Llano, Texas: A Granite Courthouse Town on the River, and the Pit Barbecue at Cooper’s

Some towns are worth the drive for one meal. Llano is one of them, but it would be a shame to eat and run. The courthouse square, the Llano River and a downtown full of family-run shops make it one of the most satisfying small-town stops in the Hill Country.

Here’s how to see the town and how to handle Cooper’s like you’ve done it before.

Getting to Llano

Llano is the county seat of Llano County, northwest of Austin in the granite country of the Llano Uplift. Plan on roughly an hour and a half from Austin and a little over two hours from San Antonio. Highway 71 brings you in from the Austin side, and Highway 16 connects Llano with Fredericksburg to the south.

The town is often called the deer capital of Texas, and hunting season brings a noticeable bump in traffic from November into early winter. If you want a quieter visit, weekdays are your friend.

The courthouse and the square

The Llano County Courthouse anchors downtown. Completed in 1893 and designed by Austin architect A.O. Watson, it’s a Romanesque Revival building with a clock tower you can spot from several blocks away. It’s still a working county building, so think of it as the centerpiece of a stroll rather than a museum.

Around the square, look for:

• The Buttery Company, a family hardware business founded in 1892 that now operates out of the 1880 Old Southern Hotel building.
• The Lantex Theater, a single-screen movie house that opened in 1927 and still shows films and hosts concerts and other live events.
• Small shops, galleries and cafes that change over time; walk the blocks around the courthouse and see what’s open that day.

History stops: the museum and the Red Top Jail

The Llano County Historical Museum at 310 Bessemer is set in the old Bruhl drugstore building and keeps the store’s marble-topped soda fountain. Exhibits cover ranching, farming and frontier days, along with the granite quarried in the area, including the stone that became the base of the Texas Ranger monument at the State Capitol. Admission has been free, but hours are limited, so call the museum at (325) 247-3026 before planning around it.

A short walk from downtown, the Red Top Jail at 400 Oatman St. was built in 1895 and served as the county jail until 1982. A volunteer group, the Friends of the Llano Red Top Jail, has been restoring it and offers tours by appointment and at special events. Even from the street, the red roof makes it worth the detour.

The Llano River and the Inks Bridge

The river runs along the north edge of downtown, crossed by the Roy B. Inks Bridge, a 1935 steel truss bridge that’s the main way across the river in town. It’s walkable and gives you a good look at the wide, rocky riverbed. City parks along the water, including Badu Park and Robinson City Park, are good places to stretch your legs or let the kids skip rocks. River levels change quickly after rain, so use common sense near the water.

Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que: how it works

Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que at 604 W. Young St. has been cooking since 1962. Tommy Cooper opened it after his father, George, started a pit barbecue joint in nearby Mason in 1953. The Wootan family has owned the Llano restaurant since the early 1990s, and the Cooper’s name has since spread to several other Texas cities, but this is the original “Big Chop” location.

What makes Cooper’s different is the ordering. Instead of a cafeteria line, you walk up to big outdoor pits, where the meat cooks over mesquite coals. A pitmaster lifts the lid, you point at what you want, and he’ll ask if you’d like it dipped in sauce before putting it on your tray. Then you carry it inside, where it’s cut, weighed and you add sides and drinks.

On the official menu you’ll find brisket, pork ribs, beef ribs, sausage (including jalapeño cheese), chicken, turkey, sirloin, pork loin and the restaurant’s signature: the Big Chop, a thick, bone-in pork chop. Ribeyes are listed for Thursday through Saturday after 5 p.m. only. Sides include beans, potato salad, coleslaw, corn on the cob, mac and cheese and more, and the dessert menu has warm cobblers, banana pudding and Blue Bell ice cream.

A few tips:

• Order a little less than you think you want. Everything is sold by the cut, and it adds up fast.
• Lunch on weekends gets busy, especially during hunting season. Aim for an early lunch or a late afternoon stop.
• For to-go orders, call (325) 247-5713.

Hours, dates and prices can change. Check the Cooper’s website or call before you head out.

If you like this kind of trip, our Lockhart barbecue guide is a good next stop. But Llano has its own charm: a granite town, a wide river, and a pitmaster asking if you want it dipped. Hard to beat.

Featured photo: Larry D. Moore via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.