I haven't posted in quite some time, but I have some time while sitting in the airport in Austin Tx waiting on my flight.
An old friend I met at the National Fire Academy in 2009 recently asked me to come down and teach a couple of Incident Command classes for his FD. If you know me well, I never turn down a good travel teaching gig, especially for an old friend. I won't bore you with the details of the class, but it was a total success, the folks in class did great and responded to the material and really showed their leadership skills.
When I travel I love to eat and mom and pop joints. I like to eat where the locals eat. It helps me get a "flavor" for the locals, and also gives me a chance to bond with the students, as well as the leadership of the host department(s). I love eat, and I love to talk, what can I say?
There is no way I'm coming all the way to Austin / Pflugerville Texas and not eating Texas BBQ. My buddy Mike Anderson took me to a Texas BBQ place called Brotherton's. It was great, I highly recommend the Brisket and the spicy smoked sausage and the jalapeno mac and cheese . Great lunch with awesome folks.
On my last day of instruction, one of the students told me about a place out in the sticks that his family has ties to. The place is rich in local history as well as movie history. The Cele Store (pronounced seal) is what is left of a small community outside of Austin TX and The Cele Store was first established as the Richland Saloon in 1891. The store has been in many movies, to include Secondhand Lions, A Perfect World and Texas Chainsaw Massacre I, II and III.
It has an old Brick BBQ pit built in the 1960's. The food was awesome. Thursday nights is Pork Ribs, Pork Loin and Spicy Sausage. I ordered all three. The sides where pickles, onions and hoop cheese. I think I was more fascinated by the locals and the look and feel of the place. I walked in and the locals at the bar noticed I was not "from around here" and made me feel welcome and the lady serving food motioned me to a table and gave me the rundown on the menu for the night.
The floor was wooden, uneven and patched from years of use. You could feel and smell the wood stove in the center of the room as soon as you walked in. The walls are covered with Texas memorabilia from many years of the store's operation and famous visitors like Clint Eastwood, Robert Duvall and many more.
After the meal, I was invited to hang out at the bar and shoot the bull with the locals. I was made to feel like a local and just like the entire trip, I experienced down home Texas hospitality. At one point when I was trying to get my ride app to cooperate , one of the guys said, "If that thing don't work, don't worry, we will get you back to the hotel" I took a few pics and stole some from the internet, but they don't do the joint justice. If ever in the Austin area, wonder out that way, but check the hours before you go, they are only open Thursday night, Friday night and part of Saturday. You will thank me later.
