Franklin Barbecue!

Another post about food - hahaha! This was actually less about the food we ate, and more about the experience, of road-tripping down to Austin for the day, to wait in the longest line I maybe have EVER waited in, for barbecue of all things. Alex is always on the constant quest for the perfect barbecue, and, until yesterday, had yet to find it, so when we saw Franklin in an article in Bon Appetit several months ago listed as the number one barbecue spot in Texas, I knew it was only a matter of time before we'd be down there to check it out.

We left home at 8 a.m., and listened to an enlivening, energizing mash-up of French Gypsy Jazz and American Blues music while we sipped our Starbucks, and Mr. Dresden happily watched his iPod in the backseat. The mood was hopeful, excited, and we made it down to Austin at 11:05. The bbq place opened at 11, just five minutes prior. And this is the line we rolled up to...

WHAT?!?!?! At the point we got in line (with an already tired, bored Dresden who didn't nap even though we prayed he would) we were quoted three hours from the door, with the definite possibility of them being out of chicken, turkey and ribs by the time we got up there, though brisket and sausage were plentiful. Upon hearing this news, many people turned around or got out of line and left. But not the LaFasto's. We were determined to see this thing through to the end!!!

Taking our three-hour places...

Dresden actually did amazingly well, and only had a handful of near breakdowns, despite the lack of shade and the 90 degree plus temperatures. The ladies behind us were sweet enough to offer Dresden one of their umbrellas, so he was able to shade himself that way for a good part of the time. We made line friends with these women, one of whom was there visiting the other from California, and the people behind them, originally from Israel, there by way of New York City. The people in front were from Houston. Bottom line, no one in that line was a local. It did help to pass the time to chat and get to know these folks on a surface level; kind of nice to know that strangers can still be fun and friendly if you just reach out to them.

It actually felt like the ten minutes we were waiting for it to be our turn at the counter were the longest minutes of the whole experience, we were so close, and Dresden was just completely DONE at this point...

And then, we placed our order with the super-friendly owner, who was cutting the meat himself. He was telling the guy in front of me who had asked him what his "goals" were, that he hoped to "stay small, stay good and never get greedy." I thought that was pretty cool. He gave Dresden free brisket and a rib just to sample, and we both got plate-fuls of brisket, pulled pork, sausage and some ribs on the side to try. (We never made it to the ribs, lol, so my mom got to enjoy those for breakfast this morning, hehehe.)

The food was absolutely incredible. Falling off the bone, so tender and juicy, and the sauce was not even necessary for the flavor. Just. so. good. And finally, Alex was a happy camper in the barbecue department. We shared a picnic table with the ladies we were in line with, and they couldn't stop saying how delicious it was either. So it wasn't just a fluke! Ha. Even Dresden liked the part of rib and brisket that he ate (he was more into the white bread they served, of course.)

The sauce that was good, but unecessary...

You can only kind of see it...but the sign says "Sold Out!" This has happened to Franklin every single day since their inception in 2009. We made it just under the cut off, we were sitting down to eat as they put the sign out!

After we ate and woke up from our food coma, we got on the road again and drove around Austin to see the sights, since Alex had never been before. I guess Franklin is in a place called the East Village, quite a hipster neighborhood it seems, so we saw some really cool houses, and an awesome mosaic wall built by the Masons, among other things. Poor Dresden was still being such a trooper.

A mural across the street from the bbq place

These could be straight out of a Dwell magazine spread...

Love this house, even though I don't have modern tastes at ALL. 

I could see myself living here with a nice indoor scarf and a fedora.

Stopped into this little coffee shop. As much as I love Starbucks (mostly out of necessity), I love to see local businesses succeed.

The mural...It was two walls with a space in between. The most amazing mosaic work I've seen. My little Grandma would have loved it!

I think I was pointing at D. He was running around the walls like a crazy person and I was terrified of losing sight of him. I sometimes have irrational fears like that; we were just moderately close to a street with traffic.

A copper train built coming out of the mosaic.

Action pose, watching D again...

I loved this tree, and the church.

He was seriously crazy by this point! Cute, but crazy.

He has just learned to hold his hands in the sign language I Love You position and is very proud of himself, so he likes to show it off any chance he gets. So cute!

We ended up at Austin City Park, standing on the bridge over the river, watching the kayakers and people in canoes paddle themselves in the water. The breeze felt amazing; it was SO hot, and I would have given anything to get in the water, but we hadn't come prepared with bathing suits (when will I learn?!) so we just watched and walked a bit, and then got back in the car to head home.

Inspirational graffiti for the runners...

 Resting kayakers...

Little scout...

Walked himself to the middle of a field to watch this train go by...

Our last stop was the Czech Stop in West, TX where we picked up some yummy kolaches to take home (despite the fact that we weren't hungry at. all.) and then we made the rest of the drive.

Still smiling! Love this kid.

I'm practically falling asleep writing this a full day later, just because I am still exhausted from yesterday; but it was well worth it! Go down to Austin, set up a shift system for waiting in line, and check Franklin BBQ out!!!

Love,

Cassie