KG BBQ
[ REGIONAL TRAIL // THE SMOKEHOUSE DIARIES // AUSTIN HUB ]
DESTINATION: KG BBQ
GEOGRAPHIC REFERENCE: 30.2868° N, 97.7053° W (3108 Manor Rd, Austin)
HISTORIC TRAIL: Kareem El-Ghayesh left a finance career in Cairo, landed in Austin in 2016, and opened his truck beside Oddwood Brewing in 2022
CULTURE BEAT: Texas barbecue spoken with an Egyptian accent — za'atar, sumac, pomegranate and tahini over oak smoke. Michelin Bib Gourmand in the inaugural Texas guide
I found KG BBQ before I ever found Austin. Still in Michigan, I was watching his videos on YouTube — a man from Cairo smoking Texas barbecue out of a black trailer with a gold falcon — and I was excited in the way you get about a place you're determined to reach.
We came down in January and never made it there. That miss stayed with me. So when we moved in June, KG was one of the first trays I chased — not making that mistake again. The trailer sits in the lot beside Oddwood Brewing on Manor Road, and the first thing you meet is the menu board: brisket on the same list as za'atar, lamb shoulder with sumac and cinnamon, a dessert called Oum Ali. It is Texas barbecue. The seasoning has just traveled farther than most.
The man behind it is Kareem El-Ghayesh. He was raised in Cairo and left a career in finance to come here and smoke meat — Austin in 2016, the truck in 2022. Once you know the road he took, the tray makes perfect sense: this is a pitmaster cooking his own two homes at once.
Start with the lamb belly chops — bone-in lamb belly, the board calls them lamb bacon ribs — with a dark, crisp bark, the fat rendered down to silk, and a dusting of crushed nuts over the top. They were my favorite thing on the tray, and the tray was crowded with contenders. The lamb chops come medium rare, exactly as promised, rosy and tender. The pork ribs wear a za'atar and pomegranate glaze, glossy and dark, with pomegranate seeds and sesame scattered over them like somebody cared how they landed.
Then the pulled lamb shoulder — sumac and cinnamon in the strands — with a cup of tahini beside it, and a chopped baladi salad, all parsley-bright, cutting through the smoke. Hibiscus mint tea the same deep red as the glaze. An iced ahwa, cold brew with cinnamon and vanilla in the milk.
There was a special that day, a beet labneh the color of a sunset, served with pita chips: beautiful, and then delicious on top of it. A stuffed pita.
And Oum Ali to finish — a smoked Egyptian bread pudding, custardy and warm under hazelnuts, golden raisins and coconut. I would drive across town for that pan alone.
What stayed with me was the variety, and the freshness of it — nothing on that tray was an afterthought, and the quality held across every single item, which is rarer than it should be.
This is my biggest recommendation when people have done the usual rounds and want something different — and it earned that from a standing start of high hopes. It was a top visit for me. #lambassador
We left with homework: kofta, sausage, brisket, a rice bowl. Next time I’m wearing stretchy pants and ordering like I mean it.
When I watched this video, I knew this place was bound to get Michelin's attention eventually. Bib Gourmand is the list he’s on…for now and WELL deserved.
