Awful! Food was very dry, ham looked and tasted like it had set around for a long time and turkey had funny after taste. Texas Toast was hardly toasted. Service was brutal, waitress never stopped after bringing our food to ask how food was or to see if we wanted refills. Owner was not present, but lost a loyal customer because of his help. read more

Jimmy's Barbeque Pit - Barbeque Near Me - Boone, Iowa

Had a WONDERFUL lunch at Jimmy's BBQ Pit, it was quiet, the food was delicious, and the lemonade was great as it always is!

Great brisket sandwich on Texas Toast. The BBQ sauce options are regular and hot, and they are both a little too sweet. Overall, great food and service for a very reasonable price. read more

Jimmy's Barbeque Pit - Jimmy's Boots - Barbeque Near Me - Boone, Iowa

This place is just flat out nasty. I don't understand the hype in this restaurant. If i could rate it zero i would. Do not recommend & i gotten really sick from this place. Im not gonna lie and say this place is good, because it's not. If you really looking for great bbq go to Whatcha Smokin. read more

I ate their a week ago and the owner was serving and she took the time to tell us about her restaurant and the food was awesome! So I had my friend come in from Indiana who absolutely loves barbecue (even went to Tennessee to eat it) so I knew I had to take her here. It was horrible the riblets were so dry half of it was like jerky ( I'm sure it sat under a heat lamp all day) My friend even told him he shouldn't be serving these, he looked for ones that weren't as tough and couldn't find any so she tried the pork which was great Meanwhile I had chicken and it was similar to sawdust (but I was to embarrassed to complain) my friend tried the chicken leg and looked at me like I was crazy after one bite. I smothered it with sauce trying to moisten it. The service was horrid as well, a lady came in and the guy serving and cooking sat talked with her, I think interviewing, he couldn't see me waving so finally I had to speak up feeling bad for disrupting him. Call ahead and ask whose cooking, I drove in from Des Moines on Wednesday April 14. I went the Saturday prior and it was an entirely different experience. Even the beans were nasty and bread! We took food to go but was pretty sure the ham and turkey were safe The brisket was dry So was very let down read more

Delicious Texas BBQ- very similar tastes to Battles in Ames (RIP). Rumor has it, Jimmy learned from the old Battles back in the day. Sliced pork has a great smoked flavor! Love the family owned business aspect - the owners wife serving people is very friendly and wore a mask the whole time which we appreciated. Super fast service as well! read more

If you want a place that knows something about food, this is your place! The smells, atmosphere and grub is great! I would recommend this hidden gem to anyone! read more

Jimmy's BBQ is one of my favorite restaurants in Boone. There are a lot of options and a variety of sizes to fill your BBQ cravings. The staff has always been very friendly to me whether I am picking up an order or dining in. The atmosphere in the restaurant is very well themed and always clean. I highly recommend the brisket sandwiches! read more

Great smoked pork sandwiches on texas toast... The sweet potato pie is fantastic. The owners are really nice and want to make sure you enjoy your meal. Definitely recommend! read more

Great food at moderate price. Pros - large meals. - good smoked meats - good sides (toast and baked beans) Cons - some items need extra flavoring. read more

Came in on a Saturday evening. Service was not great--two young, indifferent females. I ordered a "sliced turkey sandwich." If Jimmy was really a student of Texas BBQ, he would know that sliced turkey means a turkey smoked in-house that day. What I had was overly salty deli meat served on a burnt hamburger bun. The best part of my meal was the chips they served on the side and my glass of water. My husband and friends ate their respective plates covered in the "spicy" BBQ sauce to give it some flavor. (Side note: consider putting something than vinegar in your sauce.) Awful meal. Would never return or recommend to someone I like. Before I posted, my husband reminded me that the pickle I got on the side was good too. read more

Brisket and rib tips so tough. Shoe leather with sauce. Wish we had paid more attention to the reviews. We won't go back.

As a friend of mine once said, "shoe leather tastes good with BBQ sauce". Well, that's what we had. Tasted ok, but very tough...especially the brisket. Place needs to cook brisket slow and low! Would be better to drive to Ames for Hickory Park and that is just mediocre. read more

Good bbq, and great prices! My wife, two daughters and I stopped for lunch and left full and only a $21 bill. The brisket was great. Chicken was a bit dry, but excellent smoked flavor. My daughters had the ham sandwich, which I stole a few bites from. I'm not sure how a ham sandwich can taste so good, but it did! The decor is old school country western. The area of town that it is in is also unique. read more

The question for a review like this is: "What standard to compare to?" Judged as a small town Iowa restaurant, this is a good choice. Judged against really topnotch 'que, maybe not so much. My family and I were in Boone for a wedding and picked up takeout from Jimmy's; back ribs, spares, and brisket. All were good eating. The backs and spares were cooked correctly, still a little firm on the bones. Flavor without adding sauce was weak, however. If any rub was used it was minimal. It looked like possibly a little sauce was brushed on, but again minimal flavor. But, hey, compared to the boiled ribs drenched in bottled sauce and falling off the bones -- sold as BBQ in many small restaurants -- these were great. The bark on the brisket was good and I think the brisket overall would have been good, but it was pulled out of the smoker far too soon. Hence, the meat was still a little rubbery. Not offensively so, but definitely not what it could and should have been. But, again, doing perfect brisket for lunch sales means putting it in the cooker at 2AM or so -- how much can you expect from a small country restaurant? Perfect brisket is more work that I would be willing to commit to in a commercial endeavor. Boone is not Kansas City and Jimmy's is not Franklin's in Austin. But its really not fair to expect it to be. So, go and enjoy the food. read more

This is great bbq! I recently ordered catering from them and it was outstanding. They delivered, set up, and loaned us all the serving supplies (warming dishes, spoons, etc.). They gave us generous portions and we had tons of leftovers. The cost was very reasonable. The sides are fantastic as well. We got lots of compliments on the food at the party. Jimmy is great to work with and makes fantastic food! I highly recommend them! read more

Hands down, the best barbeque I've had in the state of Iowa (as of yet). Unfortunately, I've had a lot of mediocre 'q in this state, but this place more than makes up for it. If you are in the Ames area, forget Hickory Park. Take a detour out west to Boone, and give this place a try. It's a worthy destination. read more

Great meat! Really nice staff! For as small as Boone is this is a great place, and I would definitely come back.

4th try and I give up! Between still frozen ribs on 1 visit, to snotty wait staff, to 6:45 no potatoes, chicken or cottage cheese. Poor planning seems to be the norm. To bad, there are other choices for BBQ in Ames only 15 minutes away. read more

Wow, i didnt believe the reviews but had to check this place out. Off in a cozy hole in the wall. You know that moment when you don't believe something is good then you bite down and it takes you back to childhood. Well the brisket sandwich and patateo salad is that dang good and the service is excellent not to mention great prices. read more

The food needed seasoned. Mixed veggies were baby carrots, celery, cuc slices and ranch. Drinks were never refilled. No fry or burger options for more "selective" eaters. My brisket was tender, but someone else in my party said theirs was very dry. Everything needed salt. French silk and peanut butter pies were just the frozen kind like can be purchased at the grocery store. read more

It all depends on what you order. The ham and the brisket are the best. The beans and turkey are sub par. I am from Texas and the Texas BBQ was only true to form with the brisket and BBQ sauce. The spicy sauce was truly spicy. Also the sweet tea was just tea that they last minute added some sugar. Not true sweet tea. If you go stick with the beef brisket then the place has true Texas BBQ read more

Visited this resturant for the first time. Pros: nice christmas decor, food came out fast. Wasnt very busy. Wait staff checked on table a lot. Cons: What BBQ resturant serves potato chips instead of some type of fry or potato wedges? Food was subpar and needed to be drenched in bbq suace for flavor. I got the pork spare ribs and they were chewy and burnt. Very over done which is probably why they were out so fast. I think they may have been reheated. Smoked ribs done correctly should fall off the bones but the meat needed to be cut off the bones in this case. There's better ribs at merle hay mall in des moines for a cheaper price. The baked potato was also dry like it had been in the oven too long. I actually liked the coleslaw and thought it kind of tasted different then most coleslaw I've tried, sweet like apples, so I asked the waitresses if there were apples in it trying to be friendly. She went to the back and I could here her talking to someone loudly about me and then laughing and making fun of me becuase there is apple cider vinegar in it. I heard her talking about how dumb it would be to put apples in a coleslaw and make fun of me for asking. Wow if you want to talk badly about customers do it quietly... I realize the wait staff was higschool/college age but tact goes a long way. My friend got a ham sandwhich and asked if lettuce, tomatoes, ect came on it and she said it did not. The sandwhich was some thick cut deli meat between two soggy pieces of texas toast. Nothing except bbq suace to put on the sandwhich. He said that his store bought ham was better then what was in the sandwhich. read more

Decent BBQ. I found their sauce to be lacking the kick I was looking for. You get a good-sized portion for a reasonable price. Definitely get the Texas Toast, it's pretty good. read more

The best thing that was said about this meal was my mother who said "it's edible". The sliced brisket meat was chewy and dry, sliced turkey appeared to just be deli meat that was reheated. The sides were bland and the beans are likely directly from a can. I literally do not recall a worse meal I have had in a restaurant. So disappointing. read more

First visit and won't be the last! Had the Beef Brisket Sandwich on Texas Toast with potato salad and was extremely impressed! Some of the best brisket I've ever had. Wait staff was very pleasant and attentive. Atmosphere felt like you were sitting down to a family dinner. read more

Good BBQ. The sauce wasn't really to my taste, but everything else was good. I had a sliced pork sandwich. I definitely recommend the jalapeño bun... Just a small kick to the sandwich! The cole slaw and the topped baked potato were also good. I did not get the Texas toast, but I saw it (but not the person eating it... Bigger than his face!). read more

Good food...had the Iowa Pit Bits...but my buddy had the Texas Pit and said there was no brisket....mine was delicious!!

Best BBQ in town. However over the years the food quality has dropped, hit and miss these days. I use to go at least 2 times a week, now I am down to a few times a month. The bbq sauce is always great and spot on. I would love to see Jimmy change up his baked beans to more.of a homemade style, currently taste like canned with bbq sauce and little pieces of meat added. Also would like to see pulled pork on the menu. Customer service is great! If you are stopping by Boone it is still a must stop. read more

Great bbq! Love the brisket sandwiches on Texas Toast as well as selections off the chuck wagon (meat only) menu. ATTENTION CARNIVORES! The 1/2 Pit Bits is a fantastic deal! You get the end cuts of smoked ham, pork, brisket and spare ribs. Lots of meat for the $$! Jimmy does spare ribs but I like baby backs better. The beef brisket sandwich has been a tad dry on one or two occasions. Jimmy's catered my daughters wedding last fall. The food was great, they provided EVERYTHING, and cost for 3 meats and 2 delicious sides was five bucks a head!! Tremendous deal! read more

Great little place. Ribs tasty. I did find out the baby backs come with more sauce. Bake beans and cole slaw just ok. Nothing great

Beef brisket is awesome! My girlfriend and I come here more often then many restaurants and we live in between Ames, Boone and Des Moines. A lot of choices. read more

Had the beef brisket sandwich with potato salad- both were fantastic although the service left something to be desired. Definitely some of the best BBQ I've had in Iowa! read more

Enjoyable BBQ in the middle of town big chunks of very well smoked brisket, ham and 1/4 of smoked chicken. With 2 sides (good selection) for about $10. Made a pretty good lunch. My thoughts for improvement would be to offer more than 2 sauces. The hot version is not what I would consider hot, it was flavorful just neede to be kicked up a couple of steps on the heat scale. read more

Looking for a place in Boone, IA for amazing BBQ? Head to Jimmy's. Great sandwiches and potato salad as well as gracious customer service.

We left disappointed. The iced tea was pretty gross and there was food in the glass. I can live with a bad drink but what was most ridiculous was the potato salad. The potato salad was 2 different kinds. There was one kind of potato salad in the bottom of the dish and then a small scoop of Jimmy's potato salad on top to hide the other kind. Overall the meat was good but would not make a point to ever go back. read more

Great brisket sandwiches. Just like eating at a Texas barbecue. Actually, better than most Texas brisket.

It isn't saying much in another review "best bbq in town". As far as I could tell, there is only one other bbq place in Boone and boy, do I wish we had tried it. I ordered a Texas combo that had 5 smoked meats. The only one of the 5 that I cared for was the ham and it was just OK. The smoked flavor in the meats was good, but the overall flavor was boring. I guess I'm a dry rub kind of customer cause the 1/4 chicken, the brisket, the rib tips and the pork had no depth of flavor other than smoked. Good smoke rings, but SOOO plain. The rib tips (or whatever they were) are dry and tough, brisket was OK and the pork was slightly better. Barbecue sauce was also not very good, more vinegary than I care for. Comes in hot and mild. Service was poor, teenage girl who didn't seem to care and didn't seem to be well trained. We like trying and supporting locally owned, but Jimmy's is not worth it and we won't return. read more

Had a early dinner on a weekday. I was greeted promptly and seated. I got beverage, sweet ice tea, fresh and delicious, two refills. I had the 1/2 rack baby back ribs with baked beans and loaded potato. All was good, I would definitely recommended trying their loaded potato. I had enough to bring leftovers home. The BBQ sauces, two, were served warm and explained the two spices. The atmosphere is nice and clean in dining room. The bathrooms were dirty and could used daily cleaning, as their was mold in toilet. read more

This place is consistently yummy. The sauces are wonderful and the menu is simple, yet varied enough to satisfy the light luncher as well as the hungriest of workers. You can smell the smoking of the meats outside and it always gets my stomach growling. read more