It was a ruinous decision. This spring, after nearly a decade of bitter negotiations, the heirs parted ways. In any other state, this would be a minor spat. In Texas, it's the stuff of high culinary tragedy, and it has made headlines from Fort Worth to San Antonio. Even though the old restaurant won't be closing, and even though the beef shoulder at the new restaurant will presumably taste the same, the move unsettles people here, as if the state's borders had shifted in the night.
Numbers reflect the emotions barbecue provokes.
The state hosts over 200 separate barbecue competitions, more than the rest of the nation combined, judged by seven different official state panels, compared with three in the rest of the country. Most Texas towns, no matter how small, have a joint. Definitions of barbecue vary around the country and according to where one exits Interstate 35 in Texas. Nuances abound and are taken seriously. Sauce can start fights.