Austin, TX (The Joy of Food) — The Salt Lick is quite literally in the middle of nowhere. If after miles and miles of heading down a pitch-black road through Texas Hill Country you, like me, begin to wonder if your $40 Uber ride is taking you out into the boonies to kill you and pocket your stash of barbecue money (Salt Lick is cash-only), fear not. Operation Pork Ribs will be underway soon enough.
It is an epic compound of theme park proportions nestled just outside of the Austin city limits. What began as a small, modest stand in 1967 selling barbecue a few times a year expanded to seven days a week as demand grew. This is a family-owned business first opened by husband and wife team Thurman and Hisako Roberts, now passed on to the next generation and operated by son Scott and his wife, Susan.
What you’ll be feasting on is on display as soon as you walk in the door, the iconic barbecue pit front and center in the entryway. There is sort of a heavenly glow around it thanks to some strategic lighting from all sides. The open pit’s flaming live oak and the links of sausage hanging above are a mouthwatering vision to behold, especially for people staring at it with their I’m-not-deranged, I’m-just-starving eyeballs. Imagine looking at (and smelling) this when you’re waiting for a table. It is excellent marketing and cruel torture rolled into one.
If you love yourself, you’ll order the pork ribs, spectacularly tender and juicy. Basted with sauce and cooked over direct heat, they have a well-formed crust and a nice chew. The rub is simple — only salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper that gets applied right before cooking. This helps avoid extracting juice and moisture from the meat. If you can narrow down your selection to just one thing, this should be it.
Other meats are hit-or-miss. The brisket can be Saraha-dry and reliant on the table sauce to make it pliable and edible. Brisket is an art form in Texas and is done much better at Franklin or places where there’s less supply and more quality control. The sausage, made from a combination of beef and pork, can be rubbery and overly salted. Despite this, if you’re a first-timer and want to dabble across the entire rainbow of meats, there’s a sampler plate called the Rancher that lets you do just that.
Sides of beans, potato salad, and slaw are available as is bread, manifesting as slices from a sesame seed-topped loaf rather than the more typical Wonder Bread. Accoutrements come in the way of pickles and raw onions. Potato salad might be a weird thing to rave about, but the version here is pretty great, made with a vinaigrette salad dressing, dill pickle juice, and barbecue sauce. It’s finished with a light helping of black sesame seeds, thanks to founder Hisako’s Hawaiian and Japanese roots.
Considering the size of the operation, craft barbecue this isn’t. Some investigation around the restaurant will reveal that things are smoked in rotisseries in the back, then finished on the open pit while being basted in sauce. According to the restaurant, a normal year will see over a million pounds of brisket sold.
It is the antithesis of Franklin Barbecue in many ways — plenty of product, acres of space, and you have more than three hours for a shot at eating lunch here. The enormous dining room looks like a campground lodge with communal wooden tables and benches, string lights, and the dirt parking surface outside. There’s even a winery next door. Despite the gargantuan size and off-the-beaten path location, the Salt Lick’s reputation precedes it and there is often a long wait for dining in.
Other locations have opened in recent years, including one in Round Rock, TX, just north of the city center as well as an outpost at the Austin airport, which I’m sure I don’t have to tell you not to visit. A party of two could feast mightily here for $20 – $30 a head, but just remember that you’ll want to stick to the pork ribs and sides, otherwise you risk disappointment with the other meats.
Written by Joy
Thanks for reading. The Joy of Food blog celebrates eating well, traveling often, and living la dolce vita. San Diego, California is home base, but thoughts are from all over. Reviews and photos help to highlight wonderful (or not) food experiences from around the world.
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Oh my… I’m guessing you are in Texas alot keeping your bbq needs met. That’s a tricky trade off making industrial size batches or braving a 3 hour line for the craft product.
The Salt Lick has the added distinction of not being a craft product yet still commanding long lines. The pork ribs here, though, are spectacular and very much worth waiting for.
It’s possible that the Round Rock location does brisket better. It’s also possible that they recognized you as a Californian and gave you the leanest possible brisket they could! 🙂 I’m usually more worried about how juicy it is than how tough. I agree that the pork ribs are the draw, however.
Next time I’ll stop by wearing a fat suit and see if that does the trick. And Franklin does the brisket by which all other brisket should be judged – I dream of that brisket. Truly magical beefy goodness.
Franklin’s was indeed very good.