I read about Louie King BBQ a week or so ago in a Dallas Observer article here. I think it's only been open for around a month and the Observer article said it has potential.
I was heading out for lunch today from work and thought I'd take the drive down Greenville and if the place was [too] busy, then I would just keep on trucking. Otherwise, I'd give the place a try. I drove by initially and it looked like just a few people inside so I circled back and parked. I walked around the block from the parking lot to the building and entered. It was a little hard to make out the menu as it's kind of squenched together on a chalk board. It looks like they are still settling in as the dining area was slightly organized but crowded...if that makes any sense.
I was greeted by a very friendly gentleman behind the counter who asked what I would like. I said I'd just have a pound of the brisket and a Diet Coke (which is in a can in the cooler/refrigerator). He asked if I wanted fatty or lean and of course, I chose fatty as I assumed it was interchangeable with the term moist as used at other bbq joints. He also asked if I wanted bread. I said yes although I rarely get filler foods, i.e. bread, beans, cole slaw, etc. Before I got all my sauce and pickles at the 'condiment bar', another guy brought my tray of food.
In the dimmer light of the restaurant the meat looked good. I decided to sit outside at one of their bistro tables in front of the restaurant since the weather was pretty darn perfect around 1 p.m. Once I could see the slices of brisket more clear, it wasn't as mouth-watering as I would have liked.
As you can see, the brisket meat looks pretty good itself but then there is this half inch to three-quarter inch line of fat. I'm assuming that this is what was meant by fatty (not moist) versus lean.
Now I'm not one to hate on fatty as long as it serves a purpose and has good flavor. This fat was just fat. There was a nice thin line of crispness on the edge but that was it. It did not add anything to the meat other than a whole heck of a lot of greasiness that you can see on the butcher paper. That's where the plain slices of bread played it's part. They gave me four slices but the bottom two you nearly soaked with grease. I did use the top two to make a sliced brisket sandwich with the pickle slices and barbecue sauce. I did have to trim some, a lot, of the fat off the meat as it was just too much.
I thought that part of having/leaving fat on meat is to maintain the juiciness of the meat during cooking/smoking. However, this brisket was not as tender as I would have thought with so much fat. It wasn't tough but it also wasn't fork-slicing tender like other places.
So, that's my first experience. I may visit another time to try other meat items but I wouldn't revisit for the brisket or recommend it to anyone. The Observer mentioned the shaved pork loin so that might be something to try next time. This place did essentially just open so I'm sure it'll take some time to get everything 'right' so I'll keep a look out for other articles on any improvements. Or I may just randomly try the brisket at some future time to see if it's gotten any better. I hope it does as this place is very convenient for my lunch hour.
I was heading out for lunch today from work and thought I'd take the drive down Greenville and if the place was [too] busy, then I would just keep on trucking. Otherwise, I'd give the place a try. I drove by initially and it looked like just a few people inside so I circled back and parked. I walked around the block from the parking lot to the building and entered. It was a little hard to make out the menu as it's kind of squenched together on a chalk board. It looks like they are still settling in as the dining area was slightly organized but crowded...if that makes any sense.
I was greeted by a very friendly gentleman behind the counter who asked what I would like. I said I'd just have a pound of the brisket and a Diet Coke (which is in a can in the cooler/refrigerator). He asked if I wanted fatty or lean and of course, I chose fatty as I assumed it was interchangeable with the term moist as used at other bbq joints. He also asked if I wanted bread. I said yes although I rarely get filler foods, i.e. bread, beans, cole slaw, etc. Before I got all my sauce and pickles at the 'condiment bar', another guy brought my tray of food.
In the dimmer light of the restaurant the meat looked good. I decided to sit outside at one of their bistro tables in front of the restaurant since the weather was pretty darn perfect around 1 p.m. Once I could see the slices of brisket more clear, it wasn't as mouth-watering as I would have liked.
Now I'm not one to hate on fatty as long as it serves a purpose and has good flavor. This fat was just fat. There was a nice thin line of crispness on the edge but that was it. It did not add anything to the meat other than a whole heck of a lot of greasiness that you can see on the butcher paper. That's where the plain slices of bread played it's part. They gave me four slices but the bottom two you nearly soaked with grease. I did use the top two to make a sliced brisket sandwich with the pickle slices and barbecue sauce. I did have to trim some, a lot, of the fat off the meat as it was just too much.
I thought that part of having/leaving fat on meat is to maintain the juiciness of the meat during cooking/smoking. However, this brisket was not as tender as I would have thought with so much fat. It wasn't tough but it also wasn't fork-slicing tender like other places.
So, that's my first experience. I may visit another time to try other meat items but I wouldn't revisit for the brisket or recommend it to anyone. The Observer mentioned the shaved pork loin so that might be something to try next time. This place did essentially just open so I'm sure it'll take some time to get everything 'right' so I'll keep a look out for other articles on any improvements. Or I may just randomly try the brisket at some future time to see if it's gotten any better. I hope it does as this place is very convenient for my lunch hour.
