On a recent trip to Robstown which is about an hour and a half south of San Antonio, Dad, Alma and I were looking for a new barbecue restaurant to visit and we found Sam's Bbq at 15801 Northwest Blvd in Robstown Texas. It's a small place, but like they say, big surprises come in small packages. They have a drive thru and a small outside seating area to enjoy the nice breeze coming off the coast as you eat. The staff is very friendly and the service was great. Because of dads low sodium diet he ordered the barbecue chicken plate as did Alma. I ordered the the brisket sandwich which turned out to be excellent. The chicken had a very good smoked flavor, a little over done, and maybe that was because it was well after lunch, but the flavor was excellent. Dad had to travel to Kingsville Tx, a month later and he went by to get more chicken because he loved it. He said it was just as good as the first time, and one of the guys remembered him.
The brisket sandwich also was superb. Whenever I am trying a new barbecue restaurant, I always order the brisket either in a plate order or just the sandwich. I'm the type that likes to actually try the meat first with no add ons, in other words, no house sauce, onions or pickles because I want see what the brisket tastes like without any additives. Did they dry it out with too much smoke flavor, or is it moist with an awesome smoke flavor? I have always felt that if brisket is too dry then it's like wrestling with jerky but with a good smoked flavor, but if it's moist then it'll be a quiet table you're sitting at. It's only after a couple of bites that I will add the pickles and onions, and that's not because it needs it or it tastes bad without it, but the smoked flavor combined with the strong onion and the ingredients in the processing of the pickle gives the sandwich a whole different dimension, and this was the case in this sandwich. I think I only said 7 words while eating that sandwich, and they were "Wow this has an excellent smoke flavor". So we now have another barbecue stopping place when we head south to the valley. Until the next trip, stay safe and eat some barbecue.
