8 things to know about Franklin BBQ

Sep 11

Have you ever heard of Franklin BBQ located in Austin, TX? I hadn’t until this summer when visiting my brother and sister. It was quite the experience! If you have heard of it, you likely know these 8 things to be very true. If I missed something, feel free to leave a note in the comments below based on your experience.

Be prepared to wait. Regardless of your arrival time everyone visiting Franklin’s will have a long wait. During our visit we met some early risers. They arrived as early as 6am that morning to sit and wait! Mind you, doors don’t open at 11am. We arrived at 10:15am. We were ordering our food around 12:30p/1p and didn’t eat until close to 2p. TIP: Don’t plan to visit Franklin’s if you only have 30 minutes to an hour. You will waste your time because you likely won’t get food.
Mind the season. Again, I didn’t hear about Franklin’s until this summer. So waiting in a long line outside in the Texas summer heat was ridiculous. I advise you to come prepared based on the season you plan to visit. All my fellow summer visitors: put on your sunscreen, wear a hat to protect yourself from too much sunlight and stay hydrated! They do have a water station outdoors to support customers staying hydrated during the wait.
Wait comfortably. Thankfully, the restaurant provides ample lawn chairs to sit in while you wait. You don’t need to bring any chairs unless you prefer your own. I can’t speak on how they sanitize the chairs after use but if that’s a concern you have BYOW (bring your own wipes) or BYOC (bring your own chair). Several of the other customers also had cards and uno to help pass the time.
First come, first served. The earlier you can arrive the better. Know that, once something is gone, it’s really gone for the day. Wouldn’t you be completely crushed if you were waiting 3 hours for brisket just for it to be gone by the time you are at the front of the line. Sounds heartbreaking to me.
Seating is limited. There is indoor seating with some outdoor sits however it’s not nearly enough compared to the amount of people that visit. Like the line and food, seats are first come first serve. Plan accordingly. Though several people stayed to eat at the restaurant, we, amongst the majority of the customers took our food to-go.
Is it really worth it? The wait… in the heat… for food… um, absolutely YES! Now, I was not a huge fan of their sides but don’t let that stop you. The meat was amazing, particularly their brisket. It just melts in your mouth. Both the beef ribs and the pork ribs were also delicious. We were all very satisfied with our food. We ate it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Just thinking about the food makes me want to go back
Order by the pound. If you are ordering meat, which I’m sure you are, know that everything is ordered by the pound (except the sausage). You can order a quarter, half, full or multiple pounds of a particular meat. They will measure it in front of you so you can determine if you want more or less.
Should I leave my little one at home? Honestly, that’s up to you. As a mom of a toddler, I am actually glad I did not have my daughter with me. Between the wait, standing, and the heat she would have been quite annoyed. There were many times I, myself, was over the heat and the wait. Although I would not want to take my daughter, there were families who did have their little people with them. If you do, like anywhere else you go, come prepared. Bring some games, snacks or a tablet, whatever will occupy them for a few hours. Who knows they may even meet a little friend in line to play with.