Fried Flavors finds a home in Lockhart – earns two 2026 Best of Caldwell County honors
By Anthony Collins
LPR Editor
Lockhart has built quite a reputation for its barbecue, but there’s a food truck near the downtown square that’s giving folks another reason to come hungry. Fried Flavors has been winning over customers with its fresh chicken wings, burgers, chicken sandwiches, and a lineup of sauces that offer a little something for everyone.
Apparently, people like what they’re cooking, too. Fried Flavors recently picked up two 2026 Best of Caldwell County honors, winning Best Wings and Best New Food Truck. For owners Michael Johnson and his husband, Shane Redinger, those awards are a reminder of just how far they’ve come since taking a chance on the food business.
The story behind Fried Flavors started long before the food truck arrived in Lockhart. Johnson developed a love for cooking at a young age, attended culinary school after high school, and spent several years working in restaurants. Eventually, life took him in another direction. He and Redinger moved to Connecticut, where Johnson took a supervisory position with Amazon. But his passion for cooking never went away. When the couple moved to Texas, they discovered Austin’s food truck scene and fell in love with the variety of foods and creativity. One afternoon, they stopped at a food truck in South Austin and ended up talking with the owner for nearly an hour. By the time they left, they were asking themselves why they couldn’t do something similar. That conversation led to Fried Flavors. The couple started their business at Ghost Line Kitchens, a ghost kitchen in Austin, where they experimented with recipes, developed their menu, and learned the ins and outs of operating a food business. Their goal was simple: serve food people would enjoy enough to come back for. That idea became the company’s motto, “Life’s too short for mediocre wings!”
Lockhart wasn’t originally part of their plans. Through Redinger’s work, the couple met Jessie and his family at Central Texas Autos. What began as a business connection turned into a friendship, and before long, they were spending more time in Lockhart. They liked the town’s atmosphere and the people they met along the way. When the opportunity came to bring Fried Flavors downtown, they decided to take another chance. They bought a house, moved to Lockhart, and put everything they had into making their business work. They also knew they were coming into a town where people take their food seriously. Lockhart’s barbecue reputation reaches well beyond the city limits. They simply wanted to offer something different, with fresh wings, bold flavors, and comfort food people could enjoy any day of the week. “We weren’t trying to compete with Lockhart’s barbecue tradition,” Johnson said. “We wanted to add another option to a town that already knows and loves great food.”
When it comes to their wings, they don’t cut corners. The business uses fresh, never-frozen chicken and a seasoning recipe passed down through Redinger’s family in Australia. The meat goes through a two-part cooking process designed to keep it juicy inside and crispy outside. Customers can choose from 15 sauces and three dry rubs, ranging from sweet and mild to seriously spicy. There’s even a secret sauce called RIM Fire that isn’t listed on the menu. It’s their hottest creation, reserved for customers brave enough to give it a try. “I’ve always believed that if I wouldn’t serve something to my own family at home, I shouldn’t serve it to my customers,” Johnson said. “That’s the standard we try to live by every day.” Of course, running a food truck isn’t all about cooking wings. Getting established in Lockhart meant working through city approvals, historic district requirements, and health regulations. Then came the daily responsibilities of keeping the business going. On Fridays and Saturdays, Fried Flavors is open from 11 a.m. until 11 p.m., but those hours don’t count for everything that happens behind the scenes. The days can be long, but Johnson says hearing from a satisfied customer or reading a positive review makes the hard work worthwhile.
On the first Friday of every month, they host Free Wing Friday, giving away free wings with no purchase necessary. It’s a chance for people to sample their food while enjoying the downtown festivities. Looking ahead, they hope to expand through partnerships with businesses that don’t have their own kitchens. They’ve already developed that relationship with Lucky Break Saloon in Lockhart, where the saloon provides the drinks and entertainment while Fried Flavors handles the food. Additional locations and even a permanent restaurant are possibilities, but they aren’t interested in growing so quickly that they lose the quality and personal service that helped establish their business.
For now they are concentrating on what they’ve built, while considering what might come next. Winning Best Wings and Best New Food Truck has given them another reason to feel good about their decision to move here. “We came here hoping people would give us a chance,” Johnson said. “To receive this kind of recognition from the community means more than I can put into words. We took a chance on Lockhart, and Lockhart took a chance on us,” Johnson said. “That’s something we’ll never forget.”
