Monday, November 24, 2008

The Rusty Star - Waco, TX





My companions and I decided to make a pit stop in Waco on our annual journey to the great sprawl of D-FW, heeding the advice of none other than the most famous man to live near Waco...



...Ted Nugent.

We arrived at The Rusty Star, fiending for brisket after the Austin traffic made the typically quick hop to Waco a long haul. In typical Texas fashion, the surroundings were simply decorated, the drinks were cold and the people were welcoming. The food was some of the most underrated barbeque in Central Texas.

The brisket at the Rusty Star had a rich, smokey flavor with a little pink around the edges and a perfect combination of fat and lean.

I can always appreciate a good pork sausage, and this one was terrific. A huge pet peeve of mine is greasy sausage, which was not the case at the Rusty Star. The link I had tasted smokey and had just the right kick to it.

Sadly, I don't remember a whole lot about the potato salad or the beans, which means they were just OK. The potato salad was a little dry with a mild, dill flavor. The beans neither added nor detracted from the greater meal, occupying their space on the disposable plastic plate in a pretty unassuming manner.

The sauce was of the thick, semi-sweet variety, with a little bit of spice thrown in. Nothing too special, but it was a good compliment to the meats we tasted. The tea was good too, which is always a plus.

The only real drawback to the Rusty Star was the lack of beer, which probably worked out in our favor because we still had half a trip to Dallas waiting for us outside. All in all, the Rusty Star is a worthy stop if you ever find yourself hungry on the drive outside of Waco. This joint is a far better option than any of the eateries in the culinary wasteland of northern Bell County. -Andy


Ted Nugent eats here. Enough said. - Lawrence