One of the BarFlys recently had to attend a conference in Austin, Texas and had one last opportunity to get some great BBQ at Iron Works, thankfully close to the Convention Center. As a last quick dispatch from Austin, it really would be a shame to go to Texas and not partake of any BBQ. I had read that Franklin BBQ has long lines where you need to line up early in the morning; unfortunately, I had to work a morning shift, so Iron Works was the next logical choice for a last meal before heading to the airport. As one of the top BBQ places in Austin, Iron Works has served thousands of Conventioneers and Dignitaries from its historical location since 1978.

On my way out of the Convention Center, I ran into a co-worker who studied at UT in Austin and knew her way around the BBQ places. I gladly tagged along with her as we made our way to The Old Iron Works. Lucky for us, there wasn’t much of a line since we arrived before noon, but a line always forms after noon:

As you make your way inside, you order BBQ by the plate or by the pound at the first window, then order drinks and pay for the meal at a second window:

My co-worker said that this was the place for Beef Ribs, so we decided we would go on a Caveman diet and order some Beef Ribs and a half rack of Baby Back Pork Ribs to share between us. The half rack of pork ribs served on a paper-lined tray were meaty good, especially after the spicy BBQ sauce was applied (choice of regular and spicy sauces are provided as condiments):

A picture of a shared plate after the split shows that the Beef Ribs were colossal, flavorful, tender (just a little bit gristly) and excellent. Ordered by the number of ribs, three of them weighed in over 2 pounds:

It was a great, albeit quick, last meal in Austin. Having been to the Salt Lick several years back for some tasty brisket, Iron Works is definitely the place to go for Beef Ribs. Not many places can get beef ribs right, but they most certainly know how to do it here, so much so that my co-worker planned to come back the next day and order about 5-6 pounds (10 ribs) to bring home back with her to Silicon Valley. She cleaned those ribs all way to bare bone, claiming that “the closer to the bone, the better the flavor and meat.” She was right about that.

http://www.ironworksbbq.com