- Ebony-hued bark on the fatty brisket is heavy with pepper
and beyond caramelization.
The sweet pink pulled pork could star in a holiday picnic.
After 12 years in business,
Franklin's Barbecue still has the magic.
No one does the traditional barbecue lineup better,
but it's a sign that the new wave is reshaping the scene
in ways we couldn't have imagined
just a few short years ago. There is change in the air.
It's all about fusion, it's all about sides,
it's all about the experience.
Last time I was here, they were number two in Texas Monthly.
Today, we're gonna find out
if they're still number one to ArnieTex.
I'm gonna get me a plate that looks like that today.
I ordered everything on the menu
at Franklin Barbecue, and wow!
That's right, today I'm back here in Austin, Texas
to try out the Texas institution that serves
the best barbecue in the known universe.
At least that's what it says on the website,
but I think we can all agree,
it is at least the most popular barbecue joint in the world.
This will be the third time that I'm here,
and the first time back in almost three years.
But in that time period,
we've seen this titan drop from first to seventh
on the Texas Monthly top 50 list,
and even a rise of criticism
by the online keyboard warriors. But come on, man!
They don't just give away James Beard awards for nothing.
Should you believe the hype?
Let's see how much things have changed over the years
and dive into every single piece of delicious meat,
including their legendary brisket.
Come on, now! Let's get fired up!
One of the sayings that we have in barbecue is,
"You gotta marinate the cook before you marinate the meat."
(laughs)
What time is it? It's barbecue time.
"I'm hungry," time. 10:39, we're ready to rock.
We're getting hangry, so I'm glad the door finally opened.
We didn't eat breakfast,
that way we can pack a lot more brisket in there.
All right, we're finally at the door. Coming in hot.
Woohoo! Finally, cool.
- What time did you get here?
- 7:00 in the morning,
so it's been about a four hour wait, pretty close.
Smells so good, and we're really hungry.
Pound of brisket, half and half, two beef ribs,
three pork ribs, one of each sausage,
half a pound of port, one pound of turkey--
- One pound of turkey?
- And all three sides. Looks good.
Looks really good.
I bought two beef ribs, 'cause one's for you guys. My gift.
- No.
- Yeah.
- Thank you.
- I wanted to make sure you got one. (laughs)
We hit the jackpot. Woohoo!
Yes, sir. Yes, sir. That's good stuff right there.
Okay. (laughs) We're gonna start with the pork ribs
because I love pork ribs too. Mmm-mmm-mmm!
I will say, this is my third time here,
let's see if it's as good as it was the first couple times.
Oh, yeah. Mmm-mmm! Right off the bat.
Yeah, super juicy, super moist. Very tasty.
Very good. Wow. That rib is excellent. Really excellent.
Next up, let's try some turkey.
Man, this thing is like melt in your mouth.
This turkey is like super soft, super juicy.
Man. Look at that.
Oh, my God. Very moist.
Very, very, very good.
It's your traditional Texas-style turkey, salt and pepper.
You can taste the pepper. Really good.
Gotta have something to wash it down with.
Thank you, Lone Star beer.
That is some damn good turkey.
We got one of each sausage,
so I'm not sure which one this is.
I'm gonna cut a piece off. Very juicy.
Got that little snap, I can feel the snap. Who needs a fork?
Hmm. Jalapeño. Really good. Really, really like that.
Batting 100 so far.
All right, next up, let's try the pulled pork.
It looks very moist. Cheers.
Really, really good. Super moist. Super moist.
Now this is a Texas-style pork butt,
there's no sweet there at all. It has salt and pepper.
Little bit of paprika, I believe he uses.
It's super good. Most excellent.
Got that nice little flavor. Wow. I love that.
We had a couple of guys from California behind us.
One of 'em had never had beef rib before.
I got the last two beef rib. We let 'em have one for free.
I wanted to make sure he got one,
he came all the way from California.
I didn't want him to have no excuses
when it was his turn to order. Let the gentleman have it.
He was super happy about that. Super happy.
Look at that.
Super moist. That's a very, very moist beef rib.
I'm gonna cut a little piece off here.
The bark is nice and crunchy, but the rib is very moist.
I like that. Very interesting.
And it tastes like a really good beef rib.
Very, very, very excellent. Mmm-mmm-mmm!
The moment of truth for brisket. Brisket.
It does pass the bend test. Comes right apart though.
Man, it's super moist.
I don't know how they make these things so dang moist.
Just incredible. Hmm. Ooh. Yeah. Yeah.
It's every bit as good as I remember it.
This is one of the most amazing briskets that I've ever had,
and I'm a competitor, and I'm a cook,
but for backyard restaurant-style brisket,
man, I mean just incredible. One of the best I've ever had.
This is the flat. Look how moist the flat is, even.
Incredible. Has just the right salt. Hint of pepper.
Can definitely taste the oak on there, the smoke.
Look at that. Super, super soft. Amazing.
Really, really good.
100% A+ for Franklin's Barbecue today, on all the meat.
Now we're gonna dig in on all the rest of the sides
and enjoy a really great July 4th weekend barbecue.
Who says Texans don't like barbecue sauce?
(laughs)
All right, we're trying the espresso barbecue sauce
on some brisket.
Let's see what it's like.
Hmm. Tastes like coffee. Like a dark chocolate coffee.
We waited four hours to eat,
it's gonna take us about 15 minutes to get done eating,
to get to full. Let's try the vinegar sauce with the pork.
Hmm. Good. Not as sweet, just tangy. Hint of sweet.
Very, very good. Everything's really, really on point today.
Excellent. I have to say, the fatty brisket
and the pulled pork were my two favorites today.
The beef rib was good. Little crunchy on top,
but I mean it was still flavorful,
tasted like a good beef rib.
Turkey was good. Very, very good.
But the pulled pork was a pleasant surprise.
I almost never order it just 'cause it's always a let down.
Today, the pulled pork was definitely a hit.
If you've never done the Franklin Barbecue, wait in the line
and eat some amazing barbecue food before,
you really should try it at least once in your life.
It is fantastic. It's 12:33, we're done eating.
We're fixing to tear into dessert.
The line is still right up to the end of the building.
Whoo-wee! That was some good barbecue.
Really had a great time out here.
Fantastic sides, fantastic dessert.
Once again, Franklin gets a 10. This is amazing barbecue.
That hype is real. If you've never been to Franklin,
you gotta try it at least one time. It's that good.
It's worth the wait, guys.
- Is it? Good. - Good stuff, man.
- That's what we wanna hear.
- Really good.
Today was an awesome day.
We got up early, about 6:15 in the morning,
drove over here to Franklin, forgot our mic, went back home,
came back, got a little further back in the line,
but it was worth the wait. Four hours a little bit of change
by the time we got our food. (speaking Spanish)
Y'all keep the smoke light, make it work. Ka-boom!
I said, (speaking Spanish) but I didn't say with what.
I've got a wheatgrass shot right here,
and down the hatch she goes.
- Thank you.
- Whoo! What was that? (laughs) Good stuff. Good stuff.
All right, now this one's called the Royal Flush,
with lemon, ginger, and cayenne.
Woo!
- Bottoms up.
- Oh, man.
Woo! Kinda like drinking straight lemons. (laughs)
All right, now good barbecue's always been about balance,
that's what I talk about all the time.
And so you sometimes gotta balance
the heavy stuff with the light stuff.
It's about trying to stay healthy too.
Don't abuse your body,
and your body will take care of you too.
So what are we doing for dinner, boys and girls?
I say Ribeyes. (laughs) Let's go.
We're almost there. I'm getting the shakes.
(laughs)
Ah, maybe not. Jalapeño tastes like...
Kind of like a jalapeño. (laughs)
- Wait there. By the sign.
- Wait. One more.
- Yeah?
- I didn't have my beer. - Oh!
- I think Franklin should add a third story,
and just rent a bunch of hammocks up there,
with some free beer, and we'd stay a little bit longer
and come back for round two. (laughs)
See you in the valley. (laughs)
- Yeah, (speech is drowned out)
- (speaking Spanish)