Trip to Waco area.

cbach8tw

cbach8tw

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Considering of making a train trip out to see Waco, I think the Texas Eagle stops in McGregor, we like the whole Magnolia thing, but wanted some other places to see, so I wonder what knife shops or makers are around Waco.
 
Note: In the following, words like beat up, run down, ramshackle, etc are not condemnation. They can be accolades, since I've had killer good food in joints that aren't condemned only because the health inspectors are afraid to enter for fear of the building collapsing on them.

Can't speak for blades in the Waco area, but for BBQ an absolute *MUST STOP* is Helberg BBQ on Hwy 6 a few miles west of Waco. Texas Monthly "50 best new BBQ places" their debut year & consistently extremely great BBQ every time I've been there. Can't recommend this joint highly enough. Still my fave BBQ in the hundreds of places I've tried anywhere in the US.

In Waco itself, in order of general preference:
- Jasper's BBQ, very limited hours, ramshackle, great food & friendly staff. Busy during lunch, go early if you can.
- Uncle Dan's BBQ, good food, large portions, fairly economical. The one on Lake Air Drive. Not sure if location in Hewitt (suburb) is same company. Mo Cookies across the street had good, albeit $$, cookies.
- Tony DeMaria's BBQ, decent food, fairly economical, worn & rundown.
- Mama & Papa B's BBQ, close to Magnolia store (couple blocks), decent food, economical, friendly guy when I was there, rundown.
- Coach's XXX Smoke, on 4th Street, good food, decent prices.
- Guess Family BBQ, good BBQ but felt a bit expensive vis-a-vis the others.

In McGregor I've had Coach's Bar-B-Que and it was good. I'd gladly eat there again.
 
Lived all over Texas and enjoyed the knife hobby for over 30 years. Pretty familiar with the offerings in the state. That being said, IMO, virtually the only serious knife store in the entire state is House of Blades in Ft. Worth….100 miles +- from Waco.

(Be sure and have a burger & a BigO beer at George’s BigO Deck - on Speight St. - while you’re in Waco. Safe travels.)
 
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To see in Waco:
- Texas Ranger Hall Of Fame
- Dr Pepper museum
- Waco Mammoth National Monument
- Homestead Heritage old timey re-enactment village & Red Wagon Bar-B-Que, interesting & interactive crafts village run by religious group of some sort, good for kids, I bought a chef knife from guy in blacksmith shop (he studied with Murray Carter). Onsite store selling crafts, good items, but $$$. Besides onsite store, they have BBQ joint just up the road and an artisan cheese cave/store across from the BBQ.

- Magnolia Table, exquisite dining experience, impeccable staff, good food, not all that $$ considering, but not cheap. Crushingly busy. I arrived at 06:45 for 07:00 open & was about 20th person in waiting line. Most of the day can be hour(s) long wait.
- Local brewpubs, if you're into beer.
- Ranchito #5 for cheap plentiful Mexican food. Warmed salsa was great.
- For good breakfast kolache & sensory overload of tourist schlock & kitsch go to Slovacek's on west side of I-35 in West, Texas (yes, that's the town's name). Bustling, crowded, busy, excellent staff, be prepared to wait in line. A bazillion flavors of both sweet and savory kolaches & other pastries. Lots of locals too. It's about 15 miles north of Waco on I-35. Tsunami of tourist gimcrackery & souvenirs, but with Czech foods store & meat shop attached. It's like an acid trip in a truckstop. Kolache House on east side of freeway is okay for food, but nowhere near as much fun.
- Our Breakfast Place, upscale eatery with extremely friendly staff, good food. Easy repeat candidate in my world.
 
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Thanks everyone. Really like the food idea as I love to eat. Learned there is a knife store there (….Shoppe..hint hint w/o naming) plus may head over to Heritage craft village. Lots of planning as this won’t be until next year. Heard of the Dr Pepper museum too. Coming from east coast we would have to take train to Chicago and then catch Texas Eagle south. Part of the experience is just to travel by train. Sleeper cabins available, but auto train only goes N & S, so would also have to check out car rentals once get to McGregor.
 
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Speaking of food, Texans are massive fans of DONUTS!! You can't swing a dead cat in central Texas without hitting a donut shop. Shipley's Do-Nuts are a pervasive chain there. I had good donuts at Daylight Donuts in Hewitt and a few other shops around town.
 
I can't speak to anything in Waco, but if you travel further South to Austin, there's a great little knife shop called Austin Blades owned by a pair of brothers. Lots of good restaurants too.

Note that Waco is a college town, so you're likely to have access to Uber and related transport services.

If you make it to Fort Worth, I concur that House of Blades is certainly worth a couple hours of your time.
 
Thanks. Not sure if we will have enough time to visit too other places unless the train schedule are flexible for the return trip. We really enjoyed San Antonio when my wife had a work trip years ago. I appreciate everyone’s participation.
 
I road through there last year on my way to San Antonio. We stopped at the Dr. Pepper museum because my son is all about the Pepper.
Ate an an In and Out burger place (which was different for me because we don't have them where I live in VA) and then head on our way. Seems like a nice historic place.
 
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