A very crowded Friday night left us getting what wasn't expected: a long line that went very fast. From the moment we arrived, we were greeted by friendly people. Literally EVERY employee was cheerful and helpful. And the food was amazingly delicious! The outdoor seating made it seem like we were at a BBQ in someone's backyard. Very homey ambiance! read more

First time here, I'm from Hawaii, we don't have anything like this, our Brisket cost me around $45- a pound. My good friend from Arizona said this place is real good. He was right! The people at the restaurant was really nice and accommodating. Wanted to thank the person who was smoking the meats , didn't get his name. He invited me to check out the smokers and meats, since I was doing a YELP review. All I have to say is...Please come to Hawaii...Ha, Ha...Aloha,Derek read more

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Nice setup for Texas style barbecue. We went with some friends from Texas to get their authentic opinion of Caldwell's. They loved it!!! I gave it 4 stars because I'm from Chicago and the barbecue style in Chicago is better! The hot links were good. The ribs were good. The mac and cheese was good also. Everything there was good. It's pretty simple, I'm bias to Chicago style barbecue. I would go back here again. The staff was very nice and helpful with everything. The place is clean and well kept. Parking may be difficult but if you have a big truck but you can park and walk over. Next time in Phoenix I will go back. read more

Caldwell County BBQ - Barbeque Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

Food was delicious! I had the turkey sandwich and my husband had the brisket, it was really good! Loved the outdoor atmosphere and seating area, everything reminded me of barbecue places growing up in Georgia. Very reasonably priced. An employee came outside going to tables asking how they were enjoying the food or if they needed anything and if this was their first time, thought he would have asked us as we were adjacent to them. He skipped past us and went to other tables. Not sure what was going on but it definitely left a bad taste in my mouth...We were the only people of color there. Hopefully this was just an oversight on his part. I would definitely go back. Every business deserves a second chance. read more

Caldwell County BBQ - Reasonable priced - Barbeque Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

Had a great meal at our first-time visit. BBQ Turkey Salad was yummy with all the greens, veggies and dressing. Brisket and pulled pork sliders looked yummy too. My pecan pie was good and huge for an "individual" portion. read more

Excellent BBQ!! Banana pudding and Texas sheet cake are a must. Family friendly staff and dog friendly. Pit master Aaron took time to talk about each meat, explained how it all worked and shared about the Peoria location to open in February. We drive 40 mins to the Gilbert location, new location will be dangerous as it is not that far away. read more

I live in Florida and came to Arizona to visit family and I was totally impressed with this restaurant, what a gem! The food selection was a wide variety and the taste and quality was very impressive! I especially enjoyed the ambiance as I felt like a valued customer and I certainly will go back here to eat the next time I am in town! read more

Amazing food amazing service best place in mesa the food had great taste and large portions I loved this place

Food: 5/5 we got the family meal and everything was amazing! The Mac and cheese was delicious! Service: 5/5 One of the greatest customer service ever! They come to your table to make sure thing's are right for you! Atmosphere: 5/5 great atmosphere and a positive vibe! Value: 5/5 no words... just GREAT! read more

Caldwell County BBQ - Barbeque Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

Spendy for having to stand in a long cafeteria line for your food. Sides were so so and not hot enough. It was cool outside so small indoor space was loud and claustrophobic. I ordered and got 2 slices of smoked turkey. I don't eat pork or red meat. It was tough and dry. My husband ate my dinner and it was hard to choke down. read more

We have been occasionally eating at Caldwells since it opened. The turkey and brisket never disappointed. But we visited for lunch and noticed a big decline in the quality of meat. The turkey had an injection type taste when you buy sub quality, almost like mystery meat. The brisket as well, not sure what happened? Feeding the masses equals cutting corners? Hope you don't follow this trend, I would give you two thumbs down on quality. Also noticed many men like to enjoy lunch inside at Caldwells. Maybe add some ceiling fans because the smell of sweaty, blue collar working men...was a bit overwhelming. read more

Food and service was great. Wished there was more inside eating with AC. It's too hot. But overall I would recommend and will come back.

This is our second time here after discovering Caldwell County BBQ. We're from TX. I previously said this was the best, west of TX, but I have decided I don't remember having better in the 17 years I lived there. Perfect. read more

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Best BBQ in AZ. The pork ribs melt in your mouth. I could drink the Carolina vinegar sauce. The brisket is so tender and juicy. Small little mom and pop. I would recommend it to everyone. Wait wasn't long at all. I will be back. read more

Another tasty meal at Caldwell's Jimmy and Steve are pro pit masters who know what they are doing to produce the best smoked brisket and turkey...hands down! read more

Such amazing service...I could go on and on about this place. Not only is their bbq/food AMAZING but the service and employees just make it that much more of an experience! While eating on the outside patio (which is a vibe) they constantly were checking in on us, clearing things for us, offering if we need anything or to try anything. Everyone was kind and just makes you want to come back all the time. read more

The food was fantastic! My brother said the food was better than Terry Black's in Texas! The service was fantastic! The staff was so friendly and really gave it a family feel ambiance! Pit Master Steve was awesome! He was so friendly and funny and explained how some of the food was prepped and cooked. Impressive! Will definitely come back and recommend! read more

First time visiting and I was super excited. I think the restaurant does a great job of luring you in with the huge smokers on display right when you drive in. The restaurant is clean, super cute, and well mapped out. I read some other reviews about bad service and I was kind of hesitant but I'm glad we went. All our servers were super sweet and helpful. We ordered brisket (mix lean & fatty), sausages, corn pudding, beans & Mac n cheese. The meats were great and I enjoyed the bark on the brisket. I also like how the sausage was cooked. I really did not care for the sides or bbq sauce though. I would've preferred if the corn was on the sweeter side instead of so savory. The flavor profile was too similar to the mac n cheese which I found lacked seasoning and salt. The beans weren't very good either. They were on the bland side. But all that being said, I'd still come back for the meat and the ambiance. I really liked the vibe of this place. Very family friendly and laid back. read more

This place was a great find. Order at the counter and take your food back to a table on a tray, lunchroom style. I love all of the sauces, along with the size of the sides. I make the drive out here for bbq from Tempe. read more

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The best BBQ I have ever had. A must try! I would even drive from across town to go here! The pit masters love what they do and will invite you to see their pit. The outside vibes are soooo perfect for fall weather. read more

Caldwell County BBQ - Multi meat platter. Try everything it's all good - Barbeque Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

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Huge place but the line moved fast and good choice of sides and bbq. Plenty of seating inside and outside. Surrounded by many entertainment opportunities. read more

Staff friendly. BBQ brisket sandwich was fantastic (lean), sauce great, potato salad tangy and delicious, the only complaint I would have is that the ribs were not smoked long enough. They were tough and not fall off the bone tender. With the Dr. Pepper and beer umbrellas outside and that big, beautiful shade tree the ambiance was perfect for a good time. I will return. Thank you Caldwell! read more

Experience was unbelievable! Food was fantastic! I am used to having barbecue from Texas and this was right up there in quality! Highly recommend for not only the food but great family entertainment with so many activities on site and just a really cool vibe!. I will say that the menu was very confusing, but the staff was very helpful when we went in to order they made it much easier for us! And well worth the confusion once we got our food we couldn't put it down. It was that good. We will definitely be coming back. read more

Made our 1st visit yesterday, for sure not our last. About 40 mins from home but so worth it Variety. Food and customer service...superb Highly recommend read more

Food was average, service was decent but it's counter style bbq so no real wait staff. Old school Texas setting, patio was pretty nice though. read more

Returning after one year. Service is very attentive and efficient. Perfect day for dining in the outside dining area. Flavors and texture are spot on! Prices reasonable for quality. Clean restroom. Will return read more

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Probably the best bbq in the southeast valley in my opinion. Although I haven't tried every place out there, so I can't say that definitively. The interior is clean and set up nicely with tables. All of the staff if very friendly. read more

We went to buy furniture at AFW and could smell the BBQ from the parking lot and went to check it out. We got to sample the brisket and I got a Turkey sandwich and hubby got brisket sandwich and potato salad. The Turkey was super moist the bun was soft and a bit sweet. The Turkey was amazing brisket was good. The portion size is big. We got a lot of meat on our sandwiches. read more

have been to the Queen Creek location several times. The service is out of this world. Austin always makes sure that all is running smooth and that the customers are getting the best experience possible. My family and I will go only to Caldwells now because of Austin and his amazing customer relations read more

If I could rate this place on atmosphere and decor alone it would definitely get a five out of five. I love the feel of the outdoor area and there's ample seating for the lunch rush. The string lights are a really nice touch when enjoying the barbecue. I think having brisket in Texas has forever ruined me as the brisket here just did not seem as flavorful and felt a little bit dry. I love the macaroni and cheese and the coleslaw options. The pricing is extremely reasonable and all the sauces have a lot of flavor. read more

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Very unpretentious place. The food is served on a tray, the sides in plastic containers and you eat in paper plates with plastic cutlery. Now let me tell you about their food. We ordered the family pack with Brisket, pork and turkey. The turkey was dry but the brisket and the pork were so incredibly amazing, I am still going for 5 stars. Delicious. Tender. Simply amazing. read more

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Amazing BBQ! You won't be disappointed. Everything was tender and full of flavor--especially the brisket and pulled pork. Great sides, can't recommend the corn casserole and mac and cheese enough! Extremely friendly staff, both Torrin and Moses helped me in deciding what I should get since it was my first time. They let me sample a few of the meats too! Definitely a spot I'll be coming back to whenever I visit Phoenix. read more

Pretty darn tasty!! The pork ribs were fabulous! The corn casserole quite tasty! Brisket sandwich, loaded with meat! Beer....cold. Why only 4 stars? The Mac and cheese. It had the texture and taste of velvets with some peppers thrown in. Definitely the only weak link in the meal, but a big one for me. You've got to have good, homemade tasting Mac and cheese. The seating outside was awesome though!!! Loved the vibe. The staff were so kind and helpful! Would definitely go back, I just wouldn't get the Mac and cheese. read more

Pros - unbelievable atmosphere clean very welcoming. Fits the barbecue culture that you want to eat at. All the sides are top notch, and the meats have a great look and bring a lot of effort! Cons - a bit pricey, in my opinion, compared to some of the competition around the valley. At Caldwells prices, I think you get a bunch better product with the brisket, ribs and sausage at big Nates barbecue Lil, Miss BBQ or even Rudys BBQ. When you are charging that top price for brisket and ribs, it's gotta be on point. It's gotta be worth it. I feel their brisket moist is overcooked. Ribs are missing flavor and Texas seasoning style. Don't get me wrong, the meat is good, but when you price point it that high, you will get full disclosure opinions. No mercy on price is reflected in review. Overall it's a good spot, I just have this place behind the spots I said in brisket, ribs and links. In sides it's the best or just as good as any! read more

We started off a little dicey here. My wife and I pulled into the parking lot and parked next to another couple exiting their car. We politely let them clear the way before we got out. I walked directly into the cloud of fart this man left behind. Off-putting, to be sure, because I thought it might be the restaurant providing such heinous odors; but I soldiered on and was warmly greeted by the aromas of smoked meets. The menu is fairly limited, which is what you want to see in a BBQ place. It means they're putting in a lot of work into each selection instead of half-assing a bunch of them. The meal stood up to my hunches. My wife got the Dixie V sandwich (chopped brisket), and I got El General Patton (chopped brisket, pulled pork, and a 1/4 of their sausage link). Fair warning, you don't get a lot of sausage, it's mentioned right there that it's 1/4 of a sausage link, but I didn't read it and was mildly disappointed for a minute. I also got the beans and lemon poppyseed coleslaw on the side, my wife made the glaring mistake of not ordering a single side. The beans were fantastic; sprinkle some of those onion slices in there and oooo baby we're cooking with smoke now! The lemon poppyseed coleslaw was fine. I probably wouldn't order it again, but I also wouldn't avoid it if it was on the table during a group setting sort of situation. Given the size of the pile of meat in front of me, I knew there could be some logistical issues shoving it into my face, so I plucked the sausage off the sandwich and ate that as is. Threw a little bit of the Arizona Gold sauce (by far my favorite but the others were still great), with a little onion gently placed right on top, YES! Then I went to town on the sandwich. More Arizona Gold, more onions, and we were off to the races. You could taste the pulled pork and brisket separately, and they both had their own distinct smoke flavors. It really was just a dream, and this BBQ hold it's own anything I've had in Texas and Tennessee. The atmosphere was absolutely lovely with plenty of big picnic benches outside and market lights providing a lovely glow, under which you can test the upper limits of your cholesterol intake. The staff was super nice and really efficient. Couldn't ask for more. The only mistake I made was not getting more onions and ordering a full sausage on the side. read more

Caldwell County BBQ - El General Patton Sandwich, Dixie V Sandwich, Lemon Poppyseed Coleslaw, beans - Barbeque Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

The food is excellent. We got the 4 person family pack. Brisket, pork and sausage. Everything was delicious. The restaurant was packed with people, so much I had to park in the street. But I went right through the line and out the door in just a few minutes. We will definitely be going back. read more

The motto is "If TX and AZ had a baby, it would be Caldwell County BBQ." This is mostly, but not completely true. I think Caldwell County BBQ aspires to be a Texas BBQ that just happens to be located in Arizona, and it's definitely very similar to Texas BBQ. I lived in Texas for a little more than 10 years and I've frequented most of the great BBQ joints - Kruez's, Snows, Salt Lick, Louie Mueller's, Black's, Franklin, etc., etc. Caldwell County could hold it's own with each of them. I'll tell you the differences between Caldwell County and TX BBQ. Many of the Texas BBQ joints not only don't serve their BBQ with sauce, they don't even offer it. Take Kruez's for instance (my favorite BBQ in the world) - instead of BBQ sauce they will provide you with a bottle of hot sauce, which absolutely tastes fantastic on their brisket and sausage. Caldwell County has a few choices of their own BBQ sauces as well as Texas Pete's hot sauce. Score one for Caldwell County. However, the House BBQ Sauce Caldwell County offers is nothing like the sauce available at most any TX BBQ Joint that offers sauce. TX sauce is generally very thin, and Caldwell's is thicker. They also serve "hot & sweet" sauce as well as a Carolina Mustard sauce, neither of which are "Texas-ey." Caldwell's offers both lean and fatty brisket - this is what you get in Texas. They also sell pulled pork - not Texas. Pinto beans - yes, like Texas. Corn and cornbread casserole - not like Texas, but it's very good. The sausage is similar to what you would get in a grocery store rather than the hand stuffed casings of sausage that you'll find at Black's, Kruez's, Louie Mueller's and others, so not Texas again. The menu lists "BBQ salad" and lemon poppy seed cole slaw - once again, definitely not like Texas. Then they also offer free pickles and jalapenos which is very much like Texas. When you approach from the parking lot on the back side of the building you'll notice two things - the enormous rows of smokers churning away at delicious bbq. You'll also see the gorgeous and huge outdoor patio. The only downside of the outdoor open-air patio is the seating is all picnic tables so there are no backs on the seats. But, it's a fun area to eat and it comes equipped with available large umbrellas at each table for hot sunny days and space heaters on those rare cooler Arizona days. Just because Caldwell County isn't exactly like Texas BBQ in every way doesn't mean it's not good. As a matter of fact, it's great. The meats are all top notch and the sides were really really good, definitely on par with their meats. It's not exactly TX BBQ, but if you're from Texas, I know you'll feel at home here. read more

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Ahhhhh just left this place not so long ago . Our friends took us here ! $50 that feeds four ?! Say lesss we ordered an extra sausage and two sides that wereeeee busssinnn I wish I could take the sausage home with me to California lol. And the cookie was chefs kiss . Nice friendly people lots of seating . I'll def be back read more

Caldwell County BBQ - Barbeque Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

One of our favorite BBQ spots in the valley. Great service, the meat cutter will set you up with exactly what you want. Sliced brisket or chopped, it melts in your mouth. Pulled pork, ribs, sausage links and turkey have the perfect amount of smoke flavor. All sides and desserts are excellent as well. The meat does not need sauce, but all are delicious. I usually take a bottle of their "Home Sauce", home for future use. We, out here in the west valley, Sun City West (63 miles away), can only hope that with the success of all their east side locations, they would consider one on the side of town where the Super Bowl is played and resort casinos are popping up everywhere. read more

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I am so glad I got take out today from this place. I got 1/2 lb brisket 1 rack of ribs & my eyes were watering at the sliders being made & had to get them as well. I got molasses cookies. I know there was meat piled high on the sliders but it all seemed to melt in your mouth. I didn't use any BBQ sauce and wanted to experience the seasoning. My suggestion, go treat yourself to an amazing BBQ. You know if cars are parked with Texas license plates the word is out. If only 1 complaint the parking lot isn't big enough but that is because it was packed. Keep up the excellent service.... You will be seeing me again. read more