not the worst BBQ I've had, but definitely not the best of New England, let alone anywhere else. don't claim to be a connoisseur of any kind, plus when one factors in regional differences and personal preference of a type of cooking method or "cuisine", it's just hard to compare, local or otherwise.
so i'm just gonna lay it out like any other review: food and service.
was actually excited to try out the sampler: gave us a few kinds of featured meat and couple sides. ordered the pork belly app on the side, plus a free soda from yelp check-in, came to $50ish.
was a little surprised when told about the soda with words like "just grab it when you pull up at our window". things became clear when we pulled up literally 20 feet away from the actual "window" - oh, not the sit-in restaurant type i was expecting. not a big deal. the exact location of the place is actually at a weird angle at a traffic light T-ish interaction, but getting in and out wasn't too stressful. heard that there's a bathroom "in the back" that requires a key to enter; never been but wasn't expecting more than gas station standard.
now, onto food. disclaimer: got take-out so things were, in fact, like the other reviewers stated, wrapped up in foil. i would have thought it's rather more thoughtful than dumping all sorts of food in the same container and letting them mingle and tangle with each other. and this foil comes especially handy shall one need to reheat the food in an oven. didn't realize that's making the food get dry. but i would give a star for effort.
unfortunately, even when eating an hour or so after pickup (ie. relatively "fresh"), food were generally on the dry side, even though they seem to get the flavor and the smokiness.
ribs were adequately tender but not fall-off-the-bone mushy. brisket is usually what everyone would fight over, but sadly, not in this case. it was bordering of cardboard texture due to the thin slices that are lacking of moistness, instead of the tender meat doused in fatty au jus as reasonably expected of this cut. didn't get to try the sausage. chicken was drier than preferred. pork belly app (not part of sampler) was actually the highlight of it all; recommended for trying.
overall, BBQ sauce was not needed to add flavor to the food (trust me, i've had "BBQ" that desperately needed it), but rather to add moisture to the food. took 3 or 4 out of the 5 available sauces they had sitting out in huge pump jars, only chosen by name without tasting each. aside from a slight hint of a varying element (ex. mustard, spicy), they all kinda taste the same. as another reviewer had stated, a bit strong on the vinegar base. but it was a not-bad addition to the dry-ish food.
sides were a bit of a fog: baked beans do look like the chili, collard greens (think that's what i chose?) was...there. corn on cob looked decent, though i didn't try it. nor did i eat the corn bread the first day, but it looked reasonably moist and intact.
an abundance of French fries and sweet potato fries came with the meal, they were probably more on expected level than featured meats. ok with BBQ sauce too, esp if you are used to dipping it in malt vinegar like the Brits. Lol
impression of the place: does give off an impression that it's run by a bunch of teenagers who may or may not have as invested an interest as owner; did not appear that owner was present when i was there. staff was courteous and stuff, but could improve on service. first time i called, at about 4pm on a weekday, no one picked up after 5+ rings. i doubled check that they were open, and called again, this time phone was picked up quickly and my order was put in with no error. guy at window seemed to be a bit preoccupied, but he got my order and charged me correctly.
last note: surprised to find on their online menu -- it was printed in the intro -- that the owner is willing to back his products with a 100% guarantee. says something along the lines of "send it back if you're not satisfied, no questions asked". not sure if they're gonna provide a refund or trade another product...that's for some to find out and let us all know!
for me, it wasn't bad enough to go through the hassle of sending it back. but i won't be in a rush to return either. though i do appreciate them posting at their window a list with a number of gluten-free items for patrons' reference. just that with an operation run as "care free-ly" as this appears to be, i would advise those with serious allergy issues to triple check or simply stay away so they don't get sick from accidental cross-contamination. read more