3 Stacks Smoke and Tap House

A new BBQ place, 3 Stacks Smoke & Tap House, recently opened up in Frisco.  3 Stacks opened up in the location that had previously housed Terilli's.  Following a quick trip to Costco on a Saturday morning, my family met my brother and sister-in-law at 3 Stacks.  I was particularly excited to try this place, because it was within a 10 minute drive of my home in McKinney and it recently received a favorable review from the Texas BBQ Posse.  Could we finally have a really good BBQ place in Collin County that rivals Hutchins?  Traditionally, Collin County has been associated with good BBQ about like Tony Romo has been associated with winning Super Bowls.

Wood piles with smokers to the right.

Before you enter the restaurant, you notice the large stacks of wood and smokers to the left of the entrance.  They have three large smokers in this area, hence the name of the restaurant.  Each smoker is designed to cook a different type of meat with a specific type of wood.  The ribs and sausage are cooked with mesquite, the turkey and chicken are cooked with pecan, and the briskets are cooked with a combination of both woods.

Bar area at 3 Stacks

We were warmly greeted as we walked in and the lady explained the set-up of the cafeteria style lines (BBQ line, cold side line, and hot side line).  Each meat is priced by the half pound, with most being a rather expensive $7.99 per half pound and some running even higher.  Sides were moderately priced between $2.00 to $2.50.  We also noticed the large bar on the East wall of the restaurant.  The bar is quite long with several televisions on the wall.  If you are a fan of liquids made of hops and barley, 3 Stacks has thirty one different beers on tap.  Think of it as a Baskin Robbins for alcoholics.  

My little brother getting his grub on!

We made our way to the cafeteria lines and ordered a little bit of everything.  For meats, we ordered lean brisket, burnt ends, pulled pork, baby back ribs, turkey, and jalapeno and cheese sausage.  For our sides we ordered the baked beans, grilled corn, and the six cheese macaroni & cheese.  I also picked up a jalapeno corn bread muffin and two of the cheddar biscuits they had available.  Once we paid, my oldest daughter insisted that we set outside on the patio, so our group made our way outside to brave the windy day.

Lean Brisket

Burnt Ends, a Texas delicacy.

Pulled Pork

These baby back ribs were outstanding and the best thing I tried here.

Our brisket was nicely smoked with a pretty good layer of bark.  The burnt ends (a rare delicacy in today's BBQ culture) were very flavorful.  The pulled pork and the sausage were average at best.  The turkey had a nice smoky flavor and was some of the best smoked turkey I have had in quite some time. Of all the meats, the baby back ribs were the best.  They were extremely tender, came off the bone easily, and were seasoned with a nice rub that was somewhat sweet.  When I go back here, I will definitely get more ribs next time.  They also had two types of barbecue sauce available on the tables: Texas Original and Hot & Spicy.  They were both good, but I was partial to the Hot & Spicy.

6 Cheese Mac n' Cheese

The sides were hit and miss.  The baked beans were undercooked and still somewhat hard, but they had  pieces of jalapenos which would have given them a nice flavor had they been fully cooked.  The grilled corn was pretty good.  The mac n' cheese was spot on and oozing with cheese.   Instead of your typical macaroni noodles, they used fusilli rigati noodles.  The cheddar biscuits were very dry and I was not impressed, but the jalapeno corn bread muffin was terrific.  They also have several types of desserts available, but we were all too full to try any of them.

My oldest daughter sitting next to her favorite aunt on my side of the family.

After eating at 3 Stacks, I have mixed feelings on the place.  Some things we had were great, while other foods were mediocre at best.  The ribs, brisket, and burnt ends were good enough that I will be going back here and giving this place another try.  Overall, the joint was pretty good.  This place was one of the better joints I have been to in Collin County, but it still pales in comparison to my DFW favorites: Pecan Lodge or Lockhart Smokehouse.  I am going to give 3 Stacks Smoke and Tap House a 3 on my 5-point scale and I will also give them a second try.

3 Stacks Smoke & Tap House
4226 Preston Road
Frisco, TX 75034
http://www.3stacksbbq.com
Livin The Good Life Rating= 3