Uncle Sean
Google
“Sabar BBQ: Where the lamb ribs made me want to high five a stranger.”
TL;DR: Get there early, order the Sichuan Lamb Ribs, let Zain carve you a plate of happiness, and prepare to have your taste buds do a Texas two-step with Pakistani spices. Worth every minute of the wait. This one’s climbing my top 50 list faster than a brisket disappears at a family reunion.
After one failed mission to Sabar BBQ, where I showed up too late and found an empty pit (and an emptier stomach), I came back like a man on a barbecue pilgrimage. The sun was blazing, the line was growing, and I wasn’t about to be left holding nothing but a napkin this time.
Pitmaster Zain Shafi runs this blue trailer like a flavor command center. The smell hit me halfway through the line and had me grinning like a kid at the state fair. I made my move when it was my turn, and if you know me, you know lamb is my kryptonite. I ordered the Sichuan Lamb Ribs, then couldn’t stop myself from adding brisket and Tandoori Turkey. The sides? Kachumber Salad and Daal Chawaal, because even Uncle Sean needs balance in life. Zain loaded everything up, tossed it all on top of some naan for good measure, and sent me to my table like a champion headed to the winner’s circle.
The first bite of lamb ribs nearly had me proposing to the pit. Spicy, tender, smoky perfection with a bark that made my heart sing. The brisket was rich and juicy, the turkey came with that tandoori kick that slapped me awake in the best way possible. The sauces just tied the whole thing together like a big barbecue hug. The yogurt mint cilantro sauce was made to cool and lift the brisket and turkey to a whole new level. The red sauce packed a punch and paired with the lamb like it was born for the job.
I boxed up some leftovers for my wife, the Side Dish Queen herself, because a man who doesn’t bring home naan from Sabar BBQ is a man sleeping on the couch. She confirmed what I already knew: this was next-level barbecue, the kind that earns legends and long lines.
Sabar BBQ is only open on weekends, and only fools show up late. I won’t make that mistake again. This was stop number 15 on my Texas Monthly Top 50 journey, leaving me with 35 more glorious BBQ pilgrimages ahead before the passport is full and my belt officially waves the white flag.
If loving these lamb ribs is wrong, I don’t wanna be rib-right.