When Deb was visiting we went out west toward Hill Country. Tried to stop at a BBQ place in the tiny town of Bertram, but couldn’t find it (or it was closed). I knew of another place in Llano, further west, so we headed there. The place is called Cooper’s and shows up on the Texas Top 50 BBQ places and was recommended by our native Texan neighbors.

Here’s the outside pit area:

You start by going up to the pit have choosing what meat you would like:

It’s a good mix of Texas BBQ (beef) and some really good pork, too.

Going from the lower left, clockwise, you see: Pork sausages, beef ribs, chicken halves, more sausage, brisket, roast beef (and more brisket), pork loin, turkey, huge pork chops, and finally the pork ribs.

Mmm meat:

Above is a closeup of the chicken and beef. Below is the pork. Look at the size of those pork chops (the three toward the front).

What you do is point out what you’d like, and how much. The pit master takes a tray and starts piling meat on it.

You then take your tray inside and give it to the folks behind the counter. They then weigh it (it’s a per pound cost, between $8 and $10 a pound) and wrap it up for you. You can also pick out sides (corn, desserts, etc).

As you move down the line the checkout person gives you a big piece of kraft/waxed paper (that’s your plate) to eat off of. You then pay for your stuff, and head toward the pots of beans and onions and sauce. Once you’ve got all that, you find a place to sit on the long picnic benches. No personal tables here, just long benches with paper towels and loafs of cheap white bread. It’s time to meet your neighbors. We managed to find a spot at the end of one of the tables, sitting in a room of locals just enjoying their lunch.

We got the pork ribs, beef ribs, brisket, pork loin, and sausage. Brisket was very good, beef ribs were very beefy (which I like), and the pork was excellent. Some of the reviews had mentioned that the meat was dry, but we had no problems with ours. It was very juicy.

So there you are, sitting at an inside picnic table, with a room full of Texans, eating off a piece of paper, with a big pile of meat in front of you, a bowl of cowboy beans, and a Shiner Bock ready at hand. No cloth napkins. No waiter. No pretention. Just good honest food.