Franklins in Austin still have long waits?

You can order online and pickup at a certain time. 

dmchicago said:

ChuckR said:

You can order online and pickup at a certain time. 

I thought that was just for bulk or whole brisket orders?

Just checked the website. You can preorder by the 1/2 lb To Go Only.

Franklins always has a line. Every day no matter what. Valentina’s is a good alternative. For Franklins, It’s a risk but if you don’t want to wait a crazy long time I’ve gotten there at like 1:00 before waiting about an hour. The bad thing is you may not be able to get what you want. To preorder you have to order a minimum of 5 pounds.

busmania said:

Heading to Austin in two weeks and would love to check out franklins. However my wife isn’t a fan of bbq and we are only there two days so I can’t sit in line for a half a day. Are the waits still crazy for lunch on Saturday? If so, what’s a ln alternative good bbq joint walking distance from the main downtown area (staying at Hilton)?  

Thanks!

Iron works is a walk from the Hilton but it’s not considered to be one of the “greats”. Franklin is probably 10-12 blocks from the Hilton. Saturday is a no-go zone for Franklins for me. Minimum 5 hours to eat and if you show up after 8 forget about it. 

Other very good spots that are 5 min uber ride:

Mickethwaite Craft Meats
LA Barbecue
Terry Blacks Barbecue

my faves are also Valentina’s and Stiles Switch. They are both 20 min from the Hilton in opposite directions. 

HurricaneEddie1 said:

I’m going Labor Day weekend and planning to go Friday AM.  Still such a long line mid-week?

Every day. The line starts at around 7am-8am every day and if you aren’t there by 10:30 you are eating whatever’s left and you won’t eat until around 2:30-3pm. 

HurricaneEddie1 said:

I’m going Labor Day weekend and planning to go Friday AM.  Still such a long line mid-week?

Yes. Especially holiday fridays. You are a masochist if you go on a holiday. 

Yep.  

7:00 seems like a reasonably civil hour so a lot of people target that.  6:55 is the time to arrive.  Even on a Saturday you can usually get in the first 20 or so in line.

6:50 says it all

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24g-5mqUfvQ

NorthPilot06 said:

To me it sounds like a better idea to pony up the cash and just buy 5 lbs of meat so you don't have to wait.  BBQ leftovers aren't half bad...

Ya, that's why I've thought about just ordering 1 whole brisket. its $110 dollars and covers the preorder requirement. Split between say 5-10 people that's not bad and each person would get between 1/2lb-1lb of meat. The idea of going up there and smiling as you walk by all the poor souls sitting in the hot Texas sun (which I've done a few times) makes me laugh. 

jamesj said:

Is the BBQ good? Yes, worth waiting in line for that long... No, if you have nothing else to do, sure why not. If you have a rental car drive 15 minutes to the east to a town called Lockhart. And you can do the trifecta, Smitty's, Blacks, and Kruez. Lockhart is the unofficial barbecue capital of Texas. All within walking distance. Smitty's is my personal favorite. 

^This^

Pits at Smittys 

Ozzie_Isaac said:

TEXASBGE2018 said:

dmchicago said:

dmchicago said:

ChuckR said:

You can order online and pickup at a certain time. 

I thought that was just for bulk or whole brisket orders?

Just checked the website. You can preorder by the 1/2 lb To Go Only.

It’s a 5 pound minimum

 Hmmm, pre order an entire brisket, keep 2lbs for you and walk to the end of the line.  Sell remaining brisket at small markup.  Eat for free or even make a little extra $$.

That would be interesting to see. Aaron would probably come outside and share a beer with you. He’s that kinda dude.

I would never wait over about 45 mins for BBQ since there so many good places in austin and I am not into the I visited and ate here game. We have Killens in Pearland which is rated very high but I do not go since it is usually an hour wait even if only about 25 miles from me.   Try the other places or go to Lockhart

Sometimes you can experience "better to be lucky than good" as in my first pilgrimage to Austin.  I rolled into Valentina's around noon (Tues, Dec 2016)) and commenced act one of meat coma.  Great brisket.  Headed to my Austin hotel and rolled past Franklins.  Line was short-not more than 20 people.  Decided to get to hotel then hit Franklins.  Got in line around 1:30 PM-eating brisket around 2:15 PM-definitely the closing act of a meat coma afternoon.  So you cannot predict it.
Next day I got in the line around 8 AM (number 30) and enjoyed the entire scene before the obligatory meat coma overdose round two.
If you are in Austin and want to experience the holy grail of brisket then give yourself the time to experience Franklins.  There are a few others close by that are top-notch to hit after Franklins, chief among those is La Barbeque (only a couple of miles away).
I wil make a return visit allocating more time to include the outlying brisket stops in 2019.   Rambling on a Friday PM- before a LEO fueled evening.  

I would wait in line for a week to eat at Rene Redzepi's Noma in Copenhagen.  I hear reservations aren't open for eons.