(817) 615-9408
Parking: parking lot
Hours: Mon-Thurs 11am-9:30pm, Fri-Sat 10:30am-10pm, Sun 10:30am-9:30am
Last Visited: March 5, 2025
Food: 3 to 4 stars
Atmosphere: 3 to 4 stars
Service: 2 to 4 stars
Price: $$ to $$$
Terry Black's Barbecue - incredibly popular by name, even if you live outside of Texas. Friends had told me to go to locations outside of Austin (the original) to have a shorter wait time, and since I was in Fort Worth at lunch time, I stopped into this newer spot.
There is ample parking in the lot behind the restaurant and when we arrived at 11am on a weekday, we were second in the line. Even later into the lunch hour, the line moved at a quick pace.
We were promptly and warmly welcomed by the friendly lady at the sides station who served as the main greeter. She asked us if we had been in before and when we said it was our first time, she kindly explained how everything worked - start at the sides/dessert station and move down the line to select your meats. It feels like a cafeteria line as you move your own tray and make selections, but it keeps things moving fast. You get your drinks after you have paid at the last station after the registers.
Choices of sides include mac & cheese, pinto beans, cream corn, Mexican rice, green beans, potato salad, and cole slaw. Dessert options include banana pudding, peach cobbler, and pecan pie. Both sides and dessert are available in single, pint, quart, or gallon servings. There were also a few options like chips, avocado, cheese by the pound, cornbread, and jalapenos. A couple of slices of white bread comes with your order, although I opted for only one slice, as well as pickles and red onions. 
- Green beans - We opted to get some vegetables and these green beans were nicely done. Seasoned with shallots or onions, but not too salty. Tender, but not overcooked. The picture shows a single serving. $4.25
- Peach cobbler - A friend had told me to try the peach cobbler, but I thought this was just ok. It wasn't overly sweet, but not to my taste. Maybe if it wasn't packaged in a container with a lid, but I knew I wasn't going to be able to finish it all there. Still, even though I ate some right away, I wasn't a fan. $4.75
Aside from meat that is sold by 1/3, 1/2, 3/4, or 1 pound, you can also order sandwiches, including combo meals. The menu choices for meat include brisket, pork ribs, beef ribs (sold by the bone), chopped beef, turkey, and house made sausage (jalapeno or original).
Here's where the service rating comes in. While the greeter deserves 4 to 5 stars for her warm welcome, the ladies cutting and weight the meat lacked warmth and didn't quite listen. Maybe they hadn't warmed up yet as the place had just opened. Maybe it was an off day for both of them, but when the customer says no, you shouldn't push the food on them. There are two people at the cutting station - one to cut the meat and the other to weigh and enter the items into your tab.
- Pork ribs - The ribs have been seasoned well and have just the lightest layer of fat on top. The inside is a delicate pink and while it's not fall off the bone, they're good ribs that have a nice mix of fat and meat. The smoky flavor of the meat is not overwhelming. It was a bit salty, but with the bread and green beans, it was fine. Are they the best ribs I've ever had? No, but they're good - solid for barbecue. $30/pound
- Beef Brisket - My coworker, Daniel, had told me to ask to mix in fatty parts - fatty 40 lean 60, so I did just that and the ladies at the cutting station looked at me with puzzled faces. Maybe it would have been better to educate me that I can just ask for lean or moist (I learned about this later), but they seemed a bit annoyed with my ask. The lady cutting the brisket asked how many slices we wanted so I asked her to show me how big a slice was. The first piece she cut was on the edge of a just cut piece of brisket. When she showed me that piece, I asked for four, but as the slices got progressively larger and thicker, I knew that was going to be too much. I asked for less, but she insisted that even with the ribs, that was just right for two people. I didn't feel heard and I ended up with more than a pound of meat. It wasn't about cost, but as I knew I would be traveling and didn't have any type of cooler, and that dinner would be early tonight, this was way too much food. The brisket was tender and smoky, but on the salty side. The barbecue technique looks good with the pink ring on the surface of the smoked meat. Sauces were tangy - I needed some sauce to balance out the salt. Even though I the brisket had fat in it, it dried out during the course of the meal so that it wasn't so moist anymore. Okay, but not the best brisket of the trip. $35/pound
During our meal, a woman came and asked us if we were enjoying our meal and whether we had been there before. She also let us know that the barbecue is available by mail. She did a great job checking in without intruding and checked on all of the tables in addition to clearing anything at the tables that people had left behind.
Terry's barbecue is an efficient operation and good for an introduction to a solid barbecue experience. While some staff are very good, there could be some retraining for others to improve the service, especially for newcomers. Even though the slices of brisket were cut, I think they could have taken some back instead of saying that was right for two people. For this reason, I can't recommend this location even though the food is fine.
