Amazon Dash Cart is now available at the Vineyard Whole Foods Market in San Antonio.
Courtesy Amazon
If being more efficient with your time is one of your new year's goals, a faster way to shop is on the horizon in 2023. Amazon Dash Cart just arrived at one local San Antonio Whole Foods Market, allowing shoppers to skip the checkout line altogether.
Located at 18403 Blanco Road, the Vineyard Whole Foods Market store is one of the first three locations in the country to make Amazon Dash Carts available to customers.
The smart grocery carts lets you scan items as you go, place them directly into your grocery bags, and head straight to the car when you're done shopping. Shoppers log in through a QR code in the Whole Foods Market app, which prompts a quick sign in process before you can begin using the cart.
As you scan each item while shipping, the Amazon Dash Cart’s screen shows a real-time receipt of all items in the cart. When ready to check out, shoppers can skip the checkout line, exiting the store through the designated Amazon Dash Cart lane. Payment is then processed using the credit card associated with the shopper's Amazon account, and an automated receipt arrives at the associated email account after exiting the store.
While the carts have been in Amazon Fresh Stores across the country since 2020, they are now available in select Whole Foods Markets. Several 2022 updates included doubled capacity in the carts, new shelves for delicates and oversized items alike, weather-resistant features, and extended all-day batter life.
"As many of our customers return to their in-store grocery shopping routines, it's exciting to introduce new and unique ways for them to shop our stores," said Leandro Balbinot, chief technology officer for Whole Foods Market, in the 2022 announcement about the carts' new features.
Customers can find more detailed information on the technology here, along with a number of FAQs.
Making the perfect brisket is one of the most impressive (and unforgiving) culinary feats for pitmasters finding their niche within Texas' vast barbecue landscape. But if they can get it right, there will be lines out the door with hungry patrons waiting to get their hands on it.
Sometimes they even get famous celebrities or popular internet personalities to stop by – such as YouTube star and Austinite Joshua Weissman. This chef-turned-YouTuber recently went on a statewide expedition to try some of Texas Monthly's best barbecue restaurants, and stopped by five local barbecue joints to give his honest review. To keep things consistent across restaurants, the chef ordered only one meat, brisket, and four of the barbecue world's most popular sides: cole slaw, beans, potato salad, and mac and cheese.
While many may snub the idea of "just another YouTuber" reviewing Texas barbecue joints, Weissman cut his teeth working in the restaurant industry, and was once the lead cook at Uchiko here in Austin. His YouTube channel has amassed over 10 million subscribers, and he's written two New York Times Bestsellingcookbooks.
With Texas Monthly's2021 list (the newest edition will be released later this year) as his guide, Weissman documented his journey alongside new Texas resident and private chef Olivia Tiedemann. The duo also visited the four Texas barbecue restaurants that recently earned Michelin Stars.
Here are the local barbecue restaurants they visited, with their reviews:
Franklin Barbecue Brisket score: 26.5 out of 30 possible points (7.5 for brisket flavor; 9 for texture; 10 for salt level) Sides: 5 out of 10 possible points
Upon her first bite of brisket, Tiedemann was pleasantly surprised by its juiciness and salty crust. She also mentioned all the classic side dishes tasted like the "starting point" for all barbecue.
"I don't know how to explain it, but this tastes like where everything else started," Tiedemann said.
While being interviewed by Weissman, owner and pitmaster Aaron Franklin, the "Godfather of Texas Barbecue," explained why he avoids comparing his style to other barbecue restaurants.
"Everybody's putting the same amount of energy into this," he said. "Everybody is putting so much heart and soul into it. If we're all doing good, we're all doing good. It doesn't really matter who's better. I tend to just think of the greater good."
Interstellar Barbecue Brisket score: 26.9 points (8.9 for flavor; 8 for texture; 10 for salt level) Sides: 9.3 points
In 2021, Texas Monthly ranked Interstellar the No. 2 best barbecue in the state, praising pitmaster John Bates' "obsessive heat management" with his Texas wagyu brisket. Interstellar also won a Michelin Star in Texas' inaugural guide, but that hasn't changed how Bates operates his restaurant.
"For us, what I think was the most gratifying thing about getting a star was we never worked for one, we never intended to get one, we never thought we would get one," Bates told Weissman.
The brisket had the perfect saltiness and a remarkable beefy flavor, and a "steaky" chewy texture that wasn't dry.
For the sides, Weissman said the cole slaw was the best he'd ever had, while Tiedemann was thrilled by the flavor and texture of the mac and cheese.
La Barbecue Brisket score: 25.5 points (8.7 for flavor; 9 for texture; 7.8 for salt level) Sides: 8.8 points
La Barbecue is another Michelin Star winner, and Weissman's favorite local barbecue restaurant, so it was a tough one to put to the test. Pitmaster Alison Clem told Weissman she doesn't use any thermometers to check her briskets, instead opting to use her hands and eyes to check its doneness.
Weissman is a big fan of the peppery crust on La Barbecue's brisket.
Photo by Eric Sandler
Tiedemann said her favorite thing about brisket is when it has fat that melts in your mouth, which La Barbecue executed flawlessly. Weissman agreed, and gave high rankings for its overall flavor, texture, and salt level.
"I that La Barbecue does, in my opinion, the best cook on a brisket," he said.
LeRoy and Lewis Barbecue Brisket score: 28.8 points (9.6 for flavor; 9.2 for texture; 10 for salt level) Sides: Unrated
LeRoy and Lewis uses a foil "boat" to wrap their brisket during the smoking process to allow the crust to crisp up while keeping the inside moist, according to pitmaster Evan LeRoy. The lean brisket was Tiedemann's favorite she had thus far, and it had a properly rendered fat that still retained its juiciness over both halves.
"It really is the best tasting beef I've had," Weissman noted.
Weissman also said he regretted not visiting this Michelin Star winner sooner.
The two judges did not rate LeRoy and Lewis' sides since they were all non-traditional, but they said if they did give them a score they would be the winners for their innovative style and taste.
Terry Black's Barbecue Brisket score: 24 for brisket Sides: 6.5 points
Weissman said Terry Black's sides were "baseline," but still tasty. Overall, the brisket was delicious but too smoky for Tiedemann. However, Weissman did say he recommends Terry Black's to many people for its consistent quality and because they often don't run out of brisket.
"Nothing here is bad, everything is delicious, and I would be very happy to come and dine here with my family," he said. "But I will say that any 'baseline' Texas barbecue is better than 99 percent of barbecue on earth. Period, end of story. We're not trying to reinvent the wheel – it is just the standard."
Other top Texas barbecue restaurants Overall, Weissman ranked Goldee's Barbecue in Fort Worth the highest on the list out of the 17 total Texas barbecue restaurants he visited. He even invited Texas Monthly's barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn to join him there during their final tasting.
Weissman had nothing but good things to say about Goldee's classic side dishes and its brisket, giving them overall ratings of 9.5 and 29.2 points, respectively.
"The [brisket] seasoning is ridiculous, it's exactly where it should be," he said. "It's got the smoke flavor I want, but it's not overwhelmingly smoky. This is worth traveling back for."
Fort Worth's Goldee's Barbecue was the highest ranked Texas barbecue.
fortworth.culturemap.com
The other Central Texas barbecue restaurants Weissman visited, with his ratings, include:
Burnt Bean Company, Seguin – 28.4 points for brisket, 8.7 points for sides
2M Smokehouse, San Antonio – 24.8 for brisket, 8 for sides
Snow's BBQ, Lexington – 27.2 for brisket, 8.7 for sides
Louie Mueller, Taylor– 24.8 for brisket, 5 for sides
The other Texas barbecue restaurants Weissman visited include:
Evie Mae's, Wolfforth – 25.5 for brisket, 6 for sides
Panther City BBQ, Fort Worth – 19 for brisket, 8.5 for sides
Dayne's Craft BBQ, Aledo – 25 for brisket, 8 for sides
Cattleack Barbeque, Farmers Branch – 28.3 for brisket, 9.5 for sides
CorkScrew BBQ, Spring – 24 for brisket, 7 for sides
Truth BBQ, Houston – 27 for brisket, 7.5 for sides
Tejas Chocolate & Barbecue, Tomball – 20 for brisket, 6.5 for sides