Last November, the Michelin guide announced the awarding of Michelin stars to four Texas barbecue restaurants, the first time that any style of regional American barbecue received the recognition. With barbecue often perceived as a casual food, this was a big step for all involved.
In contrast to other regional styles such as Carolina and Tennessee which focus on pork, Texas barbecue is mainly about beef. Cooking approaches range from a six- to eight-hour “quick cook” all the way to a 24-hour “low and slow” cook. Many restaurants are casual in nature, with customers queuing to order at the counter, often ordering meat by the pound, before sitting down to eat in or take away.
The good news for Irish-based barbecue lovers is that chefs from two of the recently starred restaurants – John Bates of InterStellar BBQ and Ali Clem of La Barbecue, both in Austin – are due to appear in person at next month’s Big Grill Festival in Herbert Park, Dublin.
In advance, they have some Michelin-starred barbecue tips to share.
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At John Bates’s InterStellar BBQ in Austin, the core philosophy is sauce-free barbecue excellence built on traditional Texas principles. His goal is to cook proteins so decadent, juicy, moist and tender that sauce becomes optional, although InterStellar does have carefully designed sauces and sides too.
“Every menu component receives intentional development, from sauces, pickles to our sides. They are all treated with equal importance to the meats. On our trays, every item is placed deliberately, and recipe-tested for optimum quality,” Bates says.
His menu of dishes such as prime beef short rib with chimichurri, tipsy turkey brined in beer and dry-rub pork ribs, along with lamb tacos, poblano creamed corn and smoked scallop potatoes certainly seems to back up what he’s saying.
As well as ingredients, wood selection and fire management play a huge part in the end result. “We use post oak as it’s the most abundant local hardwood and brings that authentic regional flavour – you could even call it terroir,” he says. “Pecan is also acceptable. Cooking Texas barbecue requires building up loads of fire management expertise.”
Bates describes the award of Michelin stars as “a breakthrough for Texas barbecue culture” and says the news was unexpected and, for some, not completely welcome.
“It came as a complete surprise to us as Michelin wasn’t previously present in Texas. We’re seeing a whole new customer demographic who were previously unfamiliar with barbecue culture and ordering customs. On the other hand, there’s been a mixed reception from the traditional Texas barbecue community, some of whom are suspicious of Michelin’s involvement.”
For Bates, who has more than 30 years’ experience in the food industry and formally trained as a chef before working in fine dining and farm-to-fork restaurants, the star validates the full-package approach he and his team take.
“We welcome our guests with genuine hospitality, treating them as friends and family, rather than a sales opportunity. We have a relentless commitment to quality and consistency, and strive to expand the flavour profile of our menu, all the while maintaining traditional Texas barbecue tenets. Most importantly, I want to focus on building a sustainable culture resistant to poor employment practices and employee mistreatment.”
Having grown up in a financially modest environment, Bates relishes the opportunities that barbecue now provides for him. He sees himself as being on a global barbecue cultural exchange, having cooked from Brazil to New Zealand, Italy to Mexico. Next month’s visit to Ireland will be a first for him, though, and he’s looking forward to bringing InterStellar’s peach tea-glazed pork belly to an Irish audience, as well as learning more about Irish food producers and restaurants.
Like Bates, chef Ali Clem sees her visit to Ireland as an opportunity for cultural exchange and to continue to build her flavour knowledge. In the past, she has been strategic in her choice of festivals as she likes to work in controlled environments to maintain her quality standards.
She also greeted the star award with enormous surprise.
“I’m in continued shock and still processing the recognition. We’ve been honoured four times out of four by the Texas Monthly Top 50, which remains the paramount reference guide for local customers, but Michelin brings expanded global visibility for us and for Texas barbecue.”
Clem’s humble “I just work here” approach belies the deep knowledge and experience she has built up over 26 years in the hospitality industry. She entered the barbecue world in 2011 through the family connections of her late wife LeAnn Mueller, who hailed from generations of well-known Texas barbecue cooks. Mueller’s brother John was her mentor for many years, and she is extremely proud to uphold their traditions through her six-hour brisket cooking technique.
When describing La Barbecue, she paints a community that deeply loves barbecue. “We open from 11am to 6pm, with customers often arriving from 9.30am. What can I say? People in Texas like to eat early.”
While waiting for their food, customers will grab a coffee and pastry from a nearby bakery, often playing board games and cards to pass the time. With wait times sometimes reaching up to 2½ hours on Saturdays, dedication is required. Once inside, groups order one a time, with staff showing new customers the meats and explaining portion sizes.
“We want customers to be satisfied, and that can take several minutes per order, which we are happy to do,” says Clem.
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The restaurant employs a small-batch ethos which involves cooking just 56 briskets a day, as well as preparing all sides, pickles and slaws one tub at a time.
“We have a controlled production that is considered small compared to other Austin establishments who can cook more than twice our volume,” she says.
By spacing out the briskets over two smokers, Clem allows for proper heat and smoke distribution, an approach she attributes to her mathematical and scientific background. But intuition and experience also play a big part.
“I’ve cooked thousands of briskets over the years and I instinctively know to how to correct when a cook is stalled. I’m currently training a new 19-year-old cook and I love the questions that he and other barbecue enthusiasts ask. I really enjoy the mentorship aspect of my job.”
Michelin-starred tips for home barbecuers
John Bates
- Season your meats in advance, ideally a day, as this will give the salt time to draw the spices into the meat for deeper flavour penetration.
- Give time for full ignition of your coals or charcoal, so that you are at the optimal heat for cooking. The same principle applies to gas barbecuing, which also benefits from a proper warm-up.
- Where possible, cook with hardwood lump charcoal for superior flavour development and try to avoid chemical fire starters or pre-treated coals as they can leave an unpleasant flavour residue.
Ali Clems
- Start with your favourite meats or proteins and the types of seasonings that you personally like. It will help you build up skills before advancing to more complex techniques.
- Season your meats well; it’s a fundamental success factor.
- Build your own seasoning blends for your own unique barbecue style, rather than buying premade blends.
The Big Grill Festival will be held in Herbert Park from August 14th-17th
