Like most Austinites, I tend to stay on my side of the river. I know, I know. South Austin has plenty of incredible restaurants, but traffic makes me irrationally cranky. So while I happily devoured Valentina’s Tex-Mex BBQ’s famous Real Deal Holyfield breakfast taco anytime someone brought a bag into the office, I rarely trekked to the food truck and never made it to the Buda brick-and-mortar before the restaurant’s messy collapse.
Taco Flats, on the other hand, has been in my rotation for years. During the pandemic, I survived on spicy margaritas and Panchos. So when Taco Flats owner Simon Madera teamed up with former Valentina’s pitmaster Miguel Vidal to open Churchrow Tejas BBQ, I was intrigued. Was this the redemption story everyone seemed eager to write? That’s probably bigger than a restaurant review can answer. More importantly: Is it worth eating there?
The story behind Churchrow is complicated. Vidal built one of Texas’ most celebrated barbecue brands before Valentina’s expansion unraveled, leaving employees and creditors dealing with the fallout. Madera, who has known Vidal since their days at St. Edward’s University, brought him in to focus on what he does best – cooking – while Madera handles the business side…