After taking a trip to Austen to check out the local food trucks, resident traveling foodie, David Latt, decided to go back to the Southern state to search for more great treats – this time great BBQ and steaks. Taking on the challenge of a short visit, Latt ate at twenty-five restaurants in thirty-six hours. 

The trip was about barbecue and bone-in ribeye steaks, West Texas style. I only had a few days to cover a lot of territory and a lot of eating to do.

‘Cue Joints and Steakhouses

First stop, Wildcatter Ranch, which proved to be a great experience outside of the actual BBQ.

Although not a dude ranch, the rooms have the requisite Western memorabilia as well as cable TV and Wi-Fi.  Even with all those amenities, the grounds are scruffy, reinforcing that this is actually not a dude ranch.  For people wanting an authentic experience, there’s archery, horseback riding and river rafting.  I definitely knew I wasn’t in the city when I saw the warning signs outside my cabin–“DANGER Rocks Snakes.”