hill country barbecue market

texas proud. first off the food was amazing. why am i calling it food when bbq is in a catagory of its own, one that is held to a higher standard than most. being from texas i thought i was never going to find a bbq place that could get it right, especially in d.c. but i was wrong. hill country is not a fancy black tie joint, heck they dont even have plates, but its not supposed too. it holds true to the texas style bbq ...... where you eat on butcher paper and sit at a long table with strangers. in an earlier review somebody stated the decor was tacky and over bearing...well its not. its of course has a country theme that is in my opinion fitting for the establishment. now enough about the decor and no plates. the bbq was just like home. all there meat is slow smoked and dry rubbed to perfection. there sides were almost just as good and the sweet tea was just perfect. this is what a bbq place should be. one the negative side though, our waiter was just a bit to slow. it was just me and my wife on a not so busy day and he only stopped by once during our whole meal. other staff was more than helpful after you get there attention. all in all a must stop for any serious bbq eater.

not a big fan with high cost, average food and serve yourself cafeteria style. better to go to virgina for bbq. the beans were not tasty and the meats were dry. the service is not friendly

hc bbq - from ny to dc. live in nj, work with the band, "the nashville attitude" from ny. they perform at hill country in nyc and will be returning to dc on the 28th. have to say that the mac & cheese in dc is the most yummiest! the band loves the brisket, sweet potato mash, cucumber salad, slaw, and just about everything else that is served. first time at hill country dc, we all were treated so well by the staff and audience alike. look forward to returning. did i say the mac & cheese was the yummiest?

convenient and good, but not over the top in our opinion.

i had been coming to this restaurant and venue for number of years before the pandemic, and while there were service issues, the bbq was good quality as indicated by their past ratings. i returned for first time in over 1 1/2 years later evening and i'll echo other reviews that i'd give this place zero stars if i could. i had asked for moist brisket, and ordered the double meat platter with ribs, and got brisket that was as tough as leather rather than moist and both meats were served cold. i was the only customer in the restaurant at 9:15pm and the service was also poor, i could have left without paying but chased down the hostess to pay my tab regardless.

the floor supervisor suggested that since the music venue downstairs was lightly attended, it shouldn't be an issue attending the music downstairs since it was halfway through the performance. when i went downstairs, i was confronted by bouncer and recounted what i was told and since halfway through performance and i just had a lackluster meal there shouldn't be an issue. the bouncer let me in only to be confronted by the patrol guard asst mgr brian who showed absolutely no class for this place. he insisted on my paying the full cover after i explained what i was told and had just finished a meal upstairs so i paid the full cover in respect to the band. but when i then pointed out the poor quality meal that was served cold and asked if i should be given any consideration, he accused me of lying about his supervisor's suggestion upstairs, cursed with foul vernacular and had his bouncer kick me out.

what kind of low life thug manager does this place now have to resort to for managing? i was the only customer in the restaurant, served a poor meal and this is how this place has a manager treat the only customer they had in their restaurant? this is what i drive in from montgomery county special trip for? this place has gone down the drain and i wouldn't go back if they paid for promotion. i'll be disputing the charge with my credit card company for the terrible meal and awful experience, and i'll go to other restaurants that have decency for their customers who visit coming out of the pandemic when business is desperately needed.

there are much better options for bbq and any other restaurant in dc that knows better for basic decency!

the food was fantastic. i had the brisket, mac cheese and corn bread. it was delicious. it is a market so you get seated then you go order your food. you order your meat by the pound then you go to another station and get your sides. they start at a 1/2 but you can ask for a quarter pound.

lots of gluten-free options and hill country has a separate allergy menu. they smoke all of their meats in-house and the food is the best bbq i've found in dc. read my full review for more detail and the gluten-free menu.

ordered delivery with my husband. we tried the pitmaster with some additional spares. for a couple people who enjoy smoking their own meat, this is bbq that will not disappoint. very tender and flavourful with a glorious smoke ring. recommended.

if you like texas bbq this is a place for you. the brisket was perfectly smiley with the proper crust/burnt ends. when you include the fact that these are the best collard greens i have had north of columbia south carolina, you get the best bbq place in dc. stop in, have a beer, whiskey, or tequila and enjoy!

i don't like the chaotic ordering system. just let place me order with a waitress and bring me my food. the meats are relatively good, perhaps over-smoked. in fact i wonder if they use alot of liquid smoke, because i was burping that smoke taste for hours after i left there. the sides are underwhelming.

in a dc area with loads of fantastic restaurants hills was a disappointment. i expect barbecue to fall off the bone. neither the chicken nor the pork ribs were done enough. i've had much better barbecue flavor. we had the mac n cheese which was also rather bland. for the penn quarter area prices were good. we ate for $60 including house wine. ambiance was loud.

good food, if not a bit spendy for lunch. so you sit first, order your drinks then go to the main meat counter, the sides counter and the dessert counters, carrying a ticket which they park up with what you get. the trouble is knowing how to order meat by the pound? i wanted two ribs, i have no clue what that will cost. i will say the ribs, were perfect with just the rub. link sausages were $7 ea. the kreuz jalepeno cheddar was great with a nice snap, the house-made hot link was soft, devoid of much flavor and lacked the requisite snap. the both the lean and wet brisket were good, nice smoke, while flavorful and moist. one downfall is the single bbq sauce available, which had a strong flavor of something, apple maybe? nonetheless, no other options, thankfully the rub and smoke did the trick. the collards were nice, though no hot pepper vinegar? corn bread was a bust at $1.50 for a two bite min-muffin. the beans were a little on the underdone side and lacked real depth of flavor. the corn ponne (?) was nothing i'd try again. in all the meats were decent, but you'll pay for them if you aren't sure how to order (start light!). we ended up at over $80 for lunch, but mainly due to our inexperience in ordering, we just plain got too much.

for me i thought the brisket was excellent.
it had great smoke, was not dry and was sauced to my taste. i ordered take out and they took care to package the meat and bun separately to prevent a soggy sandwich. i will go back again when in dc.

hill country is a texas style bbq restaurant out of new york city. some proteins are better than others here. the smoked chicken is very good. if you are into fatty brisket, you can order it that way here, but it was a bit too fatty for me. they have sausages from around austin, tx. their sides are really good. they ahve a bar in the front of the restaurant.

certainly some pros and cons to me knowing where hill country is now: very good for my stomach, but very bad for my waistline and probably for my wallet as well.