Posted: Wed, 11 May 2016 07:38 PM - 38,670 Readers

By: Leslee Bassman

Lakeway resident Robert Goyen says he eats at Schmidt Family Barbecue—in Bee Cave and Lakeway—a few times weekly and admits to being a fan of the restaurant’s Lockhart predecessor, Kreuz Market, since 1981.
Lakeway resident Robert Goyen says he eats at Schmidt Family Barbecue a few times weekly and returns for the quality of the food, consistency and friendliness of its employees.

“As much as anything, it’s the quality, consistency and friendliness of the people who work here that keeps me [coming back],” Goyen said. “It’s not that you come in one time and it’s good. It’s that you come back and every time it’s good.

“With some of the restaurants that come in [to Lake Travis], that’s it. But these people impact the community.”

However, Schmidt Family Barbecue’s Lakeway location—2125 Lohmans Crossing, Ste. 400—will close by September, with the Bee Cave Hill Country Galleria site—at 12532 Bee Caves Road—to remain open, said co-owner Susie Schmidt Franks who owns the establishment with husband Chad Franks.

“It is with mixed emotions that we’ve decided not to renew our lease in Lakeway which is up at the end of July,” she said. “We have made plans to stay until September to give our landlord time to find new tenants.”

Early in 2015, the Franks family was approached to open a new Lakeway location in an existing barbecue building site, Susie Schmidt Franks said.

Although Schmidt Family Barbecue's Lakeway location is slated to close by this fall, the Bee Cave Hill Country Galleria site (shown here) will remain open and is planning festivities to celebrate its third anniversary this October.

“The opportunity was perfect to do a test market in Lakeway,” she said.

The couple signed a year lease in July for the 3,600-square-foot restaurant space in the Lakeway Town Center but found that, as a family-run business, their energy was being “pulled in too many directions,” Susie Franks said. They decided to close the Lakeway eatery in order to focus their efforts on the Bee Cave restaurant, she said.

“With all the positive things that come with the Lakeway location, there are some tremendous challenges that went into our decision,” Susie Schmidt Franks said. “The main one being underestimating the logistics of traveling back and forth, managing both locations and the fact that our main brisket pits are located in Bee Cave.”

She said the family is “very hands-on” with the restaurant’s day-to-day activities, a management style that factored into their decision.

“Chad likes to go out and talk to customers,” Susie Schmidt Franks said. “We want to keep that hands-on feeling. I see us focusing on [our Bee Cave] restaurant and growing here with the Lake Travis community.

“We sincerely appreciate the support that our Lake Travis customers have shown and we hope to see them soon at the Bee Cave location.”

Schmidt Family Barbecue is planning a community-wide event prior to the Lakeway site’s closure as well as a celebration of their third anniversary in Bee Cave this fall, Susie Schmidt Franks said. The restaurant will announce specific events in the near future, she said.

*  Story Contributed by: Leslee Bassman