Sausage – Hoots of a Night Al

Summer in Texas means BBQ! Scratch that…Texas means BBQ. In our new quest to explore more, Louis and I remembered hearing about Texas Pride BBQ awhile ago. One morning, we woke up craving BBQ (like every other day), so we made the 40-minute drive from West San Antonio out to Texas Pride BBQ on a beautiful, sunny Saturday.

As soon as we pulled up, I knew I was going to love this place. The entrance is covered with amazing antiques (I almost typed “old antiques”…redundant much? Hah.) mostly centering around a Texan gas station theme (MUCH cooler than it sounds). We strolled past the rusty gas pumps and vintage Coca Cola bottles, through the screen door, and up the wooden ramp.

At the end of the ramp is a signed photo of Guy Fieri from Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. His show is actually how we first heard about Texas Pride BBQ, so shout out to you for that one, Guy. The rustic, vintage decor continued inside with all sorts of Texas artifacts but more exciting at that point was the smell of delicious BBQ.

We were greeted by a friendly worker who walked us through the menu and gave us his recommendations. We decided on sliced brisket and ribs for our meats, but they also have sausage (so dumb that we didn’t try this!), chopped brisket, pork tenderloin, and turkey. Everything looked and smelled amazing!

Louis ordered fresh cut fries for his side, and they don’t fry them until you order them, so they were fresh and delicious when they came out! I went with mac n’ cheese and green beans, which were both super yummy. We carried our tray of food to the indoor seating area, where they have tons of delicious BBQ sauce (original or spicy), pickles, onions, and all the fixin’s for a delicious meal. Below is a little snapshot of what we enjoyed.

If you’re not stuffed after your meal, they also have hand-scooped Bluebell, Pecan Cobbler, and a delicious looking Peach Cobbler I was begging my stomach to find room for somewhere…next time for sure. After we enjoyed our DELICIOUS BBQ, we strolled out the back of the restaurant to the amazing outdoor area.

We climbed up to the huge rooftop deck that would be so perfect to sit on during a crisp October night enjoying some BBQ and live music. That’s definitely on my To Do List! I bet it is so fun at night with all of the colored lights lit. From the upstairs patio there is a great view of the seating, game room, and stage below.

Texas Pride BBQ is really the gift that keeps on giving. Outside they have a stage where they have live concerts, a precious antique store, a game room full of arcade games, a playground for the kids, tons of unique photo ops, and plenty of seating for your entire group.

We loved wandering around in the antique store. We spent a long time talking with the owner, who told us about several of the pieces she acquired, and her love for seeking out Texas specific antiques. She was so kind, and we had a blast exploring all of the neat stuff she had for sale!

One funny find was a Texas vs. Rice football program from October 1948 with an ad for Camel Cigarettes on the back! Can you imagine seeing a cigarette ad in a college football program today?? I guess a lot’s changed in 65 years.

My personal favorite find was this cute Dr. Pepper wood crate. If I thought we had a spot for it in our apartment, it definitely would have come home with us. Dr. Pepper is my fave! Can’t you picture it full of some bud vases and baby’s-breath?? Love. Also, baby’s-breath…what a creepy name.

We went on Saturday afternoon, but it would be fun to plan a trip out to Texas Pride when they’re having one of their weekly events going on. Thursday is Bike Night, and apparently tons of motorcyclists come and park their bikes under the awning to enjoy BBQ. On Friday, they have a big Fish Fry at their back bar and live music on stage. Saturday evenings also have live music, and on Sundays, they have Classic Car Night. Apparently several of the car owners come dressed to match the decades of their cars…so fun! I’d love to go back one Sunday and see that!

Texas Pride BBQ totally has something for everyone! ….Except for vegetarians maybe? Sorry, y’all. We spent a couple of hours just enjoying the atmosphere and admiring all of the neat items they’ve gathered. It is a really unique place, and it reminded me how much I love Texas. 🙂 If you’re heading to San Antonio anytime soon or you live close by, I’d definitely recommend a trip to Texas Pride! It’s going to be our new spot to take visitors!

A few weeks ago, I made a big batch of breakfast tacos to freeze, so Hoot Hubby and I could have a quick breakfast available on rushed mornings. Here are the quick easy steps that allow for an inexpensive, yummy breakfast for a couple of weeks!

First, gather your supplies. We kept it simple with eggs and sausage, but you could definitely add or substitute other ingredients that appeal to you (cheese, veggies, bacon, potatoes, etc.).

Prepare and combine your taco filling choices. First, I cracked and scrambled my 6 eggs. Next, I browned 1 pound of sausage. After my sausage was cooked through, I drained the fat and added my scrambled eggs. I continued stirring and combining my eggs and sausage until the eggs were completely cooked. Once my taco filling was finished, I set it to the side while I cooked my tortillas.

Hoot Hubby suggested making the tortillas for the breakfast tacos fresh. I wasn’t brave enough to make completely homemade tortillas, so I met him in the middle and bought a pack of the raw tortillas that you cook on the stove. The brand that I got was La Abuela, and I found it at Walmart. I’ve also used the HEB brand since then, and they also taste great.

The raw tortillas are very fragile, so be careful! As you can see in the pictures above, I accidentally tore the first one I tried cooking. Don’t worry though, they still taste equally delicious. 🙂 Also note that the tortillas will burn if the stove is too hot (duh). The stove should be on medium to low heat, and the tortilla should be flipped each time it starts bubbling up. Also in the burnt tortilla picture you can see an uncooked spot on the left of the tortilla. When the stove is too hot the tortilla will burn in some spots while other parts remain raw. Make sure all of the tortilla is cooked evenly and none of these raw spots remain. It is okay if there is some slight browning on the tortilla as seen in picture three, just make sure the spots don’t get too dark.

Once the tortillas are cooked, spoon the desired amount of taco filling into the tortilla and roll it up! If you’re eating the breakfast tacos right away, this is your last step, enjoy!

However, we were making a large batch of tacos, so I proceeded to wrap two at a time into paper towels and then place them in Ziploc storage bags in the freezer. Once we were ready to eat them for breakfast, I simply popped them in the microwave for a minute to heat them up! Feel free to sprinkle in some cheese before you heat your tacos or dip them in some salsa for an extra kick!

Half a dozen eggs and a pound of sausage made about 16 breakfast tacos. You could make more (or less) depending on how much filling you use in each taco. Based on the cost of my supplies, I’d say these tacos are less than $.50 each to make! Not too bad, especially when you consider a Whataburger taquito is usually over $2! Hope you enjoy this easy breakfast idea! (And thanks to Hoot Hubby for the idea of making these yummy tacos!)

Night Al Migrations: Texas Pride BBQ

Yummy Breakfast Tacos