Barbecue is one of my hobbies. I have visited/reviewed upwards of 250 establishments; participated in the development of an amazing smoker at Karubecue.com; and cooked thousands of pounds of finished product for friends, family, and church fundraisers.
Sometimes when we travel as a family, I will wear a Barbecue Tours hat or shirt. This is usually a good thing, and can prompt some interesting conversation. People are passionate about barbecue! However, there are times when I don’t want to critically review a BBQ joint — I just want to sit down and enjoy the experience…
On Saturday, my wife was treating me to a weekend get-away as a birthday present, and we found ourselves in Tyler at lunch time. For quite some time (since Nick & Jen Pencis took over and started gaining acclaim), I’ve wanted to stop at Stanley’s Famous Pit Barbecue. We pulled up out front at about 12:30pm.
When we got out of the car, I became quite concious of my BBQ Tours t-shirt choice. I was in ‘vacation mode’ and vowed to stay in the moment, rather than fully document it as an official tour stop. The folks were friendly, the service efficient, and the food was very good across the board. The joint was nostalgic and the patio looked amazing. We both left full and happy.
The BBQ Crew will return for an ‘official’ visit, and I can imagine the ending a day here and spending the evening listening to live music on the patio. Until then, keep up the good work!