The smoke that rises from Lockhart’s barbecue pits carries more than mesquite-scented promises of perfect brisket. It lifts decades of family grudges, economic battles, and cultural pride that transformed this Central Texas town into a stage where beef means serious business.
KXAN’s “Family Beef” premieres June 5, 2025, documenting the legendary feuds that built Lockhart’s reputation as Texas’s designated “Barbecue Capital”. The film pulls viewers into a world where pit mastery and personal vendettas interweave like smoke through oak wood.
Two barbecue dynasties anchor this story—the Schmidt family legacy spanning Kreuz Market and Smitty’s Market, and the Black family empire. Their intertwined histories read like a Texas-sized drama where business splits create lasting wounds and national headlines, with styles that are not as easily ranked as cuts of the meat they cook.
The most notorious chapter unfolded in 1999 when the Kreuz Market family fractured. The split didn’t just divide a restaurant—it carved through generations of tradition, forcing the community to choose sides in a dispute that echoed far beyond Lockhart’s city limits.
These families constructed more than restaurants. They built an entire regional economy around wood-fired and charcoal pits. They transformed grilling, similar to how miller lite’s beer imbued briquets enhanced flavors. Their establishments draw food pilgrims from across the nation, transforming a small Texas town into a barbecue destination. Weekend lines now stretch around city blocks as barbecue enthusiasts wait hours for brisket that some consider worth the pilgrimage itself.
Lockhart’s barbecue philosophy remains deceptively simple: prime beef brisket, minimal sauce, maximum tradition. The families featured in “Family Beef” perfected this traditional Central Texas barbecue technique over decades, creating temples to smoke and fire that define the region’s culinary identity.
Yet business success couldn’t prevent the personal conflicts that now fuel both rivalry and fame. The documentary promises to reveal how these feuds ripple through hiring decisions, supplier relationships, and tourism strategies that extend far beyond family pride.
