Hill Country Barbecue Market

Being from Texas, I had to try this place out. It definitely felt like walking into Goode's BBQ off the Katy freeway in Houston. The beef ribs were extremely tender and the sausage was to die for. I skipped the sides in favor of getting dessert. I don't have to tell y'all that of course the Blue Bell Ice cream was amazing. Although I wish they didn't sell it in those little cups (as opposed to nice big scoops) and had more flavors (cookies 'n creme, anyone?), but still finding it in New York was great. My friend and I got there early and were able to snag the last seats that weren't reserved. My recommendation is either get their early or try and get a large enough party to reserve a table beforehand. Overall, it was a great experience and I would definitely go again. My dinner came in slightly under $18 for two (beef) ribs, a sausage link, a coke, and a cup of Blue Bell. A little pricey, but I had enough food to take some fo the sausage home (they give you a whole link at a time).

Pros: Great food and truly authentic feel, super friendly wait staff

Cons: Seating can get scarce quickly

Posted 07/12/07

Not only did our party have to deal with table issues, longest wait ever to have drinks served the wait staff and manager were terrible! Rude beyond belief! Audaciously rude! While the food was delicious the experience left only a bad taste in our mouth. Awful considering the expense! One should enjoy paying such a large amount for a completely enjoyable experience instead of feeling stuck in a situation and only hoping the staff isn't spitting in your food!! Definitely NOT the place to RISK an important occasion ending only in disappointment!

Pros: good decor

Cons: expensive, bad service,

Posted 07/06/07

The space is huge and kitschy, but it works. Lots of exposed beams, painted signs, though I feel like it's still too "clean" (maybe it needs sawdust or peanut shells on the floor, I'm not sure). Got a look at the smoker, they have three industrial-sized machines. They use hickory imported from texas that gives the meat a beautiful dark red ring around it. Brisket was good, not great, but the ribs were excellent. Almost the best I've had here in New York, just a little too much fat for my taste. It's Texas style, which means salt, pepper and little else, you can put some of their homemade barbecue sauce on it if you want. Margarita had way too much salt on it. I suspect that this is a very, very expensive operation, so we'll see if it lasts, but it's worth the visit.

Pros: Good 'cue

Cons: Lines to get the good 'cue

Posted 06/19/07

All shall rejoice. Texas style BBQ now has a new home and it's in New York City. Welcome to Hill Country. 2 pork ribs up from yours truly. We met the owner, Kip, who grew up in Lockhart, Texas and has created a Smitty's style BBQ right here in NYC. Everything is ordered by the slice, rib or link and measured out by the pound. 8 meat choices, 16 sides, corn bread, market cheese and all the fixins you could want in the way or jalapenos, onions and the like. They even had Big Red soda and Lone Star Beer.

Sadly the only thing missing was Shiner Bock but everything else was amazing.

On first go round we had, moist brisket, jalape?o cheese link, beef shoulder, pork ribs, longhorn cheddar mac and cheese, barbecued baked beans, sweet potato bourbon mash, corn bread and longhorn cheddar. Beef shoulder and sausage were voted the winners at our table but the sweet potato mash was worth writing home, or at least to all of you about.

All other BBQ joints in NYC should just pack up and leave.

Pros: You're at minimum a 4 hour flight from the next closest food like this.

Cons: They arent open 24 hours a day. I need my fix!

Posted 06/18/07

WOW. I went here after work one day expecting some decent BBQ, but was surprised to find that this place has the best BBQ ? by far - in the city-. The ordering system is strange at first, but you get it. The ?moist? brisket is wonderful, juicy, melt in your mouth heaven. The ?lean? brisket is good as well. Before you leave, head for the ?Sweets and Treats? you got to have the banana pudding, with real bananas and yummy Nilla wafers.
Overall the best thing is- you can practically have everything on the menu if you wanted due to the buy per weight type system. You can get one rib, one slice, one slab.. it is all up to you.
The line for each section can be annoying though, especially if there are rude people ahead of you who think it is ok for one of them to stand in line and each of their friends come up and join them.
The owner is sweet, he greets almost every table to make sure you are satisfied ? which you will be until you leave and you have to come back! I went on a Thursday and had to come back on the following Sunday? it is really that good!

Pros: great food

Cons: waiting in a line to get the food

Posted 06/18/07

I am definitely a convert to texas style bbq after visiting hill country...although they have some kinks to work out, the quality of the brisket and beef ribs (they had pork too) were amazing...the space is really cool too, definitely doesnt feel like you're in manhattan, and there is live music to boot...highly recommended, but don't loose your meal ticket!

Pros: Quality of bbq, ambience, live music, casual atmosphere

Cons: still working out some kinks-newly opened

Posted 06/14/07

Given the place just opened, a very good meal. The brisket was very tasty. The pork ribs were not very meaty, but were good. Good sides. They ran out of the beef ribs. The space is very cool, and the concept is interesting. You get a ticket, go around to meat, side and beverage stations, where your ticket is stamped. With the meat, you can order different quantities (e.g., two slices of brisket, a chicken wing and three ribs ? priced by weight). You present your ticket to a pay station at the end of the meal ? they did not have the pay thing down yet (a long check-out line), and will probably need more registers. Good music venue downstairs. Meal for two cost about $40.

Pros: Meat. Sides. Venue.

Cons: Check out line.

Posted 06/12/07

From a Texas girl... first of all, they serve Blue Bell ice cream. This is the only time I've found Blue Bell in New York, so I'll keep going back just for that.

When you walk in, the hostess hands you a menu card and explains that you order at the counters, seat yourself, pay at the end. Move among various stations for meat, veggies and drinks. Meat is sold by the pound and carved to order. The brisket was really good and the sausage is from Kreuz Market in Lockhart (exciting for Texas people, not sure anyone else will care). I'm not crazy about their sauce, but everyone is going to have their own opinion on that.

Prices are reasonable as long as you don't go crazy and order a bunch of sides. Overall, I'm pleased and I'll be going back soon.

Pros: Friendly staff, good food, fun atmosphere

Posted 06/11/07

This place is a good start. As a Texas guy (who still visits Austin a lot) they've really made a good effort here. The sausage is great. The brisket is a B+ - but (so far) Bluesmoke has them beat on the brisket front. The lean brisket we had was still too fatty. The sauce is weak. They would be better off importing sauce from a place like Rudy's or Salt Lick in Austin (or better yet, both!). The sides were mostly good. The mac and cheese was bland. The beans were great as was the cole slaw.

The system for ordering also has some kinks that need to be worked out. Its a really fun idea. However, the lines for meat moved slowly. Also, (like Rudy's in Austin) they should give you extra butcher paper with your tray so that each person at the table can spread out. Also the blue bell (which was fantastic) had to be retrieved from sone hidden vault aparently, and they need a better system in locating the people that are waiting on blue bell (why not just have it in a fridge at the counter??)

The 'ritas are excellent by the way. Even without Shiner, having quality margaritas made the experience better.

On the whole, Hill Country has some work to do (smooth out the process, make the brisket a little better, spice up the sauce) but I will definitely go back.

Posted 06/11/07

Be conversational: Write it as if relaying your experience to a good friend.
Be specific: Generalities like "lazy service" or "tasty pizza" leave people wanting more detail.
Be yourself: If you're an expert on burgers, let us know. If this is your first-time massage, say so.
Be fair: Comparing the city's top French restaurant to a neighborhood taco stand is just silly.
See User Review Guidelines

Posted 06/08/07