Craft Meats’ chef recreates Tres Hombres album cover using tacos, chalupa and tostada, and of course, he eats it. Thrilled by chef Thomas Micklethwait’s homage, ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons plans to visit the restaurant the next time he is in Texas.
Craft Meats owner and Tres Hombres fan Thomas Micklethwait has worked very hard to recreate the iconic album cover, and he might be getting rewarded for it soon.
This week, Micklethwait, the owner of Tex-Mex restaurant Craft Meats, shared a video of himself setting a table with a tasty meal composed of fresh cut baby tomatoes, corn, lime, lots of green chili peppers, loads of tacos, chalupa, tostada, beef enchiladas, red bean, and cheese nachos. The head chef of Craft Meats added a bottle of Southern Select, a rose and a vintage calendar with an Adelita, symbol of the famous female revolutionaries.
Fans of ZZ Top quickly realized that it was the recreation of the band’s Tres Hombres album cover, which was released in 1973. After taking few shots of the table, the Austin chef sat down and enjoyed the delicious food. Accompanying the video, Mr. Micklethwait shared the following caption:
“Sooooo… I really like Tex Mex and ZZ Top. And I’m a huge nerd. Now my life is a little more complete.”
He also explained that it took him over two months of searching on the Internet to find the right radio, calendar, and other props. The famous Texas BBQ expert confessed:
“I spent two months looking for props online and about an hourputting it together.”
ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons recently sat down with Texas Monthly where he explained that he was amazed by the replica. Gibbons said:
It’s crazy. Absolutely nuts. I stand in awe of what he’s accomplished. I have to hand it to him, he recreated every last element that you see in the centerfold with exacting detail. It’s rather remarkable. But what’s most remarkable for me is seeing the preparation and then witnessing the consumption. The whole film? As Matthew Odam in the Statesman so aptly concluded: “Hot. Delicious. And righteous.”
He explained that the food was from Leo’s Mexican Restaurant on South Shepherd in Houston, and the cover was shot by Galen Scott, who used props he had in his studio. Pleased by Micklethwait’s video, he plans to visit Craft Meats the next time he is in Austin for some real Texas BBQ. Gibbons confessed:
“I owe him a visit for sure. His accomplishment is significant. Next time I’m through, we should invite half the city of Austin to come with us and sample the Tres Hombres platter. He’d make another, right? Tell him I’m coming.”
