The Legend of Southside

Bud Frazier was a colorful character who worked for Southside from early 1895 – 1971 and witnessed much of our history in the making. Later in life, Frazier told the story of Lee Wilson wanting him to take over and giving him the business, twice. But, the deals never held up. According to Frazier, Southside also changed hands several times at regular Wednesday night card games. He claimed that several Thursday mornings he showed up to work for a new boss. Through luck and persistence, Wilson always maintained ultimate control. That is until he sold the business in 1942.

In 1991, Ernest Sr. purchased the old Security National Bank building and land on Hwy. 290. He and his son, Billy, began remodeling to create a new home for Southside, adding the pit room, kitchen, meat market, and meat plant. July 1, 1992 - first sausage stuffed at the new location. July 16th - opening day for the restaurant. The Bracewells also added beans, potato salad, baby back ribs, and tea. The previous menu featured only meat by the pound, bottled soda, pickles, jalapeños, and onions. Three decades later, Southside is still going strong at 1212 Hwy. 290 in Elgin, TX.

On November 24, 2019 Southside officially set up shop in the big city of Austin, TX at 10515 N. Mopac Expy. In this bustling urban area they created a unique restaurant and dining experience that maintained the hometown hospitality and rural atmosphere of their earlier BBQ joints which, of course, included authentic Central Texas BBQ smoked low and slow on-site over real Texas post oak wood. This North Austin location offered a more convenient pit stop for many of Southside’s longtime fans while also paving the way for new relationships with old-school BBQ enthusiasts.