Bubba's Smokehouse - San Angelo, Texas

Bubba's Smokehouse is a brand new BBQ place in San Angelo, Texas but you wouldn't know it by the meat they serve. I was in today for my first try and being the BBQ aficionado (in my mind THINK NACHO LIBRE, LOL) I am I must say the meat impressed me. From the looks of things they have 4 choices on the menu as far as the meats are concerned. Brisket, Pork Ribs, Sausages (2 flavors), and Chicken. I tried the 3 meat platter with Brisket, Ribs, and regular sausage. The pitmaster obviously believes in the old tried and true axiom which is: THE MEAT MUST STAND ON ITS OWN! This means that sauces are a choice and not automatically drizzled, squirted, or showered on the meat. When I saw that I knew this place was for real. Brisket was tender and juicy with a good smoke ring, a black crust, and plenty of flavor. The ribs came right off the bone with a little work and were delicious. Again, these ribs were not drenched in sauce. The sausage was also very tasty. I tried each meat with and without sauce. They had 2 sauce choices. The rib sauce (as it was called) was a sweet sauce while the BBQ sauce was a bit more tangy with very little sweetness behind it. Mrs. Baird's bread was on the table and she's always a great choice. I did have a couple of minor issues to speak of. The beans are canned and the potato salad is also store bought as far as I can tell. The meat more than makes up for that and Bush's does make some good beans BUT not as good as the slow cooked, homemade beans. They also had baked beans but I didn't get to try them. Sweet and unsweet tea are available along with Coca-Cola products. If I'm not mistaken they also had cobblers available and other sides like corn on the cob. Don't come for the atmosphere to Bubba's although I'm sure as it grows that will get better. DO come for some of San Angelo's best tasting BBQ with moderate prices. Right now there is no other better BBQ (except at home) for the money.