Food was amazing, wth tender, succulent barbecue and delicious sides! I just wish we could order a beer with our barbecue...

We were visiting Sylvan Beach for a couple days. We found this place on here and decided we'd give it a try. It looked kind of promising pulling up given the rustic bbq outside feel. But unfortunately it was all down hill after that. We ordered the bbq platter with ribs, pulled pork and brisket and a couple sides. Everything needed help. The pork was dry, the ribs were crunchy on top (like cooked on a flattop) and the brisket was overly fatty. The sides were lack luster as well. The Mac & cheese boring mush, beans were mushy and the salt potatoes were ok. The actual bbq sauce was lacking any resemblance of bbq flavor and just a sweet, tomato ketchup sauce that had no depth of flavor. My son had a burger with fries which tasted decent. And whatever you do don't order the jalapeño poppers. I think they left the seeds in there and my mouth was on FIRE! I took one bite and I spit it out and had issues for the remainder of our meal trying to cool my mouth off. It's a small town so I get there's not many options for dining but advertising as a bbq place and delivering sub par "signature" food was disappointing. I'd never go back. read more

I've heard good things about this place so when we were heading to Sylvan Beach and I saw the sign I knew we had to stop in for lunch. They were just opening when we stopped. Our server was so friendly and helpful and we had a great time talking with her. I got the Hog Heaven Duo -2 meats and 2 sides and corn fritters. I got brisket, ribs, Mac n cheese and whipped sweet potatoes. The ribs were smokey and delicious with just the right amount of pull to get them off the bone. While the brisket had good flavor, it was cut too thin. Most of the slices were a bit dry. The bbq sauce helped and I loved the flavor, not too vinegary and not too sweet... very nice. The Mac n cheese and whipped sweet potatoes were excellent. I'm definitely going back for more. read more

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Family owned and family run. Place is 7 months old, met the owner...very down to earth and likable guy. Pay tribute to Debbie's diner, the previous name before new management took over and they pay their respects to that well. "Freedom" runs this new place and overall it was a great experience. We ordered several flavors of wings and the garlic parmesan wings were FANTASTIC. Had them all smoked and then fried...meat fell right off the bones and were very good. They didn't skimp with that pre-made shaker cheese...these were slabs of melted parm with garlic, everything is homemade at this place. The other flavor of wings we had were hot/bbq mix, a white sauce and a southern spicy one which was too bad but the garlic/parm stole the show and wished we had more of those. We will probably just get a single order of the garlic parm next time. The other flavors need a bit more in order to contend with the garlic parm. Bacon wrapped jalapeños were very good! Wish we could have tried the fried green tomatoes but they were sold out. Smashed potatoes with gravy were really good, the Mac salad was so-so...needs more salt and was a little bland. Place is always pretty busy when I drive by and glad I was able to finally try this place out. Prices are VERY fair for a BBQ place which is a nice bonus. Ambience is calm and fun lots of decorations on the wall to check out too. Definitely a summer and biker atmosphere. Overall a very nice addition to the area and it's family owned and operated. Everyone was very friendly. I noticed someone mentioned the smoke in the place from the smokers, it's a BBQ joint so not sure what to expect with that but the smoke wasn't bad at all when we went. read more

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After driving by a few times, we decided to stop in for dinner last night. I'm glad we did! Don't let the outward appearance fool you, insde is a great little restaurant with a mix of tables, booths, and counter seats. The staff is friendly and welcoming, the service was spot on, the restaurant is CLEAN and the food was FANTASTIC. The menu has lots of choices. Smoked meats, sandwiches, salads, sides and desserts. We REALLY enjoyed our first trip to Freedom's Hog Shack and it certainly won't be our last! read more

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Awesome experience at Freedom Hog Shack. Food is excellent and the restaurant is extremely laid back while still having very attentive and kind service. Our family of 4 (2 infants,) came in still soaking wet from a rainstorm we were caught in at Sylvan Beach. A bit bummed that our boys's amusement park visit was cut short, we decided to try and salvage the evening with a trip to FHS and a hankering for some authentic bbq. We were so thrilled to enjoy homemade food that is clearly made out of passion. The ribs and brisket were perfectly seasoned and smoked. The mac salad, mac and cheese, fritters, and bbq beans were simply top notch. It really helps when a bbq place puts serious effort into the sides and doesn't just mail it in. Clearly the owner takes pride in every aspect of the cuisine and it shows. Service was extremely professional and attentive. Very accommodating for our family as you're always worried with little ones causing a scene or impacting another's experience. The vibe here is extremely laid back so we never felt out of place. I think you could probably have anything on their menu and make out just fine. Next time we are visiting, we will be sure to stop by. Swine plate is already calling my name! Thanks for turning our evening around Freedom Hog Shack! read more

Freedom Hog Shack - St Louis Style Ribs, brisket, fritters, mac salad, and beans. Awesome!! - Barbeque Near Me - Canastota, New York

Made a quick stop today. Food was amazing and staff very friendly Will definitely be back Had pulled pork and brisket both juicy and tender. Mac and cheese was good Mac salad was good also read more

The wings are great quality and the price is great. It's a family ran business and it's got that small town bbq vibe. The smash potato's and gravy are good. The homemade ice tea was tasty and hit the spot. My favorite wings here are the garlic parm. They used fresh parm too! They ran out of the fried green tomatoes, but we will try next time. The jalapeño poppers were delicious. The thick cut bacon that was smoked and the filling complimented it being a creamy balance to the jalapeño and bacon. The service was very friendly and inviting. The ambiance is bbq biker/chill feel. Freedom is the Owner and very happy to please his customers. I like to support small businesses and you should too. Try it out read more

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The staff was very friendly. We ordered the hog heaven duo to-go around 4 PM. The meat was quite dry and could have used some extra bbq sauce. The mac and cheese was good, though. I might try it again earlier in the day to get it while it's fresh and eat it there. I do want to stress again that the staff was so pleasant and friendly ! I hope they do well. read more

The food is incredibly flavorful!! We have had 1/2 the hog- the prime rib meal, and TWO holiday meals!! This is a definite favorite. It is reasonably priced for the portions. YUM!! read more

The waitress obviously forgot our table of five. We waited for an hour and finally one of us got up to ask how much longer it would be. Waitress said she'd check, but never came back to let us know. Finally we all just left. Horrible service. P.S. After reading owner's response, we sure would have appreciated it if our waitress had the common courtesy to say, "I'm sorry but we've been so busy today that we're almost out of food" or the owner made the decision to close early instead of having people wait for nothing. Instead, we were seated, given water, and then totally ignored. Bad business decision to remain open without food. There were several empty table during the course of the hour we were waiting. read more

Spending the summer in Sylvan Beach and absolutely love this place. I've been going once or twice a week since June. Place is on Route 31 where the Old Debbie's diner used to be. Can't miss it as it has a big marquee out front screaming BBQ. Funky looking exterior and interior that lends to the vibe. The owner is an old Dinosaur alum so you know the BBQ is righteous. The Whole Hog is one of the best BBQ platters in the Northeast. Imagine ribs, pulled pork, smoked or fried wings, brisket, four sides and freshly fried corn fritters. Enough for four regular eaters or two to three mangiones. The best wing sauce I've had this year is Freedom's Hog Fire sauce. Spicy and flavorful - this stuff is awesome. Another winner is the Shack's version of the Rochester garbage plate. Their fresh cut fries get covered in your meat of choice (I've had brisket and pulled pork on separate occasions) macaroni salad and all of it is covered in either their homemade baked beans or their chili and cheese. You will not leave hungry after this. My favorite appetizer is their fried green tomatoes. Nice flavor with the homemade spicy ranch dressing. Finally, don't sleep on the desserts. Recently they have had central NY faves like hummingbird cake and Blackberry pie. - nice change of pace after rich BBQ. Go here and go often you won't be disappointed! read more

The food is good. We had the brisket sandwich and pulled pork sandwich. The meal comes with potato chips but you can 'upgrade' (pay more) to a real side dish, like baked beans, cole slaw, Mac salad, etc. It definitely does have the 'biker' vibe with some of the decor. I wouldn't display items with the F word so prominently and I'd certainly never take my kids there, but fortunately there's take out. It's not my vibe and that's okay. The waitress was very friendly and definitely working hard. There was a younger girl working but it didn't seem as though she had any specific purpose. Came over and told us what our waitress' name was. Overall it was a nice meal and I'm happy we tried it. I hope they do well and in time I'm sure they'll hit their stride. read more

Freedom Hog Shack - Dining room decor - Barbeque Near Me - Canastota, New York

Great! Had a wonderful meal there with family and the food and service were top notch. So much so that I actually ordered another platter to go while we were at the table. read more

Great BBQ joint!!! Must stop and support the local business. The smoked and fried wings are amazing and I like them with the Alabama white sauce. Pulled pork sandwich is tasty. The homemade jalapeño poppers are a treat. My son tried the ribs and thoroughly enjoyed them. They came with cornbread balls and honey butter as well as two sides. He chose house cut fries and coleslaw. Everything was delicious. read more

Freedom Hog Shack - Homemade jalapeño poppers. What's left of them. - Barbeque Near Me - Canastota, New York

I feel like this place would be great for takeout, but eating in I wouldn't recommend. We waited 15 minutes for them to wipe a table off, 60 minutes more for food to be served, and the smoke that fills the restaurant makes your eyes burn and clothes and hair reek... It took several washes to get it out of my jacket. A table that sat at least 20 min after us was told that the ribs in the smoker were not done yet and needed a lot more time if they wanted to order something else, not sure if that was what happened with us too. The menu does fluctuate with availability and things run out towards the end of the night. They do offer several fish options during Lent. Best food item was the fried cornbread balls. Ribs fell off the bone. They do have kids games and cards which was a nice touch. Also a few seats at a bar. It's packed solidly with tables and chairs and has the feel of a no-fuss cafeteria. But a smoky one. read more

This is my 2nd review Both . I loved the prime rib sandwich So, I decided to try the prime rib dinner on Saturday. The prime rib had a great flavor that I enjoyed. I did get a fatty slice but worth it when you got to all the meat. yum, yum Flavor one of the best read more

Waited 1 hour no food. Waitress did not return when we asked her to check on when meal coming.

If you like smoked chicken wings with excellent homemade sauces you must stop here. The wings are crispy and full of flavor.

I'm addressing this to the owner. I was in the party of 5 that walked out after waiting over an hour for our order. (And yes, I've read your response to the other 3!) I understand that you were extremely busy, being that it was Father's day, but when our waitress finally came to give us our drinks, and take our orders, we were never given silverware. (We had to get up and ask for it!) We sat and waited close to an hour, while we watched 2 other parties that came in after us get served. The waitress never came back to refill our drinks, and we watched her sit at the bar while we waited, and wondered when we would be served our order. If, indeed you were running out of food, it would have been nice for someone to tell us, instead of letting us sit there and wait for food that may or may not have been served! No excuses for why we weren't informed sooner! read more

We were a hungry party of 5. We waited 20 minutes before a waitress came and took our order. After another 40 minutes, still sitting at the table with no silverware, wondering if our waitress had forgotten to place our order, I got up and asked. She said she'd check, but never came back to our table to let us know. After several more minutes, we decided to leave. All agreed we'd never go back! read more

Service and ambience were good! Garbage plates were loaded with salt potatoes, salad and chili on top but scant amount of the brisket that was tough and chewy! May try ribs another time read more