Guy Fieri Loves This Texas BBQ Restaurant For Its Homemade Sausage

Although Guy Fieri enjoys a range of cuisines in "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives," classic barbecue joints make a frequent appearance. So when he cites a slow-cooked bite of meat that stands out, you know it's special — an enthusiasm Fieri shared regarding The Pit Room's jalapeño cheddar sausage.

Featured in season 34, episode 13 of the show, Fieri first took part in the meticulous assembly of the dish before giving his take on the meat. The homemade preparation involved the manual hand-grinding of pork butts, a combination of spices, cheese, and pickled peppers, all followed by two rounds of smoking at different temperatures. So by the time the sausages appeared on screen, Fieri's reaction hardly came as a surprise.

"It's dynamite. Just the right amount of heat," said Fieri (per YouTube). He also commended the sausage's snap, internal meat texture, and the savvy use of restricted-melting cheese, which prevents the meat from turning overly gooey and the cheese from fully dispersing through the mix. All this is served alongside a scratch-made barbecue sauce; it added up to one of the more memorable moments on "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives." So while one of Guy Fieri's favorite barbecue joints is in North Carolina, the chef and television host will applaud Texas-style smoked meat, too.

While Fieri is no stranger to an overlooked eatery, The Pit Room has long been in the limelight. The Houston restaurant — which operates two locations – boasts a Bib Gourmand from Michelin and has drawn wider critical acclaim for nearly a decade. In part, the restaurant's success can be attributed to the thoroughly Texan style of American barbecue found on the menu.

All under one roof, The Pit Room melds together several of the state's respected meat traditions.  The Fieri-approved sausages draw from the Central Texas barbecue genre, where Czech, German, and Polish immigrants popularized tubed meats. Simultaneously, the sausage's use of spice and heat hints at the Creole and Cajun influences found in Houston. Meanwhile, menu offerings such as the chicken and brisket tacos, as well as chicharrones (which Fieri also sampled), draw heavily from Mexican cuisine. The tradition of brisket served in a tortilla is a beloved regional style found in the south of the state.

Finally, The Pit Room sells an intertwining thread of more broadly Texan dishes, too. You can grab a tasty rendition of chili con carne, one of the first dishes that defined Tex-Mex cuisine, as well as statewide favorite chips and queso, and even barbecue-loaded breakfast tacos come morning time. As with other high-quality barbecue joints, a wait is to be expected, but for food of this caliber, it's worth it.