original location

As much as I love Texas and consider it "home", I was never a huge fan of Texas barbecue. Part of the reason for that is because I grew up favoring Georgia/Carolina style barbecue - generally a vinegar-based barbecue centered around pork, as opposed to a tomato-based barbecue centered around beef. There are still some I love, especially the Salt Lick (original location) in Driftwood. Worth the drive. In Dallas, Sonny Bryan's is one of the most common barbecue chains - it seems like you see one every time you turn around. Maybe for that reason, (my prejudice against chains) I had never been and I discounted it as not being anything special. My friend Myron was surprised to hear that I had never been, so he took me to the original location on Inwood for lunch while I was there. I would guess that little has changed in this location in 90 years. Its a small little box of a building, with one small room lined with school desks. The other room is just the service counter and just a few basic items listed on the wall. Clearly not what I expected. Myron said other locations were what most would consider "nicer" and had much broader menus, but he knew I'd like this location. As usual, he was right. The choices are just the basics - your choice of meats as platters or as sandwiches, po'Boys, and ribs. The sauce is tangy and has a great bite to it, and the meat is tender and barely needs chewing. If you're going for barbecue in Dallas, Sonny Bryan's - the Original Location - is worth putting on your list.