Salt, pepper, post oak and a lot of patience. A look at the overnight shift behind the brisket that goes on our burgers.
The brisket on our burgers starts the night before you eat it. While the dining room on Calloway Street is being mopped, the smoker out back is just getting going.
The rub and the wood
Jack Hollis has used the same rub since we opened in 2014: coarse salt and cracked black pepper, nothing else. The meat is trimmed, seasoned and left to sit for an hour so the salt can start its work.
We burn post oak. It gives a clean, steady smoke that flavors the beef without covering it up, and it holds a low fire for hours without much fuss.
Low, slow and overnight
The briskets go on at around nine in the evening and cook at a low heat for about twelve hours. Somewhere past the halfway mark we wrap each one in butcher paper, which keeps the bark firm and the inside moist.
Nobody rushes this part. A brisket is done when a probe slides in with no resistance, not when the clock says so.
Rest, slice, stack
After the smoker, the meat rests for at least an hour so the juices settle. Then Marisol Vega and the morning crew slice it against the grain and pile it onto a flame-grilled patty.
When the day's brisket is gone, it is gone until tomorrow. Order early if it is the reason you are coming.
