meshack's bar-b-que

5 hours later, getting into leftovers - the lower portion of the pound of beef contained beautifulbrisketslices with a good edge of smokey, brown goodness = more intense flavor.


-----07 may, 2011-----

for d/fw, it's good. i drove in from grapevine, arrived around 12:30 to find a line of 5 or 6. after securing a parking spot in the grassy lot to the shack's left, i got in line to order.... the line does not move fast.

when i was 2 back, i heard the woman in front of me say they're out of links. come to find out, they have 2 different types of links - east tx links and some other kind, unknown to me. they still had the "other kind". my turn to order, i asked for sliced beef and ribs - wait! they're out of ribs also. will be another 45 minutes for more. so i changed to the "other kind" of links, keeping thebrisketwith chips, a big red, coke, mild and hot sauce on the side and a slice of the lemon cake.

order up - to the car we went, dug in and truly i was not displeased, both of us commenting it was worth the drive (given that the next best option would've been several hours further away).

they use pecan wood, so the smoke flavor in the beef is subtle; but it's there although not nearly as strong as mesquite or oak presents. they slice thebrisketwilly-nilly, so you don't get the nice even slices you may be used to seeing with the dark crust/bark on each and every slice. that was disappointing as it adds additional flavor to every bite, but, it's moist and still carries its own good flavor. the links were quite tasty with a little spicy heat. they had a slightly coarse grind with a good snap to the casing. would like to try the east tx ones (and the ribs!) next visit, but in their absence, would not hesitate ordering these again. and get the lemon cake!! it's a good finisher.

though thebrisketdidn't officially need sauce, i occasionally gave it a dip for a little punch in flavor, preferring the not overly hot, hot to the milder (and sweeter) sauce.

yes, i'll return, but as long as there's a 20-30 minute wait in line, i'll keep it during the cooler months.... and i'll be there earlier than 12:30.

awesomebrisketand sausage!!. we've tried many times to catch this place open and finally today - yes! so the place is literally a shack - like my son had to pee out behind the building and it seemed just fine kind of shack. but so what? that means the owners are all about the food. we only had to wait in line about 5 minutes behind 1 person. the lady taking orders was sweet and helpful. the choppedbrisketsandwich was out of this world. best i've had around here - soooooo tasty, moist, not fatty, drenched in a sweet mildly spicy sauce. i don't usually care for sausage, so was disappointed that my husband got us some, but it turned out to be great - crispy casings, nice amount of heat, good texture, delicious. sometimes sandwiches are so big you can share, but the $3brisketsandwich was sized right for 1 person. if you're hungry, you could definitely eat 2. the beans tasted like campbell's baked beans with some smokedbrisketmixed in, but not gonna pretend to be sophisticated about my beans - the combo worked! cannot wait to go back....

good bbq. i made my first visit to meshack's on last week. i ordered the rib dinner as they were out ofbrisketby the time i arrived. the ribs were tender, with excellent favor. the sides wee potatoe salad and bbq beans that were just as good if not better than the ribs... this joint made the top 50 list for texas bbq joints in 2013 and i know why... they are good... i plan to go back and try thebrisketto see if it's as good as the ribs...

posted sun, 08/25/2013 - 19:08 by smoke daddy joint:  meshacks bar-b-que shack smoke daddy, xo, gus, and jack thought the hot link was excellent.  ribs and beans were good, with the ribs narrowly missing an excellent mark.  we were disappointed that we arrived too late to try the slicedbrisketand cobbler.   this is just the type of joint that our bbq tours crew loves:  family owned/operated; no pretense;  making authentic barbecue everyday, and complementing it with homemade sides/desserts.  we will be back! main fare: ribs - bark was a bit tough, but the meat underneath was worthy of the effort.  these ribs have good smoke and are fully rendered.  the meat is tender and juicy... but very salty.  salt from rub has penetrated through the meat, making the pork flavor take a back seat to the salt.  these small ribs may have been over-rubbed (and likely kept warm for some time).  they were good, but missed greatness today. hot link - delicious.  this smokey denmark sausage is enhanced by

terrific bbq. while the place is a little hard to find, it is takeout only, and parking is a bit of a chore with all the people lined up for their order, and you are going to have to take your meal somewhere else to eat it, it is worth it.brisketwas good, had a nice smokey flavor. however the sausage links were probably the best links i have ever had. the sauce good and the portions of the sandwiches are huge. they have to use three pieces of bread to sop up all the goodness in the sandwich, and they thoughtfully provide enough napkins with every order.

i can see why they are in the list of top 10 bbq places in many polls. well worth a trip, but like most really good bbq places, there will be a crowd and when they run out of food they close up, so get there early.

i see they recently added they take credit cards with a $7 minimum, but this would involve buying a couple of sandwiches.

great bbq. not an authority on bbq although i have tried quite a few places. meshacks had been recommended to me by a friend, and my wife and i gave it a try today. all i can say is terrific, and the combo dinner is more than enough for two. great ribs,brisketand sausage. will be back soon for sure.

it's a roadside, take-out only, walk-up shack with really dark screens on the windows, so you can't see who you're tallking to, but it doesn't matter the food is great really good pecan-smoked ribs.briskethas good flavor, as do the links.

definitely a mixed review here.... i wasn't impressed, but i'm willing to give this place another shot.

yes, the wait was really long, but i was able to put up with it so i could try a new bbq joint that had "win" written all over it. small family business? check. wonderful smokey smells coming from the building? check. long line? check.

after waiting in line a solid half-hour, we placed our order and waited a little bit longer. as we waited, several patrons walked up to pick up large call-in orders. one man had ordered chicken, which wasn't on the menu - this intrigued me and makes me want to come back for another shot. other than that, i was underwhelmed. we sampled the slicedbrisketand the sausage, along with the beans and potato salad. the sausage was good, and it tasted home made - smoky and spicy and still moist. the potato salad was more of a mashed potato salad, and it too was tasty - very sweet and southern and mayonnaise-intensive. however, thebrisketand beans weren't that good. thebrisketwas dry and didn't appear to have any kind of a rub on it. only the sauce made it tolerable. and the beans appeared to be straight out of a big-ass can - very underwhelming.

i'd still like to go back and try the ribs and the elusive "off-the-menu" chicken, but i wasn't encouraged by my first visit.