If you're looking for a short road trip from Fort Worth that feels like a true getaway, you've got…read moreto check out Perini Ranch Steakhouse. From the moment you arrive, it feels like you're out in the middle of nowhere--in the best way possible. The rustic atmosphere is incredible, and on the cool day we visited, they had a wood-burning fireplace going right in the middle of the dining room. It made the whole experience feel cozy and authentic. What really stood out, though, was the people. The service was absolutely top-notch from start to finish. I even had the chance to chat with a woman who's been working there for over 20 years--she shared some of the restaurant's history and how it's evolved over time, which made the visit even more special. For food, we started with the fried quail legs--perfectly cooked and seriously delicious (we could've easily eaten more). For the main course, I had the ribeye cooked medium rare, and it was spot on--full of flavor and didn't need a thing added. My wife went with the hamburger steak and loved it as well. Great food, even better people, and an atmosphere that's hard to beat. We'll definitely be back.

Perini's is well known around Abilene and has a great reputation. We tried it twice and the upshot…read moreis this-- Great steaks. Few menu choices. Mediocre sides and appetizers. The ambience is fine; sortuv a rustic cabin feel. We've had great service the two times we went, and the table bread is wonderful. Not impressed with the thick, (cooked?) carpaccio or the overcooked brussel sprouts. Compared to the USA, it's a 3/5. But in Abilene? Maybe a 4/5.

The best BBQ I've had in the area. The restaurant itself is spacious, bright, and surprisingly…read moreupscale--almost more polished than you'd expect for a BBQ spot. I usually think the smaller, hole-in-the-wall places have the best food, but this place proved me wrong. The staff at The Shed were incredibly friendly and helpful, making the whole experience even better. Portions were generous, and everything tasted amazing. The brisket, in particular, stood out--it was moist, tender, and easily one of the best I've ever had. I even spoke with the manager to share how impressed I was, and he went above and beyond by taking me back to see the smokers. That really showed their pride in what they do. I can't say enough great things about The Shed Market--I just can't wait for my next trip back to Texas. Hope to add photos soon

This is a stand up business for sure! Not only the food was excellent, for some reason the…read moregentleman in the drive thru must have sensed I wasn't having the best day (I had to drive a four hour round trip to get parts for a machine) and he gave me a free cobbler. Everything I ordered was great, I had a better day starting at the Shed, and I can't wait to come back!

Absolutely some of the best BBQ I've had in ages - and I'm a bbq snob from Kansas City!…read more We had the sampler (brisket, pork ribs, pulled pork, pulled chicken, and one each of the mild and spicy sausages). I fully expected that one or two of the meats would be good and the rest just passable. I was wrong. Every single bite was spectacular. We also had the brisket and queso chips and pig candy - both were really tasty; the chips especially were very fresh and sprinkled with just a touch of bbq rub. We arrived a few minutes before they opened on a warm Saturday and the wait was about 75 minutes or so. Definitely worth standing in line for. There's ample outdoor (but covered) seating and plenty of good music playing, plus cornhole games if you're feeling competitive. Jays will be our go-to for BBQ the next time we're in Abilene! PS - if it's still available when you go, be sure to try the cherry chipotle sauce - it's amazing!

Outside of the big heavy hitters in major cities, Texas Monthly's Top 50 BBQ list often leads you…read moreto smaller joints you'd never think to visit otherwise. The list brought me three and a half hours north of Austin to try Jay's BBQ Shack in Abilene. My girlfriend and I got in line around 10:40 am, and it was already turning the corner. According to my Yelp research, if you're not early, you're late. The restaurant is in a super cool location. It's a red brick house where all the operations take place, with a huge side patio for seating. There are a lot of cute photo ops and things to look at while you move through the line, like it's a Disneyland queue. My favorite is the alien with a Guns N' Roses shirt, a Michelob, and Doritos shorts. Their menu is expansive. From your traditional meats to your plates, there are also sandwiches, tacos, queso, Frito pie, and more. The line moves at a slow but steady pace. Orders are taken at one window, and pickups happen at the next. We had a pretty sizable meal for the two of us, and it was just around $55, which felt pretty affordable for BBQ. We ordered the Texas Trinity (as I normally do regardless of it being an option or not). I didn't read the menu closely enough to realize it also came with two sides. The one-third pound brisket, sausage link, two ribs, and two sides total $31, which feels like a steal. I will now talk about everything I tried: Brisket: When you try so many all-star places, it feels harsh to call a place's brisket "alright" when compared to a Rudy's, which this is far better than. Compared to other Top 50 joints, though, their brisket was alright. Their fatty cut was good, but their lean was not impressive and a little dry. I hate to say that the lean needed some sauce to save it. Pork Ribs: The best thing on their menu. Their pork ribs are massive and very well-flavored on the bark. I would come back just for the ribs. Each pork rib is $3, and you can add as many additional ribs to your order, which is an awesome feature this joint has. New Mexico Christmas Sausage: It was fun to have "Christmas" sausage, but I wish it actually had the kick it should have had from the green and red peppers and pepper jack cheese. It was good nonetheless, but not impressive. Bread: Their bread is Texas toast, which I have yet to see at another BBQ joint and thought was super cool. Imagine a Raising Cane's toast slice. I do wish we got more for the amount of BBQ we ordered, and I don't know if that's something we were supposed to ask for, but one slice is not enough. Hatch Chile Mac and Cheese: It tastes like a classic cafeteria macaroni and cheese, which feels nostalgic. The panko breadcrumbs don't do much, and the spice is minimal, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. Jalapeño Corn: There was really no kick to this corn either. It tasted like canned corn. There'snothing else to say. Pork Candy: The pork candy, or their "Kansas City-Style Bacon Burnt Ends," was really nice. The saucy flavor was impressive. Having had a similar style of bacon before, I enjoyed the fattiness, but the better pieces were definitely the harder and less fatty cuts. Banana Pudding: A very well-done dessert and a great treat to wrap up the meal. There were plenty of BBQ sauces to choose from. Their traditional and mustard BBQ sauces were both good, but their spicy BBQ sauce was honestly terrible. It had this back-of-the-throat kick that didn't taste good. It felt like a hot sauce that didn't care about balancing heat and flavor, focusing instead on seeing what the heat could do. It wasn't significantly spicy, it truly just tasted bad. I think it's cool for Abilene to have a quality BBQ joint like Jay's, and I know it becomes a challenge to compare so many Top 50 spots. I think Jay's is good but not great. I've had better non-Top 50 joints but also worse Top 50 joints. If you're ever in the area, it's worth checking out, but not worth the trip to Abilene alone. On second thought, the alien guy who sits at the bench might be worth the trip alone other than that my girlfriend considered leaving me for him due to his raw beauty. What a jerk. RIYL: Hot Aliens

If we could have given negative stars we would have! Fatty brisket was nasty! I spit it out and…read morethrew it away. My wife had the baked potato which she said, " how can you mess that up." But they did. The sauce is vinegar based, a big fat NO NO in Texas! The St. Louis ribs looked boiled when I saw them prepared for the next customer. I know Bar B que and this is not it. Gas and clean restroom all good but avoid the restaurant

The food was delicious and the ladies at the counter were just too sweet. Okra was fresh, hot and…read moreoutstanding! Felt genuinely welcomed and left full!

Whether you are a fourth generation Texan or just passing through the Lone Star State, The Ball…read moreRanch is a very fun way to spend an evening out with friends or family. It is "toe-tapping, Western-swing at its finest!" The venue is a short drive outside of Abilene (less than 8 miles) and seats more than 200 people and can easily accommodate families, friends, anniversary parties or birthday parties. And even on the hottest days in Texas, the temperature in the venue (a new, modern barn) is very pleasant. The evening includes a home-cooked BBQ dinner (usually brisket, sausage, chicken, "tater salad" and beans, followed by homemade peach cobbler) cooked by the members of the Ball Family. Following dinner you will be entertained with a wonderful live musical performance by Gary and Sue Ball and their youngest daughter, Sherry Ball Luster. By way of background, the Ball Family is a third generation musically blessed family. The entire family sings, plays the guitar and writes many of their own songs. They are just as we say in Texas "good people." So the next time you are looking for a fun way to spend a Saturday evening, be sure to call the Ball Family ... I promise it will be worth your while! As this is the first review on Yelp, you can also view their Website at http://www.theballranch.com/. More pictures and information is available on their site. Have fun, y'all!

Visited for first time and had a great time. Very talented Christian family! Sense of humor is…read moreawesome and you can tell they really get along well and enjoy playing and singing. Country, Western swing, Christmas song; anything goes!

We ventured out for some all you can eat catfish so we gave this little gem a try! The catfish was…read morepretty good just prefer fillets instead of little tenders, but still a good deal and coleslaw was great and so were the fries, however the star of the show was loaded brisket nachos! OMG next time I go I am ordering this with double queso and double brisket! It was so delicious there as not one bite of anything left on the plate that we shared as an appetizer was perfect for 2 people but you would want the whole platter to yourself if having for dinner and to be really honest I wished I wouldn't have had to share! By far the Queso is the best I have had since I moved to Abilene, finally the search is over and the Mexican food places in Abilene need to take some lessons from them on how to make Chile con queso! AMAZING! The brisket on top with the tomatoes cilantro sour cream and jalapeños was the Bomb! I would totally have a chopped brisket sandwich here if they had some gluten free buns to put it on! And on top of everything else the service was on point, friendly attentive and just very accommodating' I hope she is there next time we go which will be very soon! Oh and best part we had a beer 2 all you can eat catfish plates and the loaded brisket nachos and a big iced tea, all that under 45 bucks pretty awesome for date night! THANK YOU FOR AN AWESOME EVENING AND FANTASTIC DINNER, see you soon Betty Rose's Little Brisket This was the Cat Claw location!

I have gone through the drive through here a number of times- typically for chopped beef…read more If i get a pound of chopped bedf, it typically comes with a cup tub of sauce. Last time through, I ordered 2 lbs of chopped beef and told her a pint of bbq sauce. When i looked at my ticket, they charged for the pint of sauce and my normal free sauce wasn't included. Today, I ordered 4 lbs of meet at 1:33 and it took 20 minutes with a line of cars behind me. I had already waited in line for maybe 10 minutes. It was 11:33 and they open at 11:00 and they were already out of chicken. So, they ask if i want pickle and onions and I said yes. Finally got home and opened the bag and no pickle and onions. I opened the chopped beef and these globs of fat were laying right on top. Don't have high hopes for the rest of it. Their "pulled pork" is actually shredded, heavily sauced with something and has a real wanky taste. It will hit the trash.

The food was very good. I had the one meat plate with brisket and Mac and cheese and fries. That…read morewas all good. However I feel cheated on the price. It said a one meat plate was 16 dollars. However when I looked at the receipt it said 27 dollars and said a 8 dollar add on for brisket. If brisket is an option it should be specified it is extra. Staff was nice however and it was in a nice warehouse sort of building with cool decorations. Overall I would recommend this to a friend but tell them to be mindful of what they buy. Great food!

The brisket was good for a lesser known place. I really enjoyed the environment. The thing I was…read moredisappointed in was that I had to buy a half rack of ribs $18 in order to try them. This is the only place I have seen that did not serve it by the pound. A half pound should've been 2 ribs. I would consider being more customer friendly in regard to letting them break it down to pounds, no matter the meat.

This place is so random yet awesome! Leave it to Texas to have a drive thru beer place that sells…read moreBBQ. Drove from Abilene after getting a recommendation from a neighbor. It definitely did not disappoint! Ordered a Brisket Sandwich and 10 wings with Sweet Chilli Sauce. The Brisket sandwich was on point with what a Texas Brisket Sandwich should be. The bun was awesome and I had them put onions and pickles on it. The wings were good but on the small side. The flavor was excellent and they were crispy enough. I wish the wings were a little bigger or should I say meatier. Regardless of that I would still trek out here to this fine random establishment. Now I know why they had a line of 8 cars when I pulled it.

I was told about this place by a friend... I have to say I was hesitant at first but I am so glad…read morewe took the trip to try this place out! We got the sweet chilli, buffalo, and the mango habanero wings. All were delicious!! We also got the 1 meat plate, (Brisket) with potato salad and fried okra.. All very delicious. I will definitely be coming back here again!

What a fabulous place to eat! Authentic real food in a spotless fun atmosphere!! Great country…read moremusic playing and a super friendly owner! Wish we had discovered this jewel years ago. We will be back!! Congrats on doing such a great job!

The food was delicious and I loved it the ribs was moist and tender and the service was on point…read morenice and friendly and I will be going back there keep up the good work

We were in town over in De Leon for work and came across this place about 10 miles away. Fair…read morewarning that apple and google maps cant find it correctly, but we drove around for a few minutes and saw the huge stacks of wood outside and knew we arrived. We ate inside the little building which is so cute snd charming. Not being from Texas, loved the authentic decor from the owners grandparents. We spoke to the owner and who we assumed was his daughter as we ordered and ate. So friendly and just lovely people. As for the food, we got the sampler platter which isn't on the menu but if you are 2 or even up to 6 people, get it. It has EVERYTHING! Ribs, brisket, pulled pork, sausage, ham and all the tasty sides. Everything was delicious. Best brisket I've had in Texas and the biggest ribs I haver ever seen. All the sides were equally delicious! He devoured the corn and cole slaw, I gobbled the beans and mac and cheese. The potato salad isn't like chunks of potato-more like mashed potatoes with a mustardy vinegar kick. Different but really good! Beans had bacon and great flavor. I was also incredibly shocked the entire thing was only $35 dollars! INSANELY good price for the amount of food. Would absolutely go back and support them. We also had leftovers for 2 more meals when we left!

They have good fish on Friday but we went with pulled pork sandwich, chopped beef sandwich and…read moreloaded baked potato. All very good. Cole slaw was a little tangy which I really liked. Takes a while to get food if the drive through is backed up.