Was excited to try, however the experience and food were such a disappointment. Meat was dry, NO sauce included. NO SAUCE! Staff was not friendly, not forthcoming, couldn't explain that that you had to buy a whole chicken to get chicken dark meat. Untrained staff. They didn't weigh anything of the meats. Paid over $30 for food that no one ate. Won't be back because they just don't care. That brisket sandwich was a complete rip off . I posted pictures of all we bought. I guess if you aren't a friend or family this is how they serve you. read more

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First time here. Came here the week of grande opening I believe. The food was good and what you expect from bbq. Since it has just opened I will be back we came in maybe 30 minutes before close and they still got our food out to go so quickly. Since it was late I can't say much about the ambience but it was very clean and lots of seating space. Will be back for another review. read more

Stopped by on a whim and it was DELICIOUS. Better than Hard 8 in TX. Staff was friendly, owner was kind, and restaurant was super clean. I made the mistake of just diving in my food before taking a picture - but rest assured, it didn't last long. The Mac and cheese was my favorite. Definitely worth the drive if you're not in the area, you won't be disappointed. read more

I have some mixed feelings about this place. I love the large mural at the entry, the place was clean and the employees were super friendly. I ordered a brisket sandwich with fried okra. The okra was excellent but the sandwich was just okay. My issue is that in my world brisket should be sliced. This was shredded like pull pork. Also, it had no bark on the meet and no red smoke ring anywhere that I could see. It had the taste of meat smoked in an electric smoker with wood pellets or chunks of wood for smoke. This in my opinion creates good but not great barbecue. That being said there are very few places in Albuquerque that have traditional barbecue so I guess this what we get here. Don't get me wrong, this is passable BBQ. I was just hoping for great. read more

J's Var-B-Q had their grand opening today and it was all I hoped for and more. I opted for mac and cheese topped with pulled pork and their house BBQ sauce. Green onions and cheese made it even better. Generous portions and tasty sauces. Their spicy sauce doesn't make your mouth angry. Their house sauce is sweet, as I prefer it. The staff and owner were beyond welcoming and awesome. An added bonus - their selection of drinks including lemonade, plus what looks like an amazing brownie to be enjoyed later. IMHO, this is the best BBQ I've had here in town for a couple of years. Plus, all that for only $11! read more

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Came here to get some food for seven people when we had family coming into town. We'd never been here before, but will definitely be coming back! This was some of the best BBQ we've had, especially at this price point! We got the Papa Pack, which came with three meat selections (1 pound each), five sides (pints), a half pound of hot links, brownies, buns, and sauce. I meant to take pictures, but to be honest we started eating too quickly. It was so good! It was also way too much food for the seven of us, but I'm not complaining about the leftovers. We'll be coming back to this place for sure! read more

Great to have a new bbq place close to NE area of town by Montgomery Louisiana Blvd by smiths and former Tj Max, the brisket is shredded similar to a dryer style of pulled pork sloppy joe style rather than sliced thin at other bbq places, the big St Louis cut pork ribs are the best mean they have so far, very meaty, and with good flavor, the best sides was green chili Mac, clean friendly people, 2 types of bbq sauces reg and hotter bbq available. read more

J's Var-B-Q - Brisket, sausage links, corn cob , green chili Mac n cheese sides - Barbeque Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

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As someone born in Oklahoma finding good bbq after moving to Albuquerque has been a struggle but this place is the best I've found. It's authentic, affordable, delicious, and has incredibly kind and attentive staff. The environment is chill and relaxed, and is a great place to get your bbq from. read more

Service was great. Food was not. I ordered brisket, pulled pork, and baked potatoes. Flavor was ok but the pulled pork was dry and the brisket was a show stopper for me. Somebody shredded the brisket and what i was left with was dry stringy brisket. There's another review here that shows a picture and that's exactly how mine looked also. I almost choked a few times trying to get it down. There are many videos explaining how brisket is supposed to be cut, and I think that J's needs to get back to the basics if they are going to survive. Albuquerque needs good bbq options so I'm hoping that J will go back to the kitchen and give it another try. read more

I wanted to try this restaurant ever since it opened. I love trying new restaurants in town, and I love bbq. Never got a chance, though, until this past week. Over-priced, unseasoned meat, and old beans. BBQ should be infused with flavor - smokiness, dry rubs, something. It just seemed liked they poured some bbq sauce over the ribs. That's it. They weren't tender at all. I also got the brisket. Again, no seasoning. It just tasted like meat. The brisket was tender, but that was the the only good quality. The one thing that I did like was the macaroni and green chile. I won't be going to this place again. read more

Best BBQ experience in Albuquerque. We had the Brisket, Pulled Pork and Sausage. The meat was awesome. The side selections totally add to the overall experience. Had beans, Mac and cheese and potato salad--all were excellent!! Would definitely recommend this little gem! We'll absolutely be back again! read more

J's Var-B-Q - Julian and my husband - Barbeque Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

Our meals had good value, but they weren't exactly what I was expecting. I ordered a loaded baked potato and pulled pork. What you get is a good sized potato with pulled pork on it. You can pull the pork off and load your potato with your butter and sour cream, but it doesn't come that way. I put in two orders and only got condiments for one. The pork is done very nicely very tender. read more

We had gotten some to go items for a birthday celebration. Everything was good. We had the pulled pork, green chile Mac & cheese, baked beans, potato salad, ribs, and fries. I'm not a fan of the potato salad, I don't like store bought potato salad, but I did really like everything else I got , and My favorite out of these items were the green chile Mac & cheese , and the pulled pork , and the baked beans. I will be getting food from J's Var-B-Q again in the future. read more

Tried the brisket ribs and a hot link. The food was unappealing and tasted badly, On a brighter note the staff were amazing and kind. The store was well lit and clean. I cannot recommend J's unfortunately read more

Yes! Very good BBQ. My family got the "Ma pack" which fed my family of 4 and a toddler very easy! All the smoked meat is shredded and very moist (which doesn't require you to pay more for, unlike Rudy's). Will definitely be coming back. read more

I ordered a meal that was delivered to me at a hotel. The packaging wasn't secure. I also ordered a Coke. Since it was a delivery, I expected to be bottled. I threw it away because it wasn't tamping-proof. There was a wide selection of choices. I ordered the stuffed baked potato with pulled pork. It was okay and would have been better if the BBQ sauce had been included. I also ordered a cobbler and it was mostly crust. Although, I wasn't thrilled with my order, I would try it again. The next time, I will go to the restaurant instead of having it delivered. read more

Great food. We ordered pulled pork. The bbq sauce was very tasty. The owner came around to explain the name of the restaurant. Very good story c read more

Man! What a great place! The food is sooo good! A very friendly staff and nice atmosphere.

Amazing food and great staff we love it here. We come every chance we get. Food is always delicious and little to no wait. read more

Stopped In to try this place and it was great! The food was good and the staff was friendly and helpful. I had the Tao Tao and it was good, the brisket was moist and flavorful and bun was fresh. We tried each other's sides and they were all good but the Green Chile mac n cheese stood out. We will definitely be back! read more

J's Var-B-Q - Tao tai - Barbeque Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

Oh my goodness, this was good bbq! Despite having family from Oklahoma, I've never had OK style bbq nor bbq chicken as good as I had here today. We even met the owner! We'll definitely be back!! read more

What a great new BBQ restaurant in the Heights. We heard about the Grand Opening & made plans to visit the following weekend. They make a great first impression with friendly & helpful employees. We tried all the meats between us: unanimous decision in the excellence of the quality & preparation of the BBQ. Turkey was my fave and the sides & sauce are good as well. The best part is the Owners who were present and welcoming; Julian & Eliza have a great thing going and you should check it out! We'll be back to try their Sunday Special... read more

Brisket was great and so were the hit links! First timer and will definitely be back!

Wow! My tastebuds almost melted at the flavor of this freshly smoked brisket. The Var-B-Q baked beans, or should I say the magical fruit, were so flavorful and majestic. And please don't get me started on their bread... It's too good to talk about. After eating this fantastic meal, my pearly whites shined like a million stars, I was so joyful. Please try this amazing place. read more

J's Var-B-Q - Barbeque Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

Great Bar B Q, don't ket the Var B Q. Scare you. it's a spin on the local owners' last name. Vargas. The Smoked Bar B Q is tender and delicious. I had The Ju Ju special, and it was filling fried okra was fresh and crunchy. The owners were friendly as well. I wish them success in their new venture. read more

Stopped by for lunch yesterday and am excited to report that this BBQ place is somewhere I'll be returning to time and time again. We had the brisket and ribs and both were moist and flavorful even without the sauce. The brisket also came with potato buns that were very good. They did offer two BBQ sauces and both were very good. For the sides we got green chile macaroni and cheese, baked potatoes and the beans. Everything was very good. We also met the owner who was very grateful for our business which was nice to because that doesn't always happen. read more

The ambience of the place is not the greatest, but we got a brisket sandwich and pulled pork sandwich to go, and they were incredible. Love the rolls they use for the sandwiches, the meat was tasty and the sauces were great. Best baked beans I've ever had. Will be back! read more

I was craving BBQ for a while and had heard about the restaurant for some time but never gotten the chance to try it out, well that changed today walking in I was greeted by the staff who were nice and friendly. I ordered a pulled pork sandwich as a combo with their mac & cheese and potato salad. The mac & cheese is great. The potato salad was a little too cold for my personal liking to have with the sandwich, but the sandwich was delicious nice and warm. The meat was incredibly tender and had good flavor the sauce that they make for their barbecue is amazing. I wish they had sold it in bottles because I probably would've gotten one both flavors are great the spicy and the regular tasted great on the pulled pork and filled the sandwich up nicely. The portion size was great. The atmosphere of the restaurant I would say needs a little bit more to it. It does feel kind of plain like a lot of barbecue restaurants do appear not a lot on the walls and it could do with possibly some more mood lighting, but otherwise the experience was great. Everybody was super friendly and I believe J himself Came out and checked on me to ask how I heard about the restaurant and how I was liking everything. It's great to see an owner that is there and involved with the customer satisfaction experience I would highly recommend to everyone I know. read more

we had the ribs the last time we were at J's Var-B-Q and they didn't disappoint us they were very good.My husband had coleslaw and I had Mac n cheese and baked beans and they also were yummy. Today we went for the Bar-B-Q chicken wings special and that's my favorite part of the chicken and I have had lots of chicken wings throughout my life. This were the best I have ever eaten. Loved them but they are not on the menu. Hope you have that special every Sunday because I want more. The place itself is very clean, warm and inviting the staff friendly and respectful. read more

Good food, variety of different things! Friendly staff, owner was very kind as well! Price is very fair unlike those other bbq places you go to, great place for family's! read more

Oh. My. WORD. The BEST smoked turkey I've ever had. The loaded baked potato is PERFECT!! The owner is such a nice guy and the staff are super friendly. Super casual atmosphere. I work a block away, I'm trying EVERYTHING over time. Come support this new business! ABQ has good BBQ! FINALLY!! read more

Not worth $30.I paid for a 1/2 a pound of biscuit with no bark on it.It was stringing intuitively and just greasy. The sausage was okay but nothing to write home about in the potato.Salad tasted very frozen store bought. There was nothing authentic for Oklahoma about this type of barbecue, and having living in Oklahoma.This is not oklahoma Is style barbecue. This is below Is cafeteria style level of barbecue. I do not recommend spinning your money here.You are better off going to golden Pride ribs rudy's For county line.. For thirty dollars of my money I don't appreciate getting small portions and they forgot One of my side items. It's a big fat no for me read more

No Ribs! Rudy never runs out of Ribs! What kind of BBQ place runs out of Ribs! I came from the Westside to find this out. Call first I guess. Hello again. I got home with Turkey, Brisket, Pull Pork, and corn on cob. Everything across the baord was straight up DRY! I regret not going Rudy's. Never again. read more

Delicious food. Decent prices. Nice employees. I would highly recommend this place and I have.

Decent BBQ, but expensive for what you get. I'm going to try them again, order something different. Otherwise, back to Whole Hog on montgomery. read more

The food was very tasty. Brisket was tender. Just wish it had been a little warmer. Fast service and friendly staff.

I have tried just about every brisket joint in ABQ, it this is near the bottom of the list. The brisket was chopped, which is usually means it's a poor quality meat. The taste was horrible - there was some sweet sauce or something covering it. The sausage was clearly some cheap store- bought variety and was not even cooked properly - I doubt it was smoked. I had potato salad and coleslaw for the sides. Both were straight out of the gallon jug from Sam's or something. It was the stuff that you get from the free picnic that they have on the 4th of July for the block party. The sauces were both sweet and lacked any body or flavor. I will not return. read more

Great BBQ,generous portions, reasonable prices. Staff is friendly and professional and restaurant is clean.

Wasn't even planning on coming here but it smelled so good ( when I was in the parking lot!). Prices about average customer service was very happy and friendly. You could actually taste the meat! It was not over flavored and it was done perfect! The restaurant was clean. The only thing I might have done differently was I would turn the radio down just a bit... maybe I'm just showing my age. Ha ha ha ha! read more

I've been watching the reviews on this new restaurant and decided to give it a try. First the good parts. The restaurant is very clean. Staff was quite friendly. Service was very fast and accurate. Ordered the pulled pork sandwich, brisket sandwich, potato salad, coleslaw , and fried okra. Sad to say the fried okra was the only outstanding item. Fried perfectly and delicious. The pulled pork was very bland and a bit dry. Same for the brisket. The sandwich size was very small for the price. The hot version of barbecue sauce was flat and more of a ketchup sauce. The coleslaw and potato salad were ok but nothing to write home about. Overall a rather mediocre experience. read more