Want the quick rundown before you dig in?
BBQ Fandom is the weekly Texas BBQ newsletter from ExploringBBQ.com.
Quick rundown: What belongs on a Texas BBQ tray when you set a comfortable budget? This week, we look at how to choose the bites that matter most and save the rest for another visit. Around the Fire, Meat Church opens a store, Ronnie Killen makes news, and Kafi BBQ brings another perspective to the DFW scene. Then Gulf Coast Smoke takes us on a 24-hour Coastal Bend BBQ run, and our October Events Radar gives you a few reasons to hit the road.
Brisket may be the reason you walk into a Texas BBQ joint, but the price of a full tray can make you pause. If you still want to go, what would you order?
I think the useful starting point is a spending limit you feel good about. You might share a little brisket, try the sausage everyone talks about, or make a sandwich and a side the whole visit. There is no requirement to sample the entire menu to show up for a joint.
Our new ExploringBBQ guide walks through planning the meal: estimate enough food for your group, check the joint’s current prices, and choose the items you are most excited to eat.
How to Support Texas BBQ on a Budget
The ExploringBBQ guide shows how to set a comfortable spending limit, estimate enough BBQ for your group, and check the restaurant’s menu before you order. You can make room for the brisket you came for without buying more food than you want.
Now it’s your turn
Picture your next visit to a Texas BBQ joint. You have a comfortable budget and want an order you will enjoy.
What would you put on your tray, and what would you save for another visit?
Have a take on this? Share Issue #29 on Facebook and see what your BBQ crowd would put on the tray.
Until next week, keep chasing the smoke,
Mike
BBQ Fandom | ExploringBBQ.com
Around the Fire
This week’s stories show three different directions for Texas BBQ: a growing backyard-cooking brand, a restaurant weighing its costs, and a pitmaster making room for his own culinary heritage.
Meat Church Opens in a Historic Waxahachie Feed Store
Matt Pittman’s Meat Church has opened a larger supply store in the former Boyce Feed Store. The new space brings its seasonings, cooking gear, and other BBQ supplies under one roof, giving fans another reason to stop in Waxahachie.
Chron | September 28, 2026 | Free
Ronnie Killen Asks Cypress Customers: BBQ or Tex-Mex?
Ronnie Killen is considering whether to turn his Cypress Killen’s Barbecue location into a Killen’s TMX concept. He asked local diners for feedback and told Chron that brisket costs and the restaurant’s sales are part of the calculation. No switch has been announced, but his question shows how difficult the numbers can be for a BBQ joint.
Chron | September 30, 2026 | Free
At Kafi BBQ, Texas Smoke Meets Iraqi Flavors
A new Secret Dallas profile visits Salahodeen Abdul-Kafi’s halal smokehouse in Irving. Wagyu brisket shares the menu with Iraqi-spiced sausage, lamb ribs, and pomegranate-glazed burnt ends. It is a look at how a pitmaster can build on Texas BBQ technique while bringing his own food traditions to the tray.
Secret Dallas | September 28, 2026 | Free
If this week’s question made you think about what you would order on a budget, forward Issue #29 to the friend you would share a BBQ tray with. Ask what they would put on it now and what they would save for the next visit. You might find that you can both enjoy the joint without ordering the whole menu.
One pick takes us to five Coastal Bend BBQ joints. The other slows down at the smoker to explain what makes a rib cook work.
Tried Texas BBQ for 24 Hours
Video | September 23, 2026 | YouTube, Gulf Coast Smoke
Gulf Coast Smoke visits Full Send BBQ, Garrett’s Barbecue, Green House Grills, BAARE BBQ, and Topsy Krett BBQ around Corpus Christi and Gregory. The hosts talk with people at the joints and try a wide range of meats, sides, and specials.
Why it fits this week: The trip gives us five menus to think about. If you could visit only one of these stops, what would earn a place on your tray?
The Science Behind a Championship Rib
Video | September 23, 2026 | YouTube, Heath Riles BBQ
Heath Riles cooks his competition-style baby back ribs while Dr. Wes Schilling explains what happens to the meat through seasoning, smoking, wrapping, and resting. They use Prairie Fresh ribs for a cook that pairs pit experience with food science.
Why it fits this week: It gives backyard cooks something to take from a competition cook: pay attention to how the ribs look and feel at each stage, not just the clock.
October’s first three weekends offer very different reasons to get on the road: a scholarship cook-off in Seguin, Cuero’s small-town festival, a live-fire weekend in Austin, and a new West Texas competition supporting Special Olympics Texas.
23rd Annual Guadalupe County Fair Association Scholarship Benefit
October 2 to 3 | Seguin, Texas
This CBA-sanctioned cook-off supports the Guadalupe County Fair Association’s scholarship fund. Teams compete in chicken, ribs, pork, and brisket, with jackpot categories for beans, dessert, and cook’s choice. The cook-off is part of the fair’s kickoff weekend. On Saturday, visitors can also find kids’ rodeo activities, cornhole, music, and mutton bustin’ at the fairgrounds. See the Guadalupe County Fair kickoff schedule to plan your visit.
53rd Annual Cuero Turkeyfest and BBQ Cook-Off
October 9 to 11 | Cuero, Texas
Cuero Turkeyfest combines its barbecue cook-off with three days of live music, a carnival, arts and crafts, family activities, the Turkeyfest Parade, and the Great Gobbler Gallop. The BBQ competition runs October 9 to 10, while the broader festival continues through Sunday.
Hot Luck
October 16 to 17 | Austin, Texas
Hot Luck brings live-fire cooking and music together across two Austin events. Friday’s Giddy Up takes place at Franklin Barbecue, followed by Saturday’s larger House Party at Assembly Hall, where chefs from across the country will serve creative dishes in an indoor-outdoor festival setting.
High Steaks in the Basin
October 9 to 10 | Odessa, Texas
High Steaks in the Basin is a new two-day steak and barbecue competition benefiting Special Olympics Texas, October 9–10 at Ector County Coliseum in Odessa. Teams compete Friday and Saturday, with public tastings, vendors, music, and family activities on Saturday. The organizers advertise a $100,000 barbecue competition purse across chicken, ribs, pork, brisket, and overall awards, with a separate steak payout. The weekend concludes with a Special Olympics Texas athlete victory celebration.
Planning the Rest of October?
From Grill Confidence to Grill Control
Prairie Fresh’s State of Barbecue survey article raises an interesting question: do we know why a cook works, or are we hoping it turns out? You can read the full report if you want to explore its findings.
For a hands-on next step, start with How to Grill Anything on a Weber Kettle to choose the right heat zone. Charcoal Setup for Weber Kettle: 5 Methods for Better BBQ helps you build the fire, while How to Hold Temperature on a Weber Kettle helps you keep it steady. Then pick a cook from our smoked meats and Texas BBQ recipes collection.
A Florida Girl Takes on Lockhart
We invited ExploringBBQ readers to share their BBQ stories, and Cristina answered with a firsthand account of her Lockhart crawl. She visited Smitty’s Market, Kreuz Market, and Terry Black’s, then made one more stop at Reese Bros in San Antonio. See which bites stood out to a Florida visitor discovering Texas BBQ.
Have a BBQ trip or experience of your own to share? Submit your story to ExploringBBQ.
From Our Bookshelf: Prime Cuts by Jess Pryles
Want to get better at choosing meat before you even light the grill? Jess Pryles’s upcoming Prime Cuts is organized cut by cut, pairing practical meat science with cooking techniques and more than 100 recipes. It looks especially useful for cooks who want to understand what to ask for at the meat counter and what to do with that cut at home. The publisher lists its release for October 6.
This Bookshop.org link is an affiliate link. ExploringBBQ may earn a commission if you purchase through it, at no extra cost to you.
For the next BBQ run
Supporting Texas BBQ does not always mean ordering the biggest tray on the menu. Sometimes it means showing up, bringing someone with you, and keeping the places you care about in the rotation. Gear up for the next BBQ run.
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