Thousands Of Americans Love This Famous Texas Thanksgiving Bird

It's a cultural thing. If you grew up eating smoked turkey you' re more than likely going to have a nostalgia for it built into your taste buds. On the other hand if you've never eaten smoked anything, that smokey flavor might just be overwhelming.

Every Thanksgiving and Christmas thousands of Texans and Americans order their bird smoked from Greenberg Smoked Turkey in Tyler, TX. And every year thousands more are confused why they do it.

"I absolutely love Greenberg turkey. Grew up eating them. I can’t wait to have one next week. They do make the best turkey sandwiches with some miracle whip. Yummy!" —  Lana Eltife

As for me, I didn't move to Texas until after high school and though I've now been here over 25 years, I still haven't been able to adapt to the smokey flavor. But I've got so many friends who think I'm completely crazy.

And it's not just Texans who love them, the 80-year-old Tyler-based company got a big bump in popularity after Oprah added their turkeys to her Favorite Things List.

"This turkey from Greenberg Smoked Turkey Inc. has been prepared in an old-fashioned brick smokehouse using only hickory wood, so all you have to do is slice and enjoy. No wonder it’s one of my all-time Favorite Things." — Oprah

While it's hard to argue with Oprah, there are a few Texans who are up to the task.

Samantha Renee wrote that her "old employer gave every employee one for Thanksgiving, I gave ours away every year. I think they’re awful." But she was diplomatic about it pointing out that "But I’m not going to rant about having different tastes than someone else."

Going through the comments folks are for the most part 100% in on the birds or 100% out on them. And there are enough folks who can't imagine Thanksgiving or Christmas with out Greenberg that the company is going to be just fine.