Preview: 2018 Texas Monthly BBQ Fest Weekend November 3-4 #TMBBQ #BestInTexas #WGTravel

Attention Texas BBQ lovers! What if I told you that you could sample BBQ from select Texas Monthly Top 50 Barbecue Joints in Texas in one place during one delicious afternoon? This scenario is a dream come true for all Texas BBQ fanatics! Texas Monthly magazine's 9th annual Texas Monthly BBQ Fest Weekend is being held November 3-4 in Austin. Stiles Switch BBQ & Brew will host its 'Cue Course event on Saturday, November 3rd, from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm -- tickets are $95/person. From 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. that day, Franklin Barbecue will host the Franklin & Friends event -- tickets are $125/person. The weekend's marquee event -- The Texas Monthly BBQ Fest -- will take place at the Long Center for the Performing Arts on Sunday, November 4th. This smoketacular event will take place from 1:00-4:00 p.m. VIP Tickets are $165 (includes early entry to the event at noon), and General Admission tickets are $80. 

This will be our fifth time to attend and cover the BBQ Fest, and it’s always a great time! We always have a great time visiting with the pitmasters and sampling their smoky specialties -- from both long-time favorite BBQ joints and new discoveries! This year, 30 of Texas' best BBQ joints from all regions of the state are taking part in the event. Be sure to click on each link below to visit participating BBQ joints' websites and check them out ahead of the BBQ Fest!!

• 2M Smokehouse (San Antonio)
• Baker Boys BBQ (Gonzales)
• Bodacious Bar-B-Q Mobberly (Longview)
• Cattleack Barbeque (Dallas)
• Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que (Llano)
• Evie Mae’s Pit Barbecue (Wolfforth)
• Flores Barbecue (Whitney)
• Guess Family Barbecue (newcomer) (Waco)
• Hays Co. Bar-B-Que (San Marcos)
• Heim Barbecue (Forth Worth)
• Hutchins BBQ (Mckinney)
• Killen’s Barbecue (Pearland)
• la Barbecue (Austin)
• Lockhart Smokehouse (Dallas)
• Louie Mueller Barbecue (Taylor)
• Micklethwait Craft Meats (Austin)
• Miller’s Smokehouse (Belton)
• PODY’S BBQ (Pecos)
• Roegels Barbecue Co. (Houston)
• Smolik’s Smokehouse (Mathis)
• Snow’s BBQ (Lexington)
• Stanley’s Famous Pit BBQ (Tyler)
• Stiles Switch BBQ & Brew (Austin)
• Stillwater Barbeque (Abilene)
• Tejas Chocolate Craftory (Tomball)
• Terry Black’s Barbecue (Austin)
• Top 5 BBQ  (Desoto)
• Truth BBQ (Brenham)
• Tyler’s Barbeque (Amarillo)
• Valentina’s Tex Mex BBQ (Austin)

Every participating BBQ joint has a dedicated booth where hungry BBQ lovers line up to sample their brisket, ribs, sausage…and fun surprises like lamb chops and homemade scratch desserts too! As these pictures from last year’s BBQ Fest show, we had a great time sampling some amazing smoked meat from Aaron Franklin's Franklin Barbecue.

In addition to fabulous Texas BBQ as far as the eye can see at the Long Center, BBQ Fest attendees can also purchase soft drinks, beer, and cocktails to wash it all down. There’s also plenty of live music to enjoy – the event takes place in Austin, after all! Bottom line: the Texas Monthly BBQ Fest is a fun afternoon where BBQ lovers of all ages mingle and sample as much smoky Texas BBQ as they can eat in a beautiful location near picturesque Lady Bird Lake. Keep in mind that this is a very popular event, and tickets typically sell out before the day of the event. If you are interested in attending this year's festivities, I highly recommend you purchase your tickets online as soon as possible! I don't recommend waiting to purchase tickets at the door -- you risk smelling all that smoky goodness, but being unable to come inside for a taste. That would be very unfortunate, indeed!
The Weekend Gourmet will be posting lots of fun live social shares the day of the 2018 Texas Monthly BBQ Fest – including video via Facebook and Instagram! One caveat -- I'm not responsible for any drooling you do when you see up-close pictures of all that amazing Texas BBQ! If you’re not already following us on social media, what are you waiting for? Follow all of our culinary adventures via Instagram (WEEKENDGOURMET) and Twitter (@TheWeekendGourm). There are two more things you need to be aware of. First: the Texas Monthly BBQ Fest is outdoors and takes place "rain or shine." Second: Daylight Savings Time begins the weekend of the event...so BE SURE to set your clock back 1 hour when you go to sleep on Saturday, November 3rd. Doing so will ensure you arrive at the BBQ Fest at the correct time!

Disclosure: Texas Monthly is providing The Weekend Gourmet a pair of media credentials to attend and cover this year's BBQ Fest.