Kreuz Market (9/10) - 619 N Colorado St., Lockhart, TX 78644

By the time Matt and I arrived at Kreuz, our fourth stop of the morning, the day was just about to hit noon and we had zero interest in eating any additional barbecue until nightfall.  Many may disagree, but Kreuz is the one barbecue institution in Lockhart that has the greatest reputation in my mind.  Driving to Lockhart and not eating at Kreuz is paramount to having a free round trip ticket to any continental city in the US and choosing to not visit St. Louis to see the Cards (The Redbirds) in Busch Stadium.  It's anti-american, foolish, and shows a lack of insight and commitment.  As I stated previously, Kreuz used to be in the Smitty's Market location until the Schmidt family relocated and brought the Kreuz name to a newly constructed building in 1999.  Just like Smitty's, the woodpile outside was impressive and illustrated just how serious about barbecue this family is.

Note:  When you're on the road and are convinced that you cannot eat another morsel of meat for another month, when you step into a barbecue restaurant and the smell of slow smoked meat, an appetite you thought was long gone reemerges and you consequently build the confidence to order another meal.  Matt was basically crying in the front seat trying to convince me to skip it on our journey.  But after he experienced the smell inside and got a first-hand view of the layout and ambiance of a legit Texas barbecue joint, we were both poised for action.

Kreuz's takes its traditions seriously, but has demonstrated over the past 10 years that it might be a pushover.
1.  No Barbecue Sauce
2.  No Forks
3.  No Salads (rule has been abolished - evident by the sharpied "X") - They serve German Potatoes (Tony Horton would be pumped) and Sauerkraut
4.  No Credit Cards (rule has also been abolished)

The basic premise is you walk into the huge room with Kreuz's pits, order your meat from the counter person, that counter person relays the order back to the meanest looking carver who has long Elvis chops, and the meat is weighed in front of you on butcher paper.  Matt and I keep the tradition of ribs, brisket, and sausage -- jalapeño cheese sausage to be exact -- and walk it into the main dining hall for a sample.

The meat look moist, well smoked (great smoke ring), and lightly seasoned.  Knowing that I had room for maybe 4 to 6 bites, I went straight for the ribs.  Although they were cooked great, fat was rendered nicely while the outside had a thin crust, I would have preferred a little less salt and pepper.  My daily sodium consumption is terrifying and Kreuz didn't help the matter.  The brisket was great.  It was warm (it was steaming as Elvis sliced it on the cutting block in front of the pits) and had a decent cap on it to intensify the flavor.

Then we tried the sausage.  Anything prepared with jalapeños and cheese is right up my alley, and I wanted to leave with a delicious flavor resonating in my mouth.  Kreuz sausage did not disappoint.  The cheese augmented the moist consistency within the link and the touch of jalapeño kicked up the spice a notch.  In fact, I cannot remember enjoying sausage more in another barbecue restaurant.

We wrapped the remaining 80% of our order to go, headed back to Austin and picked up the RV for ACL.  Phoenix was taking the stage at 4:30pm and we still needed to approach full-on intoxication within a few hours.         

For more information on Kreuz's and a brief background on Texas barbecue: