In town with extended family. We asked locals for a gluten free option restaurant that would impress. Oh it did! Old school woodsy vibe - typical of BBQ joints in the south. The menu is gigantic. They run out some meats on weekends. We were victim of this when 3 of us ordered steak and someone took the last one. We almost had to get up and hunt them down! Just kidding! For our gluten free eater, this place was big hit. He had multiple choices and most importantly didn't get sick the next day. My meat combo platter was filling. The meats were amazing. Portion sizes were great. I was most impressed by this corn off the cob with some sauces. It was incredible! Prices were also reasonable. read more

Bubba-Q's - Barbeque Near Me - Ottumwa, Iowa

See all

Stopped in with a group of friends and received wonderful service. Overall the food was pretty good. Firecracker Potato appetizer 5/10 . Corn dip 8/10 . Alfredo is a crowd favorite rated 9/10 by all three who ordered it at the table. Pork Nachos smelled and looked amazing. I personally had a bbq chicken flat bread and thoroughly enjoyed it 8.5/10. read more

Food, steak was cooked perfectly. The service was great, the waiter was attentive. Yes I would eat there again read more

Bubba-Q's - Steak, potato salad - Barbeque Near Me - Ottumwa, Iowa

Stopped in for a work trip. The food was great. I got the sirloin, mac and cheese, and the beans! Everything was cooked to perfection. The "smoked" old fashioned was pretty cool too! read more

I heard this place was the best in town, and we couldn't agree more. Everything we tried was amazing. The brisket, ribs, turkey, and pork! The American fries with bacon! Loved the baked beans. Will be back next time in town. Our waiter was attentive and entertaining. read more

See all

Great service and absolutely delicious food! Absolutely love the rustic decor, very cozy. read more

Bubba-Q's - Firecracker fries! - Barbeque Near Me - Ottumwa, Iowa

Always exceptional service, the atmosphere inside is beautiful (good job Mikey and Josh) Food is amazing. Never had a bad dish there. Very consistent. read more

Located in the local mall--which is barely hanging on--this place has a huge menu and good barbecue. It's a really family place with lots of room for big groups. They do a steady takeout business too. Barbecue places that also sell just about everything else are not particularly my first choice but as part of a group it made sense. Everyone liked their orders and several took tomorrow's lunch home. Generous servings to say the least. I got the chili--plenty of taste, really thick and meaty. And then a BBQ baked potato. Solid--well baked, plenty of Pork, and with butter and sour cream on the side (which I prefer since I really want neither on my order). Totally satisfied with the order. Excellent service, attentive, friendly. Love it when someone knows the job and gives it an A effort. Leave that person a great tip! The mall is largely empty so plenty of parking. read more

Bubba-Q's - BBQ pork potato--recommended - Barbeque Near Me - Ottumwa, Iowa

See all

Great Service, Amazing food, wonderful atmosphere. All around a great place to get some even greater food! Highly recommend

Good bbq. Would visit again Lots of options Sandwiches as well for those who don't want ribs

The menu was huge! Such a variety of items to choose from. Food tasted delicious and service was amazing! Nice food! read more

Bubba-Q's - Grilled Chicken Breast, Bubba-Q Beans - Regular, Potato Salad - Regular - Barbeque Near Me - Ottumwa, Iowa

Grate food and the wait staff r so friendly and Grate steaks will be back and tell everyone

Fantastic Iowa tap beer selection. Had the stake w John Deer corn and potato w mushrooms n onions. The JD corn is amazing. The steak was ok. The mushroom n onion was a completely missed. read more

First stop in my travels in Ottumwa was there highly rated Bubba Q's. This BBQ restaurant was outstanding. I had their Papa Joe wrap that came loaded with, I believe brisket or burnt ends, and max and cheese and then I got the Bubba Q beans. This meal slapped and I really enjoyed it! It was insanely good and I almost went back a second night during my time in Ottumwa. Only thing I was hoping for was a variety of BBQ sauces. That would've really sealed it completely for me read more

Bubba-Q's - Wrap - Barbeque Near Me - Ottumwa, Iowa

See all

Great little bbq place! I had the bourbon burger and it was the juiciest I've had in a while.

First thing I noticed was how warm the place was when we entered, the ambiance gives off the inside of a barn which I thought was pretty neat, The service takes a while but they give constant reminders that the food is coming soon, overall, pretty good so far, then the food, I ordered the Pasta Alfredo Chicken, and it was very creamy and very rich, I almost couldn't finish it due to how heavy it was on my stomach read more

Food was good service was great. I sat at the bar and the young lady serving me was wonderful.

I love a good success story. The photo is from the day I discovered Bubba's. November 17, 2010. I was working at a local factory, and heard that one of their former employees quit to start a BBQ restaurant, because he did the best BBQ in town. It was a small place, downtown, and I think I paid less than $10 for a sandwich, which lasted me two meals. Fast forward to 2019. It's now a full, sit down restaurant with a large menu, but the BBQ is just as good. Definitely a staple of Ottumwa cuisine. read more

Bubba-Q's - Pulled pork sandwich - Barbeque Near Me - Ottumwa, Iowa

We were a party of 8 on a Tuesday night. They were busy so understandable that they couldn't seat us right away but the "hostess" was pretty rude to my niece while we were in the process of waiting and a smaller group came in and she seated them right away. After being seated, drinks and food were ordered. The waitress couldn't answer simple questions about the menu and a few orders had to be repeated After a moderately long wait our food was served two plates at a time with the exception of one of our party who just never received his food. We spoke to someone whom I believe was the manager and then our waitress to finally get his meal served 15 minutes after the rest of us. Very mild apology from the waitress, no apology or explanation of why and no apology from the floor manager. I have to say the baby back ribs were very good and the BubbaQ baked beans were excellent. The being said, the "fire grilled" Ribeye was definitely not up to snuff. Although cooked to the right temperature, the fire grilled part really wasn't in evidence. Also, I'm pretty sure it was a top sirloin not a Ribeye. There was no marbling throughout, no tender and juicy rib cap at the top of the cut, nothing that makes a Ribeye so distinctive and tasty. And more expensive then the cut of meat that I was served. It seemed totally like a bait and switch and will make me avoid this place in the future, no matter how good the baked beans are. read more

Stumbled on this gem (literally a hole cut into the wall for a door) on a work trip. Being from TX we don't usually do BBQ outside the state since finding good BBQ in any of the other 49 states is hit or miss at best. Bubba-Q's did not disappoint. They know their Que. Great sauces and fixin's. I had the Pulled Pork and the burnt ends in the two meat platter. I would have thought I was in East TX. Not the Mesquite from central or South TX. If I lived here this would be a regular stop. read more

Looking for a bite to eat before a show at the Bridge View Center, I stopped at Bubba Q's. BBQ that will make you cry? It left me crying for some real BBQ. The menu is extensive, overwhelming, and hard to read due to all the items so it's no wonder they aren't great at BBQ, because they are trying to make the phone book of menus. I got the pulled pork with Mac and Cheese. The pulled pork was very dry, fatty, and tough. It had a light smoke flavor, but you needed lots of sauce and water to eat it. The Mac and Cheese was overcooked and seamed old. I tried the brisket which was as tough as shoe leather and fatty. No real smoke ring and way short on flavor, this shouldn't be called brisket. I also sampled the ham which was decent, but seamed to be a processed ham. I also tried the turkey which was very good, but needed a little smoke flavor. This place is not BBQ. read more

See all

Got the word about Bubba-Q's from some coworkers that live in the area...and man they were right. Right off the bat you notice an endless menu with many options, which starts me worrying about whether the quality will be sacrificed or not. Well it wasn't. The meat was tender, savory and overall delicious. The environment is a little strange as the restaurant is in a mall but the interior has a lot of decorations that give the place a nice southern country feel. The meals are priced well and which makes me want to come back even more! read more

See all

Good food (all though my hot BBQ chicken sandwich came cold). Price $$.nice environment and staff. Quick service. Recommend.

Well took our family to Bubba Q last night. My hubby always orders the loaded nachos. He says it's not as good as it use to be . The difference being. They use to use chunks of beef as the meat and he loved them . Now they use ground beef . He says it ruins the taste. So ok Bubba please use the beef chunks again. If you have something that works that people love stick with it. I had the pork chop it was very good and moist. So here's a hint step it up to please the customers. read more

Definitely a terrible value for the money. I ordered a loaded baked potato, extra link of sausage and 3 slices of bread. First of all each slice of bread was $1.00 EACH. The sausage was 3.99 for a terrible portion size.(I'm from Texas, and that's not Texas smoked sausage) my total with a 3.50 delivery charge came to a whopping $20.60! The potato was mediocre at best. Covered in cheese to hide small potato size. Bottom line, if you're from the Midwest and don't know any better knock yourself out at this place and be sure to bring your Check book. If you are a connoisseur of fine BBQ and from the great state of Texas like myself, Wait til you get home. You'll only be di Manager called and made it right. read more

See all

Great place to have a great food. Very friendly staff and owner. Give Bubba Qs a try !!!!!!

Myself, husband and daughter came to eat tonight for dinner. It was a HORRIBLE experience. Everyone was running around like thier heads were cut off. It took a. Hour to get our food. Because it took so long we had to get a Togo box and rush out of there in order to get home for our child to get to bed in time for school. When we asked what was taking so long..They apologized because they said they were "busy" but there were only 4 tables in the restaurant with people and everyone was complaining, it would have been logical for them to let the customers know before seating them that it would take an hour to receive your food. So we get home and they forgo ALL of our sides. I came here once before and the service and food quality was decent, I was extremely disappointed. They are clearly short staffed in the kitchen department. I wouldn't recommend coming here until they can get some proper staffing. We paid for food we didn't receive, by the time we were home restaurant was closed and I couldn't call to let them know part of our order wasn't there. read more

Mama recommended we have a late lunch/early dinner at Bubba Q's, this is my first visit. I ordered the burnt ends sandwich with BBQ beans (which I love comparing amongst BBQ establishments). Mom ordered the chicken sandwich with potato salad - her go to choice. The burnt ends were tasty - could have been grilled longer for me, I like some of 'em crispy. The baked beans were sprinkled on top with a generous amount of pulled pork which added a welcome smokiness to the beans. Bubba's beans and the BBQ sauce are on the sweeter side, that is fine, and reminds me of homemade beans from my childhood which were jazzed up with brown sugar. I tasted my Mom's potato salad and discerned that sweet pickles and hard boiled eggs must have been added to the recipe. Yummy! Wait staff was friendly. The check was dropped off at the table before we finished eating - a little pet peeve of mine. To me it is like, "okay, we are finished serving you, get your keister out the door." read more

See all

I LOVED IT. The service was great. The food was amazing. The atmosphere was clean. I loved it I would recommend this place to all my friends. read more

They have everything you would want in a BBQ restaurant-Size, sauce, quality of meat, choices, great sides all cooked by someone who loves BBQ and activley competes in competition. If you are close by this small Iowa town, please try Bubba-Q's small town place with big town bite. I have tried many BBQ joints, trust me this is a winner. Glad to see this place doing well. read more

Horrible service! Last time we were here we had 3 waitresses look at us and not say a word to us. We ended up leaving after 15 minutes of being ignored. This time we called ahead to make a reservation and were told they do not make reservations for parties under eight people and we had seven. When we arrived at 5:30 they told us they wouldn't be able to seat us at all because we didn't make a reservation and had more than six people. Someone needs to get their story straight because this is ridiculous. I can guarantee we will never be back. read more

In the land of BBQ, Bubba is big fish in a small pond, but when going to the larger ponds, one still finds him to be quite large! The meats, sauces and sides here are all wonderful. Large portions so you won't go home hungry and can share with your friends so they know where to go as well! read more

Have eaten at Bubba Q's many, many times and have never had a bad meal or bad service! It's always a pleasure to eat here, great food, awesome atmosphere and friendly staff! Hard to beat!!! read more

Went here yesterday for the first time in a long time my gf got chicken Alfredo it was good n I got full rack of ribs with John Deere corn and Mac n cheese! Well I spent all night in and out of bed due to food poisoning! read more

MUST HAVE if you're in the area. The food is fantastic and the service was amazing. I got the burnt tips and the sausage. My fiancé got the brisket and the sausage. Their sides are to die for especially the bubba-q beans. Oh! & Don't forget to end your meal with the chocolate cake. It's really good. Shout out to our server, April, who was super hospitable and friendly through out our meal. You were the cherry on top to a really great food experience! read more

This place is pretty great. Good food, good service, best BBQ in town for sure!!!!!!!!!

Third visit and I stepped out of my rut and risked ordering a chopped beef sandwich and my usual side of slaw. I really like the chopped pork with plenty of Louisiana Hot sauce, but decided to try something different this time. When I ordered, the woman asked if I wanted the smaller sandwich that comes with one side, as a special. I insisted on the regular sandwich. I watched her make it and realized the smaller one would probably be enough. The regular sandwich will probably feed a family of four. Honestly, I almost got full eating the loose chopped beef that fell off the sides of the bun when I unwrapped it at my table. Nevertheless, I managed to get away with it. The beef is moist with a little seasoned broth. It is reasonably smoky. It is really similar to the pork, but is clearly beefy. I still prefer the pork but this is certainly acceptable. BubbaQ's remains a very solid three stars. Remember, that really does mean A-OK. I will keep stopping and will try to get up nerve to try the sliced meats, the turkey and maybe even give the ribs another chance. (see first review) read more

good food, and good service, get good amount of food. location for parking is sometimes an issue.

Great food. Always a great choice when dining out. Very professional staff. Never a bad time. Mac & cheese is my favorite from here

I have been calling this restaurant to place a catering order every day for the past four days for our family Christmas gathering. Each time I've called I've been told either they are to busy to take the order at the moment, the computers were down, the catering person was unavailable, etc. and to cll back the next day. On the fourth day they took my name and number to return my call to place my catering order the next day in the AM. At 2:45pm I call ed the restaurant again to talk to the catering person, was put on hold only for the girl that answered the phone to come back and say that they were not taking any catering orders. If that was the case why was I lead to believe that they were going to accapt my order. Now it's the last minute and I need to find a replacement meal to serve 35 people. This business has the worst customer serviceI've ever encountered! read more