Food for Thought

Giving up the rat race to farm: Food-loving Houstonians have no beef with turning back the clock

Sometimes you find the story, sometimes the story finds you.

Having lunch of linguini Giacomo at Giacomo’s Cibo e Vino last week, I wound up seated next to an adorable, just-engaged couple, Michael Anderson and Maggie Yewens.

Who just happen to have started a longhorn ranch last year.

Last November I wrote a Food for Thought column about local chefs using more longhorn beef in dishes and about Sam Clegg’s Texas Longhorn Land and Cattle Co., which sells ground longhorn beef to Giacomo’s chef/owner Lynette Hawkins for her delicious meatballs and Bolognese sauce.

Yewens and Anderson are part of a growing trend of young people who have given up the rat race and become sustainable farmers.

“Of course we read that article!” exclaimed Yewens. “We were starting up the ranch and we were researching everything about longhorns.”

Yewens and Anderson are part of a growing trend of young people who have given up the rat race and become sustainable farmers, selling their wares at farmers markets and to local restaurant chefs. Much like Lisa and Christian Seger of Blue Heron Farm who gave up city life to raise goats and make wonderful cheese, which you can buy at the Eastside market on Saturday mornings. If you get there early.

Anderson gave up a marketing career in Colorado to move back to Texas and raise cattle on the Meadow Creek Ranch near Fayetteville. He and Yewens, both originally from Houston, have about 50 head of longhorns with their Longhorn Beef Co. and sell meat online (they deliver to Houston weekly), to restaurants like Giacomo’s and Ibiza, the Brazos Valley Farmers Market in Bryan and even to Houston area Crossfit gyms.

“It’s a good fit because of the health benefits of longhorn beef,” Anderson says. “It’s naturally leaner, lower in calories, saturated fat and cholesterol than traditional beef.”

And it’s darn tasty with a slightly sweet, melt-in-your-mouth quality. Hawkins, who uses Clegg’s ground longhorn in her meatballs and Bolognese sauce, is experimenting with Longhorn Beef's whole cuts of meat. Her recent specials have included a rib-eye steak and an osso buco with saffron risotto that was falling off the bone delicious.

The company also offers longhorn sausage, stew meat, liver, sirloin steak, round steak, flank steak, 1/2-thick New York strip and even a tenderloin.

Their cattle are grass-fed and finished with no hormones, steroids or unnecessary antibiotics. Compared to grain-fed beef, grass-fed beef has less fat, is lower in calories, higher in Omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin E. It also has almost four times the amount of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and as much as seven times more beta-carotene. Which translates to a healthier you.

The Rancher Life

Interestingly, there are no ranchers in the Anderson’s or Yewen’s families. He says it is an appreciation of the animals that inspired him to turn to longhorn ranching.

“They are really sweet animals,” he says. “People ride them and they’re very calm. I never use a cattle prod on them.”

“I cook a lot. We’re out in the country so there aren’t a lot of restaurants.”

Anderson does all the ranching and animal wrangling. Yewen, for now, still has a day job wrangling oil and gas contracts, but the future looks bright, particularly as longhorn beef gains in popularity. They hope one day to have their own slaughter plant on site where they can humanely slaughter and cut the meat.

And yes, they do eat it themselves.

“I cook a lot,” Yewens says. “We’re out in the country so there aren’t a lot of restaurants.”

Wanna try a longhorn steak at home? Here’s some advice.

“There’s almost no fat,” Anderson says, “so there’s very little shrinkage and you don’t cook them as you would regular beef. Pretty much just sear them and let them rest.”

For broiling, position steaks three to four inches from heat and watch closely so they don’t over cook. Broiling frozen steaks will actually keep them juicier. For grilling, he recommends using mesquite or cherry wood chips and using a medium-hot fire. For roasts, cook at 275 degrees.

Longhorn steaks are great, as is the osso buco, but you can also use ground longhorn beef for just about anything from tacos to burgers, and, of course, Bolognese sauce.

So next time you’re buying beef, try a real Texas tradition. Longhorn beef, it’s what’s for dinner. Again.

Their cattle, a few shown here, are grass-fed and finished with no hormones, steroids or unnecessary antibiotics.

Longhorn Beef Co.

Their cattle, a few shown here, are grass-fed and finished with no hormones, steroids or unnecessary antibiotics.

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Your move, TxMo

Predicting 13 barbecue joints that could make Texas Monthly's new top 10

Courtesy of Truth BBQ

Houstonians might riot if Truth BBQ falls out of the top 10.

The world of Texas barbecue is shivering with anticipation. On Tuesday, May 27, Texas Monthly will publish its latest ranking of the state’s 50 best barbecue joints.

Released every four years, the list is considered by many to be the definitive guide to Texas barbecue. Part of that authority comes from the effort Texas Monthly puts into traveling across the state in search of the best smoked meats, sides, and desserts. For the 2021 edition, the magazine enlisted 35 writers to visit more than 400 restaurants. While the numbers on the 2025 edition won’t be revealed until next week, readers can expect a similar, or perhaps even more exhaustive, effort this time around.

In that spirit, let’s make some predictions about what the 2025 list may look like. While I don’t have any specific insight into the thinking of Texas Monthly barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn, I am a voracious reader of his work and a native Texan who enjoys a good barbecue road trip. The predictions below are based on my analysis of Texas Monthly’s previous lists and visits to most of the places I think will be in the top 10.

Let’s be clear. The state of Texas barbecue has never been more competitive, because barbecue restaurants have never worked harder to impress diners. In 2017, a restaurant that served prime meats, cooked with wood, and made respectable sides had a high probability of making the top 50. In 2021, a lot of those places fell off in favor of establishments that both cooked a wider range of proteins than the traditional beef brisket, pork ribs, and sausage and put more personality into their sides, and, for the first time, desserts.

In 2025, those restaurants are being challenged by places that go a little further. Many are open for lunch and dinner — something that was essentially unthinkable in 2017. More and more are incorporating flavors from a diverse array of culinary traditions, including Mexican, Vietnamese, Persian, and more. The best places are making their own breads, whether it’s dinner rolls, pita, or tortillas. Whatever Texas Monthly decides, vigorous debate will surely follow.

Examining the changes from 2017 to 2021 provides a basis for predicting 2025.

No sacred cows
Barbecue joints do not earn a place on the list based on reputation or historical significance. In 2021, the magazine included a whopping 29 new entries, including five of the coveted top 10. Icons like Cooper’s in Llano and Kreuz Market in Lockhart gave way to newcomers like Austin’s Interstellar, which ranked No. 2 — pushing the legendary Franklin Barbecue to No. 7. Even a spot in the previous edition’s top 10 doesn’t guarantee a place in the new top 50.

Youth will be served
The magazine’s 2023 list of the The 25 Best New and Improved BBQ Joints in Texas provides some insight into who will make the top 50. Expect at least one member of the new top 10 to have opened since the publication of the 2023 list.

Michelin who?
Barbecue restaurants earned 28 of the 117 entries in the first Texas edition of the Michelin Guide, including four restaurants that received stars (out of 15 total). That probably won’t matter much to Texas Monthly, which uses its own criteria to evaluate barbecue joints. In other words, Spring’s CorkScrew BBQ may have a Michelin star, but it probably isn’t returning to the TxMo top 10.

Expect surprises
The magazine likes to lead opinions rather than follow conventional wisdom. That tradition goes back to at least 2008, when Snow’s in Lexington became the surprise No. 1. In 2021, both Goldee’s and Interstellar were surprise picks to rank No. 1 and No. 2, but they’ve both flourished in the spotlight created by Texas Monthly’s acclaim. Somewhere in Texas, a barbecue joint no one predicts is about to have its fortunes forever changed with a spot in the top 10.

Predicting the top 10

Similar to my predictions for the Michelin Guide, I decided to look at the Texas Monthly list from a sports betting perspective. Certain restaurants are more likely to rank highly than others, after all. In the spirit, I’ve divided the restaurants into three categories: Locks, Probably, and Fingers Crossed. Each category is presented in alphabetical order.

Before diving in, a special shoutout to Bryan Norton and Andrew Martinez of the Tales From the Pits podcast. Outside of Texas Monthly barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn, no one I know visits as many barbecue joints or thinks as deeply about their quality. Listen to their recent episodes detailing their top 15 Texas barbecue joints and Texas Monthly top 50 predictions for more insight.

Locks

Burnt Bean Co.: The Seguin restaurant was less than a year old when it ranked No. 4 on the 2021 list. Since then, co-owners Ernest Servantes and David Kirkland have rolled out their essential Sunday breakfast service, where Servantes puts a barbecue spin on iconic dishes such as huevos rancheros and lamb barbacoa. It’s my current pick for the best in Texas.

Goldee’s: The reigning No. 1 has only gotten better since 2021 as co-owners Jalen Heard, Lane Milne, and Jonny White have integrated the lessons they learned working at some of the state’s top joints with their own personalities. Located near Fort Worth, they do it all, from housemade bread to creative sides to adding international flavors like the Thai-style waterfall pulled pork I sampled on a recent visit.

LeRoy and Lewis: Ranked No. 5 in 2021, the Austin restaurant moved from a food truck to a polished brick-and-mortar in 2024. Now open for lunch and dinner six days a week, the restaurant’s refined offerings include beef cheeks, whole hog, cauliflower burnt ends, and a top-flight burger. Its Friday night steak special, available by reservation only, is the stuff carnivore dreams are made of.

Probably

Barbs B Q: The restaurant brings new school cred to Lockhart. Not only did pitmaster Chuck Charnichart hone her skills at Goldee’s, she brings personality to the menu with touches like fresh lime zest on the pork ribs and the signature green spaghetti, a chile-spiced ode to her hometown of Brownsville. This is the restaurant from the 2023 new and improved list that seems most likely to crack the top 10.

Cattleack: Ranked in the top 10 in both 2017 (No. 3) and 2021 (No. 6), it’s hard to imagine that the best barbecue in Dallas falls out of the top 10. The restaurant is open more days per week than ever before, and its menu remains as wide-ranging as ever, with seven full-time proteins that are joined by weekly specials.

Redbird: Barbecue enthusiasts statewide have been making the pilgrimage to the East Texas town of Port Neches (near Beaumont) to try pitmaster Amir Jalali’s creations. Not only did he train at both Feges BBQ in Houston and Goldee’s, he’s embraced the full DIY experience with housemade dinner rolls, a Caesar salad-inspired riff on coleslaw, and a Persian-influenced beef koobideh sausage that’s served with housemade pita bread. Houstonians looking for a barbecue adventure — or a detour on their way to a Louisiana casino — should make the journey.

Truth: Ranked No. 3 in 2021, the Houston location of Leonard Botello IV’s joint continues to expand its vision of Texas barbecue. The restaurant is now open for dinner, serves a first-rate burger, and recently added new tastes such as the cold smoked, cornmeal-crusted pork chop that’s absolutely can’t-miss. Houstonians might make Texas Monthly bonfires in the parking lot if it’s left off the list.

Fingers Crossed

Bar-A-BBQ: Located outside Houston in Montgomery, pitmaster Cooper Abercrombie earned a spot on the new and improved list for well-executed sausages, creative sides, and Saturday morning breakfast service that includes breakfast tacos and kolaches. This one feels a little like Tejas, where the magazine bets that an up-and-comer is ready to make the leap to barbecue royalty.

Dayne’s: Since making the top 50 in 2021, the Fort Worth-area favorite has stepped up its game by moving from a food truck to a brick-and-mortar in the suburb of Aledo. Known for its creative sausages and award-winning burger, the restaurant may have done enough to force its way into the top 10.

Interstellar: Ranked No. 2 and sporting a Michelin star, John Bates brings a fine dining pedigree and a chef’s knack for innovation to his Austin-area restaurant. Signatures like peach-tea brined pork belly and pulled lamb shoulder remain as vital as ever. Falling out of the top 10 would be pretty unlikely, but someone’s got to make room for the newcomers.

Sabar: Like Barbs and Redbird, this Fort Worth-area food truck is led by a Goldee’s alum in Zain Shafi. The Pakistani-influenced menu broadens the range of Texas barbecue with dishes such as nihari burnt ends, tandoori turkey, and seekh kebab sausage. Goldee’s co-owner Lane Milne strongly encouraged me to add Sabar to my Fort Worth itinerary — maybe he was trying to give me a hint that its line was about to get a lot longer.

Snow’s and Franklin: Arguably the two most famous Texas barbecue joints in the world, they topped the 2017 list and ranked No. 9 and No. 7, respectively, in 2021. No one’s saying they’ve gotten worse — just look at the massive number of people who still line up at both restaurants — but the newer joints are serving so much more expansive menus (at just as high a level of quality) that it’s hard to see both staying in the top 10.

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