Heading to the Texas state fair, we landed at DFW with a shopping destination on my beloved’s mind.  I, on the other hand, was thinking of food.  This should not be a shock to anyone that knows me.  I opened the Texas Monthly Barbecue Finder (this is a great app – if you like barbecue and don’t have it, find it here) and hit “Find” to search for barbecue nearby that they had reviewed.  The combination of closest and best rated was Meat U Anywhere Barbecue in Grapevine.  Located on the main drag in Grapevine, we pulled into the parking lot and up to the valet stand.  Valet stand? I’ve eaten barbecue in places where I wished someone else would park my car (due to the mud parking lot or the bad neighborhood it was located in), but don’t know that I’ve ever valet parked for barbecue before.

There’s a counter up front, backed by the kitchen, with a line queuing in from the front door.  They have a good selection of meats, every day, and in true Texas-style, you pay for most of the meats by the pound.  There is also a series of refrigerated units where you can pick up bottled drinks or cold sides, as you work your way to the register.

When we got to the table, I was surprised that they only had one sauce.  This would have been fine had it been awesome sauce (a phrase I hear a lot, but really don’t understand – I’m actually being literal here), but it was not particularly good.  Luckily, the meat was smoked and seasoned well.   You can see my order, laid out below, as we were ringing up.

Jo ordered a brisket sandwich, with a side of slaw.  When she ordered, they asked whether she wanted lean or moist brisket, but she didn’t hear them and I answered “moist”.  For future reference, that was the wrong answer.  It ended up being fattier than she cares for.  The slaw she chose (they have two – Notcha Momma’s and Southern Style) was more like a Chinese noodle salad, but very tasty.  Her meal is in the top corner of the tray.  

Yes, the rest of that is mine.  We were lucky to be there on Friday, as there are four meats that they only smoke on Friday and Saturday.  I ordered two of those – peppered tenderloin 

and smoked prime rib.

The tenderloin was the best of the three meats we had, followed closely by the prime rib.  The mac and cheese was so heavy on the peppers that it could have been a cheesy pepper dish.

 I’ve definitely had barbecue that I enjoyed less, as the tenderloin was really good, but I won’t be planning how to get back there, based on the overall meal, on my next trip to Dallas.  Lockhart Grocery, on the other hand.