Biographical information courtesy of the Austin Chronicle.
See below for Austin Chronicle BBQ Links.

Cooper's Old Time Pit BBQ

506 West Young, Llano, 915/247-5713

Sun-Thu, 10:30am-8pm; Fri & Sat, 10:30am-9pm

Cooper's is a barbecue mecca that's been around for 43 years. It was started by the Cooper family and sold to the Wootan (not Woo-Tang) clan 15 years ago. When you drive up, the first thing you see under the shed roof outside is a line of six pits, cords of mesquite wood, and piles of folks waiting to give the meat slicers their order. You tell the slicers exactly what you want, how you want it trimmed, how much of it to put on your tray, then head inside for it to be weighed and priced (meats are in the $6-8/lb range, sides a buck). Once inside, you decide if you want any slaw or spuds, and pick a drink, then you're off to the self- serve beans, onions, jalapenos, and bread.

What you have to pick from at the pits is a huge assortment of meats: sausage, pork ribs, 2-inch thick pork chops, brisket (cooked six to eight hours), sirloin, chicken, and cabrito (young goat). It's all cooked over mesquite coals, with little emphasis placed on the smoke (although it gets pretty smoky outside under the shed), and the meat gets a sprinkling of spices. You have the option of having everything dipped in the sauce by the slicers. The sirloin and the pork chops get all the press, but all of it tastes damn good. One of my faves was the cabrito, which was smoky, tender, and rich, with an almost gelatinous, melt-in-your-mouth texture. You have to go to Monterrey, Mexico to find cabrito that competes with Cooper's.

The sauce is of the thin variety, with a finish of jalapeno. The beans were rich and flavorful, the slaw sweet and tangy, with a vinegar-based dressing. I like the concept of bottomless jalapenos and onions.

Seating under the watchful gaze of deer heads and memorabilia is communal, at picnic tables. Where everybody was visiting from seemed to be a popular topic for small talk. Herbie Lynn, the manager, says you're just as likely to see Lady Bird or Guv' Bush, Madeleine Stowe or Lynda Obst, as you are camo-clad hunters. No barbecue pilgrimage in Texas is complete without a stop at Cooper's. --Mick Vann