Hill Country Barbecue Market

Upon entering Hill Country Barbecue Market, you are hit by the smell of smoke. Pick up your meal tickets and proceed to the meat station. There are three stations (meats, sides, and drinks/desserts). Hill Country has taken its cue from Kreuz Market in Lockhart, Texas.

The brisket is very good: smoky, beefy, tender and moist with a smoke ring around the edge. The sauce is reminiscent of Heinz 57, but much better. This meat doesn’t need any sauce and thankfully they let the meat speak for itself by not pre-applying the sauce. The chicken: slightly smoky, tender, and very moist. A real winner. The sausage ring has a nice chew. It’s smoky and peppery, with a nice jalapeno bite at the end, although the cheddar flavor is elusive. Spare ribs have a great smoke and pepper flavor, but they can be too chewy.

Mac and cheese: made with penne pasta and cheddar, it is very cheesy and rich, like a much better version of Stouffer’s. Corn pudding is dense, rich, sweet, and custardy with a nice subtle crunch from the corn; a perfect accompaniment to all of that luscious, smoky meat. The cucumber salad is a lip-puckering serving of pickled cucumbers with onions. A great palate cleanser! Baked beans with burnt ends are the only disappointing side, lacking in interesting flavor. The burnt ends add little.

The cupcake is moist, filled with grape jelly, a mountain of peanut butter frosting on top, topped with Reese’s Pieces candies and chopped, salted peanuts. Really, really good! But $6 for one cupcake!

Hill Country offers some items shipped from Texas, such as Big Red soda, Lone Star beer, and Blue Bell ice cream. The biggest issue people seem to have with Hill Country are the prices. Everything is a la carte. There aren’t any combos or platters, and it can get expensive very quickly.

Note: There now are Hill Country BBQs in Brooklyn and Washington, DC.