Louie Mueller Barbecue

I recently had the opportunity to eat at Louie Mueller Barbecue for the first time.  The legendary purveyor of smoked meats is located in Taylor, Texas and opened it's doors in 1949.   This barbecue joint has been critically acclaimed for years and last year it was ranked in the top 4 in Texas Monthly's Top 50 Barbecue Joints in Texas.  Although I have not been to this barbecue joint before, I have several friends that claim it is one of their favorites.  Louie Mueller's grandson, Wayne Mueller, now owns the place and mans the pits.  Having sampled the good at his sibling's barbecue joints (John Mueller Meat Co. and La Barbecue), I had high expectations for Louie Mueller Barbecue. 

Anxiously waiting in line

I arrived in Taylor right as Louie Mueller's was opening and was among the first in line.  Most barbecue joints have anywhere between five to seven different types of meat that they smoke and sell.  Louie Mueller's has a much larger selection than most: included three different types of beef sausage (original, jalapeño, and chipotle) and three different types of ribs (their famous beef ribs, baby back ribs, and pork spare ribs).  On this particular visit, I ordered brisket, turkey, original sausage, and the baby back ribs.  

Louie Mueller's was packed for a weekday

As I usually do, I started with the brisket.  It had a decent bark that was covered in black pepper.  The brisket had an excellent smoky flavor and the fatty slices were extremely moist with perfectly rendered fat.  Even the lean slices were surprisingly moist and had great flavor.  

Close-up of the peppery rub on the bark of the brisket

The turkey was also heavily peppered and was smoked well.  It didn't have as much pepper as the brisket, but it had just enough to add to the outstanding flavor of the turkey.  Most smoked turkey is very dry since it is a finicky meat to smoke, but the turkey here was perfectly moist.

Ribs rival brisket as my favorite smoked meat.  Since most places don't sell baby back ribs, I decided to give them a shot.  The baby back ribs here were some of the best baby back ribs I have ever had.  The meat easily pulled off the bone, they were smoked perfectly, and they were bursting with flavor.  One thing that impressed me with these ribs was the fact that they were thick cut and had about twice the meat you would normally get on baby back ribs.  I regretted that I had only ordered a half rack.  Although I certainly did not have buyers remorse with the baby back ribs, I really wished I would have ordered one of their famous beef ribs as well.

Clockwise from top left-baby back ribs, turkey, sauce, bread, brisket, original sausage, and pinto beans

The original sausage was fantastic too.  It was one of the top three beef sausages I have ever had.  Beef sausage often dries out quicker than pork sausage, but the sausage at Louie Mueller's was extremely moist.  All three of their sausage are house-made and I will be trying the other two varieties on my next visit.

The only side I ordered were the beans.  They were outstanding and had chunks of pork in it, but this side couldn't hold a candle to the barbecue.  Sauce is an afterthought when you have great barbecue, but the sauce here is very different.  Unlike most barbecue sauces which are thick, the sauce at this establishment is a very thin tomato based sauce with onions and pepper in it.  More like a soup than a sauce, it was much better than I expected upon first looking at it.

When I was leaving Louie Mueller Barbecue, the crowd for lunch was lined up along the wall and out the door.  I left Taylor, Texas feeling very content.  Although I still had a three hour drive to get home, I was glad I made the trip.  It is very easy to see why this place is so well liked by everyone, including the food critics.  I had ordered about three pounds of meat so I could take some home for my wife to try.  Sadly, she only got to sample one slice of brisket, one slice of turkey, and a sausage link.  

Louie Mueller Barbecue
http://louiemuellerbarbecue.com/
Livin the Good Life Rating=4

The Donut Kitchen

Donuts are the preferred breakfast food of my two children.  If truth be told, they are one of my favorite breakfast items as well.  A new donut shop, The Donut Kitchen,  opened on July 1st in West McKinney.  Although I am usually aware of new restaurants in McKinney, I didn't realize that there was a new donut shop on my side of town.  Luckily, a friend recommended that I check this place out.

Since I first found out about it's existence, I have actually eaten here twice.  Most donut shops are basically all the same, but the donuts at The Donut Kitchen are primarily cake-based and are absolutely incredible.  They have a wide variety of specialty donuts that you will not find anywhere else.

Clockwise from Top Left: Maple Bacon, Texas Sheetcake, S'Mores, and Strawberries & Chocolate

So far, I have sampled the following donuts: Texas Sheet Cake, Maple Bacon, Strawberries & Chocolate, S'Mores, Fruity Pebble, and Mint Chocolate Chip.  They were all very good, but my favorite was the Texas Sheet Cake.  The chocolate icing and chopped pecans give this donut the authentic flavor of Texas Sheet Cake.

Not to be outdone, they also serve up some terrific kolaches and breakfast sandwiches.  The kolache is very large and contains a full-sized andouille sausage link that is wrapped in a flaky pastry and served with dark ale mustard.  I consider myself a connoisseur of kolaches and the one served at The Donut Kitchen is top notch, especially when served with the mustard.  

Kolache with Dark Ale Mustard

On my second visit, I was able to try the Fried Chicken Breakfast Sandwich with Texas pesto.  Most fried chicken breakfast sandwiches are served on biscuits, but this particular sandwich is served on a light and flaky croissant-style roll.  The batter on the fried chicken was phenomenal and the Texas pesto gave it excellent flavor.

Fried Chicken Breakfast Sandwich with Texas Pesto

The Donut Kitchen is unquestionably the best donut shop I have sampled in Collin County.  Hypnotic Donuts is the only place in the DFW area that is comparable in quality to The Donut Kitchen.  Although I love Hypnotic Donuts, this new place is practically in my backyard and much closer than East Dallas.  I can guarantee you that my family will be frequent visitors to this new donut shop.  Judging from the large crowd we saw on a Saturday morning, I believe that others feel the same way about this.

The Donut Kitchen
http://www.thedonutkitchen.com
Livin the Good Life Rating=4

Bien Salsa

I recently had the opportunity to have brunch at Bien Salsa.  This Mexican restaurant is located in downtown Mckinney and has received good reviews from the majority of diners.  Bien Salsa has been on my wish list of local places to try and I was finally able to convince my family to eat there on a recent Sunday morning.

Dining Area

Chips and Salsa Sampler

A brunch menu is served on weekends and my party was pleased with this because my entire family is a big fan of brunch.  We started with the chips and salsa sampler.   Unlike most Mexican restaurants, this item is not free and they charge $2.49 for this item.  The fried tortilla chips come with three different types of salsa that included a chunky smoked salsa, salsa verde (green sauce), and a hot salsa.  I absolutely loved the chips and all three versions of salsa.  If I had to pick a favorite, I would probably go with the hot salsa.

Breakfast Taco Trio with flour tortillas

For my entree, I ordered the breakfast taco trio.  The dish had one chorizo and egg taco, one ham and egg taco, one potato and egg taco, black beans, and rice.  You can choose either corn or flour tortillas and I chose the latter.  Each taco was very good, but I was very impressed with the house-made chorizo.  The black beans were pretty basic, but the rice was very good.

Huevos Revueltos

My wife and mother-in-law both ordered the Huevos Revueltos which included scrambled eggs with bacon, salsa, corn tortillas, and flour tortillas.  The pancakes got a stamp of approval from my oldest daughter and my father-in-law enjoyed his breakfast of Chilaquiles Mexicanos served with bacon and potatoes.

Chilaquiles Mexicanos

Pancakes and fruit

The food was tasty on this visit and the portions were more than adequate.  Bien Salsa has a very nice dining area and the service was faultless on our visit.  Although this is an upscale Mexican restaurant, the food was not overly-pricey.  Now that I have tried their brunch menu, I cannot wait to go back and sample the goods on their dinner menu.

Bien Salsa
http://www.biensalsa.com/home
Livin the Good Life Rating=4

Blue Sky

I am always looking to try a new burger joint.  While not "new" to the Lubbock area, Blue Sky Texas was certainly "new' to me.  Several of my Lubbock friends and family have been raving about how great the burgers are at this burger joint, so I made it a point to eat here on my most recent visit to the area.

Blue Sky's menu offers a variety of burgers and toppings. They also offer several different versions of appetizers, fries, and onion rings. After going back and forth on what I wanted, I finally decided to get the bacon cheeseburger and the order of half fries and half onion rings.  

Bacon Cheeseburger

My burger was large and the patty far exceeded the size of the bun.  It had great flavor and was not overly greasy, yet it was not dry either.  If I had one complaint, it would be that I would have preferred more bacon.  The freshly-cut fries and onion rings were both on par with the burger.  I thoroughly enjoyed the fries, but the onion rings were some of the best I have ever had. They were thinly cut with a fantastic batter that was extremely flavorful and had a nice crunch to it.

Order of half fries and half onion rings

Blue Sky was certainly an impressive burger and gets a big thumbs up from me.  As good as the burger was, I think I preferred the sides even more.  This small chain has multiple locations in both Lubbock and Amarillo.  If you are looking for a quality burger joint that provides decent portions, stop by and give this place a shot.  Blue Sky will certainly be added to my list of quality restaurants in the Hub City.

Blue Sky

http://www.blueskytexas.com

Livin the Good Life Rating=3

The Crafthouse Gastropub

My wife and I were in Lubbock, Texas to visit some family and friends.  On our first night back in the Hub City, my mom offered to keep the kids and we wanted to find a place to relax and eat a meal.   We both have our favorite restaurants that we usually hit while we are in town, but we decided to try a place that was new to us.  The Crafthouse Gastropub was recommended to us by a good friend, so we made our way to the restaurant to see what it had to offer.

Dining Room/Bar at The Crafthouse Gastropub

We decided to start with the Carnitas Fritas, which were twice fried fries that were topped with queso blanca, pico de gallo, and roasted pork.  The dish was an interesting variation of the classic cheese fries and I was excited to try them with the queso and pork.  Unfortunately, my wife and I were both disappointed in the Carnitas Fritas.  The queso was insipid and there was very little pork on the appetizer.

Carnitas Fritas

For my main entree, I went with the Steak Frites.  The char-grilled beef tenderloin was topped with garlic butter and served with a side of black pepper fries.  The tenderloin itself had a decent flavor, but it was extremely tough and very small.  As for the fries, they tasted very greasy and really didn't have that much pepper on them.

Steak Frites

My wife ordered the Shrimp and Grits, which is usually one of her favorite meals.  Until this visit, I had never been with my wife when she didn't finish a bowl of shrimp and grits.  She didn't even eat half her bowl and said they had a very peculiar taste to them that did not agree with her.  I am not sure what they added to the grits, but they were pinkish in color.

Shrimp and Grits

We were both very disappointed with our dining experience at The Crafthouse Gastropub.  Neither the appetizers nor the entrees were even the least bit savory.  The service was adequate, but the food was a huge disappointment.  I highly doubt that I will have a return visit to this establishment.

The Crafthouse Gastropub
http://www.crafthousepub.com/crafthousepub.com/Home.html
Livin the Good Life Rating=1