Are you traveling to the Lone Star State this weekend for the big game, No. 1 Texas vs. No. 4 Georgia? Are you looking to get your bulldog paws on some good ole Texan barbecue?

Well look no further. The Athens Banner-Herald has found several places that locals frequent and have rated with love just for you. Go get your grub on (and bring some back for me, please).

The Salt Lick BBQ

Hours: Sunday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. & Friday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m.

Address: 18300 Ranch to Market Rd 1826, Driftwood, Texas

Phone number: 512-858-4959

Located in Driftwood, a roughly 40-minute scenic drive from Darrell K Royal—Texas Memorial Stadium and downtown Austin, The Salt Lick BBQ was founded in 1967 and has been smoking meat ever since.

The 4.6-star rated restaurant offers a plethora of smoked meats and delicious sides for everybody. Whether you want family-style, all you can eat, a plate or a sandwich, or even a half pound of meat, The Salt Lick has it. Diners can pick from a dozen sides and three cobblers (blackberry, peach or half & half) or chocolate pecan pie for dessert.

They even have their own trademarked BBQ sauce, which they sell in restaurant, in store and online. The sauce is a “Southeastern style that has been Texa-fied,” according to the website.

If you want meat for a tailgate, you can actually mail-order it and the Salt Lick website provides instructions on how to reheat different ways (outdoors, oven, etc.). Their meats are vacuum-sealed and sent via FedEx to the lower 48. Though, same-day delivery is not available, so start placing now!

Terry Black’s BBQ

Hours: Sunday-Thursday, 10:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m. & Friday-Saturday, 10:30 a.m.-10 p.m.

Address: 1003 Barton Springs Rd, Austin, Texas

Phone number: 512-394-5899

Located just outside downtown Austin, just a 15-minute drive from the UT football stadium and on the outskirts of Butler Metro Park, Terry Black’s BBQ is a family-owned pitstop brought to the city from Lockhart, run by Terry’s three children: Christina, Michael and Mark Black.

This 4.5-star rated restaurant is a gluten- and dairy-free friendly atmosphere, with brisket, ribs, sausages, turkey and beef. You can get them in family packs with several pounds or on sandwiches, and even chilled, and they have a plethora of yummy sides, from mac and cheese to beans, Mexican rice, cream corn, coleslaw or potato salad. Feel free to pick up a little banana pudding or peach cobbler to curb any sweet tooth sufferers.

Lucky for you, they also have pre-orders for pickup, and they’re a lot closer. Pickup orders must be placed 50 minutes in advance and a $75 minimum purchase, while delivery needs to be placed two days (48 hours) in advance and a $140 minimum purchase. They offer different size options depending on the group you plan to feed at your tailgate.

‘I’m going to Terry Black’s’: Olympic discus gold medalist Valarie Allman wants Texas BBQ

la Barbecue

Hours: Wednesday-Sunday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

Address: 2401 E Cesar Chavez, Austin, Texas

Phone number: 512-605-9696

Located in east Austin, just a 15-minute drive from the University of Texas and a couple blocks from Lady Bird Lake, la Barbecue is run by LeAnn Mueller and her wife Ali Clem.

This 4.5-star rated restaurant swears by its locally sourced beef, which comes from a grass-fed, completely hormone-free ranch. It was ranked in the top 50 in Texas Monthly in a 2024 edition and Yelp reviewers have called this the best BBQ in Texas.

They offer meats by the pound, regular sandwiches and specialty sandwiches, and several house-made sausages and pickling options as sides, in pints or quarts (pickles, kimchi, onions, jalapeños). They also have a page-long menu featuring cocktails, beers, champagnes and wines as refreshments.

You can order online, and they even offer tailgate packages specialty for parties of 10 or 20, which include brisket, pulled pork, sausage, potato salad, slaw, beans and shells in cheese with bottled sweet and tangy sauce, as well as plates, napkins and cutlery.

Matt Odam: You gotta try this brisket at La Barbecue. It’s a cut above

Other well-rated BBQ places in Austin

• LeRoy and Lewis Barbecue. Located at 5621 Emerald Forest Dr, Austin, Texas. Hours are Sunday-Monday 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Tuesday closed; Wednesday-Thursday 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; and Friday-Saturday 11 a.m.-10 p.m.

Matt Odam: Reviewing LeRoy and Lewis, Austin’s most original barbecue restaurant and one of its best

• Brown’s Bar-B-Que. Located at 1901 S Lamar Blvd, Austin, Texas. Hours are Sunday 11 a.m.-7 p.m. and Tuesday-Saturday 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
• InterStellar BBQ. Located at 12233 Ranch Rd 620 N, Unit 105, Austin, Texas. Hours are Wednesday-Sunday 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
• Micklethwait Craft Meats. Located at 1309 Rosewood Ave, Austin, Texas. Hours are Thursday-Sunday 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
• Lamberts. Located at 401 W 2nd St, Austin, Texas. Hours are Monday-Thursday 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Friday 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m.; Saturday 11:30 a.m.-10:30 p.m.; and Sunday 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m.
• Iron Works BBQ. Located at 100 Red River St, Austin, Texas. Hours are Monday-Saturday 11 a.m.-9p.m.
• Barbs-B-Q. Located at 102 E Market St, Lockhart, Texas. Hours are Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and closed Monday-Friday.

“Austin City Limits” has announced that their 50th anniversary birthday bash featuring performances by country music legend Willie Nelson & Family and Asleep at the Wheel will be available through livestream on Oct. 17 at 7 p.m. at aclturns50.com.

If you want a place to watch the bash, Armadillo World Headquarters has been named the official “Watch-Party Partner” for the “ACL” 50th birthday bash and is hosting several watch parties across Austin.

Here’s everything you need to know about the watch parties.

Where are ACL’s 50th birthday bash watch parties?

According to a press release, the ACL 50th anniversary watch party will be live-streamed at the following venues on Thursday, October 17th, at 7p.m. CST.  

• Armadillo Forever — South Congress Hotel, 1603 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704
• Cactus Cafe — 2247 Guadalupe St, Austin, TX 78712
• Pershing (RSVP required) — 2415B E 5th St, Austin, TX 78702
• Deep Eddy Cabaret — 2315 Lake Austin Blvd, Austin, TX 78703

Pershing will host the screening in the parking lot (with a drive-in experience available) and an after-party inside featuring music from The Texases, according to the press release. To RSVP and learn more, visit here.

What is Armadillo World Headquarters?

According to the Austin Monthly, Armadillo World Headquarters was a music venue open from 1970 to 1980. The AWHQ had performances from fellow artists like Willie Nelson, Bruce Springsteen, The Clash, George Strait, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jerry Jeff Walker, Frank Zappa and more.

According to their press release, they now operate as a lifestyle brand for Austin’s music scene.

To know more about the AWHQ’s music venue, visit the Texas State Historical Association.

— American-Statesman reporter Mars Salazar contributed to this report.

Three children in Texas are the subjects of an AMBER Alert issued Monday from Austin.

Authorities are searching for 10-year-old Ninel Anseume, 2-year-old Elsi Anseume and 4-year-old Abraham Anseume. They were last seen around 5 p.m. on Sunday in the 100 block of Palma Circle in Austin, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.

The suspect is 31-year-old Sherles Machado Hernandez. He is considered to be armed and dangerous, according to the AMBER Alert. He is said to be 5 feet 9 inches and weigh 160 pounds.

The suspect’s vehicle is described as a silver 2019 Mitsubishi Outlander with the Texas license plate TWL2922.

All of the children are described as having brown hair, brown eyes and being Hispanic. Ninel is 4 feet 10 inches and 80 pounds. Abraham is 3 feet 4 inches and 44 pounds, and Elsi is 2 feet 8 inches and 31 pounds.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Austin Police Department at 512-974-5210.

What is an AMBER Alert?

AMBER Alert is a nationwide notification system used to alert the public of missing children under the age of 18.

The alerts are shared across radio, TV, road signs, cellphones and other data-enabled devices.

As of last year, 1,200 children were found because of the AMBER Alert system and 180 children were rescued as a result of the emergency alerts.

In order for an alert to be issued, an abduction must have occurred, the child must be at risk of serious injury or death and there has to be descriptive information about the child, the suspect or the suspect’s vehicle.

“Every child featured in an AMBER Alert has been reported missing to law enforcement. The goal of an AMBER Alert is to instantly galvanize the community to assist in the search for and safe recovery of a missing child,” Alan S. Nanavaty, Executive Director of Special Programs for the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, in an email to Newsweek.

Nanavaty said on average, there are generally fewer than 200 AMBER Alerts issued each year. The alerts are broadcast through radio, TV, road signs, cell phones, and other data-enabled devices. The AMBER Alert system is being used in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Indian country, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children also leverages ways to include posters and social media distribution to amplify AMBER Alerts to the public, Nanavaty said.

Newsweek created a map using 2022 data showing states have seen the most AMBER alerts in 2022. According to the data, there were 31 Amber Alerts in Texas in 2022.

Active AMBER Alerts

There is one other active AMBER Alert for a boy in Tennessee.

Sebastian Rogers, 15, has been missing since February 26. He was last seen at his mother and stepfather’s home in Sumner County, Tennessee.

He is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighs around 120 pounds. He has brown hair and brown eyes and he wears glasses. He was last seen wearing black sweatpants and a black sweatshirt.

Anyone with information about Rogers is being asked to call the Sumner County Emergency Communications Center at 615-451-3838 or the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation at 1-800-TBI-FIND.

Do you have a story we should be covering? Do you have any questions about this story or AMBER Alerts? Contact LiveNews@newsweek.com