Lunch Report: Augies Barbed Wire Smoke House...

We finally got off our butts and made the short trip down to North St'Mary's and East Mulberry, so we could dig in to some outstanding "old school backyard BBQ". I guess when literally dozens of different people tell me I need to eat someplace, I should pay attention a lot sooner.Fair warning: Put on your eatin' pants and come hungry; you are in for a Tasty Treat! Augies Barbed Wire Smoke House is my new favorite place for BBQ.From the minute we pulled into the parking lot, we were already enjoying the atmosphere. I just like the look of the place mixed in between some office complexes and the Brackenridge Park area. You'd think it would stick out like a sore thumb, but really, it's a perfect fit for the area.From the minute we stepped inside, we were greeted by staff who made taking the order more of a friendly conversation than a visit to a restaurant. I'm usually pretty discrete about taking pictures of the places I eat - you never want someone to think you are collecting evidence for a finger in the chili type lawsuit, but the guy taking the order seemed pretty comfortable with our curiosity about Augies.He even suggested I snap a picture of the coveted 1st Place Trophy of the 2008 Final Four BBQ Cook Off. There's only one 1st Place.Augies is pretty small on the inside with limited seating - that is a drawback for visiting at about 1PM, because my wife wouldn't even consider sitting outside, but we did find a seat with a great view of Brackenridge.
I like a place with lots to look at and Augie's has it.

We were eager to try as much as we could and not have to be rolled out on a gurney, so we both got two meat, two side plates and got a bunch of different stuff to taste from.
My wife got the chicken and pulled pork, and for sides, mac 'n cheese and the honey baked beans. I recall once yammering on about how good the chicken at McBee's in Hondo was (and it is good), but if you like chicken at all, you will simply love Augie's. You do not require the sauce on this chicken, but it certainly won't ruin it if you use it.

Get ready, because the pulled pork is even better than the chicken. If I'm lyin', I'm dyin'; grits an't groceries, eggs ain't poultry, and Mona Lisa was a man! I'd take a bath in it. I don't think pulled pork is a regular menu item at most local BBQ places (or I guess I'm not used to seeing it), but friends, at least, at very minimum get the pulled pork. The honey baked beans were good and so was the mac 'n cheese - very cheesey and good.
I went with the brisket and sausage (regular, not jalapeno) and for sides I had the green beans and potato salad. First, potato salad is a mandatory side with any BBQ. This was good and creamy, and both my wife and I agreed that it was right up there with the best we have had. The green beans are my department (my wife is not a fan). I use the Bill Miller's recipe for green beans as my standard. I simply love them. Augies has gone above and beyond to serve up some well seasoned, excellently cooked green beans. And I appreciate that in any restaurant. I even got my wife to try them.

The sausage was standard, good quality and very tasty, but honestly, it has to be tough to be the sausage link when you share a plate with awesome brisket. I now get why everyone was telling us to try Augie's. A lot of folks are turned off by any fat whatsoever on the meat, and our server asked if I'd like to have all the fat removed. Not on your life! Call me unhealthy, but I love the taste. But thanks for asking. And thanks for the extra pickles and onions. Pure Heaven!

Okay, for those of you wanting to try it out - and I highly recommend it - you should know a few things. As mentioned earlier, the seating on a hot day could be an issue. Every year several days before Easter, people flock to Brackenridge Park and stake out picnic tables to make sure they can get one for their entire family. People have been known to put yellow crime scene tape up, chain ice chests to tables and do all sorts of things to save a table. Apparently, this is acceptable just across the street from Brackenridge Park, too.Just as we sat down, a couple took over fully one fourth of the dining area by placing a purse on one table, a beer on another, a pair of glasses on another table, then the two sat at different tables to save enough seats for their party of about eight or ten, who in the end, didn't show up until we were done. In other words, the people holding all these tables hostage didn't even order their food (though they did have a beer) during the entire time we ate. I'm sorry, but that is a foul. Either everyone shows up at once, or you take one table and hope for the best.

The only other issue I had was that the iced tea does not come with free refills. Granted, I would probably go through a bucket by myself if it was free so they have to watch out for people like me, but still, c'mon.The outdoor beer garden is probably a real hoot in the late afternoon and evenings. Even in the heat of the day, it wasn't really that bad - they have fans running and there are plenty of sunshades. They have a big screen and apparently on the weekends show movies or sports events.

Bottom line: If you even think you might like BBQ, you simply must go down to Augies Barbed Wire Smoke House. While you are there, why not slip by the newly remodled Japenese Tea Gardens, located right next door, or the Witte Museum just a block or two away.

Culture Report: Witte Museum...

This morning I was reading through the Express-News and saw a story on the Lens on South Texas photograph exhibit at the Witte Museum and decided we hadn't had enough culture in our lives recently. Hey, I got the full U-Verse package at my house, but still, sometimes you have to go someplace besides your living room for a little entertainment.

If you haven't been down to the Witte or haven't been in a while, it really is a nice place to check out. It is located north of downtown on Broadway just south of Alamo Heights. We paid $7.00 each plus another $2.00 to go look at the stupid dinosaurs.
Let me save you some time. If you are not bringing a kid under the age of say, 7 or 8, skip the dinosaurs; they are those weird animatronic deals like you see at Disney or Chuck E. Cheese, but in the shape of, well, dinosaurs, and they don't sing songs or dance, they just make dinosaur sounds. If you want to donate the money for a good cause, great, but don't say I didn't warn you.
Anyway, on to what I wanted to see, and that was the pictures. I guess over the years, the museum has saved quite a collection of old photos taken in and around San Antonio and south west Texas, and here, they have put the images on display with captions. I know, sounds a lot like going through an old family album of strangers, but there is something revealing about seeing people pose at a time when photographs were not the everyday thing they have become in the age of digital cameras and cell phone shots. Back then, it was quite a treat to have some guy make your picture.

The display wouldn't be complete without a few photos of notable citizens of the time. One picture shows the famous Indian Geronimo posing in cowboy boots and a straw hat while being held as a prisoner of war at Ft Sam Houston. Another has Teddy Roosevelt posing shortly before his charge up San Juan Hill. And there are several local names you might recognize as well. Madam Candelerio apparently did some nursing of Jim Bowie at the Alamo. I assume it was medical related. Notice her portly dog and you can see that San Antonio got an early start on the Fattest City in America.
It isn't that I am some photography buff or even a student of history, but as my wife and I watched a slide show of the pictures on display set to some good ol' Texas music, we smiled and giggled at how darn goofy some of the people looked, trying to get all gussied up for the big picture moment. Oh, and lots of folks in the 1800's were cross-eyed.
There was one picture of a little Mexican girl described as being in a sort of border refugee camp who looked like the spitting image of our niece, Erica. It was amazing. And I think it is those sorts of coincidences or the humor that you can appreciate from the old pictures that makes the trip worth it.
But if not, the Witte offers much more. We wandered outside along the beautiful patio to look up a plaque that proudly displays the names of fallen San Antonio veterans of World War I where my wifes uncle is listed.They have some log cabins with interactive displays to teach youngsters how to build one as well as displays along the edge of the San Antonio River to explain how a river works, I guess.
Kids and adults will love the HEB Science Treehouse. We went inside and messed around with the KENS-TV Weather center where you can make your own weather forecast and learn how Bill Taylor does his headless weatherman trick on Halloween. All good stuff.The treehouse itself is pretty cool and I can imagine this place alone would keep kids occupied for hours. I especially liked this gate near the side of the patio donated by Frost Bank. It has lots of cool art work including a spider web. Probably looks even better from the front.

Anyway, if you feel the urge to get away from the house for a little while, I'd say this is a nice little trip that can take as little as an hour or as long as you'd like to make it last. We definitely didn't see everything in the museum, but we had a great time.

Note: I'm not sure about the legality of using the few pictures I have posted here. The sign in the Witte said it was cool to take pictures as long as you didn't use a flash, so technically, the pictures posted here are mine, but the pictures taken of pictures are property of the Witte Museum Collection and should be noted as such.