60 AUGUST 2019
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HE SIGN OUTSIDE says “Texas Barbecue.” A crowd
of locals is lined up in the haze of post oak smoke.
And the slow march toward black-barked brisket
and juicy pork ribs is underway. But unlike the
no-frills meat markets of Lockhart, Texas, or the
unassuming roadside trailers farther north, you’re standing in
a sparkling shopping center in Bellaire, Texas, a wealthy suburb
in southwest Houston. And the “Texas” part of that sign? Yeah,
that might be a little different than what you’re imagining.
Alongside the Lone Star State’s holy trinity of brisket, ribs,
and hot guts sausage, Blood Bros. BBQ is slinging togarashi
pulled beef, sides of fried rice, and beef belly burnt ends slath-
ered in spicy Korean gochujang. Because here in Bellaire,
a metro area near Houston’s Chinatown, this is the flavor of
Texas. At least it is for co-owners Robin and Terry Wong—third-
generation Chinese-Americans—and pit master Quy Hoang,
whose family emigrated from Vietnam in 1975.
The three friends grew up together in nearby Alief, and like
so many next-gen barbecue stalwarts, they’ve spun a backyard
hobby into a full-time business. Predictably, part of that passion
was fueled by trips to Kreuz Market and Black’s Barbecue in
Lockhart and Luling City Market in Houston. But they saw a
future for the category outside of the bovine-first, no-sauce
edicts of the classic Central Texas style. And that personalized,
paradigm-shifting approach is now being seen across the state.
A half-hour away, in Richmond, chef-owner Ara Malekian of
Harlem Road Texas BBQ delves into his Armenian background
(not to mention his experi-
ence working in the fine-
dining scene in Switzerland)
for inspiration. Barbecue
sauce spiked with Armenian
coffee accompanies a litany
of smoked meats (lamb
chops, duck, even quail)
slow-cooked over aged wine-
barrel staves. And further
south, in San Antonio, Esaul Ramos of 2M Smokehouse has
pioneered a movement of barbecue practitioners in which Mexi-
can flavors are integrated across an array of sausages (try links
stuffed with Oaxaca cheese and serrano chiles) and sides (mac
and cheese capped with crunchy chicharróns).
Multiculturalism isn’t new to Texas barbecue. The injections
of Cajun, Korean, Chinese, and a whole swath of Southeast
Asian flavors are just the latest influences on a cuisine that has
been shaped by African American, German, and Mexican cooks.
But barbecue tourism (yes, it’s a thing!) now has more to con-
sider: This latest spate of ingenuity has not only unleashed a
wealth of culinary possibilities, but it has also further escalated
the demand, with a more diverse demographic queued up to
see what comes next.
“It’s been really cool to see Texas taking an outside-of-the-box
approach to barbecue,” says Ramos. “To think differently. To
evolve using all these flavors that we grew up with.”
T
At Blood Bros. BBQ in
Bellaire, Texas, pit master
Quy Hoang (left)
slices smoked brisket.
“It’s been really
cool to see Texas
taking an outside-
of-the-box approach
to barbecue. To
think differently.”
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