Recommended BBQ in Dallas.

Okay, it aint Central Texas. I've been to Kreuz, Southside, The Salt Lick, Louie B Mueller's and the rest of the great Centex joints. BTW, Driftwood's Salt Lick will be opening a second restaurant right here in the DFW area within a year or so. Salt Lick #2 will open for business in the Joe Pool Lake area hopefully this or next year. Hate to be so unclear but the opening date keeps getting pushed back. It will happen, however, so maybe help is on the way for those that will not settle for anything less.

Please don't call my few lines above a disclaimer. I just want to make sure folks are aware that the writer has had his share of genuine article so that maybe you will read on about a place that my family has gone to for years.

Odom's BBQ in West Dallas has been a great option in Dallas for me for years. When I am not in Austin to watch the Longhorns and eat some BBQ at one of the hallowed joints, I get to Odom's when I want down home BBQ. Odom's was once Hardeman's but changed names when the franchise changed hands from one family member to another. A couple of other locations operate under the Odom's name. One in Duncanville and one in Cedar Hill, both southern suburbs of Dallas.

Odom's does it the old fashioned way. They use indirect heat and wood to smoke their meats. If you like Pittsburg style links then this is the place. The brisket is delicious, whether you opt for the sliced or chopped beef sandwich. One thing to know here, chopped beef at Odom's isn't leftover beef doused in sauce and left sitting in a pan. Your chopped beef is sliced off the brisket and chopped when you order it. The sauce is zesty and tangy. Whipped potato salad, some of the best I've had, and ranch style beans round out your order. The beans may be from a can but I like them just the same. The potato salad is made from scratch and is as down home as it gets. Order some if you like whipped mashed potatoes. The texture is the same.

Leave room for dessert if you go around lunch time. Odom's serves the best peach cobbler I've ever had. It's gone by lunch time, so don't look for it at dinner. So good you can feel the butter coagulating in your veins. Wonder how many sticks go in each pan they make?

Odom's is located in West Dallas, a fairly tough section of town. You can get there the following ways. From Texas Stadium area (Loop 12): take Loop 12 to the Singleton exit. Turn left onto Singleton and head East. Odom's is on your left hand side just past the Hampton RD- Singleton intersection. From American Airlines Center area (I-35): Going South on I-35 take the Continental street exit. Turn right onto Continental (you'll be headed away from the AAC) and go through the Industrial Street intersection and onto the Continental street bridge. Go over the Trinity River on the bridge and follow Continental until you get to Odom's. It will be on the right hand side. If you get to Hampton Road, you've gone too far.

I've been eating at Odom's most of my life. My family started out in this part of town and I still get back there when I need a fix of great down home BBQ. Go at lunch and you shouldn't have any worries about your safety and you can have some of the cobbler, the best kept secret in Dallas as far asdesserts are concerned. You might have to wait in line, but it will be worth it.

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