Hurtado Barbecue — Restaurant in Arlington

06/18/21: I got off of work early and drove 45 minutes to Hurtado Barbecue to give it a try. I’ve been going to different bbq places across DFW to find the best food. I attempted to preorder 2-3 times before today’s visit, but I was unsuccessful each time so I arrived around 2:15 to avoid the lunch and dinner crowds.

Service: The customer service is great here. They aren’t the most efficient with the restaurant lay out, communication, and how to order your food, but every employee I interacted with was nice, friendly and accommodating. Lucky for me, there was only a short line and I didn’t have to wait out in the heat. The line was also fairly quick. (4/5)

Food: I was disappointed that the beef rib, burnt ends, Texas twinkies, Mac and cheese, and turkey were all sold out when it was my turn to order. I wanted to try all of them. My original order that I wanted (3 el jefe platters) was modified to the family of 4 meal (1 lb brisket, 1 lb ribs, 1/2 lb sausage, 4 small sides - baked potato salad, brisket beans, street corn, Cole slaw) and a 1/2 lb of pulled pork. With a nice tip, my total was $97. After I paid and when I was about leave, I saw more Mac and cheese show up in line. So, I got back in line and ordered a quart of Mac and cheese. When I got home and open up the large foil tray, everything looked good. I was told the Mac and cheese was sold out and assumed that I would of gotten Cole slaw with the other sides, but I received a small Mac and cheese. The brisket had good flavor and was a little dry. I was given a pound of the flat (lean) brisket and was a little disappointed. The ribs were tasty, but also a little dry. I didn’t try the pulled pork, but fiancé said it was good. The fideo sausage, brisket beans, and street corn were also good and had nice flavor. I really liked the Mac and cheese, but our favorite side was the baked potato salad. It was probably one of the best potato salads I’ve ever had. It was full of flavor and creamy without being too much. (4/5)

Overall: I wanted to give Hurtado 5 stars if I could, but I was disappointed in some of the dry meat (brisket, ribs) and being told the Mac and cheese mix up (waiting in line again to get Mac and cheese, getting the small Mac and cheese instead of the Cole slaw).

Suggestions: 1) The on-site ordering process is inefficient. Having a menu posted at the entrance/beginning of the line or having printed menus while people are waiting in line would help new customers decide on what to get instead of waiting to the very end. Posting what is out also would help. Also, asking customer if they want lean or moist brisket would be nice. 2) The preordering online system menu isn’t completely up to date and the ordering process isn’t clear. Instead of saying that online orders are cut off for the following day, it should say preorders end when the daily quota has been filled. Also, if you want to order more than a day in advance, shouldn’t you be able to order for that window of time or at least post what times are available if any are? Also, I wished all of the menu items that I saw today were available to order online (the family of 4 online is the game day party in the restaurant, the restaurant game day option isn’t available online, specialty items unavailable online - Huevos rancheros, Birria tacos, brisket migas, Reuben tacos). 3)Communication - Improved communication between the kitchen and order taker will help prevent confusion when customers want to order something that is unavailable or that they would have to wait for the food when it is ready. 4)Food packaging - The large foil tray was nice, but the paper container for the pickles and onions basically fell apart because of the liquid...

My dad, brother and I were in town for the Cowboys vs Ravens game a couple weeks ago (dad is diehard fan). On monday, which was our last day in town, we wanted to have ONE more bbq meal before flying back to Canada.

We arrived at 11am on the dot cuz we had watched youtube videos of bbq places w/ like 2+ hour lines and we did NOT have that kind of time on our hands. They were just opening the doors and we were the first customers of the day! The blonde girl was pretty nice explaining all the menu items to us.

With our El Jefe platter we opted for mac n' cheese and elotes for our 2 sides. We also ordered 3 birria tacos on the side for good measure.

Since we were the first customers of the day, the lady at the cash told us to have a seat. The food was brought to our table in like 5-10 min?

When we landed in town on the prev friday, the bbq on day one was already pretty good over at Meat U Anywhere. There were easily identifiable hits and misses over at that spot (some meats were WAYYY too salty) so we figured that it would be a similar experience here.

The 3 of us were really shocked when the bar was actually raised so much higher at this place. The bark on the meat exterior was way better. The sausage wasn't as salty. The ribs were tender and seasoned better. The burnt ends weren't TOO fatty (which was perfect btw ... I was scared they'd be mega fatty). The turkey was still moist. Everything on the platter was just done well!

But by far the best thing on that platter was the brisket. If given the option, I would've subbed the turkey out for more of this fatty brisket.

It was a night and day difference from the brisket we had on day one. THIS BRISKET REIGNS SUPREME. My God, I didn't have to chew. I thought we had just gotten an off batch on friday (since we also ordered fatty brisket at that place). I thought to myself, "this is what REAL texas brisket should taste like". The strongest affirmation is that silent nod of approval w/ my dad and bro as they looked at me while eating it too. This brisket is the real deal. chef's kiss

The birria tacos were not the best I've ever had, but the best on this particular trip. The consommé dipping sauce containers are a lil hard to dip into. Maybe serve a larger bowl or container of consommé to the customers so that it's easier to dip? Just a suggestion haha. Meat was very tender and they were not shy w/ the protein which we appreciated.

The mac n' cheese noodles I would've preferred a lil more al dente. They were slightly overcooked imo. The creamed mexican corn was fantastic! My dad and bro couldn't really handle the heat from the hot sauce mixed in so I ate most of it.

Finally, we were stuffed but we finished off w/ some warm peach cobbler which came topped with a scoop of ice cream. The pastry was nothing special but the filling was amazing.

As we were eating, we noticed how quickly the place filled up and a long line quickly began to form. Giant lines for bbq on a monday??? SHEEEEESH. You'd never see this in Canada lol.

I REALLY wanted to grab a beef rib but they only do them on sundays! Such a shame sad face. The blonde girl also told us they do barbacoa on sundays as well so it looks like sundays are the play!

When I'm back in Arlington again, this will be a MUST visit on the list (and most likely on a sunday too for that beef rib and barbacoa).

Really memorable meal to end off our trip. The ratings on Google and Yelp...

I've heard and seen so much hype about this place and came looking forward to trying it myself. When I arrived, it was around 2pm and there was a line forming outside the door (it's typical). There's a menu online on their website for people who want to know what they want ahead of time.

The building itself is small and nicely air conditioned. There aren't that many tables inside but if you do get a seat, they have TVs playing sports on one side of the restaurant and the other side is just a long bench and high chairs where people can sit. The benches were relatively clean with a few crumbs from other people sitting before us. They have a menu written where you order and it's written in large handwriting for people farther in line to see. They play some good modern country music too.

We ordered a 1/2 pound brisket, pint of mexican corn, single hatch chili mac and cheese, 1 quail, 1 order of birria tacos, and a mexican corn bread. You will have to get a bottle of bbq sauce yourself for the meat because it does not come with the order. I found a bottle of sauce outside on one of the outdoor tables.

Mexican corn bread: 10/10. Really really good and super unique. Next time, I would order 2 and ask for extra honey. It's that good. Definitively a must have, you won't regret. Moist and full of flavor.

Mexican street corn: 4/10. I mean it's good but it's not anything special from a regular elotes in a cup. To make it taste better I would probably ask for extra limes to squeeze into the cup and extra cheese but tbh not worth it to get a quart and I was disappointed. Also the hot sauce tastes like Valentino sauce or buffalo sauce and I personally don't like the taste.

Quail: 6/10. It's good but I wouldn't get it again. Too salty for me and has a lot of small bones (I mean it's quail but I didn't think it would come like this) but my bf thought it was good.

Brisket: 8/10. Pretty good brisket. Didn't "WOW" me but was pretty good. Not too tough, easily breakable but not too mushy. The edges had a lot of flavor. I would order an entire pound next time but my wallet had me order just a half pound.

Barbecue Sauce: 7/10. You have to find a bottle of bbq sauce somewhere on the tables, your order won't automatically come with it. Felt like it was too tangy, I like my bbq sauce a little sweeter. It's not bad though. Tasted great with the brisket and the quail.

Birria Taco: 6/10. It's good but not worth $5.50 for just a single birria taco (the online menu said 'Birria TacoS' so I thought it would come with multiple tacos but no it only comes with a single fat taco). Didn't "WOW" me either.

Hatch Green Chili Mac and Cheese: 8/10. Pretty good. Really light, creamy, cheesy, has a nice little kick from the hatch green chili. I approve. Would have switched out the corn for a pint of this instead.

Overall paid $40-$50 for the entire order. Didn't have to wait too long either, which is great.

If you say you want water, there's a water dispenser outside that you'll have to get it from. There's also someone who comes around outside to check on patrons. Overall good experience. I would come again with a better idea of what I want.

There is a sign that says that they sell as long as they still have whatever in stock so come early (hours say until 9pm but don't come too late because they might've run out of the...