Las Trancas Taco Stand in Austin is the East Cesar Chavez food truck for late-night al pastor and barbacoa, a Texas Monthly best-tacos pick with $1.50 tortillas off a small grill.
Tip: Tacos are small; order four to start. The al pastor and barbacoa are the room's two reasons to return.
Address: 1210 E Cesar Chavez St, Austin, TX 78702
Pueblo Viejo on Tillery Street in Austin is the original 2010 East Side taco truck from Nestor and Margarita, the breakfast-taco operation that locals tag as their corner truck.
Try: Breakfast tacos and barbacoa
Tip: Bean-and-cheese on a homemade flour tortilla; the barbacoa runs out by 11am most weekdays.
Tacodeli in Austin is Roberto Espinosa's Spyglass Drive flagship since 1999, the local breakfast-taco chain known for Salsa Dona and a 25-year run as Texas's best taco counter.
Try: Tacos al Pastor and breakfast tacos
Tip: Order Tacos al Pastor and a Heather; the cult Salsa Dona is the bottle you take home from the merch shelf.
InterStellar BBQ in Austin is John Bates and Brandon Martinez's North-side smokehouse on RR 620, a Michelin Star 2024-25 BBQ shop in the former Noble Pig location.
Try: Smoked brisket and house sides
Tip: The smoked-prime-rib special on Sundays sells out by 13:00; pre-order online for pickup.
Micklethwait Craft Meats in Austin is Tom Micklethwait's BBQ smokehouse on Tanney Street, a Michelin Bib Gourmand kitchen relocated from the 12-year Rosewood trailer in 2025.
Try: Smoked brisket and house sausage
Tip: The kitchen runs Thursday to Sunday; pre-order online to skip the brisket-and-sausage line.
LeRoy and Lewis in Austin is the South Austin brick-and-mortar of Sawyer Lewis and Evan LeRoy's BBQ since 2023, a 5,000-sq-ft smokehouse known for beef cheek and Texas sides.
Try: Smoked brisket and beef cheek
Tip: Beef cheek is the kitchen's signature beyond brisket; order it before 13:00 or it runs out.
Distant Relatives in Austin is Damien Brockway's modern African American BBQ trailer at Meanwhile Brewing's South Austin yard, a James Beard semifinalist with cookery-roots plates.
Try: Modern African-American barbecue
Tip: Sit at Meanwhile Brewing's beer garden and order the BBQ to the table; the kitchen runs to 17:00.
