It's a question for the ages: Who has the best Texas barbecue, Houston or Austin? There may soon be an answer, and you could help decide it.
The Houston BBQ Festival and St Arnold's Brewing Company are hosting the first annual HOU - ATX BBQ Throwdown on Sunday, Dec. 3 and it's bound to be a memorable event.
The competition matches prominent pit masters from Houston and Austin against each other to determine a winner for the best barbecue in the Lone Star State.
Each contender will present their version of the best Texas barbecue dish. Each meal will then be put to a blind taste test by an official panel of judges. The meals presented must contain an element of smoked meat, but don't have to be the standard barbecue fare.
The Houston representatives include Beaver's, The Brisket House, El Burro & the Bull, The Pit Room, and Tin Roof BBQ. Killen's BBQ, Ellis Brothers BBQ, and Gatlin's BBQ will also compete. These pit masters qualified for entry into the throwdown by being top-finishers in the Houston BBQ Festival last month.
Making their debut in Houston, the Austin competitors will be Brotherton's Black Iron Barbecue, LeRoy and Lewis Barbecue, Micklethwait Craft Meats, and Valentina's Tex Mex BBQ.
The judges' panel consists of CorkScrew BBQ pit master Will Buckman, Alison Cook of the Houston Chronicle, barbecue photographer Robert J. Lerma, and Pat Sharpe, who is the executive editor and restaurant critic for Texas Monthly.
Ticket holders get St. Arnold's beer, and get to sample each dish. They can then vote on their favorite, who will receive the "Peoples' Choice Award" at the contest.
Tickets start at $80 and you'll need to purchase them in advance via Eventbrite.
