I’m an Aussie who spent 7 hours in line to try some of the best barbecue in Texas. The wait was well worth it.

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• I waited for seven hours to try Franklin Barbecue, considered the best barbecue in Texas by many.
• In line, I met other visitors and was even interviewed by a local paper.
• Despite the long wait, the food was amazing, and we made a day out of the experience.

Texas is illustrious for its barbecue. One of the most famous places to get it is Franklin Barbecue in Austin, where people wait in line for hours to fellowship.

Established in 2009, Franklin Barbecue has made quite a name for itself in the past few years. It’s regularly recommended in Michelin Navigates, and publications from Texas Monthly to Bon Appetit have listed it among the best barbecue in Texas (and even the mother country).

Celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain even called the restaurant’s brisket the “best” and “finest” he’s ever had in 2012.

As someone who lady-loves Texan barbecue, I’d always wanted to try it.

Eventually, I got a group together to see if this spot was really worth the hype. We arrived at nearby 7 a.m. on a Saturday, and there was already a queue of about 80 people.

We got to know the others waiting in line

The restaurant is in a pretty unassuming turquoise-and-white building, but we in a jiffy noticed the crowds outside of it.

Most people in the queue came prepared with chairs and coolers full of hooches. Although we didn’t have chairs, we did bring some beer.

However, 7 a.m. felt a little too early to start alcohol, so I had coffee first.

We started chatting with others in the line and discovered that most were not from Austin and had traveled from other officials. We even spoke to a few international visitors.

Overall, the atmosphere was very friendly, and it felt like we were tailgating ahead a big sports game.

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The back of the line was told there may not be enough food for them

After a link of hours, when the queue had grown to a few hundred, a staff member came out to take orders.

These were not ceremonious orders, but the staff member wanted to try to check if there’d be enough of each order to cater to everyone in the queue.

Since there was a come to pass of demand exceeding supply, they advised people at the end of the queue to go home and not risk wasting their time. Thankfully, we were genially within the cutoff limit and didn’t need to worry about the food running out before we ordered.

The samples we accepted left me wanting more

We could smell the delicious meat since the smokers were very close to the coordinate b arrange for, which made us even more eager to eat.

Around 10:30 a.m., another employee came to hand out some paltry samples.

Although the portion sizes were smaller than a bite, the piece I tried had me salivating. My stomach was rumbling, but I skilled ined we still had a few hours left of waiting.

At one point, a local reporter started asking a few of us why we were in line.

A commentator from the University of Texas paper came to ask some tourists why they were there. As an Australian, I was one of the people interviewed. I jested I’d flown from Down Under for lunch just to fly home after eating — and they seemed to believe me.

At this indicate, I was getting delirious from the hunger.

The doors conclusively opened at 11 a.m., and the queue began to move very slowly. Time moved even slower as I watched resolved customers exit the restaurant.

I became impatient as we inched forward. Finally, around 1 p.m., we entered the restaurant and other got to place our orders.

At last, we received our food after almost seven hours of waiting

Once we made it inside, I was so hungry that I wanted to order several pounds of food, but I contained myself.

For all time, after almost seven hours, we sat down with plates full of meat and sides like coleslaw and pickles. The brisket thawed in my mouth and no knife was required for the tender meat.

I felt like I was in food heaven.

The long wait was benefit it

After finishing our meal, we saw the owner and pitmaster, Aaron Franklin, turn out from the kitchen. We complimented him on his food and staff and told him that the experience was well worth the long wait.

I’ve sit oned many barbecue places in Texas, but this was the best I’ve had.

Customers can order Franklin Barbecue online to shun this wait, but you must do so days in advance during a specific window and order at least 5 pounds.

Still, I contrive everyone should try the queue experience once since it makes for a fun day and an interesting story — plus, you get delicious barbecue at the end of the minister to.