5th Annual Houston Barbecue Festival ~ Texas BBQ Adventures

If you’ve spoken to me on the topic, then you know that the Houston Barbecue Throwdown is my favorite barbecue event of all. Instead of doling out the usual brisket, participants assemble unique offerings for attendees. The creativity displayed at the Throwdown pushes the thought of “brisket fatigue” far from anyone’s mind.

This year’s Houston Barbecue festival took a page from that event as many participants shied away from the common brisket offering. At times, the 2017 Houston Barbecue Festival really felt like a giant Houston Barbecue Throwdown. Offerings like Feges’ whole hog (though this is kind of a tradition now) and The Pit Room’s Iberico suckling pigs made for good pictures on social media, but many other participants bucked the beef trend and put together other entries that had people talking.

These events represent a large cost investment for the participating restaurants and there are two thoughts into how to get value from such an event. We had a few participants that used the event as an opportunity to build their brand and show Houston what they could do. Tejas Chocolate Craftory, for example put together an entire bite sized spread for attendees, showcasing their meats, sides and desserts. Other participants used the event for R&D and experimented on the hungry masses in the NRG parking lot. Names like Gatlin’s, Corkscrew, and Killen, for example, are well known commodities, so all three had the opportunity to try something new and get feedback from patrons as well as those on the local food beat. Perhaps, we’ll see some of the items from the weekend pop up on the menu of your favorite joint (Pinkerton's Bacon Wrapped Duck Sausage anyone?).

My main mission this year was to sample the offerings from all 25 attendees. That mission was a success, however, as usual, some of the joints had different items available for VIP than for the general admission tickets. Pinkerton’s even had a rotating menu throughout the day with a new item available at the top of each hour. At times, I was chasing down one item and I’d miss out on another, like Gatlin’s smoked red snapper. So, while I sampled all 25 venues, I did miss out on some of their offerings through the day.

With that said, I did snap a few pictures on Sunday, so here’s a bit of the action:

Scenes from 2017 Houston Barbecue Festival

5th Annual Houston Barbecue Festival

The line for VIP Entry at 11:45

Clockwise from Top Left:
Harlem Road Texas Barbecue: Pork Belly Topped With Gourmet Pickle and Brisket on Sourdough Baguette.
The Pit Room: Iberico Suckling Pig with Coffee Bourbon Sauce
Pappa Charlies (2 plates): Beef Sausage w/ Pimento Cheese and Street Taco w/ Flank Steak & Pineapple/Black Bean Pico
Feges BBQ: Carolina Style Whole Hog w/ Slaw and Patrick's Famous Turducken Sausage
Pinkerton's Barbecue: Bacon Wrapped Duck Poppers (From Rotating Menu)
Roegels Barbecue Co: Beef Rib Pastrami

Clockwise from Top Left:
Blood Brothers: Togarashi Pulled Beef Sliders w/ Carmelized Onions & SWAT Sauce and Mashed Potatoes
Tejas Chocolate Craftory: Carrot Souffle, Brisket, Pork Belly, Chocolate Panna Cotta
Southern Q (Two Plates): Brisket, Sausage, Boudin & Spicy Cracker and Chocolate Cake
Ray's BBQ Shack: Brisket, Ribs, Fried Corn

Fainmous Barbecue: Brisket, Rib, Chicken and Corn

Clockwise from Top Left:
Tin Roof: Beef Shank Barbacoa Tacos
Blake's BBQ & Burgers: Brisket and Sausage
Southside Market: Sausage and Brisket
Brooks' Place: Brisket and Smoked Brown Sugar Bacon
Lenox Barbecue: Brisket, Ribs, Sausage, Potato Salad
Corkscrew Barbecue: Smoked Prime Rib
Brisket House: Brisket and Chipotle Citrus Glazed Baby Back Ribs
El Burro & The Bull: Brisket, Sausage, and Boudin