How record temperatures are threatening Texas BBQ

Austin’s pitmasters are working to mitigate the toll of record-setting heat on workers, customers, and profits.

To mix things up from the usual midday barbecue service, Alison Clem, general manager of Austin’s La Barbecue, decided to do a ribeye steak lunch. She’d smoke and sear steaks to order on a grill, using coals from the barbecue pits. But, in the triple-digit heat in early August, the work was exhausting. “I was so hot and bright red,” she says. “I was like, why did I do this to myself?”

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