Creekside Cookers BBQ - Wimberly, TEXAS - 8th Small Town Texas BBQ Review

"I think I'm quite ready for another adventure." - Bilbo Baggins, Lord of The Rings

Reaching a Texas BBQ destination can be quite the adventure nowadays.  You can plan for weeks to try to get somewhere and I typically don't like to call, email, text, or DM someone to let them know I'm going to show up to enjoy their food most times so it can be hit or miss with finding places that you are wanting to go that are open or closed.  Such is the case with my last adventure to Central Texas. Being out here in West Texas and 60 miles from an Interstate one way and 70 miles another it isn't always easy to get out to the places you are trying to get to without a few snags along the way. We had planned to go to a few places on a Saturday the last time we were out so that I'd have plenty of material for YouTube and my blog but we typically like to focus on one main place for the day.  We had a spot picked out. Even drove out there. No indication it would be closed and there was a truck there at the business about an hour prior to the advertised opening hours. My wife needed to get some schoolmarm work done so we headed up to the local Spendbucks for some coffee and got some free WiFi with our $50 coffee drinks while we waited for the joint to open.  Unbeknownst to us, it wouldn't be opening. It was about 25 minutes to and from the coffee shop to the place and we'd already driven there twice and sadly we didn't get to get there so quickly we had to form a plan B.  

Plan B was actually going to be Plan A for another trip further down the road because my sweet friend Karen had mentioned that this amazing place in her town would be having a grand opening soon. I thought to myself I'll save my trip and time for that one and I'll get out and get some good material when that comes about.  Not having any material for the day was really chapping my hide and I remembered that my elementary school bud had made a glowing recommendation of this place so I decided to seek out Creekside Cookers BBQ in Wimberly.  I checked my GPS and it was about 40 minutes from where we were so we revved up the Soul, turned on the turbo, and headed for some of the most beautiful country I've seen in my life.  I mentioned to my wife that Wimberly and the surrounding area was like Texas Heaven on Earth!  This town of a little over 3000 people is a hidden gem except to the tourists and locals enjoying the Blanco river, the antique stores, and little downtown shops there. As I'd said I'd not prepared to be at Creekside Cookers this time around so we were depending on our GPS to lead us to the right place.  I got into Wimberly and GPS said I'd arrived but I saw nothing. Not a single whiff of smoke, not a trailer in sight, nor any tables or people or anything so we tried again.  This time GPS took us around the back of the town and we ended up at Creekside Cookers future location and I saw a sign that said CLOSED and I thought to myself WOW I am not going to get any BBQ or anything else for my blog or videos today.  Our adventure continued and we drove all the way around town and I needed gas so I decided to get back to the local H.E.B. to get some.  As we were driving up there I glanced over to the right and asked, "Is that a BBQ Joint?!?!?!"  Sure enough, Creekside Cookers BBQ trailer was there in the same shopping center as Anytime Fitness and a local laundromat. I thought I would cry tears of joy! We got our gasoline and came back to get in a small line for some BBQ. 

This large maroon food trailer with the Creekside Cookers logo was situated near the entrance of the shopping center with some tables to the rear end of the trailer and a gentleman singing some songs and entertaining the patrons while they wait and eat. It was looking like rain as we came up and whaddya know, as we perused the menu and kept telling more folks to go ahead of us it began to rain.  For West Texas folks rain isn't a nuisance.  It is a beautiful necessity that we cherish with every fiber of our being.  I could've cared less that it was getting me a little wet and cold because it had been so hot that day and that rain cooled the air around us down and really made the area a little easier to be in. We finally got up to the front of the line with what we were going to order and my wife got a chuckle out of the tip jar that was up front. She was certain that the lady that waited on us had thought it up and thought she was spunky for doing so. 

As I've gone on a few of my recent trips I've gotten into the habit of wearing Yoni Levin's Best Barbecue Podcast #MEATMAN T-Shirt when I head out to BBQ joints.  Depending on where I am people are either smiling, laughing, or completely aghast until they see the back of the shirt that says BEST BBQ PODCAST.  Earlier in the day (7:33 to be exact) a young man at another BBQ joint that I went to in Austin was concerned because I'd ordered a gigantic rib at breakfast time but once he saw the #MEATMAN shirt his fears were drowned. Having a beef rib and breakfast taco might stop most people from eating more BBQ in one day but sacrifices must be made for the good of all Texans and BBQ Joints!  As I stood in line someone asked me about the shirt and if it was of my own design and making and I said no and let them know that it was, in fact, Yoni's and then went on to explain that I was there doing research for my own YouTube channel and blog.  This is all part of the adventure for me: talking to the locals, meeting the people that so lovingly prepare the BBQ, and talking to other BBQ tourists about our favorite subject. I enjoy uncovering what makes a town, its people, and a particular BBQ joint unique and Yoni's shirt is always a great conversation starter no matter where I've gone. 

I learned while I was there that Kelly Evers had been in competition BBQ and decided after being a teacher for 20 years that he was so passionate about the BBQ life he wanted to start his own BBQ joint. My wife has been a teacher for almost as long as we've been married so I know it is a profession that has some dedicated individuals.  We ordered brisket (moist or fatty however you like to say it), ribs, sausage ( aka Texas Trinity for you Northerners) and also some turkey for our meats. We also grabbed some potato salad, jalapeno creamed corn, and some beans to round out our selections along with some sliced white bread. I usually get a cap if they have one and some stickers and they were kind enough to give me their last ones. I usually stick to standard BBQ fare the first time I go to a new joint I haven't tried yet just so I can get a good feel for the foundational stuff they do.  Creekside Cookers has a lot of out of the box ideas for some great stuff that I didn't try but are on my list for later. Toro Tacos, Pork Belly Burnt End Tacos, along with some interesting sandwich offerings like the Big Kahuna a pulled pork, mango and cilantro slaw with Hawaiian sauce or the Mojo which has chopped brisket, pulled pork, sausage and is topped with an espresso sauce and a few others.  They have the standard condiments up at the front so that you can add all that to whatever you buy. Pickles, Onions, Jalapenos and any other sauces and also drinks including sodas, water, and 

beer.

Our standard operating procedure or standard obnoxious procedure according to some people out there is for us to take pics and video of the food we are about to eat. We began opening the containers and everything smelled so good and looked very tasty.  Our pork ribs were glistening with a beautiful reddish glaze with loads of spices throughout.  My wife who typically doesn't like much BBQ outside of our home was hooked on these ribs.  They were cooked perfectly and in competition style as they were bite-through and not fall-off-the-bone.  I prefer that they are cooked this way and not falling to pieces as you eat them.  The bone provides a good handle and since they are cooked properly you can still get all the meat off easily.  The sweet glaze was a masterful touch on a superbly smoked rack of ribs.  The brisket was very tender with a nice smoke ring as well and required absolutely no sauce for moisture or flavor as it was seasoned perfectly.  The juicy sausage is housed in a red casing and has a finer grind that many of the sausages you find out at most joints.  It has a great pop when you bite into it.  Just because Kelly is great at putting out excellent meats doesn't mean that Creekside Cookers doesn't bring it with the sides as well.  The potato salad was extra creamy and had to have been house-made as it didn't have that overbearing mustardy flavor.  I typically stick to mostly meat but this potato salad was something I didn't let a single morsel of go to waste or save for later!  The jalapeno creamed corn was also a big hit.  We've eaten a lot of corn this year and everyone has their own little twist on it and it makes you wonder how many more ways can someone prepare corn and it taste different than other places. Well, this one did.  The jalapeno isn't overbearing at all.  It is there and it touches your senses but it doesn't make you reach for your drink.  Another side we enjoyed were the pinto beans.  These aren't your standard thick broth BBQ beans but more of a light offering with some tomatoes, onions, and spices setting them apart from most others in the category. 

As we were eating, Kelly came out and introduced himself to us after he'd talked to a few of the folks and asked how their food was.  In my last few trips, I've noticed the owners getting out with the people and finding out how they like the food and to me, there isn't a better thing to do when you are in business. Kelly told me a bit about his story and of course, he and my wife shared the same profession at one point in time. He let me know about the new building that is coming along and that he'd have some heavy hitters in the BBQ world working alongside him in the coming months.  If I'm seeing the future correctly Creekside Cookers BBQ is going to be even more of a must-try destination than it is now.  With the caliber of folks he's bringing in, the new building (yes I saw it - by complete accident, but I did) they are moving into soon, and his sheer passion for BBQ I can tell that his BBQ adventure is just starting to get REALLY good.  This is what a BBQ adventure is all about: doing what you're passionate about, really well, so that others enjoy it, the public applauds you, and the amazing work you do and you go home every day with a smile on your face.  I'm so looking forward to heading back again after they get into the new building for even more good food and my own adventure. 

                                                          Creekside Cookers BBQ