I had to experience the bitter disappointment of trying out the new, so called, "true" BBQ restaurant that is located in select H.E.B. stores. BLUF -- If Florence Butt or her son Howard Edward Butt knew that the little grocery store they founded was eventually going to sink this low, they'd have picked a different business venture. The location I visited was in Melissa, Texas just not far from the Texas/Oklahoma border. I really wanted some brisket, so I told my iPhone to find me the closest BBQ joint. The H.E.B. is just off of Highway 75 across from a Buc-ee's. Other than one major health and safety issue, the physical layout of the place wasn't bad. It's sort of like a BBQ restaurant at an airport. There were two levels and even an elevator for patrons to ride upstairs to the upper dining area. While I was standing there looking at the menu on the wall, I heard the leadership in the kitchen get angry and tell the associate working the window that they had neglected to put the container of queso into a drive thru customer's bag. I can only imagine how that person felt when they opened their bag and found their order was incomplete. My experience: 1) The pricing scheme is unacceptable! I wanted the two meat plate. The board listed the price of the two meat plate as $14.00 - $25.00. A valued customer doesn't know how much their meal is until they order on the touch screen. I'm in my 60s and I've been eating BBQ in Texas as long as I can remember. Sure, many BBQ joints in Texas have pricing as: "Two meat plate - $xx.xx (ribs + $x.xx"). I've never experienced, in my life a business where a customer doesn't know how much they are going to have to pay until they order. I'll have to check with the FTC and see if this is even legal. 2) An order can't be completed for an in-store order unless you provide a phone number. There is no override. Hell will freeze over before I'll give H.E.B. my phone number for an eat in order paid for with cash. I just typed in a random phone number. I wonder if someone received a text and was thinking, "What's an H.E.B?" 3) Value -- None here! I paid $21.00 for a two meat plate with brisket and burnt ends. What adds insult to injury was that there was only ONE... One slice of brisket. I've never had a serving of brisket that had less than three slices. I didn't order a slice of meatloaf! For ~$25.00, I can get an entire pound of brisket, or most other meats at just about any joint where I live here in Central Texas. 4) I don't normally complain about portions being too big, but the sides were. Most of the two sides went into the garbage. I'd rather have a side a third of this size and get larger meat portions. 5) The waste bin was overflowing with garbage and obviously not being monitored. This is a health and safety violation in many states. Other than the above, it was a beautiful day in Texas! My advice to anyone who reads this is to look elsewhere for your BBQ requirements. Let's face it. Buying BBQ at a grocery store is like buying sushi at a gas station. I'm waiting for H.E.B.'s poor customer support to respond to my positive input on their website. Mark my words it will probably contain: "Thank you for your input. We value our customers' input and will seriously review your comments." "We are so sorry for your experience. We've contacted the store manager and region supervisor." "We'd like to offer you a gift card for your experience." NOTE: I DO NOT accept bribes so I will not be taking anything from H.E.B.! This is H.E.B.'s "Cracker Barrel" moment. I'd suggest that people not patronize their soon to be failed BBQ experiment. When will they learn? read more