(NEXSTAR) — Summer is quickly approaching, and with the higher temperatures come more reasons to be outdoors with some meat on the grill. It’s an American summer tradition — but a new analysis found that cookouts in some Lone Star State areas might be easier (and more cost-effective) than in others.
In fact, one Texas city made the national top 10 of best cities for grilling meat.
To figure this out, lawn care industry news outlet Lawn Love analyzed the 469 biggest cities in the U.S. and ranked them based on four meat-related categories, including popularity/interest in grilling, access to grilling items/equipment, cost and outdoor conditions. Each city then received an overall score out of 100. Lawn Love says it excluded 31 cities from the rankings due to a lack of information.
Coming in eighth place is the Central Texas river-floating destination New Braunfels. The Comal County city, which has an estimated population of 104,707, received a score of 54.36 out of 100, earning its highest score in the access category.
New Braunfels’ high access core factored in the number of butcher shops and meat markets in addition to herb/spice shops. The number of stores like Lowe’s, Home Depot, True Value and Ace Hardware per 100,000 residents was also considered.
The city also received low marks in terms of cost. However, a low score in that category is actually a good thing. Overall, New Braunfels ranked 25th nationally for a cost-friendly barbecue.
Nationally, the Best City for Grilling Meat was determined to be Melbourne, Florida. This coastal city, located about 70 miles southeast of Orlando, received the overall highest score of all cities, with a 57.70 out of 100. Santa Fe, New Mexico, was a close second, with an overall score of 56.58.
After New Braunfels, the next Texas cities to appear near the top of Lawn Love’s ranking are Georgetown (11th), Tyler (16th) and Longview (28th). Austin ranked 46th nationally, with Texas’ capital city receiving its strongest score in the cost category, ranking 43rd overall.
To read the full 2024 Best Cities for Grilling Meat ranking, visit Lawn Love.
While grilling costs in Texas were found to be on the lower end in Lawn Love’s study, that doesn’t mean they are cheap. A WalletHub analysis recently found that a barbecue on Memorial Day weekend 2024 cost about 10% more than last year’s.
While the first day of meteorological summer was June 1, the official start of the season most people refer to as “summer” is estimated to begin June 20.
