Honkytonk BBQ

I wasn't very impressed with this place. Before I describe my experience, I have a strong feeling this place has a new owner because the place looked completely different from the actual episode so it might have been amazing at one point. I ordered the Viking Beef Short Ribs and they were decent. It ended up being the best item my family ordered. My dad ordered the Rib Tips and they weren't very good at all. We've never had rib tips before so we don't know if that was what they should taste like but they definitely had a funky taste. My mom and brother ordered the "award-winning" Pulled Pork Sandwich and it wasn't that good either. In fact, I'm pretty sure my dad makes a better one along with a lot of other people I've had pulled pork from and they only do it two or three times a year. The worst part of the experience is the fact that we received our food within 5-10 minutes. We're wondering if the items were just sitting under a heat lamp because everything was a little dry. The sides were actually pretty good though, I'll give them that. The Large Mac & Cheese was good. The waiter was actually a really cool guy so the experience wasn't a total waste but I would suggest getting the Viking Beef Short Ribs and the Large Mac & Cheese if you MUST add this place to your list of Triple D places. Otherwise I would skip it if I were you. 6.8/10

I did not want to agree with the other comments on here and really tried to have a good experience but it was a complete waste of time and money.  After a day of shopping and fun in the city, I took my 18yo daughter here on Friday night, 3/16/12.  I've tried plenty of restaurants that have mixed reviews and they worked out well so after looking at the reviews here I decided to give it a try anyway.  First we were carded as we approached the front door, that should have tipped me off to the type of environment I was entering.  I let him know that we were just coming for food, I had no idea that it was "Rockabilly" night which is a mood killer for me anyway.   I should have cut my losses right then but when we were immediately ushered glasses of water, I thought, hmmm maybe its ok.  WRONG!  I ordered a pulled pork sandwich, sides of greens, mac & cheese, and garlic mashed potatoes, my daughter had the dinky dunkers, and like a fool I immediately put in an order for the sampler platter and rib tips to take home to the rest of the family.  All of the meat was dry, another commenter said the bbq sauce was watery - CORRECT!  The greens had am odd tangy flavor, the mash tasted like it was old and out of a box, and the mac and cheese was lackluster and looked prettier than it tasted.  We nibbled and brought the rest home and no one else liked any of it either.  Chicago has many great places to eat, especially for BBQ.  I am not afraid of adventure, it's an hour drive for me to go into the city so when I do, I expect good food for my time and money.  I tend to stay away from places where its obvious that the bulk of their revenue is made from the bar - I shouldv'e paid better attention, they stop serving food at 11pm yet are open till 2am.  The food tasted old and reheated, this was proven when we unwrapped the foil packets that the sampler was wrapped in and the char marks inside let you know that it had been stored and heated in that foil.  There's nothing there to make me go back or to advise anyone else to even give it a try.  We also tried the peach cobbler, it had been nuked by Chef "Mic(rowave)", was unevely heated and a crust which might have been good otherwise was soggy and disgusting. As for the service, that cup of water we had when we first sat down was the only one we ever saw, no refills were ever given.  I saw the server randomly sit at people tables as she took their orders around us (I hate that.)  To top it off, my daughter said from what she saw going on, we got the best treatment.  DO NOT waste your time.  Money can be earned again when lost, time cannot.  There are chains with better ribs.  I'm not a dog, I like my meat to fall off the bone so I don't have to wrestle with it.  And this was no trip to FLAVORTOWN!

Don't waste your time.  Meat was very dry and the sides were cold.  Fried green tomoatoes were great but the rest no so much.

We went on a Sunday afternoon and the ribs tasted like they were in the smoker since Friday. I would not return. I wanted to go and see for myself after reading the mixed reviews. I can say that of the 5 DDD spots we have been to , this was the only bad one we have been to. We will not return and will tell others not waste there time.

Wait staff was un-attentive. The food portions were small.  The food, itself was pretty ordinary.  The BBQ sauce was watery and overly sweet.  We waited 20 minutes AFTER our plates were cleared to get our bill.  When it didn't come, we went to the hostess' desk to ask for the bill.  When the waitress finally brought the bill, we paid immediately so as to not have to wait again for her to come to our table.  She brought our change, we didn't leave a tip.  We were so annoyed.  Then, to add insult to injury, as we were pulling out of our parking spot near the corner of the restaurant, the owner comes running out of the restaurant yelling "Excuse me, Excuse me."  We stopped immediately.  She indicated that we hadn't paid our bill.  We were shocked and surprised.  We told her we had and described the process in detail.  She said that the waitress reported that we hadn't paid.  We went back in side and demanded to speak with the waitress.  When the waitress finally came, she contradicted the owner by saying that we had, in fact, paid our bill but hadn't left a tip.  The owner apologized saying SHE'D had a bad day and offered us dessert.  We declined.  We were absolutely insulted by the ENTIRE experience.  The restaurant was not so crowded that they couldn't keep track of who paid what.  Stay away from this place.  It is not worth the trouble and the calories.  

From: Bethany Subject: Off the hook BBQ Message Body: Honky Tonk BBQ's exterior is deceiving. It looks like a dive that I probably would not wonder into if it wasn't for DDD. Inside, it has subtle music, expressive artwork papering the walls and on yeah, BBQ! I recommend the pulled pork sandwich and the coleslaw! The bacon appetizer is delish as well.

Best BBQ we have had in a while. Wonderful smeel of BBQ the minute you walk in the door. My husband and I shared the sampler platter - definitely enough for both of us. Cornbread muffins were very savory, baked beans & coleslaw were ok, but meat was all very good (ribs, chicken, brisket, pork and smoked sausage). Special of the night was Baked Bacon in maple syrup - yummy. Service was good and friendly. They dont serve alcohol but there's a liquor store around the corner and you can bring your own in. 

Best BBQ we have had in a while. Shared the sampler platter - definitely enough for both of us. Cornbread muffins were very savory, baked beans & coleslaw were ok, but meat was all very good. Special of the night was Baked Bacon in maple syrup - yummy. Service was good and friendly. They dont serve alcohol but there's a liquor store around the corner and you can bring your own in.

i forgot to rate, 2 stars only

Well...I have heard a cpla good things about this place-good stuff. I was REALLY REALLY disappointed ! WOW it was completey mediocre!!!! Completely overpriced ! The people seem nice, our waitress was very cool and friendly-- but if you want  good ribs go to SMOQUE.

If you like Ribs this is the place to go... 3 of us stopped Sunday afternoon and tried the rib tips and half slabs. They were great!!! Follow that with mac & cheese, home made peach cobbler and live folk music and it made it worth the extra hunt for a parking space in the area. This place reminded me of Blues City Cafe on Beale Street..