Bert's Bar-B-Q

“A half-century Austin pit, now in Northwest Hills”

Bert and Joyce Johnson opened Bert's near the University of Texas in 1970, and the operation has survived the kind of history that closes most joints: a fire, more than one move, and five decades of a changing city. Today it slices Central Texas plates from a Far West Boulevard address in Northwest Hills, and in 2022 the state named it a Texas Treasure Business — recognition for staying power that a menu can't fake. The cook stays squarely traditional. Brisket anchors the plate with a peppery bark and an unhurried, sliced-to-order hand, pork ribs come tender off the offset pit, and the snappy sausage links round out a straightforward three-meat order. Sides play a supporting role, the sauce stays optional, and the whole experience reads like a working-class Austin lunch that predates the barbecue boom by forty years.