“Pop” the Food Trailer Rolls Into Town - and Suddenly, We’ve Taken Sides

There’s a particular kind of magic that happens when a meal finally becomes a spread — when the brisket lands at the center of the table and suddenly everyone leans in, passing bowls, debating flavor, negotiating space on the plate like diplomats at a summit.

That kind of magic just got a whole lot easier for us to offer.

Because Pop — our shiny new food trailer — has rolled into town.

And with Pop comes sides. Hot, hearty, soul-warming sides.

This may seem like a small detail, but if you grew up in a family like mine, you know that sides are not a detail. Sides are identity. Sides are opinion. Sides are the stuff of lifetime debates and lovingly dramatic disagreements.

Sides, in other words, are the heart of sharing a meal.

A Family Divided (Lovingly) by Neeps and Tatties

In my family, those debates centered around two very simple things: rutabaga and potatoes.

Or as our Scottish heritage insists we call them — Neeps and Tatties. My sister Leigh and I could not have been more different in this department. I loved rutabaga at Thanksgiving. Loved. It.

Leigh…did not. Not even remotely.

And she especially would not eat the mashed potatoes if they’d been served with the same spoon that touched the mashed rutabaga. This wasn’t “I’d prefer not to.” This was full moral opposition. A line in the sand. A declaration of sovereignty.

Looking back, I love that about us — that something as humble as mashed root vegetables could spark so much passion. Because that’s what sides do. They tell the story of where we come from, what we love, what we will defend at all costs, and how we gather around the table.

What Pop Makes Possible

Pop lets us bring that spirit to every Llano & Rye cook.Pop gives us:

• Savory Borracho Beans straight from the trailer to your plate

• Mac n’ Cheese that’s worth forming a polite crowd around

• True Texas Chili – No Tomatoes, No Beans

• An excuse to slip a spoon into homemade, creamy, crunchy, and unforgettable Smoked Banana Bourbon Boston Cream Pudding. Sharing? Ha. Not even.

Sides let us help you build your own family debates, your own rituals, your own memories. They let us expand the table — literally and figuratively.

The Taste of Time Well Spent

At Llano & Rye, we’ve always believed that food isn’t just fuel — it’s fellowship.It’s a moment to be present.It’s a chance to say I’m grateful you’re here.And if we’re doing it right, it’s what we like to call the Taste of Time Well Spent.

Pop is going to help us deliver more of those moments.More warmth.More abundance.More chances to argue, lovingly, about who gets the last spoonful of mac, or whether beans should ever have sugar in them, or if rutabaga has a place on the Thanksgiving table (yes, Leigh, it does).

So here’s to sides.Here’s to Pop.Here’s to Neeps, Tatties, brisket, beans, and all the traditions that come with gathering around good food.

And here’s to you — the folks who make this whole journey worth the time we spend tending the fire.