This is my go to BBQ place to go in ATX!!!!I love their bold flavors in the brisket, Oaxaca Sausage, and their flour tortillas are legit (no extra bs, just good flour tortillas).The only thing I really don't like, maybe it's changed, is having to order online. The last thing I want to do when going to a BBQ place is to stumble/engage with technology. I go to a BBQ place to have a nice down to earth experience, enjoy food cooked in an old-school method, and escape technology for a while. This is my opinion, I understand others will differ, and it won't stop me from coming back.
After reading about this place for years I finally gave it a try for takeout. All of the tacos were completely dry and really overly salted. Now, don't get me wrong, I like to be heavy handed with the salt but this was overpowering. Even the pulled pork sandwich was WAY over salted. After getting home and trying a bit of everything, we opted to go elsewhere for food. It was so bad I would rather have thrown $60 in the garbage than eat it. And that's a very rare occurrence.
I suspect they run out of meat due to the lack of a full kitchen. But I got there at 1p and they had what I wanted. The tortillas are the secret: soft, pillowy, thick flour tortillas make all the barbecue taste a lot better. That's because a soft bread provides a contrast to the barbecued meat, especially its crispier parts. I had the brisket, which was great and overflowed the tortilla. I had the roasted chicken fajita which retained the roast flavor without drying out. I also had the pulled chicken.That's right. Pulled chicken. Get it. Chicken that moist and that savory is how chicken should be. That was a brilliant, 5-star chicken dish. I'd throw a Michelin star at that chicken.
Some of the best BBQ I've ever had. The brisket was perfect, and that's what a lot of people will judge a BBQ joint on. I also tried the pulled pork, chicken, and spare ribs. It was all excellent. There was one other item I tried that really was amazing. The smoked carnitas tacos. It was amazing. It was a bit of a wait, but definitely worth it.
Valentina's was definitely off the beaten path, but it was worth every mile and minute. I wasn't entirely sure which meat I wanted to try so I got a 1/4 pound of the pulled chicken and 1/4 pound of the chicken fajita. It's great that they will let you split the meat order, as, in my case, it allows you to sample a little bit. It came with a tortilla, but I added on an extra tortilla. Altogether, my meal came to $10, which for the quality is a super great deal. I preferred the pulled chicken to the chicken fajita, and if I were to return, I think I would stick to the pulled chicken. I didn't *love* the barbecue sauce. I think if I lived there, it would definitely be a regular place, but I would probably take it to go, and then use more my style of barbecue sauce. (I am more of a Memphis Sweet kind of girl) The homemade tortillas were outstanding. Out-standing. The gal said that they sell them by the piece or by the dozen. If I were a local, I would 100% buy my tortillas here and not from a grocery store. I can't remember the price she told me for the dozen, but it would absolutely be worth it. As far as atmosphere, it was an experience, and I mean that in the very best way. I'm under the understanding that they have or will be moving into a brick-and-mortar location, which...good for them. But, I still love the setup. They have cornhole sets which is great. And once you get out of your vehicle, this divine smoky smell just hits you. Most people took their food to go. There was a little open-air patio with picnic tables by the cornhole sets. But, they also have a lovely little covered dining area. It was a chilly day when I was there, so I think I got lucky, as far as there being plenty of seating to choose from. But, the dining are had a very barn-wedding-esque feel to it. The employees were so friendly. And I cannot stress this enough- they seemed very genuine. Being genuine is something that is hard to fake, and also hard to teach. So, the fact that Valentina's has some great employees means they are doing something right.
Delicious! Everything we had was so good. The Real Deal Holyfield with brisket had a generous slice of very tender brisket. The fried egg was a nice change from a typical breakfast taco. The potato, egg, and cheese was also good and more like a regular breakfast taco. Husband added beef fajita to it and said it was not tough at all. I had the brisket taco and pulled chicken taco. Both were really good and huge. I only needed one taco and next time would opt for only the brisket. It was my favorite of the two. We also had the queso with brisket. Really good. I’d suggest giving more chips with the medium size. We only ate half before we were out of chips. Luckily they have lids so we took the rest home to enjoy later.
Great meat. Be sure to be there on time. We came 4pm and most of the menu was already gone. But the Brisket Sandwich is really great. We had to buy beer 100m away (its bring your own beer). 10sec to get into contact with all the others queueing up ?
Austin's two favorite foods - BBQ and Tex-Mex (incl Tacos) fused into one. This gem of a family owned food truck in South Austin draws crowds.I went early evening on a weekday and there was hardly a crowd, but by 7pm, the line was forming and growing. Weekends the wait maybe over an hour.Because it's worth it. I tried the Tacos only - the Brisket, the chicken were all amazing - perfectly smoked and served on house made tortillas were delicious. The tacos were loaded with meat and fresh guacamole. Loved every bite of it.
Tacos are my favorite.
quick moving line, delicious tacos and guacamole and outstanding brisket!!