Very friendly, laid back atmosphere. Food came out quick! Perfect place to stop if you are craving a good hometown west texas meal on the go. My only complaint was my turkey was slightly dry. The brisket was very tender and smokey. We would stop again! read more

If you're looking for true Texas comfort food done right, Joe Allen's absolutely delivers. From the moment the plates hit the table, you know you're in for something special.Our waitress Hannah was just the sweetest. She recommended the sweet potato fries and they were perfect. The brisket was tender, smoky, and full of flavor with that perfect bark, and the ribs were fall-off-the-bone delicious. The smoked turkey was juicy and surprisingly rich, and the sausage had just the right snap. Add in classic sides like buttery corn, perfectly seasoned green beans, and crispy fries, and it's a full-on feast. Don't skip the homemade bread and BBQ sauce--they tie everything together and elevate every bite. The atmosphere is relaxed and welcoming, and the portions are generous, making it the kind of place you leave full and happy. Joe Allen's is the kind of spot you'll crave long after the meal is over. We'll definitely be back! read more

See all

We are new to Abilene and this was literally our first experience. We didn't want to spend TOO much money, but were in the mood for a hearty meal. Joe Allen's fit the bill. A fun casual (almost raucous) environment, this place will fill you up (but I wouldn't go there on a diet). What I found really interesting is that you can choose how thick you want your ribeye. We are big ribeye people, so that made it a hit. To give you a sense of the atmosphere, there is a longhorn head on just about every wall, and if you are wearing a cowboy hat here, you won't stand out. I would recommend it! I only gave it 4 stars because the cuisine isn't the healthiest or most contemporary. But hey....this is Abilene! read more

This is a sit down place! Woo hoo! Our waitress was awesome- she brought the menus, and drinks immediately: two sweet teas. We ordered the hush puppies which came with tartar sauce! Yum! I got the three meat plate- the sliced brisket was tasty for sure, and the least well prepared meat on the plate- delicious! The next one up was the chicken. Smaller portion, but super moist and tasty, and finally the ribs- oh my head. FamTASTIC. The only thing I didn't eat all up was the Cole slaw- it was just ok. Fried okra was also great. Hubby got a stuffed baked potato with chopped brisket, and we ordered two sandwiches to go. We forgot to try the cobbler, but we were stuffed! Pretty good price point for the amount of food we carried off. Oh! Waitress also immediately brought us two pieces each of the jalapeño cornbread, regular cornbread, and sourdough bread slices. I mean- outstanding service, great food, good price. What else can you ask for??? read more

I'm not to sure yeah it was clean. But portions seem to be small and not very seasoned. I'm in town working and let me say I'll get papa John's tomorrow. Great service food come out real fast/ read more

It has been a LONG time since I've eaten at Joe Allen's. I remembered their sign with lunch specials and thought I'd give it a try. The hamburger basket was tempting but then I saw the lunch steak as a special also. The steak was perfectly cooked, very tender, and very tasty. My waitress was an extremely nice young lady, 7-Sierra. Altogether a great lunch. Like Arnold Swartinager "I'll be back!" read more

Joe Allen's Pit BBQ - Lunch special steak - Barbeque Near Me - Abilene, Texas

We were greeted immediately and seated within a few minutes. Our server greeted us and offered to bring rolls while we waited for the other 2 members of our party to arrive. Her timing was perfect - we were not rushed and when we were ready to order she offered suggestions. The food was delivered in about 10 minutes and was hot, fresh and very tasty. Chopped brisket sandwich was stuffed with delicious brisket. Definitely worth the price. We will be going back! read more

I'm not from Abilene. I'm here from the Gulf Coast area working on a large construction project and after finishing my first week of work, I wanted a steak! Joe Allen's is on my way to work so I figured I would try it out. I went all in and ordered the porterhouse. The steak came out and it was quite large! That's all fine and good but let's cut off a bite and see how it tastes... First of all, it had to have been at least an inch thick, maybe more. I took that first bite and it all but melted in my mouth. I was in cow meat heaven! I don't like bloody so a good medium is how I ordered it...and it was perfect. Overall, the steak was delicious and I'll be going back very soon to try something different....or....I might just get another porterhouse! I highly recommend this restaurant read more

It was ok, the corn bread were dry as hell, onion rings were over fried also thick breading and a very thin slice of onion. The brisket meat was good tho. read more

Joe Allen's Pit BBQ - The meat was good - Barbeque Near Me - Abilene, Texas

See all

Not sure how people could come up with a negative thing to say about this place? The service was very fast and the BBQ and sides are delicious. It is very fairly priced too. My family enjoyed it both times we've eaten at Joe Allen's. read more

After seeing that one of my favorite Abilene BBQ joints was closed on Mondays, I was looking for another place to eat. WELL, after reading here about inspection scores (see link), I will certainly look for another restaurant. Can someone please explain to me how a place with such scores can still be allowed to operate?!!! https://www.yelp.com/inspections/joe-allens-pit-bbq-abilene-2 Thank you YELP for provide potential customers with this important health information. read more

Pricing is good for the amount of food and the quality of it all. They make the cornbread and sourdough bread, we bought a loaf of sourdough. Texas Bbq place ambience is cool. The portions will make you happy. We had chopped brisket,jalapeño sausage (not too spicy), ribs, sweet potato fries, and home fries, all was very good. Daily specials. Lots to explore. We will be back! Eat here! read more

Joe Allen's Pit BBQ - Barbeque Near Me - Abilene, Texas

This place was perfect!! From the food, to the atmosphere, and the service! It was exactly what we were searching for.

Coming through Abilene and staying at the hotel where the front desk said Joe Allens was the place for some good food. Well, that was incorrect. I had the chicken fried steak, pintos and steamed vegetables. Ther was more seasoning on hospital food. The gravy was bland too. The wife had the senior meal with chicken thighs, coleslaw and green beans. How you cook chicken thighs dry, I have no idea. She is a coleslaw lover and took on bite of theirs and just shook her head no. She did manage to choke down most of her green beans. Portions are small too, very small. I told her I have no idea how this place stays in business. I'm not here to beat the place to death, just here stating the facts. headed to southeast Texas in the morning where they season their food. Oh. 40 something dollars for this meal with iced tea and a tip. read more

Joe allens bbq.. has to be the most disappointing place Ive ever ate at. this spot was highly recommended, by white folk. It is disgusting. The corn bread is pretty good, but the meats? For being slow cooked, they are dry and distasteful. I ordered a medium rare rib eye with potato salad and cabbage. I got beans and saur kraut. Wtf. My waitress was rude and rushing. Theres nothing from this experience that was worth the wait. Food was bland or gross, service was rushed and hurried. Im very disappointed read more

Good food, good service interesting atmosphere. Got the steak special was a good price cooked perfect, good portion for the money. My wife got the brisket, good flavor but was over cooked a bit, was a little dry. Plus was no fatty portion which we both like. Would definitely go back. read more

Best steaks and brisket. Their brisket is so tasty and tender. Ribeyes are stellar! Nice folks who do good cookin' and que'in. If you are in town, go to Joe Allen's! read more

It is what it is Meat was tasty, sides...not so much. Mashed potato salad that tasted like they took Walmart potato salad and mashed it. Yuck Coleslaw was way over thought, keep it simple!!! read more

This place is awesome !! It is the first restaurant I go to when I visit Abilene. If this is your first visit to Joe Allen's, I recommend the 1-1/4" ribeye with either sweet potato or loaded baked potato. Unless you're breaking a three day fast, you will probably be taking away half of it to consume later. It comes with a delicious side salad and excellent service from the staff members. This meal including iced tea and gratuity only costs $70 which is more than reasonable when you consider the quality and presentation of the cuisine, as well as, the friendly, helpful staff taking care of you. The dining area and washroom has always been clean every time I have dined here. The legacy characteristic of this fine establishment is consistency. read more

Joe Allen's Pit BBQ - 1-1/4" Ribeye with loaded Baked Potato - Barbeque Near Me - Abilene, Texas

See all

I ate here at Joe Allen's during my time in the USAF back in the 90's and again 25+ years later, just a few weeks ago and the steaks are still just as good as I remember them. To the jackwagon @Markish J., playing the race card: Grow the hell up bro. I'm a Caucasian American and have crap service more frequently now than ever. It's not a race thing, it's a generational workforce thing! The quicker you folks can quit being butthurt about things the rest of us deal with all the time the better off we all will be. Delete or report my review IJDGAF. I'm sick and tired people crying RACISM when things aren't to their liking. Joe Allen's, keep up the great consistent work! You won't hear me slam you guys for having to wait an extra 30 minutes for my order, it was worth the extra wait. read more

Get their fajitas!! Get them medium rare! This place is a staple in Abilene and for very good reason. I have been coming here since I was a boy and I have always loved it. Trust me, you will not find better fajitas than these! read more

Popular place - even late lunch was busy! Nice, rustic interior, very appropriate for barbecue. Provided jalapeño cornbread (very good) and slices of sourdough while I waited for my meal. Ordered 2-meat plate with two sides. Potatoes salad was like mashed potatoes with veggies mixed in - different, but fine. Fried okra was good. Brisket was fine, not too much smoke, nice ring and a little more fat than I prefer. Jalapeño/cheese sausage was great! Really a big plate of food. I was having such a good time I had to try a dessert, too. Waitress recommended banana pudding. It too, was different - it was real deal, made from scratch with no jello pudding added. Overall a good experience. Huge surprise when I got the check for $18.03 including iced tea! That's a LOT of food for relatively small price. read more

Joe Allen's Pit BBQ - 2-meat plate - brisket, sausage, potato salad and fried okra with cornbread and sourdough slices. - Barbeque Near Me - Abilene, Texas

See all

I can't tell you anything about the food here because after waiting more than 1/2 hour we had to flag down a worker to ask where our order was, and they hadn't started it yet. We left. read more

Hey Siri show me mediocre BBQ Siri: Joe Allen's Pit BBQ Abilene, Texas I have eaten here multiple times thinking it's going to live up to hype. It hasn't yet. Everything I have tried has been average. Not great, not terrible, average. Brisket, sides you name it average. The staff is very friendly I will give them that but the food is average. Prices are also reasonable for BBQ so I can't knock them for that. read more

The first time I went here was in '95. It was the best steak I have ever had. Today I brought my whole family here because some of them are here for work. Anyone talking bad about this place does not know what a great wood fired steak is about. I have never tried their bbq but I guarantee nobody does a steak better. The staff are all friendly and so nice. We took two kids under three and they never treated us as a burden. Always going to be the best steak I have ever had. read more

The best steak in Abilene. We don't waste our time and money anymore checking out new places for a better steak. We always end up back at Joe Allen's read more

Came in Joe Allen's and ordered to go order to take to the park very disappointed my brisket was cold like it was out of the refrigerator not warm at all cut to thick and tough and fries were homemade but old usually the food is good and hot and reasonably priced not this time I will think twice before I go back and it will not be to go at least if you eat there they can fix your food if it's not right . read more

Food was fantastic and plentiful! Service was prompt and friendly. Bathrooms were dirty and not well maintained though.

Outstanding across the boards! The food is tremendous, the staff is great, and the ambiance is perfect for a great meal. My favorite BBQ place and one of my favorite overall restaurants in Abilene. Can't recommend Joe Allen's enough. read more

This place is as Texas as it gets. Food is really good. And let me tell you about the service. Love the service here. Everyone is polite and helpful. I think my servers name was Haley. I told her that it was my 1st time here as I just moved into town. She definitely didn't steer me wrong with her suggestions. She also brought bread and was so nice and polite the whole time. I will definitely be back. read more

Stopped by for lunch since my husband mentioned their BBQ fajitas that he's had in the past. SERVICE - A hostess will come and greet you and then your waiter is your main person. I'm not sure about the person's name but she was quick. FOOD Complimentary Bread - This was a variety of jalapeño cornbread, regular cornbread, and white bread. The jalapeño cornbread was tasty as it had a little bit of spice to it. The sweetness of the bread balanced it all out. The regular cornbread was fine but nothing outstanding. I did not try the white bread as it just looked like sliced white sandwich bread. Grilled Salmon - This was difficult for me to eat because it was very fishy. It did not smell or taste too fresh. After having the salmon from Copper Creek, this one did not compare. Beef Fajitas - You can get the extra toppings (peppers, onions, cheese) for an additional price but my husband just wanted the meat and tortilla. He smothered the meat with the BBQ sauce and it was tasty. They give you big slices of beef so it was good. Steamed Veggies - This was literally just steamed veggies. No seasoning or any flavor. I dipped mine in BBQ sauce. Sweet Potato Fries - These were not crispy at all. Just limp potatoes that were soaked in oil. Baked Potato - This was good. I feel like you cannot mess up a baked potato so I enjoyed this. Fried Okra - These had a nice crispy batter to them. Overall, I cannot say this would be a restaurant that I would want to return to. It was a great experience to try a place my husband used to go to but I think one time was enough. read more

December 18, 2021 - Chicken fried steak straight out of the box from Sam's club. I've had better chicken fried steak from Dairy Queen. Pork Ribs were beyond dry. Probably sat under a warming light since Friday. Almost inedible. Sent them back. I've had better pork ribs at a chinese buffet. Manager didn't even come over to the table to attempt to make things right. He knew he had served crap to our table of twelve. Our server was amazing. This was my first experience at Joe Allen's and the adage says, "You only get one chance at a good first impression." I've heard so many good things about Joe Allen's. Apparently, I have been lied to for years. All in all, Joe Allen's is incredibly over-rated. Almost as over-rated as Joe T Garcia's in Fort Worth. It is apparent they have been surviving on their own press for years. My final statement on Joe Allen's is been there, done that. Kind of like going to a tractor pull. You go to see what all the hype is about and leave incredibly disappointed. Oh, they do have decent onion rings for a BBQ joint. read more

This is a man restaurant with man food minus the calf fries the best quality beef that I've ever had in fajita's at any restaurant

Ordered sliced brisket sandwich with fries. Sandwich was not good. Meat must have been cooked days....s before. French fries were the worst fries I have ever eaten! Must have been cooked several times. Burned and could not bite through the French fry. I am 70 years old and I am not complaining just to complain. Too expensive for no quality at all. They must Have cooked the fries 2-3 days ago. Employees and owner must not give a hoot. They should close down. read more

Really good! I had the ribs and my boyfriend had the brisket. Both really tender, yum! Walking in, I was skeptical. I redact my skepticism! Check them out! read more

Racism at its finest! Here is my reason. I am an African-American, my two coworkers were Mexican and Puerto Rican. The bar was first come first serve at one point us three were the only persons at the bar for about 30 minutes. We ordered our food and drinks. 10 minutes after we ordered food and drinks two separate groups of Caucasian Americans set along the bar with us. They ordered food and drinks also to make a longer story short, The Caucasians ordered similar menu items as we did and got their food 20 to 30 minutes before us. to make it more clear the three of us along with the two separate groups of Caucasians ordered ribs and steak someone please tell me how they got their food 20 to 30 minutes before us. I'm just not understanding. I am giving one star because we did enjoy our beer and the review makes us give at least one star. read more

Food was great, Christy was an amazing waitress and took great care of us. The steak, the catfish, the hush puppies are in a shape I've never had hush puppies in. Overall great food, great people and great atmosphere read more

Love the western ambiance. Always great service and awesome barbecue. We're relatively new to Abilene and happy to have found this cool restaurant. read more

The atmosphere is a little rustic but don't let it fool you, this has to be one of the best places in town! Services is always friendly and on top of things. Their homemade sourdough is fantastic and their jalapeño cheese sausage is the perfect way to start your meal (the bbq sauce is excellent) their steaks are always cooked to perfection and well worth the price! And you absolutely HAVE to get the peach cobbler! read more

Long time since we ate here. New York strip was cooked perfectly, flavor excellent. Service spot on thank you Shelby. Sides were excellent this will be our new go to spot!! read more