Leonard's Pit Barbeque is a legendary Memphis area restaurant but in a new looking building located in nearby Cordova. You order at the counter and find a seat and they serve it to you. Apparently Elvis and Leonard Heuberger were good friends and Elvis was a regular at Leonard's back in the day. There are lots of articles and photos on the walls of this restaurant which opened originally in 1922. For lunch, we each had the famous Mr. Leonard sandwich which has pork shoulder topped with BBQ sauce and slaw. I had the small plate which came with sides of beans and we chose onion rings for the second side. Both the food and service was great. Tasty sandwiches and with the slaw on top, it makes a wonderful meal. I enjoyed the sides as well. I bought a T Shirt before leaving since I liked this place so much. I would love to have seen this place in the old days when they had car hops serving the customers outside. Give this place a try! read more

See all

I have lived here 40 years and driven by this place HUNDREDS of times without noticing it until yesterday. The pork sandwich, fries and slaw are perfect. I have not had better anywhere. Even the coke was perfect. I considered the Germantown Commissary bbq to be #1 but not anymore. They need better signage. read more

The team here are so kind and gracious!! Our server was Beatrice - it was her first day and she was fantastic. The ambiance here is what you expect of a Memphis BBQ place - comfortable seating and plenty of room. Today we had a Mr Leonard Bbq sandwich which comes with slaw on it - and the slaw is amazing, fresh and delicious and it has a mustard base - if I'd had a hot dog!! LOL - it wants delicious- also had BBQ Beans and Fries all great choices. 1/3 slab of ribs - they were hot off the heat and tastes really good. Had been wanting to try this place the last couple of visits and we finally made it - I absolutely recommend it if you're in Memphis - stop in and say hello to Beatrice! read more

See all

We ate here for lunch yesterday... And it was great! Two guests had catfish and they said it was fabulous and I tried the barbecue plate with coleslaw and potato salad. Everything was fresh. read more

Leonard's Pit Barbecue - Catfish Plate (2 pc) - Barbeque Near Me - Memphis, Tennessee

Just picked up take out order & asked for barbecue sauce on the side. Of course it wasn't there once I made it home. Only a customer, maybe 2 when I walked in, so they weren't busy. Baked beans were mushy and over cooked. I was thoroughly disappointed! Do better.... read more

The ribs were delicious! Friendly staff and very clean! It was our 1st time through Memphis and wanted to try a place shown on Diners, Drive-In's and Dives. Super glad we did! read more

Leonard's Pit Barbecue - Ribs, turnip greens, fried okra, Cole slaw and BBQ beans - Barbeque Near Me - Memphis, Tennessee

Wow; the new location of Leonard's Pit BBQ located off South Germantown Parkway was a truly excellent choice. The location has plenty of parking options and it's in a safe location. From the time you walk through the door you notice how clean, open and friendly the staff are when you're greeted. The food is served fresh, hot and delicious. I ordered the jumbo bbq sandwich plate with beans and coleslaw. The sandwich had plenty of meat, sauce and coleslaw. The beans had plenty of meat and a great flavor. The coleslaw was fresh and just delicious. This has always been one of my top bbq restaurants in Memphis and know it's even better because they are now in my neighborhood. If you want some great bbq then Leonard's Pit BBQ is the way to go; TRUST ME..‍ read more

See all

Driving through Memphis and found this on the Internet. Decided to eat after reading the rich history. Service was good, onion rings excellent, lemon ice box pie was very nice, but the RIBS (should be the highlight of ANY BBQ place, in my opinion) were a real disappointment - quite dry and not a ton of flavor. The BBQ sauce was different - dark, not at all sweet, and almost had a "burnt" taste. Arrived at 5:30pm on a Friday and were the only ones in the restaurant (that usually says a lot). Only 2 other tables by the time we left an hour later. Probably wouldn't stop here again or recommend it. read more

Bbq was good. Normally I would order bbq/ravioli plate, however ravioli has been discontinued although still on the menu board.

This place had the best ribs ever. We enjoyed all the food. We had the pleasure of meeting Beatrice and Loretta. Really nice people to talk to. Highly recommend it. read more

Memphis BBQ history at this new location. Service was great, nice bright and clean facility. Have been eating at Leonards since Bellvue location. Food was well prepared, reasonable prices. Beans and spaghetti were great. Bbq was like I remember, authentic Memphis style hickory smoked with a sweet sauce. Their slaw is unusual texture- very fine ground with a sweet mustard and vinegar dressing. read more

See all

I recently visited Memphis and dined at Leonard's Pit Barbecue. . The food was every bit as memorable as the hospitality--rich in flavor and full of tradition. Thank you Alex! read more

I went with my family just after Christmas and we were there for about two and a half hours. Not by choice. There were only two tables with people on the day we went and the staff kept getting confused as which table to bring orders to. The food was tasteless and bland and the atmosphere was of the restaurant was sterile and awkward. The slaw looked like the only thing that was made in house and that is not a compliment! We were waiting the longest for the rolls that were supposed to come with our orders, and we wanted to get what we paid for. When we told the staff that we were waiting on them they said they burnt the rolls and had to make a new batch. So, we waited for a while and when they finally brought them out the staff said that they hoped it was worth the wait. They brought out sister Schubert rolls. Bland as can be and tasted like they had been in the freezer for too long. What point is it to go to a restaurant to get something you can buy at the store and make?!! Will not go back and wouldn't wish it on anyone. read more

I REALLY wanted to be a fan, but I was not. And honestly, sometimes I find myself conflicted because I like one thing, but then dislike another. So in this case, the service was GREAT! Our server was fun, attentive, and knowledgeable. I also was enamored by the decor. They had original menus and photos from when the restaurant first opened and it was fun to see how far they've come (especially in pricing). However in my very humble opinion, the BBQ was not indicative of MEMPHIS BBQ. It was not seasoned well, and I didn't enjoy it at all. But I didn't want to send anything back because the service was so good! (I hope that makes sense to others) read more

Leonard's Pit Barbecue - Barbeque Near Me - Memphis, Tennessee

The food was not the Leonard's I was used to eating!! The sauce was horrible!! It was too bland. The meat didn't taste like barbecue! It tasted like oven cooked pork. I couldn't eat mine!! I took my plate home and the cats didn't eat it either!! Plus the food was cold!!! Very disappointed. Will not visit again!! read more

i've been eating at Leonard's since the 1950s. Last time I went, I said I would never go back, but I just happen to be in the neighborhood at lunchtime and thought I would give them another try. Big mistake. Barbecue was tasteless. Lemon icebox pie was hard as a brick ... when I told them about it did they offer me a refund on the pie? No they said oh we don't know how long it's been sitting in that case. read more

Dining in, the service is excellent and the restaurant is clean. The bbq sandwich was excellent with very good sauce, the beans were excellent, the onion rings a little bit soggy, and the lemon icebox pie is some the best in Memphis. The drive-through is open now. read more

I base my reviews on comparing this to the old Leonard's location. Who remembers the Fox Plaza or the old Bellevue McClemore locations ? Back in the day this was " the real thing" - slow cooked with pride and SMOKE. The product they put out today cannot compare. The meat has no real flavor, the slaw I had taste like Sisco out of a bag. I like the old places, that had character and we filled often filled with a bunch of memorabilia and junk. The Cordova location is nothing but an empty, sterile room with mediocre food - no fun or satisfaction ( for me ) here. I won't go back, and I suggest that whoever reads this does not go at all. read more

The food and service is amazing! It is very clean as well. The waiters are super welcoming and nice.

Service was great food was horrible. We had 6 people and no one enjoyed their food. Tea was excellent though.

The new location on Germantown Pkwy is doing a soft opening: limited menu, staff in training. Staff were still learning the menu which is fine. Everyone was incredibly nice. The chopped pork sandwich wasn't anything special, it lacked flavor and the slaw was incredibly mustard forward. The ribs were good, definitely preferred wet over dry. The wedge fries were ginormous so they weren't cooked all the way through. We came here because of Triple D, but I wouldn't come back. read more

Stopped in on my way through town. Had high hopes for this. Well, I was disappointed. The menu is pulled pork, ribs, catfish or chicken. I tried the "bbq dinner". Pulled pork with bbq beans and Cole slaw. I replaced Cole slaw with potato salad. The pulled pork came out with about 2 gallons of bbq sauce poured on it. You could have grabbed ham out of the grocery store and poured that much bbq sauce on it and it would have tasted just the same. Like BBQ SAUCE! Beans were marginal and potato salad was actually pretty good. I come through Memphis quite often. I won't make this mistake again. I did let the waitress know how bad it was. And she just handed me a check. Dang. Such high hopes. read more

I really wanted to like this restaurant. It was a featured DDD restaurant and our waitress was awesome! I like the various memorabilia on the walls. The food was just okay though- except, apparently, the fried bologna sandwich our waitress recommended. I don't eat fried bologna but my brother in law raved about it for days afterwards. read more

Leonard's Pit Barbecue - Barbeque Near Me - Memphis, Tennessee

See all

BBQ is awful! I had a Big Leonard, it has no tastes at all. No smoke taste nothing. Only comparison I can make is crockpot BBQ as someone else reviewed. This is not BBQ by any definition in the South. Only reason it t gets 2 stars is the staff was polite and helpful. read more

Leonard's has always been our go to place for Memphis BBQ! And they did not miss a beat when they moved to Cordova. Still the same great food and service!! Definitely worth the drive. The ribs are some of the best and I always love the slaw and beans! read more

Great food and pleasant staff members. Everything was sparkling clean and I recommend it.

Guy is right! This place was absolutely amazing! Best spaghetti sauce I've had, amazing ribs, and the sides are stellar!!!

I hate to be "that guy" but here goes: Extremely disappointing! Do the people that own these places not taste their product? Beautiful restaurant & great space. Huge portions. I had BBQ & Ravioli & wife had small BBQ sandwich w/ beans & slaw. Meat was finely chopped & must have sat in a steam pan as it was wet & tasteless, SMOTHERED in a nasty sauce- worst I've ever tasted bitter burned & dark. I've had a few hundred sauces & this is the worst. Onion rings looked good but were doughy & chewy- frozen food service stuff. Beans were terribly overcooked, dry and BLAND/no flavor. Slaw was bland/needed mustard added. Ravioli was good typical probably frozen rav and gravy/sauce was pretty good. It was much better on the bbq than their bbq sauce. Couldn't eat much of our meals. Waiter Mike L. was great. Fix the problems and put sauce on the side. I know many people posted positively early on but look at the pictures. Based on last night I probably will never go back. There over 150 BBQ restaurants around Memphis- 99.8% way better than this. You have to be top-tier to succeed here. If last night was any indication Leonard's won't last long term without refocusing. Look at the pictures. Nasty dark sauce, dry beans, mushy onion ring batter. Terrible performance. The saddest part is there are thousands of guys around town that cook way better than this BBQ at home every day. You can't make it in this town being subpar or mediocre. Worth noting there were only 4 other people in the place. Every friend who has been warned me against going (several). I used to go to the old Fox Plaza place and it was pretty good. This place really is not as good as that. Need to shape up. read more

See all

Great DDD to experience! We loved it, especially the ribs, brisket, and beans! Thanks

The new location in Cordova is very nice and clean. Haley was my server. She was very friendly and did a Great job! I had a Big Leonard, wedge fries, side of spaghetti and lemon ice box pie. Food was fabulous! I will be back soon. Keep up the Great work! read more

This has been authentic Memphis BBQ since 1922 and, in my opinion, has never been surpassed. Have been a customer for over 60 years. The ravioli is classic, and compliments the BBQ nicely. Servings are generous. Can also recommend sides like slaw, BBQ beans and onion rings. Consider taking a bottle of sauce home. Retro music is a nice touch. Would like to return soon and often! read more

I've been a Leonard's patron since the mid 1950's. My only problem is that I've stayed put, and Leonard's has moved furthet and furthet away from me. When this new location (and only) location opened, l nagged my wife to try it. Tonight was the night. The venue is classic BBQ appropriate and decorated with photos that I rember from the '50s. The staff is pleasant and attentive. The music is appropriate. AND the food is great. I had no earler meal today, so I ordered the Big Leonard BBQ sandwich. It was wonderful and so big, hungry as I was, I could hardly eat it all. We will make the effort to come back. read more

The fish was good, I did get a To go box of ribs, a little tuff and dry. Service is good.

Bbq nachos were great!! The ribs needed more meat though. Definitely deserves more stars. Service was really good and quick as well. Very kind! read more

I have been a Leonard's customer since they were on Bellevue. Have always enjoyed their food. Staff at the new location are doing a good job. read more

Can't believe they opened with really bad Un trained employees. The sauce is not near the ole famous taste , the slaw is awful. They will crash soon if they don't close, hire new employees, train them before trying to open again. read more

The service was great but the bbq not so much. The beans were good. The bbq didn't have good flavor just my personal opinion. The sausage on the sausage and cheese plate was a no as well. read more

I am only giving 3 star because service was quick and polite... food quality was terrible... nothing as good as fox plaza location was... onion rings were more like dough rings... I had the 1/2 rib slab....ribs ok... not a lot of flavor....beans and slaw decent... read more

Need to try again, sandwich tasted burnt. The taste that I'm used to was no t there. I know new to Cordova. I'm going to give it a minute before I try again. SEASON the meat!!!New business, going to give another chance. This is not the world famous Leonard's. Get it right read more

Ordered take out, Fried Catfish plate that was okay. It lacked flavor. The hush puppies and the potato spuds were cooked just right. The cold slaws was too much mustard. The second order was spaghetti meat sauce needs more seasoning. read more