#31 - COOPER'S OLD-TIME PIT BAR-B-Q - Pleased to Meat Me

When I see "old-time" in the name of a restaurant, I expect to find "old-time" filtered through a "new-time" lense.  It's as useful as the "world famous margaritas" that show up on the menu of every backwater Mexican restaurant in the world. Sometimes it doesn't mean anything.

Until you visit Cooper's Old-Time Pit Bar-B-Q in Llano, that is.  Cooper's proudly puts the old in old-time, and the original location ain't changing for no one, thank you very much.

Llano is renowned far and wide as the Deer Capital of Texas, a much better slogan than, say, the Cement Capital of Texas.  There are more deer in the Llano area than anywhere in the region, and hunters come from all over to hunt them in addition to quail, dove, feral pig and turkey.  There should be a sign at the Llano City Limits that says "Vegans not welcome unless you're bringing the sides." 

With all that meat, you can bet that there's a market to stuff it or eat it.  If you want to stuff it, Llano has at least 1 taxidermist for every 1,000 Llanolins...the highest per capita of any city in the nation (maybe)!

If you prefer to eat it, there is no better place than Cooper's Old-Time Pit Bar-B-Q, the Ron Swanson of Texas barbecue joints.  Check out the meats on the menu.  That is a smorgasbord of protein, my friend, just waiting to help check off all the high cholesterol boxes during your next physical.

The heart of Cooper's is the old-time pit.  Everything is right in front of you, smokin' hot and ready to go.  You order straight from the pit, they slice it, slap it on a tray (no paper) and hand you a big pile of meat. We ordered a pound of brisket, another pound of turkey, the jalapeno cheese sausage and, because they looked so good, one beef rib.

Everything about Cooper's Old-Time Pit Bar-B-Q screams authentic Texas BBQ joint.  This place was built on smoked meat, sides and seating.  Don't forget your Texas BBQ plate -- a slice of butcher paper.  After all, what else do you need?

Inside, we picked our sides -- green beans and cole slaw -- ordered our unsweet tea (not everyone in the South drinks the sweet stuff), and headed to one of the community tables. 

There, we sat down next to President George W. Bush.  A picture of him anyway.  That's right, Cooper's is his favorite barbecue joint.  Funny, he always struck me as a Spring Creek kind of guy.

The brisket was fantastic, barky and coated in Cooper's secret rub.  The turkey was terrific too, periodically dipped in saltwater to keep it moist.  The beef rib was a winner...so much rub, so much meat and so freaking fantastic.  I could have eaten the whole cow. The green beans were loaded with bacon and the cole slaw was crisp and sweet...both just the way they should be.

Cooper's has locations in Austin and New Braunfels too, for those who need their beef fix.  I hear they're bigger and serve the same great food.  The original was best for me, and they don't skimp on the basics. Four hooves up for Cooper's!