Butter's BBQ built its reputation on brisket flawless enough to land the small Sinton, Texas smokehouse on Texas Monthly's prestigious Top 50 BBQ list twice, in 2021 and again in 2025. Now that signature cut is gone from the menu entirely, as the restaurant says surging beef costs and falling sales have made it impossible to keep serving.
The restaurant announced the change in a Facebook post, saying brisket would no longer be part of its offerings and that the cut had come to account for more than 70% of its total grocery costs, according to MySA. Butter's BBQ said price hikes and rising grocery costs have contributed to what is on pace to be its worst year ever since brothers-in-arms Robert Rodriguez and Andrew Soto founded the business in 2017.
The pair started Butter's BBQ in a small shack in Mathis, a town about 35 miles northwest of Corpus Christi, before moving the operation in 2022 to a brick-and-mortar building along Texas 181 on Sinton's east side. That location, at 713 E. Sinton St., is now open Friday through Sunday.
A Five-Year Price Climb That Outpaced the Menu
The numbers behind the decision are stark. Butter's BBQ was charging $34 per pound for brisket in 2025, up from $24 per pound just five years earlier. A brisket sandwich without a drink climbed to $19, compared to $10 in 2021, while a two-meat plate that cost $16 five years ago had become a $21 brisket plate by 2025, per the same account from MySA.
Those price jumps track a much larger national trend. USDA wholesale market data showed brisket prices reaching $7.53 per pound in early 2026, a 189% increase from $2.60 per pound in January 2020, according to the Dallas Observer. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension economists cited in that report note that shrinking herd numbers mean wholesale beef relief remains years away.
The squeeze traces back to the cattle supply itself. The U.S. total cattle herd fell to 86.2 million head on January 1, 2026, according to Department of Agriculture inventory data, the smallest national herd in 75 years, after years of drought pushed many ranchers to liquidate herds rather than absorb high feed costs to rebuild them.
Even USDA's Daily Snapshot Shows Beef Still Elevated
Even USDA's Daily Snapshot Shows Beef Still Elevated Wholesale beef prices remain elevated relative to non-beef proteins like pork or poultry. Retail shoppers are feeling a parallel squeeze: U.S. ground beef prices hit an all-time record of $7.158 per pound in August 2026, a 7.9% year-over-year jump, according to UkrAgroConsult.
Sinton itself offers little room to pass those costs on to diners, making premium-priced beef dining a tough sell even for a hometown favorite.
Butter's Isn't Alone in the Reckoning
Butter's Isn't Alone in the Reckoning Butter's BBQ's move fits a broader pattern playing out across Texas barbecue. Rising beef costs have forced multiple Texas barbecue establishments, including Kirby's BBQ in New Caney, to close permanently in 2025 and 2026 as brisket margins collapsed and customer traffic slowed, Newsweek has reported. Hoodline previously reported on self-service kiosks at H-E-B's True Texas BBQ counters.
Rather than repricing brisket further out of reach, Butter's BBQ has taken a more direct approach for now: cutting the cut entirely.
Despite losing its signature item, Butter's BBQ still offers pork ribs, jalapeño-cheddar beef and pork sausage, turkey, potato salad, and brisket beans, along with barbacoa served on Sundays. Texas Monthly has said the restaurant's sausage was among the best it had ever tasted, a distinction that predates the brisket's removal.
What Comes Next for the Award-Winning Smokehouse
Butter's BBQ has said it plans to announce a new menu soon. In its Facebook announcement, the restaurant urged diners to keep supporting local restaurants as it navigates what it has called its worst year on record.
Projections call for U.S. cattle supplies to stay constrained and beef prices elevated as the herd rebuilds. For a small-town smokehouse twice recognized among Texas Monthly's Top 50, the decision marks a significant shift.
