): excellent sausage. Jalapeño cheddar was my favorite out of the two.
3.) Corkscrew (Garlic): solid link, also very good.

Sides/Dessert:
We didn’t get a wide range of sides at a lot of the joints, so take this with a grain of salt, but our favorites:

1.) Truth: The Brussels sprouts were amazing (and that’s saying something coming from me), the Mac' n cheese was excellent, and the Beans were solid.
2.) Bar A: Do not skip the cornbread pudding (I'm still thinking about it). The cucumber salad was refreshing with fatty meat and solid beans, and dirty rice was taken or left.
3.) Corkscrew: Potato salad is the best I have ever had. I'm still thinking about how I can replicate it at home.

Best atmosphere/Vibes:
1.) Bar-A-BBQ: Small-town family-run vibes are high. I feel we had a very personal experience here. The owners, Shelby, had her 2-and-a-half-year-old son (in a Spider-Man suit and cowboy boots) with her as they were preparing for service. At open, Cooper talked to me for 20 minutes, and gave me a free hat. Old-school country music was fire. After eating, we spoke with employees working pits who answered questions and let us take pictures of the smokehouse and such. Overall, the environment was a small town/family-owned country BBQ.
2.) Franklin: It was my first time waiting in a BBQ line. I love Aaron’s style and decorating, and his merch is super cool (I spent more coin than I want to admit). The anticipation of smelling the post-oak smoke and waiting for the BBQ was great—like a kid on Christmas.
3.) Truth: The interior decor/atmosphere was fantastic, the table-side service was top-notch, Jerry and staff are amazing! very friendly. When I mentioned BBQ and Smoking meats as a hobby, I was instantly offered a Pit tour. The pit masters talked to us for 15-20 minutes, let us take pictures, and answered all our questions.

Special Mentions/Extras:
– The L&L Burger at Leroy and Lewis is the best burger I have ever had; it was amazing! The beef cheek at L&L is also amazing. If you go here, these items are must-orders.
– Kreuz/Lockhart: Although not my favorite food, it’s a super cool place. It's iconic, and there is a lot of Q history. It was a close fourth for atmosphere. It is a must-visit for any BBQ enthusiast. When I have more time, I want to return on a weekend and go to Barbs-B-Q, Blacks, and Smitty’s…Maybe one day, when I drive down and pick up a mill scale pit (one can dream).

Critique(s):
– I’m easy to please so I loved every meal. The only thing I did not enjoy was the Hop sausage at L&L. I think I may have caught it on a bad day. It tasted like dirty smoke and the bind was crumbly, over cooked Maybe? I don’t drink Alcohol, so, flavor profile could be an acquired taste for me personally.