There's excellent barbecue all around the state, if you know where to look. But the concentration of pits in and near the Hill Country makes Austin a logical base camp for a day or a weekend of barbecue.

When Roadfoodies Jane and Michael Stern led a barbecue bus tour earlier this year, they followed a path east of Interstate 35 that took them to four of the most revered pits in the state. With, of course, a breakfast stop at Round Rock Donuts. You don't want to be too hungry at the first barbecue joint.

Compiled by Joyce Sáenz Harris

206 W. Second St., Taylor www.louiemuellerbarbeque.com 512-352-6206 ( Photos)

Don't miss: Spicy beef sausage in original, jalapeño or chipotle links. Yummy ends of beef brisket.

Why it's famous: Louie Mueller is a quintessential Texas barbecue joint: dim, airy and high-ceilinged, as befits a space that long ago was a gymnasium with a basketball court. Its wooden floors and walls are saturated with aromas from decades of barbecuing. You can practically taste the oaky smoke and smell the house-made sausage the minute you open the screen door. It proudly proclaims itself "A Texas Tradition Since 1949."

Brisket, ribs, pork, chicken, turkey, chopped beef and sides are standbys on the menu. But Mueller may be most famous for its beef sausages. The thick, natural casing requires a firm bite, we discovered. Thus, it's wise to order Mueller's sausage in sandwiches. The soft slices of Butter-Krust white bread make a good splatter shield when wrapped around the wurst.

1212 U.S. 290 E. (at State Highway 95 North), Elgin www.southsidemarket.com 512-285-3407 ( Photos)

Don't miss: Sausage sandwich. Brisket-and-sausage combo plate. Baby-back pork ribs. Smoked mutton. (Yes, mutton.)

Why it's famous: Elgin bills itself as the Sausage Capital of Texas, and no visit to Bastrop County is complete without a stop here. Southside's a huge place, one of the two biggest barbecue joints on the Roadfood bus tour. It's a meat market, a restaurant and a huge sausage production plant. Signs proclaim it as the "Home of Elgin Hot Sausage," also known as "Elgin Hot Guts." This is a spicy, smoky sausage in a natural casing, but not quite as thick a casing as Mueller's.

The menu features "family paks" of sausage, brisket and ribs. If you have room for dessert, Southside has ice cream, pies and homemade brownies. It also has a gift shop, a good place to pick up a souvenir T-shirt or jars of barbecue sauce.

208 S. Commerce (1 block from Caldwell County Courthouse), Lockhart www.smittysmarket.com 512-398-9344 ( Photos)

Don't miss: Boneless prime rib. Frostie root beer in ice-cold bottles. Rings of juicy sausage. Beef brisket.

Why it's famous: It's instantly apparent that Smitty's is the real thing. Step inside and breathe the sultry air, darkly perfumed with Essence of Barbecue. It's unavoidably smoky in here, and for good reason: Two large, open-pit, oak fires burn on the floors at the back of the building. These are relics of another, more dangerous era. Because Smitty's pit fires are grandfathered, there's nothing to keep an unwary visitor from stumbling into them. (Let the diner beware of drinking too many longnecks.)

This is where Kreuz Market originated. But a leasing dispute caused a split in 1999. The Kreuz name went with brother Rick across town to a new location. Sister Nina kept the old location and changed the name to Smitty's – their dad, Edgar's, nickname.

The places have similar menus, and the food at each is made using similar methods, with smoked meats served on butcher paper. You won't find forks here. But don't worry: If you order beans, they'll give you a spoon. Try to save space for ice cream.

619 N. Colorado St., Lockhart www.kreuzmarket.com 512-398-2361 ( Photos)

Don't miss: The "pit ham," served only on weekends. Beef brisket. Pork ribs. Boneless prime rib.

Why it's famous: Kreuz Market may not be doing business at the same old downtown stand it occupied for 99 years (Smitty's is there now), but even in a large, modern location, it still boasts "Since 1900," the year founder Charles Kreuz opened his meat market and grocery. The house rules are posted along the wall where the line forms:

"No barbecue sauce. (Nothing to hide.)

"No forks. (They are at the end of your arm.)

"No salads. (Remember no forks.)

"No credit cards also. (The bank doesn't sell barbecue.)

"No kidding. (See owner's face.)"

When your meal is over, if you still have any room left, check out the pies and the ice cream, available in the dining room.

106 W. Liberty (near the old water tower), Round Rock www.roundrockdonuts.com 512-255-3629 ( Photos)

Don't miss: Handmade doughnuts. Big cinnamon rolls. The "Texas-size" doughnut that's as big as your head.

Why it's famous:Lone Star Bakery, which makes Round Rock Donuts, has been in business since 1926, and its current owners (the bakery's sixth set) have been there since 1978. They make doughnuts from the original owner's recipes. The doughnuts are yeast-risen, with eggs giving them a distinct yellow color and a cakelike texture. Hand-rolled, cut, then fried and iced, they are what doughnuts used to be in the days before automation.

Lone Star Bakery also makes Swedish rye bread, meringue pies, coffee cakes and cinnamon rolls, as well as tea-cake cookies and traditional decorated cakes. Iced Christmas cookies, rolled thin and cut into four holiday shapes with antique cookie cutters, are a more recent bakery tradition.

•In June, Texas Monthly will update its guide to what it considers to be the best barbecue in the state.

•For a great primer, read Robb Walsh's Legends of Texas Barbecue Cookbook (Chronicle, $19); robbwalsh.com.

•On the Web: www.texasbbqreview.com and www.bbqfilm.com.