My First Salt Lick Experience

If you read my post on Friday, I mentioned that we (Hubby, Troy and Susan) were taking a mini road trip down to Gruene, Texas, for St. Patrick's Day, and I would be blogging sometime this week about all the exciting food we ate while we were down in the hill country.

Our Trip to The Salt Lick

We left for central Texas after work on Friday so that we could make it down to Driftwood, Texas, for dinner at The Salt Lick.

The "Pit" at The Salt Lick... they'll let you get up close and personal!

The answer to the question in your head right now is, "Yes.  That meat was definitely as good as it looked!"  YUM!  We finally arrived in Driftwood around 8:30pm. The wine tasting place was closed but the restaurant was still open, still packed, and still cooking!  Because we got there so late, we couldn't really get the full effect of the grounds (bocci ball, vineyards, gardens, wine tasting room, etc.) but there was live music already on the patio and no line to be seated.  We'll definitely have to come back again during the day so we can fully experience The Salt Lick, but as a first time goes, my mind was still totally blown by the awesomeness that is The Salt Lick.

This was my plate:  Pork Ribs with Potato Salad, Cole Slaw, Beans, and Bread

The pork ribs were fall-off-the-bone amazing.  They were a little dried out on the outside because we got there so late, but the inside was so tender and juicy.  These ribs are definitely tied with Hard 8 (original in Stephenville, TX) for most awesome ribs ever.  The potato salad was like no potato salad I've ever had, and it was to die for.  The beans and cole slaw were both good, but I would still have to give the "#1" ribbon for both to either Hard 8 or Coopers (original in Llano, TX).

My only complaint about The Salt Lick is that they don't offer sweet tea.  They don't even offer those giant sugar shakers at the table, so you'd have to tear open seven sugar packets in order to sweeten your tea.  Thankfully they did offer root beer, so I was able to get my fall-back BBQ drink, but the night would have been absolutely perfect had they had sweet tea.

My husband's chopped brisket sandwich and my ribs plate.
PS... the brisket is by far the best brisket in the state, even at 9 PM.

We ended up having to get dessert (blackberry cobbler) to-go because we were just too darn full to eat anything else before we left.  The cobbler was very good, but my "#1" ribbon would also go to either Hard 8 or Coopers for their dessert options.  I happen to like a more flakier, pie-like cobbler crust, and The Salt Lick's cobbler has a more cake-like crust, which is why I say the cobbler was just "alright."  

All in all, the location, atmosphere, and meat completely sealed the deal.  I will make it a point to come out to The Salt Lick as often as I can.  The food was amazing, the staff was super sweet, and the atmosphere was excellent!  I can't wait to come back during the day so I can experience the rest of this fantastic "BBQ resort"!  =)

Make sure to take a detour to Driftwood, Texas, next time you're in the hill country and try out The Salt Lick-but make sure to bring cash because credit cards aren't accepted!  

Stay tuned!  Coming soon (enough) I'll talk about our eats and fun on St. Patrick's Day (Sherwood Forest Faire, Adobe Cafe, and Gruene Hall)!  You can also check out my St. Patrick's Day Weekend Flickr Set from our weekend in the hill country if you get bored and want to see more pictures!