While not in Houston, this Round Top joint has been a Central Texas barbecue staple for years, with Truth BBQ's husband-and-wife duo Leonard Botello IV and Abbie Byrom-Botello, most recently, at the helm. This month, sadly, will be its last.

The couple took to Instagram to announce that they are closing Merritt at the end of August after two-and-a-half years in business, following the property owners’ decision to go in a different direction with the space in Round Top’s Henkel Square. 

Botello and Byrom-Botello took on Merritt as their personal project in honor of their friend Lee Ellis, the fiery local restaurateur and figure who previously owned Round Top Smokehouse and his nearby namesake bar, Ellis Motel. After Lee's death in 2023, the couple renamed the smokehouse Merritt, for Lee's middle name. It was "our way of keeping his vision alive and sharing his spirit with the Round Top community," the couple wrote in an Instagram post. 

Merritt, located not far from Truth BBQ's original location in Brenham, became even more of a fixture in the Round Top scene, serving a top-notch Texas trinity, smashburgers, inventive sides like sweet and spicy brussels sprouts, and experimental dishes that were often tested there first before being debuted at Truth, which has its flagship in Houston's Heights.

“While this chapter is coming to a close, the time we’ve spent here will remain incredibly meaningful to us,” the Instagram post continues. “Thank you to everyone who shared a meal with us, believed in us, and made Merritt Meat Company a place worth remembering.”