07/13/2025
Brisket wasn’t always the star of the Texas BBQ plate.
In fact, it took a bit of presidential flair to help this once-overlooked cut earn its place as a national icon! During the 1960s, President Lyndon B. Johnson and First Lady Lady Bird Johnson turned their Texas Hill Country ranch into the unofficial “Texas White House,” hosting legendary BBQ dinners for state officials, diplomats, and dignitaries from around the world.
These gatherings weren’t just about good food—they were a showcase of Texas hospitality and culture, with smoked brisket front and center. LBJ’s love for his home state’s traditions helped catapult brisket from a local specialty to a symbol of Texas pride, served up with all the fixings under the live oaks of the Pedernales River.
The Johnsons’ ranch became famous for these open-air feasts, where politics and barbecue mixed in a uniquely Texan way, and guests left with a new appreciation for the art of slow-smoked meat
Today, every bite of Texas brisket carries a bit of that history—proof that sometimes, a backyard BBQ can change the way the world sees a simple cut of beef.
