Can you keep a secret? Clyde Biggins looks to expand his underground BBQ operation in West Dallas

Pitmaster Clyde Biggins of Clyde's Rolling Bar-B-Que. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse)

At Clyde's Rolling Bar-B-Que -- a trailer on Westmoreland Road in West Dallas open two days a week and soon to be three -- there's as much nostalgia on the menu as smoked meat.

"Is that Clyde?" an elderly man said as he stopped his big pickup truck beside Clyde Biggins' barbecue pit last Saturday afternoon.

"It's Clyde," Clyde said.

"Do you know me?" the man in the pickup said.

They talked for several minutes, recalling when, two decades ago, Clyde ran a popular barbecue joint a couple blocks away. But after the man left, Clyde still wasn't exactly sure who he was.

"I've been on vacation for 18 years," Clyde said. "After my vacation, my mind went blank."

Hipster pitmasters? Young guns of BBQ? Resurgence of Texas tradition? There's a BBQ revolution happening and we don't know what to call it

Pecan Lodge pitmaster Justin Fourton and his infamous "Slim Pickins" sign. (Photo ©Daniel Goncalves)

As Posse member Jim Rossman and I ate at Pecan Lunch Thursday, we talked about how to characterize what's happening now in Texas barbecue. Something big is going on and it needs a name.

We had just heard BBQ Snob and new Texas Monthly barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn call it a "resurgence." He referred to young pitmasters, like Justin Fourton at Pecan Lodge, adopting the old school ways and using only wood to cook for a new generation of barbecue fans.

(Note: To hold our place, Rossman arrived at 10:45 a.m., 15 minutes before opening, and was about 40th in line. Vaughn, by coincidence, was about 10 people ahead. So, we chatted.)

Previously, in Posse circles, we've talked about the new "young guns" of barbecue redefining how we eat the national food of Texas. Nice term.  Good for headlines. But does it really describe what's happening?

Then Rossman said: "Hipster pitmasters."

Our first Posse wedding and our first taste of John Lewis' pitmaster magic at La Barbecue in Austin

Ali cuts Easter brisket at La Barbecue "Cuisine Texicana" in Austin. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) 

Over a three-day period recently, Posse co-founder Chris Wilkins and I each ate at La Barbecue "Cuisine Texicana" the trailer start-up in Austin featuring pitmaster John Lewis -- and free beer.

Comparing notes later, we agreed that La Barbecue would have fared well in our recent Best of Texas Tour.

We didn't include it because the joint opened last November and has been operating only a few months. Longevity is a consideration.

On this trip, we went to Austin for the wedding of Posse members Libby Jacobson, my daughter, and Mike Gagne. It was the first wedding in the four-year history of the Posse.

Catching up with pitmaster Travis Mayes at Meshack's Bar-Be-Que Shack in Garland

The Tuesday lunch crowd at MeShack's Bar-Be-Que Shack in Garland. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse)

It had been too long, so I went out to visit old BBQ friends in Garland on Tuesday.

Travis and Donna Mayes opened the now legendary Meshack's Bar-Be-Que Shack in May 2009. They led the way to a renaissance of Dallas barbecue that has been exhilarating, including the opening of Pecan Lodge and Lockhart Smokehouse. New joints continue to open in the D/FW area almost monthly now, some good, some bad.

BBQ snob Daniel Vaughn put MeShack's on the map in late 2009, giving them his first four-star rating in the D/FW area. We made the first of many visits there in March 2010, thrilled to find a great BBQ joint within driving distance of downtown Dallas for lunch.

After dining on brisket sandwiches and burnt ends on my tailgate on Tuesday, Marshall Cooper and I got a chance to catch up with Donna and Travis.

BBQ Signs of Our Times is back

Country Kitchen, Lampasas. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse)

A Posse rule of thumb: The cooler the sign, the better the barbecue. Nine times out of ten this has proved true.

BBQ Signs of our Times is back once again,with some memorable signs from our last trip to the Hill Country and points in between. This is our seventh blog post on classic BBQ signs. You can use the search box in the upper right of the Posse blog homepage if you'd like to see some other sign posts, just search "BBQ Signs of Our TImes".

If you happen to see a cool sign while you're out on the Texas BBQ Trail, please snap a photo and keep us in mind. If you're a fan of our Texas BBQ Posse Facebook page, you can upload a photo for us to include on a future BBQ signs blog post.

Miller's Smokehouse in Belton, one of the best-kept secrets in Texas BBQ

Dirk Miller chats with a customer outside Miller's Smokehouse in downtown Belton. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins) 

One of the best-kept secrets in Texas BBQ is located just a stone's throw from Interstate 35 in downtown Belton.

The next time you're speeding down the freeway on your way to stand in line for two hours to get BBQ in Austin, you might want to take the Main Street exit in Belton to 208 N Penelope St., the home of Miller's Smokehouse.

I dropped in for a late lunch at Miller's on my way to Austin on Friday. This was my third visit there and it was quite good the first time Marshall Cooper and I visited a year ago. It was exceptional on Friday.