Cancel

Open app

Search

Martin's Place

4.3 (73 reviews)
InexpensiveBarbeque
Closed • Closed

Martin's Place Photos

MARTIN'S PLACE ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Moderate noise
Divey
Good for groups
Good for kids

You might also consider

More like Martin's Place

Recommended Reviews - Martin's Place

Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
Yelp app icon
Browse more easily on the app
Review Feed Illustration

Reviews With Photos

A haven for hungry travellers in Bryan TX.
Rok J.

Bottom Line: Mom & Pop BBQ joint in all it's rustic glory. Very reasonable prices for generous portions of hyper-smoked meats. A piece of Texas history that's earned its reputation for good eatin'. Top Line: For a mere $11.31 after tax I got a sliced smoked beef sandwich with a huge pile o' beef tucked under the bun, cole slaw, deep fried corn nuggets, and a glass of unsweet tea. A generous dinner at lunchtime prices. Gotta love that! The beef in the sandwich was some of the smokiest I've ever had. The meat had a very sharp, nearly acrid, smoke flavor that cut deep, long, & strong. An extremely rigorous flavor punch to the tongue from Martin's pitmaster. Well done amigo, well done! The texture of the beef was drier than typical. So while the meat was very tender, the lack of juiciness made the sandwich more substantial, and requiring a bit more saucing & washing down with tea, than usual. The sauce that came with the meal, for dressing the sandwich or dipping the corn nuggets I wasn't quite sure so I used it for both, had a mostly tomato taste. Sort of a ketchup or Campbell's tomato soup flavor to which was added a distinct vinegary tangy. Quite different from the other sauces I've had on this particular jaunt through central Texas in search of BBQ. The corn nuggets were nicely deep fried crispy on the outside & moist tender inside. Tasty enough that they didn't actually require dipping in the sauce to make my mouth do the Happy Dance. The cole slaw was crunchy texture & slathered with a mayo dressing that was pretty neutral in taste. The dressing didn't lean in either the sweet or tangy directions, so it came off as being a touch flat. It was, however, quite smooth & creamy in texture. This is not a book you want to judge by it's well worn cover. Martin's is an old institution in this area and you've got to forgive the rather dated, tired, and somewhat run down appearance to harvest the gastronomic gold these folks are dishing up. The food is good well-smoked generously portioned eats at economical prices. Eat what you love, love what you eat. Eat at Martin's in Bryan TX and find what *you* love about hole in the wall BBQ joints all over again.

The interior. Camera isn't very good, but all the smoke in the restaurant doesn't help either.
Eric Z.

DISCLAIMER: It was raining when I visited, and that DEFINITELY affects the experience. The rain is going to make smoking VERY difficult, and as a result, the meat will not be up to par and the whole restaurant will be smoky. First impressions: Gross looking bathrooms with entrances adjacent to the front door. Ew. I held it in. Tons of smoke inside the restaurant (like I mentioned, due to the rain). By the time I left, all my clothes and my person reeked of smoke. Interior is decorated much like many other BBQ places, but the lighting is a bit dim. Find yourself a seat and peruse the menu, someone will come take your order (eventually). And then your food will come (eventually). The wait was, honestly, much longer than I expected (around 30 minutes total), especially considering there were only 2 other tables at the time. I ordered the two meat combo, for which I chose ribs and brisket with cole slaw and house potatoes. Onions, pickles, and bread free if requested. $10.75. (Each additional meat is $1 extra, but ribs can only be one of them). Water/cup of ice is 10 cents. Total cost is $11.75 after tax. The ribs were dry and chewy, and the brisket was rather dry as well. I don't know just how much the rain affects the meat, but I would avoid going when it's raining at all costs. Totally not worth it. The meat was also covered in BBQ sauce, which I prefer to apply at my own discretion. The sides, however, were pretty good! House potatoes is basically mashed potatoes, but thicker and less creamy. Cole slaw is solid. Onions and pickles were served on top of the meat, so the pickle was warm and covered in sauce (not a fan of that). Having experienced Franklin BBQ in Austin, I compare all other BBQ to it, and Martin's simply cannot compare. This place does seem to have good reviews though, so perhaps it's worth coming again when the weather is sunny. Misc: Parking lot is unpaved!

The Main Counter
dean d.

Amazing history. Good food. Good price. Brisket, sliced, was amazing. Smokey meaty heaven. Sausage was very good. Feid Okra and Corn Fritters were fresh made to order, and very good. Even the Iced Tea, unsweet, had a bite to it and was great. Chopped beef brisket is more like beaten to a mush: many like it that way, many don't. So keep that in mind. It got only 4-stars because the pork was boring, and unless you are a mind reader, they drown all your meat in their sauce without asking you (it was very good, but come on). Bring a change of clothes (and underwear), unless you like to smell like a smoker-dude all day. Of course, I would not change a thing.

James A.

Just simple BBQ and great service. The atmosphere is exactly what a real Texas no frills BBQ joint should be. Walking through the front door is like walking into a time machine. Yes everything is very antique, but it's all very clean. You can't beat them on price. And the front door opens in the wrong direction which is a kind of fun.

Half a white meat chicken with potatoes and cole slaw
Robert B.

Plus a half a star.... Wish there were half stars. Anyways. Food was very tasty. The brisket sandwich is well portioned for $5. The quality of the brisket is also nice. It was very lean and minimal bbq sauce to mask the flavor of the meat. Although the aroma of smokey goodness is in the air, I didn't really get the smokey flavor or smoke ring imbedded in the meat. Brisket had good texture as well. Also tried the roasted chicken. (White meat only.... G/f's choice) The chicken was incredibly moist. Once again minimal BBQ sauce to mask the flavor of the chicken. And portions again are great. As well as price. $4.75 for half a chicken. Highly highly recommend. Now for sides. The onion rings were really good. Some sort of vinegary tang to the batter once fried. Potatoes were also good. Had some bacon added to them which is always a plus. Would def recommend. Sadly this is a slow moving place in terms of service but it's an okay compromise for quality well priced meats. Also if you are "iffy" on restrooms this is definitely not your 5 star establishments. Just know you are sacrificing bells and whistles for amazing food and home cooking that's just to die for. Have an open mind and empty belly because you'll love it. Be sure to try it next time in Bryan.

Partial menu
ReeRee T.

Historical Landmark! German potatoes were not available today BUT potato salad and fried okra made up for it! Great customer service and the food was worth the drive from DFW to Bryan/College Station.

Front view from Old College

See all

Photo of Tex L.
0
11
5

7 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Friendly environment also the Best Brisket sandwich. Also, the 2 and 3 meat plates are huge.

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

5 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

6 years ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0

7 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 3
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 1
Photo of Ryan M.
43
50
75

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

11 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0
Photo of dean d.
66
1173
1446

16 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

7 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of James A.
267
7
10

12 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

12 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

7 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

8 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of WD S.
65
343
100

9 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Colt S.
4
95
40

12 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

15 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

13 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

13 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 3
Oh no 1

16 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

13 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

16 years ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Ryan B.
15
695
29

14 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

16 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0
Photo of Matt T.
1
55
27

15 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

15 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

16 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Amanda C.
22
12
84

13 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

15 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

14 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

10 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

6 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0
Photo of D. V.
1
31
0

7 years ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0
Photo of Alex N.
3
11
14

15 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 1
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Andrea T.
223
38
15

13 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

15 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

Page 1 of 2

Ask the Community - Martin's Place

You might also consider

Verify this business for free

People searched for Barbeque 1,231 times last month within 15 miles of this business.

Verify this business

Frank's Country Store

Frank's Country Store

(21 reviews)

A great little family-oriented place just far enough out of a major college town that you don't…read morehave to deal with a bunch of students. Note that this is a working gas station/convenience store and the kitchen is only open until 3:00 p.m. on Mon-Thurs and is closed on Sunday. Though you can buy snacks and gas when the kitchen is closed. They smoke their own BBQ and have tremendous burgers. Their hand made onion rings are probably in the top 5 I've ever had in Texas.

Update 6-22-2023: Lowered my rating from 5 to 3. Frank's brisket is nothing like it used to be…read more The last two times I've eaten here it has been very greasy, very fatty, and pretty-much tasteless. If this just happened once, I wouldn't mention it. But since it happened twice in a row, I would no longer recommend them. My rating below is from 2 years ago, and it has consistently been good for two years until recently. Not sure what changed, but something has. Frank's Country Store & BBQ is a hidden gem in the BCS area. Let me say right off the bat, as a native Texan who has eaten at a majority of the Texas Top-50 Barbecue joints, I judge all barbecue joints by their brisket. In Texas brisket is king, and if you can't smoke a brisket properly, you might as well hang it up. I really could care less about sides, as basically anything will do. And, I do like to try some sausage in most of Texas' good barbecue joints, as a lot of towns have different sausage recipes. I assume Frank's uses Slovacek sausage, since it's the king sausage of the BCS area. Frank's has some GREAT BRISKET! Nothing more to say.

C&C  BBQ

C&C BBQ

(15 reviews)

Bottom Line: The finest BBQ experience in the College…read moreStation & Bryan TX area is found on Hwy 21 a few scant miles west (about 5 mi from downtown Bryan). Excellent & inexpensive BBQ and truly exceptional people make C&C BBQ out on Smetana Rd a "Must Do!!!" stop in the area. Your taste buds will be happier and your day will be brighter for it. You can thank me later. Top Line: As is typical on my BBQ road tripping, most eateries in the College Station & Bryan TX got a single visit to check out their vittles & their digs. It takes someplace special to draw a second visit. In the College Station & Bryan area, that place was C&C BBQ. An alternative BBQ joint got slid down the schedule to make time for the second round at C&C on Sunday, since they are currently only open on Sat & Sun. Charles's touch with his smoker is exquisite. The smoke note in the meat is not sharp, edgy, or acrid. His smoke flavor comes out round, balanced, full, velvety, and smooth. His rub has enough peppery snap to give it character, without being harsh or aggressive. Again, balanced and masterful. Ribs on the first visit were meaty, arriving trimmed quite free of fat. This gave the smoke excellent access to the meat, which took it up very nicely. Brisket sandwich on my second trip west was very, very tender and wonderfully juicy. It was a 4-napkin sandwich! That indicates just how tender & moist it was. And it was equally tasty, exhibiting like the ribs Charles's mastery of his craft. Sides are limited to four items: potato salad, whole kernel corn, green beans, pinto beans. Potato salad has a slight hit of pickle juice jumping it up a bit. Corn with diced tomatoes has a bit of bite & snap to it, setting the corn apart from its usual semi-blandness. The green beans were very tender & seemed to have butter dancing in the mix, which made them more flavorful. The pinto beans were rich in flavor due to having some shredded meat added in. Their texture was on the mark as well. Banana pudding was the weakest link in my estimation. The taste was pretty typically sweet banana pudding flavor, which is not a bad thing. The texture, while being smooth & creamy as pudding should be, struck me as being a bit too moist. The vanilla wafers cookies had gotten soggy from the pudding, so there was no crunch or solidity contrast to the creamy pudding. Cost for this Nirvana of BBQ heaven was mondo cheap (see picture), particularly given the extremely tasty food. C&C BBQ is not only some of the very best BBQ in the area, it is also amazingly high value eating due to it's miniscule prices. Also, kudos to them for having a bathroom on premises to clean up in after your (over) indulgence. But to only mention the quality & cost of the food is to tell the lesser part of the story. The greatest part about eating at C&C is the bright, shining, positive, effusive, enthusiastic, sunshiny, uplifting personalities of Charles & Carol. These two folks radiate joy & happiness at an astronomical level. To hang out with this pair while downing such good BBQ makes your visit a jewel among the days of your life. So head west from Bryan TX to the junction of Hwy 21 & Smetana Rd to get your own shot of sunshine from Charles & Carol and a chowdown of their bodacious BBQ. As I said above, you can thank me later.

I came to C&C bar-b-que on a whim wanting to try something new and let me say I was NOT…read moredisappointed! I walked in and the first thing I noticed was the glorious smell of smoked meats. I was instantly greeted by Carole and Charles as well as one of their employees. I got a lunch combo which includes your choice of sandwich, chips, and a drink. I got a chopped brisket sandwich which was chopped in front of me and was piled into hamburger buns. I was offered to try the brisket beforehand since it was my first time and it was DELICIOUS! While I waited for my meal I talked with the owners and their employee who were all so nice. I recommend this place to anyone who is longing for some good old fashioned bar-b-que!! 10/10 recommend. I will without be coming back!

C&J Barbeque - Brisket and rib plate with collard greens and pasta salad.

C&J Barbeque

(64 reviews)

$$

Solid BBQ overall, but nothing too spectacular. I ordered…read morethe beef and rib plate, which comes with two sides (the fried okra was easily my favorite) The brisket (moist and juicy) was better than the ribs, which leaned a bit fatty to me. They have three different sauces to try, including a mustard-based one that was interesting. (I liked being able to control my sauce mixings) There are free white and wheat bread and a good spread of fixings like pickles, onions, and jalapenos. We came in for a late afternoon lunch, (post-lunch rush) and it was super quiet. This was our first meal back in the College Station/Bryan area so it was a pretty easy, low-stress stop. Staff was efficient, and there's a patio area if the weather's nice. They also run daily specials.

Came here for the first time in several years. I don't go to bbq joints as much as I want to for…read morethe sole reason of being too expensive. I'm sure the price for this place is reasonable, just overall expensive in general. Anyways, I ordered the "I want it all" dinner pack which consists of 1/2lb beef, 1/2lb sausage, 1/2lb chicken, 1/2lb ribs, and 2 large OR 4 small sides which we chose the mac n cheese, smothered green beans, corn, and mashed potatoes. I also ordered a side of pork belly and banana pudding. Everything was very flavorful especially the brisket, beef rib, and pork belly. The chicken and sausage were ok. I did a takeout order so my pics don't do this meal justice from that traditional all on one pan bbq presentation look. Overall, it is a delicious and I'm sure reasonably priced joint. We'll be back whenever we crave for some bbq. Staff were friendly and fast. Lots of parking and tables to dine at.

Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que - Meat, Potato Salad, Mac 'N Cheese

Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que

(193 reviews)

$$

Best BBQ in College Station - Worth Every Mile! If you're…read morelooking for authentic Texas pit barbecue done right, Cooper's Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que in College Station is the real deal. I brought the whole family and we left stuffed, happy, and already planning our next visit. The brisket was melt-in-your-mouth tender with that perfect smoky bark, and the burnt ends were absolute heaven,crispy, and packed with flavor. The sides were just as impressive: creamy, cheesy mac n' cheese that felt like a hug in a bowl, rich twice-baked potatoes loaded with all the good stuff, hearty beans with just the right sweetness and smoke, and everything complemented the meat beautifully. Save room for dessert because they do those right too. The banana pudding was silky, nostalgic perfection, and the cobblers were warm, fruity, and topped with that flaky crust and Blue Bell Vanilla Ice Cream that makes you want seconds. The service was outstanding and genuinely friendly from the moment we walked in. The staff made us feel welcome and took great care of our large group. The restaurant itself is fantastic , spacious indoor and outdoor seating, plus party rooms that make it ideal for family gatherings, celebrations, rehearsal dinners etc...or just a big Sunday lunch. Cooper's nailed every part of the experience: incredible food, warm hospitality, and a comfortable, family-friendly atmosphere. This is Texas BBQ at its finest. We'll be back soon! I highly recommend bringing the whole crew! Rod Gray Cypress, TX

Took out lots of food recently ... Nice looking, large venue. Pit boss was friendly. Turkey, pork…read moreribs, and brisket all tasty, but the ribs were overcooked, so a bit dry. Very salty, but enjoyed the salt ... but not everyone will ... Loaded mashed potatoes were superb. Green beans good too. Peach cobbler was great. Pinto beans were include and good, a nice touch. I thought the prices were in line with today's BBQ prices. Really friendly staff overall and packaged the food nicely.

Martin's Place - bbq - Updated May 2026

Loading...
Loading...
Loading...