Something of the unexpected. We were leaving Palm Bay, haven't eaten lunch and wanted to eat something that we have not eaten. We have Sonny's back home, but never tried it. We flipped a coin and it was Sonny's for the win. We entered the establishment, pretty new restaurant. We were quickly seated. The restaurant can sit 40-50 people at a time. We ordered picked 3 meats. Brisket was an extra charge and so were the ribs. The sides we ended up with were green beans and baked beans. The food arrived promptly. All was warm to taste. I took a piece of rib, brisket and chicken tried all the flavors of the barbeque sauces. First impressions are everything. Brisket was tender, chicken was amazingly juicy and not dry. The baked beans and green beans were both cooked correctly. Would I say come again? But of course. read more

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**OVERALL REVIEW** On the Space Coast (Brevad County), there are currently three locations for Sonny's BBQ. Two of them are within central to north-central Brevard. Ergo, anyone living in Melbourne and heading southbound, it is a bit of a drive to get to them. That is why the Sonny's BBQ located in Malabar is technically an "essential" spot for patrons, especially those who are fans. For a Sonny's BBQ (which I will shorthand simply to Sonny's for the rest of this review), this location is mediocre to okay, depending on who is on staff and the time of day. But rest assured, there are many other better BBQ spots to go to especially one exit up heading northbound on I-95 to Palm Bay Rd. But if you have to eat at Sonny's for any reason, you can easily navigate the menu for a decent meal at a decent price. Though an address is provided, Sonny's is located on the southside of Malabar Rd., just west of I-95 They are located just west of the Walmart Supercenter at their traffic light. Starting with their decor and ambiance, they have melded both their traditional western/southern BBQ style with modernization. So imagine barnwood paneling and barn sliding doors, but with a modern layout, color scheme, and art decor. For today's standards, visually okay but the floor is opened to provide more seating. Most of the serving staff have been good, and the latest one is a girl named Ling, who did here best to keep up with all of us given the fact the floor was short-staffed. The menu has been minimized to optioned choices that include chicken, turkey, brisket, ribs, steak, and pork, cooked in many ways for variety. At times, the pulled pork and brisket would be too dry, at other times, just right, but given the amount of sauce per meal, it is manageable. As for stand-alone meals, I had many of their sandwiches and they are good, but the what they call a Cuban sandwich is not traditional in any sense. For hardcore Cuban sandwich connoisiers, they may even go as far to call it an abomination. Thankfully, the price of the food is within the average of most BBQ places these days, ranging from $12 to $20 on average, cheaper for certain meals and more expensive for bigger meal sets such as family feasts. Sidenote: The restfrooms were clean as they can be for a restaurant that is on average busy. No real messes, and TP and hand towels are stocked. I am going to give Sonny's an overall average from all my subsequent visits three-out-of-four stars. They are a-okay, but they don't stand out amongst other Sonny's BBQ locations let along there are other places that do a far better job than they do, but they happen to also be mom n' pop locations, too. Ultimately, this Sonny's BBQ is good in accordance with what you expect with a national chain like them. read more

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No draft beer was available, limited to a few bottled selections. Smoked turkey was very dry and smoked tenders were cold inside ,as if frozen and reheated. Overall disappointing for restaurant touting BBQ in its name. read more

I like Sonny's and I pretty much order the same thing - brisket, baked beans, mac and cheese and garlic bread. Today I tried the slaw and the smoked wings. There was nothing special about it so I added old bay to kick it up a notch. Today the beans were super sweet and more sauce than beans. It's probably because I ordered a few minutes before closing. The food at this location has been consistent over the years. Good food and good service. read more

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If you dine in you will have a much better experience than going through the drive through. I recently went through the drive thru and was thoroughly disappointed with the meager amounts of meat on my sandwich. Note to self, never use their drive through service again. read more

I'm extremely disappointed with my experience tonight. I spent $71 on a family order and ended up receiving someone else's single meal instead. When I called the restaurant, the employee casually said there were two orders--"Jennifer L" and "Jennifer S"--as if that explained everything. That was the extent of the response. No real concern, no effort to fix it. The only differences between the orders were the letter of the last name and the size of the order--something that should have been very easy for the staff to catch. Unfortunately, the baggers didn't, and neither did the Uber driver. To make matters worse, I was still charged for delivery, tip, and priority service--and the order was late on top of everything. The driver never answered the phone, and I was told to contact Uber for a refund, but they only offer a partial refund, which is unacceptable considering I never received my actual order. At this point, neither the restaurant nor Uber is taking responsibility. It's now 8 PM, and my family has no dinner. If you're hungry and expecting reliable service, I strongly recommend taking your business elsewhere. read more

I had the candid burger, medium cook, crispy fries and a side order of coleslaw. Burger well cooked, no bacon, lettuce, pickle, onion, or tomato. The bun was so hard ìt could not be eaten. The coleslaw had a strange smell, was mushy and could not be eaten. I told the wait person and had no response. I will not be back for several months. The last time was over a year. read more

good food if you want a good southern barbecue food and love the brisket and sliced turkey. Good fast food, sit down, barbecue restaurant to eat in the area. read more

I do really like their smoked dry rub wings and their French fries. The atmosphere reminds me of an industrial looking smokehouse. At least when you first walk in. It's nothing I would go home and talk about. Servers are always friendly and attentive to when you need something. I am not a huge BBQ eater so I only end up here on the rare occasion that my husband gets hungry for smoked pork ribs. All in all it's not a terrible place but it's not outstanding either. It just fits somewhere in that middle ground. read more

Sonny's on Malabar! Great Southern BBQ and excellent sides! Great fast and courteous service! Clean and well maintained dining area. The only thing that needed help was both bathrooms needed some attention or this would have been a 5 star review! They have Gluten Free options and my wife and I thoroughly enjoyed the smoked turkey and pulled chicken . Sonny's rocks the BBQ! read more

Amazing BBQ. Great service super prices variety of smoked meats. St. Luis ribs and Baby back.

I used to be a fairy regular customer, with the inflated prices for everything I haven't been in quite a while. I decided to splurge and got the sliced pork dinner and one for my mother. Between the two dinners we got about one of the old servings. They don't have baked potatoes anymore and I ordered broccoli for my mom's dinner and it was missing. The BBQ sauce used to come in a generous packet, now it comes in a packet about twice the size of a ketchup packet. Now that I am finished writing this review, I have to go find something else to eat, as my $15 meal from Sunny's left me hungry. read more

This is the slowest service I've ever received. I was in line for about 40 min for our meal. 1 platter. Poor person at window kept apologizing and I feel sorry for her for having to put up with disgruntled customers. They did not even have my order started when I got to window. Shame on this establishment read more

Sonny's has redeemed themselves! We ordered 2 chopped brisket sandwiches and they got it 100% right. Best. Brisket. EVER! read more

Sonny's BBQ - Chopped Beef Brisket Sandwich - Barbeque Near Me - Palm Bay, Florida

I've lived in Florida all my life and have been eating Sonnys forever. The food was not the issue, rather, the way our charges and check were handled. We were looking for a good hamburger. Never having tried that at Sonny's, we decided to give it a shot. Again, not the food, but the charges. If I remember, the burgers were $10 each. Not a problem. As she is taking the order, she asks what side I would like. Gave her my answer and didn't think any more of it. We also had two beers each. She brought the bill. Almost $70.00! Called the server over, she insisted the bill was correct. Basic math people. However, she tried to explain that something I did turned the order into a big deal. No problem. I looked at the bill again. Does not compute. She tried to explain it was cheaper the way she did it. There did not appear to be any management on site but another server walked over asked if we needed help. Soon as I mentioned an issue with the check, she throws her hands in the air and rolls her eyes, walks away. Originally server comes back and logs into the system, makes some adjustments. Don't know what she did as I was not provided a receipt. Needless to say, this has ruined the down home feel of Sonny's for me. There is no excuse for this type of behavior. I can only imagine how much I've spent at Sonny's over my lifetime. I am sad this location can't do better with employees. read more

Came here as I heard it was best BBQ in Florida and left disappointed. Maybe it was just this specific location, but I had a 3 meat platter and all the meat was dry and mostly flavorless. Their BBQ sauce was good, but I prefer to try the meat without sauce as meat should be great on its own and sauce just enhance it. This was not the case, the sauce made it so I didn't have to drink my beer every bite as it was so dry. I sat at the bar and I think my server forgot I existed. It wasn't late or busy, so not sure how that happened, but she never came back after my first drink and others had to help me. Overall, I would not try another one if in Florida and would look elsewhere. read more

Slurpin' at Sonny's! Want comfort food? At a place you can depend on, whether in Palm Bay or Palm Harbor? Sonny's is it! I was craving RIBS...with all of that lip smackin' finger gripping goodness! I ordered the St Louis Dry Rub Ribs, with a side of Fries and Beans. It doesn't get any more basic than that... My server was the svelte blonde Sarah. She was prompt and friendly. She proved to be up to the task of "What'll ya have?" and "What can I get ya?" With service like that, and ribs, too??? Heck yeah, I'm in!!!! Simple review. Simple decision. Go to Sonny's. read more

Been here 3 times food is consistently good. We love the flowers citrus wings. We will be back for sure.

It's good but not the best. The food is great but service isn't amazing. The salad bar can be better.

Folks, you gotta step up your game. I waited in the drive thru the other night for over 17 minutes. 3 meat combo with beans and Mac and cheese. The Mac and cheese tasted canned. The brisket was under the turkey, which both were bland. Hell of a heartburn after eating your food. Some kid was dancing by the to go order cash register, needs lessons badly. Or better yet, act professional while you're on the job. read more

Busy night! My aunt is down from Massachusetts and loves the okra. Our server Morgan N. was amazing!! Food ... delicious as always.

Ample sized servings. Good BBQ. Good sauces. Great cornbread. Looking for consistency then Sunny's is your place to try.

Throughout the pandemic my family regularly orders meals for delivery or pickup. I truly appreciate the fact that the staff is always very attentive to make sure everything is packed well and extras like sauces and napkins are always part of the delivery. There is nothing bad I can say about the delivery services. When most deliveries from other restaurants come with missing items, SONNYS has excellent attention to detail! The food is always hot and the ribs are "fall off the bone" amazing! I recommend the sweet BBQ sauce and CORNBREAD muffins! What a great combination! Thank you for always being considerate of the items my family orders and ensuring the orders are complete. You should be proud of the staff for making our meals the same as if we are eating inside you restaurant! I truly appreciate everything, especially during these trying times. read more

Great food, good price, Excellent Staff This is one of the many Sonny's restaurants in Florida. This chain started in Gainesville in 1968 and has grown to over 100 locations across the United States. The restaurant chain is known for its barbecue and service. I have been lucky enough to visit many of their locations and can say that they are consistent on several items across every place I have visited. Every store has had clean tables, good bbq, friendly staff, and reasonable prices. This location had all of those also. It is located on the south side of Malabar Road just to the West of I-95. Traffic along this stretch of road can be very busy so be careful getting to and from this one. There is plenty of parking to the south and west of the location. Upon entering you are greeted by a hostess who seats you in a booth (almost all tables are booths) and took our drink order. We ordered sliced pork sandwiches with french fries and tea. The food came out quickly and was delicious. Add in their signature barbeque sauce of your choosing and you have a recipe for delicious food. The price for two full meals was $22 and well worth it. read more

Sonny's BBQ - Entrance - Barbeque Near Me - Palm Bay, Florida

Brought my experiences on BBq to a lower level. Both of us suffered from stomach problems after eating here. So bad that we threw away our leftovers we brought home. I'll never go to a Sonny's again with so many other BBq options available in Palm Bay. Plus the service wasn't up to par due to the fact that it appears they lack manpower. The young gentleman serving did his best, though. read more

Paid 17 dollars for 3 slices of brisket on my sandwich. Absolutely disappointed, used to come here all the time but each time I go there and get a sandwich it's either skimped or more fat than meat. If you want bbq go to crydermans, higher quality, more bang for your buck, all around better read more

Food was very good and consistent. Our server Marquis was over the top! Checked on us constantly and the politeness from this young man was a pleasure. His parents raised him right! A breathe of fresh young manners is always welcome. Thank you young man for making our dinner experience a pleasant one! read more

Sonny's BBQ - Pick 3 Combo - Barbeque Near Me - Palm Bay, Florida

I ordered the loaded tots. they have absolutely NOTHING on them that was stated in the description. the only reason they look somewhat appetizing is because of the BBQ sauce that i put on there myself. when i got home there was literally just normal tater tot's in the box that were very over cooked. completely disappointed with this. Hardly a one star rating... read more

Sonny's BBQ - Loaded Tots - Barbeque Near Me - Palm Bay, Florida

Fried pickles with no batter. Baby Back ribs burnt to a crisp. Not stopping here any more. No excuse for this. Who in their right mind would serve burnt food to a customer? read more

Sonny's BBQ - Fried pickles - Barbeque Near Me - Palm Bay, Florida

Great BBQ for a quick lunch on our way through town. We were driving to Fort Lauderdale and I had a hankering for some BBQ. I chose this place and I was not disappointed. I ordered from their pickup counter and the food was prompt, hot and delicious. I ordered the carolina pulled pork sandwich and their beans. The sandwich came with a ton of meat. It was falling off and made a nice little pile on my styrofoam container. It also came with a little single serving of cole slaw for the sandwich. They thoughtfully didn't put it on for me, as the order was carryout and if I would have gotten home with the cole slaw on the sandwich it would have been soggy and possibly ruined my sandwich experience. The sauce was great. Thick, much like the KC sauce. Not too vinegary. Although I did enjoy their mustard sauce. I will definitely revisit if I'm in the area. Oh yeah, the staff was awesome. Great recommendations, friendly, eager to please. read more

Sonny's BBQ - Haven't seen bbq sauce in little packets like this before - Barbeque Near Me - Palm Bay, Florida

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90 mins here and still waiting , worst place to eat ... stay away !!! And they ain't busy !!! Wtf !!!

Got food poisoning from the ribs :/ would certainly be cautious eating here. I was ill for several days

If you want really, really good BBQ without all the hype and long lines of waiting diners (like that busy place that had a 15-30 min wait on a Monday night!!), GO TO Sonny's! We had not been here in years, since we usually just drive by Palm Bay on I-95, but this week we found it to have a beautiful BBQ-style interior, very clean, friendly hostesses & servers and happy diners, yet ample seating. Outside there was a long drive-thru of cars, because people know how good the food is! I ordered a full rack of babyback ribs which were moist, smokey, and easy off-the-bone. And I tried all the BBQ sauces!My fav is the Original but they are all really tasty, My husband's sliced brisquet was thick, smokey, and the best he has had in a long time and his beans were very good. My huge sweet potato was baked to perfection, the steamed broccoli was tender (not too hard, not too soft!) and the cornbread quite good, not sweet (which I hate) but flavorful. Did I mention how clean the booths are?! Well they are. The only fault I could find was that the air conditioner was too cold and the vents blow right down on the booths. read more

Three Strikes and this Sonny's location is on my black list. I just got back to my hotel room (in town on business travel) and i ordered the Sonny's sampler. I ordered the pulled pork, sliced brisket, 1/4 White chicken and St. Louis Ribs. What a joke! Now i was at this same Sonny's 3 weeks prior and ordered the same Sonny's sampler but i dined in and my portions were larger and i paid the same amount. But this carry out order was not what the same as i received when I ate at the restaurant. What i received was 1 slice of Brisket, 2 Ribs, 1/8th white chicken, and 1 piece of garlic bread all for the GREAT price of $17.99! What a JOKE! When i dined in i was served 3 slices of Brisket, a full 1/4 white chicken, 3 or 4 ribs, pulled pork and 2 pieces of Garlic bread. The chicken breast looked like it came from a pigeon is was so small. Fortunately for me the next time i come into town, Smoky Bones is right down the street. I also ate here on 29 June 2021. There was a male employee, with a million tattoos all over his arms, shirt untucked, looked like he was wearing blue flannel pajama bottoms and sunglasses on his forehead. He was rolling silverware behind the bar in front of customers with his bare hands. One of the managers called him into the kitchen and made him get latex gloves on. At this point, it was too late, He was nearly finished. He i guess he didn't like rolling silverware because he made several comments that he couldn't believe he stopped or quit tattooing to work at Sonny's BBQ. 1) the employees hygiene or lack there of is a concern. 2) Presentation, Why would you want someone like that representing the Sonny's brand name? 3) No one made him re-wash the silverware . Additionally, he didn't miss an opportunity to hit on every waitress who was working that night. Did it right in front of the customers. Then he leaves the tub filled of silverware behind the bar for the bartender to deal with. (my receipt says Kayla) .. Then there's the lazy hostess, didn't get her name, but check the schedule (29June2021) , she was working around 7pm. Most unprofessional "kid" i have ever seen in food service. What hostess sits at the bar, next to customers and eats while on the clock? And when new customers walk in and stand at the hostess station, she tells them "I'll be with you in once second" and continues to eat, while they wait i would have walked out and never returned. Again, not sure what her name was, but I'm sure the meal was rang up in her name to get the employee discount. I'm not sure what kind of show you guys are running over there but I sure will be share my glowing experiences with my co-workers at L3-Harris. read more

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I knocked off a star because this place is missing something. I don't know what it is. It was so quiet but there were plenty of people in here. It just seemed like there was a lack of enthusiasm, lack of character. I don't know. It was a mood reminiscent of a nursing home cafeteria. That being said, staff is friendly, service was fast, and the food was excellent! I'd like to see them expand their apps a little but those red neck egg rolls are sooooo good. I used to live beachside and I will travel from Palm Bay for Charlie & Jakes. It's safe to say now I really don't have to. The food is good here, people. I'm so glad we tried it! Please, though, liven it up a little in there! Lol read more

Sonny's BBQ - Barbeque Near Me - Palm Bay, Florida

So this Sonny's is so clean! And they are going above & beyond after each customer leaves. They making sure everyone has there distance from each other. The food was delicious & other servers went above & beyond! Seriously we will be regulars here! read more

Sonny's BBQ - Barbeque Near Me - Palm Bay, Florida

Horrible. Service ok. Food not ok. Ordered lean brisket. Sent back. More fat than meat. Tasted like it's been sitting there for quite a while. More grease on bottom of dish than in deep fat fryer. read more

Attempted to place an online pickup order but it would not go through. Called the store and they said their internet sales had been cut off and that they could take our order over the phone but placed us on hold. After 10 minutes on hold we hung up and called back. Spoke with a different girl who took our order and said it would be 20-30 minute. When I arrived to pick up our food there must have been 20 other people waiting to pick up their food and I was told it would be another 30 minutes before the food would be ready. I have been coming to Sonnys for years and I am extremely disappointed how my experience was. read more

This pic is what used to be one appetizer portion of fried okra, $5.59. Now they say it's 3 portions, at $5.59 each, or $16.77 plus tax. They've really gone down in value. Don't buy the okra. read more

Sonny's BBQ - $15 worth of fried okra - Barbeque Near Me - Palm Bay, Florida

I'd give 0 stars if I could I just ordered a sampler plate and a brisket grilled cheese I get my shit I start eating, all of my shit is cold not even warm and too of that Im half way through eating my chicken and I get a better look there's hair on my fucking chicken disgusting!! How the hell is this place open read more

Sonny's BBQ - Hair literally cooked into the skin so it can't be mine and I have dark hair not light - Barbeque Near Me - Palm Bay, Florida