first time to try this Texas Monthly recognized BBQ place. only complaint is that it took me this long to try it! ribs were tender and delicious. sides were great and generous. they cook enough for that day so if you show up late you may not get what you want, but if you do get there late you may also get extra portions! i'll be back to try the pulled pork soon!

In Amarillo for business and looking for a hearty lunch? Look no further than Tyler's BBQ. Really good smoked brisket. You have GOT TO GET the macaroni and cheese with chili peppers and chives! Yum!

Good folks and good food. Enjoy.

Travelling I-40 and found the best brisket ever! The chopped brisket is a game changer but so is the potato salad and the coleslaw. And there are no words that would do the peach cobbler justice!

This place is well known and has been praised by Texas Monthly and Best of Amarillo. The praise is deserved. I had beef ribs that were so moist, meaty, and smoky they could have been mistaken for pork. The slaw had that fresh made quality. Like most of Amarillo, the folks are very friendly. They did warn that they stay open only til their BBQ sells out, usually before closing time. Decor is Texas picturesque and the atmosphere seemed clean and family friendly.

This place is a top 10 spot in Amarillo!

This is Texas barbecue at it best. Stop here immediately if you live nearby. If you are planning a trip, arrange it so you go through Amarillo. It's that good.

When we pulled up, I was a bit worried because the big parking lot was full and there were half a dozen cars in the carry out line. Tyler's isn't a big place, so I was concerned that we'd have a long wait or that service would be slow. To begin, there is no table service. You walk through a chow line to order your food, which is presented in red plastic baskets (sides in Styrofoam containers). They only offer soft drinks and lemonade that you serve yourself. It's all very efficient, and by the time we got through the line, there were places to sit. Among the patrons already seated were four or five fire fighters -- it looked like this not their first time here -- and assorted other town folk with a smattering of travelers such as ourselves come to see what the buzz is about.

Walk through the chow line and it's the man himself, Tyler, who asks you what'll you have, then chops, slices and toasts your dinner for you. I went for the sliced beef and a side of potato salad, and my pardner (that's Texan for dining companion) went with Tuesday's rib basket special (for a buck more than the rib basket on its own, you get a side and a drink). I saw Tyler judge the piece of brisket he had on the chopping board unfavorable for the sliced sandwich, so he reached back and got a fresh one. He then pared three ribs from a beautiful rack for my friend.

I stepped off to wash my hands, and when I came back, my pardner had tucked into the ribs and declared them the best she had ever had -- and she's had some ribs in her day. I found the sliced beef tender and perfect when slathered in Tyler's tasty barbecue sauce. My only wish is that I'd ordered some slaw on the side as well. I offered a bite of my sandwich for a morsel of rib meat, but my pardner just shook her head and smiled. So after polishing off my sandwich, I went up and got myself a rib basket (three ribs) so I could have a taste.

WOW. There's just a hint of sweet to the ribs and they have a nice smoked outer skin of caramelized sauce that just covers the juicy, tender rib meat. While standing in line for my rib basket, the fellow in front of me struck up a conversation and told me that he eats lunch there every day. He also told me that there are over 30 barbecue places in Amarillo. Given those choices, he still comes here. I told him I had circled back in line to try the ribs after a sliced beef sandwich, and he gave me a knowing look. He ordered the rib special and Tyler reached back for a new rack and cut his regular customer -- and then me -- 3 ribs from the center of the rack. I've never been so happy to talk to a stranger. The ribs were the best I've ever had.

We quickly found that you want to put Tyler's sauce on ever side of the rib, not because the ribs are dry or lack flavor (we each tried a bite without sauce before saucing), but it just adds so much. There's also a spicy barbecue sauce that is real good. In fact, we bought a squeeze jar of the sauce to take home with us. Tyler warned us that you can't take it on a plane (sounds like someone learned the hard way), and for transporting in the car, he slipped a rubber glove over the mouth of the bottle before screwing on the squeeze top. Apparently he used to do a lot of catering and got tired of cleaning mustard and sauce off the top of the catering trailer and came up with this unique way to seal it up.

There were lots of comments about how busy things have gotten -- a Texas Monthly article rating Tyler's #1 and other newspaper articles are spreading the word about this gem. Sure hope success doesn't spoil this place, because I'd like to come back by here again some time on another trip.