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

Sam's BBQ

2000 E. 12th, 478-0378

Mon-Sat, 10am-3am; Sun, 10am-10pm

Ask Austin-based barbecue fanatics for the definitive in-town barbecue and, more often than not, Sam's will pop to the top of the list. For years, the simple white frame house on 12th Street earned a stellar reputation with its traditional selection of deep-smoked meats and short list of classic sides (beans, potato salad, and slaw). Inside the tiny dining room, there's a few tables, walls covered with customer photos, and a TV tuned to the latest sporting event. Nothing fancy or extraneous. When you've got meat this good, you don't need anything else.

Hot link fans will be hooked on Sam's fat, house-made sausages, but brisket is the star here, served in a tasty puddle of the tangy, salty sauce ladled hot from the serving table. And not your trimmed-lean brisket either -- this is the kind of beef that's marbled and ribboned with just enough fat to satisfy the beast inside. If you want a lo-fat experience, truck your carcass down to a salad bar in your favorite food court. The same general rules -- lotsa smoke, just enough residual fat -- hold for Sam's other pit specialties (pork ribs, mutton, etc.). When you're parked at Sam's, expect to have a truly spiritual meeting of the meats.

Sam's also holds to the great tradition of being open really late nights for post-club beef binges that hit after the bars close. After a long night of carousing, sometimes there's nothing more satisfying than a tray full of spicy barbecue chased with a sweet red soda. Sauce sopped up with slices of absorbent, pliable white bread and cleansing mouthfuls of sharp onion and crinkle-cut dill pickles. After 2am on any night 'cept Sunday, Sam's will be open and slicing -- a milestone public service that deserves (at the very least) its own state holiday. --P. J.