Want the quick rundown before you dig in?
If this sounds like your kind of BBQ trail, the full issue has the rest.
The second visit tells you something
The first visit tells you whether a BBQ joint is good.
The second visit tells you whether it matters.
A first visit can happen for a lot of reasons. Curiosity. Hype. A friend’s recommendation. A road trip. A list. A photo that made the brisket look too good to ignore.
But the second visit is different.
The second visit means something stuck with you.
Maybe it was the brisket. Maybe it was the sausage. Maybe it was the way the sides made the whole tray feel complete. Maybe it was the smell of the pit room before you even got to the door. Maybe it was the person behind the counter who made you feel like you had been there before, even if you had not.
Or maybe it was simpler than that.
You just wanted to go back.
That is one of the things I love about following Texas BBQ. The famous stops matter. The bucket-list joints matter. The road-trip destinations matter. But the places we return to tell a different story.
They become part of our rhythm.
The joint you take out-of-town friends to.
The place you check on when you are nearby.
The order you already know before you park.
The spot that does not need to impress you with something new every time because it already earned your trust.
A repeat visit is not always about perfection. Sometimes it is about consistency. Sometimes it is about comfort. Sometimes it is about the feeling that a place has become part of your own BBQ map.
That is also why BBQ Passport exists inside ExploringBBQ.com. It is not just there to track famous places or once-in-a-lifetime stops. It is there to track your actual BBQ trail: the first visits, the repeat visits, the favorites, the “I need to bring somebody here” stops, and the places that keep pulling you back.
Because after a while, your BBQ story is not just where you went.
It is where you went back.
So here is the question this week:
What BBQ joint have you visited more than once?
Hit reply and tell me the place. That is all. If there is a reason, even better. But start with the joint.
And if you already know the place, go log it.
Record a BBQ Visit Stamp. Mark the memory. Give that second visit its proper place in your BBQ Passport.
See you at the smoker,
Mike
Co-Founder, BBQ Fandom | ExploringBBQ.com
This week’s Around the Fire is about BBQ stops worth noticing again: the under-the-radar places, weekly rituals, and tray details that can turn curiosity into a return trip.
Six San Antonio BBQ joints worth a second look
This fits the Issue #11 theme cleanly. CultureMap rounded up six San Antonio barbecue joints that might not always dominate the loudest BBQ conversations, including neighborhood spots, long-running local joints, and places with character beyond the usual “best of” names. The useful takeaway is simple: the BBQ stops worth repeating are not always the ones everybody is already arguing about online. Sometimes they are the places you almost missed.
CultureMap San Antonio | May 2026 | Free
LeRoy and Lewis turned Monday into a BBQ habit
A great repeat visit is not always about ordering the same brisket plate again. Sometimes a joint gives people a reason to build a whole weekly ritual around it. MySA reports that LeRoy and Lewis’ Monday burger special started as a service-industry idea and has grown into a serious draw, with the burger averaging up to 600 orders on busy Mondays. That is more than a special. That is a habit with smoke on it.
MySA | May 2026 | Free
Dirty rice is earning its place on the Texas BBQ tray
For the paywalled slot, this is the one I would use if you want a deeper culture angle. Dirty rice gives us something more original than another meat-price or awards story. It lets us talk about sides as memory, regional influence, and one of the quiet reasons people go back to a BBQ joint. Brisket may get the first visit, but sides often help earn the second.
Houston Chronicle | May 2026 | Likely paywalled
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This week’s Pitmaster Picks stay in North Texas, with two videos that work well for anyone planning a Dallas or Plano BBQ run, or just looking for the next place that might earn a second visit.
THE ULTIMATE Texas BBQ Tour in Dallas! 3 Best BBQ Joints!
Video | May 21, 2026 | YouTube, Rockstar Eater
Dallas BBQ can be easy to oversimplify, but this video gives viewers a clean three-stop route through some of the city’s most recognizable barbecue names: Pecan Lodge, Terry Black’s Barbecue, and Hurtado Barbecue. It works especially well for readers planning a Dallas BBQ day, or anyone looking for a reminder that a good BBQ trip does not have to be complicated.
The best use here is not treating the video as the final word on Dallas BBQ. It is a starting route. Watch it, pick your first stop, then let the second visit tell you which one actually sticks.
Yearby’s BBQ in Plano, Texas | Oxtail, Meatloaf & Philly Water Ice | Destination Q
Video | May 26, 2026 | YouTube, Wise Guys BBQ
Why this stands out: This is the kind of BBQ stop that pushes past the standard brisket-and-ribs checklist. Yearby’s BBQ & Water Ice brings together Texas barbecue, soulful comfort food, oxtail and rice, smoked meatloaf, and Philly-style water ice, which makes it feel like more than a tray review. It feels like a place with its own rhythm.
The repeat-visit angle is strong here too. Brisket might get somebody in the door once, but dishes like oxtail, smoked meatloaf, and a cold water ice after a heavy BBQ meal are the kinds of details people remember when they are deciding where to go back.
Got a Pitmaster Pick I should feature next time?
Hit reply and put it on my radar or email us [email protected].
This week’s BBQ Events Radar mixes road-trip cook-offs, festival-style stops, and community BBQ happenings worth keeping on your calendar. Click the city links below to see BBQ joints in each city and build the stop into a bigger Texas BBQ outing.
Click the city links below to see BBQ joints in each city and build the stop into a bigger Texas BBQ outing.
ZestFest 2026 [Festival] [Ticketed]
May 29 to 31, 2026 | Fort Worth, TX
This is the strongest weekend pick if we want something beyond competition barbecue. ZestFest is a spicy food and BBQ festival at Will Rogers Memorial Center, with food samples, chef demos, eating contests, specialty vendors, and a Fiery Food Challenge weekend. Eddie Deen is listed as appearing all three days, with the event also highlighting BBQ, Cajun, Southern, and spicy-food programming.
BBQ for the Brave [Competition]
May 29 to 30, 2026 | Elgin, TX
This is a solid Central Texas competition pick with a service-oriented angle. BBQ Events lists it as an IBCA event at VFW Post 6115 in Elgin, and IBCA also lists BBQ for the Brave on May 29 as a state championship event.
Little Elm Brew & Que [Festival] [Music + BBQ]
June 6, 2026 | Little Elm, TX
This is probably the strongest reader-friendly event to add. Brew & Que returns to Little Elm Park with BBQ, craft beer, live music, shopping, contests, and fireworks over the lake. It gives readers a true festival option instead of another cook-off listing, and it fits the North Texas thread we already have in Pitmaster Picks.
Smoke in the Mountains [Competition] [Road Trip Worthy]
June 5–6, 2026 | Fort Davis, TX
If you like your BBQ weekends with more road under the tires, Smoke in the Mountains is worth noticing early. The Champions Barbecue Alliance lists the Fort Davis cook-off for June 5–6, which gives readers a few weeks to think about a Davis Mountains road trip built around barbecue, small-town Texas, and a different kind of smoke-filled backdrop.
If a BBQ stop was good enough to visit twice, it is probably worth logging.
That is the idea behind BBQ Passport on ExploringBBQ.com. It is not just for the famous places, the road-trip stops, or the joints you hope to visit someday. It is also for the places that have already become part of your real BBQ rhythm.
The spot you have been back to.
The one you recommend without thinking too hard.
The place you would take somebody who asked, “Where should we go for BBQ?”
This week, start with one repeat stop. Log a joint you have visited more than once, then use that as the beginning of your real Texas BBQ trail.
Wear it on the BBQ trail
The best BBQ stops have a way of pulling you back. If you are building your own Texas BBQ trail, grab something from the ExploringBBQ shop for the next smoke run.
Know about a BBQ event, new opening, road-trip stop, or story worth following? Send a note to [email protected].
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