Love the fish and bbq but THEY CHANGED THE FRIES!!! Bring Back the crinkle fries and I'll add a star!

My fiancee and I went there on Valentine's Day so I could get all you can eat crab legs. It took forever for our meal to arrive, and then there was only 1 small cluster of crab, and it was almost cold. Told waitress I would like more in about 10 minutes. I waited 45 minutes before she brought more. Then she had the audacity to ask if we were ready to pay the bill. I said no, but I would like more crab. She never brought hot butter or offered re- fills. While waiting for more crab, the owner comes to table apologise for the slow service, and say a he knew we was there a long time waiting. Told him I was very unhappy, and waitress sucked. He never offered to make things right, and actually said he hoped we came back. Yeah right! Waitress asked several more times if was ready to pay. It took nearly 3 hours to receive 4 clusters of crab. Never will go back. Wish we had went somewhere else. read more

Very disappointed! I ordered "the king" which is bbq brisket and I ordered sweet potato tots. The sandwich had two little strips of meat and was full of fat, the bun was twice the size of the meat and cold and the cheese wasn't even melted! Sweet potato tots are actually sweet potato waffle fries and they were over cooked! read more

Never again. We've tried this place a few times. The first time was shortly after the grand opening. The food was good, not great. We tried it again a few months later, both my gf and I got the ribs. They were tough, dry, tasteless, and had awful color. I could've gotten the same level of satisfaction from eating my shoe. The waitress (who seemed to be preoccupied with everything BUT serving us, including yelling and cussing at the cooks within earshot of the seating area) offered to replace our ribs with something else, so we tried the smokehouse chicken sandwiches. As with the first visit, it was good, not great. When we got the check, we were charged for both orders of ribs, as well as the sandwiches. A problem that was only rectified when the manager finally became available 10 minutes later to come talk to us. For some reason, we decided to try it again today, hoping the previous occasion was just an off day for them. Turns out, it wasn't. The ribs were just as terrible today as they were the last time, maybe even worse. Not only do they not fall off the bone, I could barely saw through them with a steak knife. Guess I should've learned my lesson. On the bright side, the waitress was much better this time, and when we declined to replace our meals, she apologized sincerely, and told us we wouldn't be charged for anything. Unfortunately, polite waitresses can't stop the food from being terrible. We won't be going back. There are too many other places around here that do good BBQ to waste visits on a place that doesn't. read more

Food and service was great. We both had the Grumpy... Mine was a little too greasy, but the rest of the food was fantastic. Get the horseshoe appetizer! It was perfect... Crispy crinkle cut fries yum! read more

I have eaten here a handful of times and have always had great food and great service. Ambiance is very comfortable.

We were camping nearby and since it was a rainy day we thought to do things in town and then go find a place to eat lunch. We had driven by before and it looked nice enough plus we had a hankering to have some bbq. So getting there was one thing, we had to find the driveway first, then the drive up to the restaurant is gravel and has huge potholes! So it was about 11:30 am and we were hoping it was open. There was a few cars in the parking lot, and we noticed the open sign so we parked and went in noticing that behind us more cars were arriving. We walk in and about 3 employees were sitting in a corner booth on their phones. They looked up but no "hi, how are ya, sit where you like etc.." So we assumed we could sit where we pleased. We sat down at a middle booth, and shortly after another group came in and a few single customers sat down as well. They all one by one had a waitress go over say hi and take drink orders and meal orders. 20 minutes pass while we looked over our menus, more families come in and same deal , they are getting their orders taken and meanwhile the first group is starting to get their food. We gave up and just walked out after that. Very poor customer service, For a very small place you would think that would be priority number 1. But it wasn't a total loss , after walking out we went and had a wonderfully tasty meal at 17th st BBQ where we were greeted, seated , ordered and received our meal in under 20 minutes and we paid less then we would have here and they have double the space and triple the customers. read more

Well this is their last shot with me. I have had several bad experiences with food, service and long wait times. So they have been closed for awhile and then reopened. Go in on a Saturday night. They are out of ribs for one. The booth seat has a spring coming through the seat and their debit/credit system was down. When asked if they would accept checks the waitress said no. When asked when it would be fixed she said it has been out for a week. Way to go on being a professional business. That was the LAST time we will waste our time at this inconsistent restaurant. Save yourself time and go somewhere that is actually prepared for business. We went to Walt's for a steak and was very pleased. read more

I was in Marion for a concert and was looking for a place to have dinner before the show. As a big fan of smoked meats, and being that Grumpy's was in close proximity to the concert venue, I decided this was the place to go. Unfortunately, I was disappointed with the food. I ordered the brisket sandwich. The brisket was edible, but not very good. The meat had a smoke ring but did not taste like it had ever been smoked. The texture of the brisket was very strange also. It was more the texture of a dried out roast beef. Brisket should be moist and have a snap to it when pulled apart. This brisket was dry and just broke when pulled. The available sauces were also lacking in flavor. The vinegar sauce was, well, a vinegar sauce. The other two sauces were rather uninteresting. My friend had a smoked burger which he said was pretty good. I would not make a special trip to eat at this place. In fact, if I was back in Marion again, I would probably go somewhere else. read more

Stopped at Grumpy's this evening feeling good to go on a rack of ribs. Let me first say the sides were very good and many of the sandwiches others were eating looked very good too; however i had ribs on my mind. Description on the menu sounded fantastic, but shortly after my ribs arrived, I was highly disappointed. Great cut of meat, but they came out of the smoker about 3 hours too soon. I would eat there again, but would not hesitate sending the ribs back if they weren't good and tender. read more

stopped in at the grump and was pleasantly surprised. greeted at the door nice decor and very friendly service. had the smoked wings for an app and they were very good. we ordered a chopped pork sandwich and the king brisket both were extremely good and of large portion although i would have preferred a vinegar slaw instead of the mayo slaw the meal was outstanding. dessert was the bread pudding which was very nice and to top off the whole experience we were waited on by Camille who was probably one of the best servers we ever had. keep up the good work read more

Seat yourself and wait.. portion was ok but eating off a basket with paper and sides in Styrofoam isn't the greatest . Waitress was nice and checked on us often but we were there early . BBQ was ok.. just ok.. 17 th st offered better in my opinion.. I will be back to check out the Prime rib on Saturday and that will be my deciding factor if im every going back because this was just another BBQ joint . nothing that really made me want to return. Did like the fact that they didnt smother it in BBQ sauce and the 3 different kinds they had on the table were not bad. read more

Had the all you can eat ribs with 2 sides, very disappointing is the best I can say. My sides were slaw and salad my wife had baked potatoe and a salad smal bowl of iceberg lettuce. When we got the bill they charged an extra 1.00 for the salad. We were told it was a side. Our server brought us our bill before we started our meal. Maybe we wanted another drink or desert? Katelyn tried but little training. We won't be back. read more

I've been to Grumpy's two times. The first time I went it was fairly new, so I overlooked the fact that it took 45 minutes to get the wrong food from a waitress who acted like she didn't want to be there. I went back a second time hoping that it would be better, that maybe they had gotten used to being open & had their stuff together, but it was worse! It's not that the servers aren't pleasant, it's just that they lack attention to the customer. The food isn't terrible, but there is better BBQ to be had in the Southern Illinois area. read more

Went there for the first time this past weekend......Horrible...The beef Brisket was decent for southern Illinois I guess. The atmosphere was nice is about the only thing I can say about this dump. If this place was in Memphis or Texas it would have lasted about a week. Go to other places around beautiful So. Illinois and avoid this place at all costs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! read more

I could not complain about the service at all. We had just popped in on our way back to Metropolis from Carbondale. It was "right there," where we turned to head home, I was hungry, and it seemed like some good BBQ would hit the spot. They had a decent menu, but on the wall, the days' specials were Ribs and Fries, or Italian Beef and Fries for 8.25. I ordered the ribs, my daughter got the Italian Beef. When the server brought out our plates, my eyes immediately popped out at the size of her sandwich. It was huge and packed with plenty of meat, with a huge pile of fries beside it. I looked down at MY plate, and there were two scrawny bones, with about 3 bites of meat, a generous portion of fat, a big chunk of gristle, all drenched in BBQ sauce. So much sauce that I was dipping my fries in it. We ate, and prepared to leave, taking over half of her Italian Beef sandwich in a go-box. When the server brought out our ticket, I let her know that MY lunch was NOT worth 8.25. And before we got out the door, she brought another go box with more ribs in it. Nice try, Sis....but too late. But don't worry, honey....WE won't be back. What meat mine had on them tasted good, when you got past the sauce pool, and frankly, the Italian beef had a nice flavor to it too. But I swear, to ME, it tasted like that cow used to have antlers.... read more

While traveling for business, I always like to try the local hometown restaurants. Last night I ate at Grumpy's Smokehouse in Carterville. It may be a well kept secret , but only because it is off of the 13 without a direct exit. The food was absolutely fantastic! I had a signature pulled pork sandwich which was finger- lickin' good. To compliment, the Cole slaw was tasty and the fried corn was something I had never experienced before - surprisingly, I could have even a basket of this! I even had the fried cheesecake - not on my normal diet - but well worth the extra calories! The staff was friendly as was other customers and my food came quickly and hot! I was surprised to find out that they have been open for a few years - great ambience with very stylish surroundings - not what you would expect from the outside of the building. I would highly recommend this for dinner or lunch for travelers or even this locals who have never ventured past the parking lot. read more