Big Daddy's BBQ

07/02/2008 Posted by marilyndupont

I was expecting friendly, efficient service and large portions of tender juicy ribs. I received indifferent, incompetent service, and rather small portion of average ribs. My experience with the waitress/hostess did not inspire me to return anytime soon. Her inefficient, lackadaisical service was painful to watch. I was not offered water or my ordered beverage to drink while I was waiting, even though it was 85 degrees that afternoon. It took her three tries to get a cup, lid, and straw for my drink to go. And, despite the fact that I was the last person to order and there were only two other groups waiting for their orders, she couldn’t manage to remember that I had paid for my order when I placed it only 10 minutes earlier. The sauce was good, just enough spice to make it interesting, but not enough to overpower the palate. It was not overly fruity or spicy, but a very complementary blend of flavors, and there was not a huge pool of it in the bottom of the to go box. I have often speculated that some barbeque places use the sauce to cover up bad, dry, or old meat, but Big Daddy’s gives you enough to accent, but not drown the meat. The ribs were not as meaty or tender as I like, but they were not tough or dry. The meat was tender and moist, but not falling off the bone the way I like it. The ½ portion I ordered was much smaller that I have received elsewhere, so I was disappointed about the quantity. The French Fries were not greasy and had a great potato flavor, which is lacking in most fries. The small piece of cornbread was tasteless, dry, and really not worth eating. I took a bite, and wondered if it was always so bad. I wanted to give it the benefit of the doubt, so I tried it with butter, but even drowning it with butter could not make it more palatable. Pros: Good Sauce and fries. Cons: Bad customer service (wait staff) and tasteless, dry cornbread.

Pros: Good sauce and fries

Cons: Substandard customer service

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

05/06/2008 Posted by HowardTheRealtor

This is the first review I have ever posted, although I eat out constantly. I had heard Big Daddy's has great bbq, so I went down there to check it out. I try to support our local businesses, as opposed to chains, and also attempt to stay in the neighborhood (Hawthorne, Belmont, Sunnyside, Buckman, Ladd). Anyway, back to the review. The food was absolutely great, and I ordered way too much because I wanted to sample as much as I could, so of course I had leftovers. I was on my motorcycle and had no way to carry them. Linda, who is the grandma you always wanted, offerred to hold my leftovers there so I could eat them the next day. The biggest thing about this place is that they treat you like family and make you smile (with both their attitude and food). About the food....I think I tried almost everything. Normally I am a brisket fan, but the baby back ribs were soooooo great that it's my new combo. Baby backs, collard greens, corn bread. I have now been converted to a "rib man." The sauce brings it all together.

Pros: great food, great people, feels like home

Cons: wanting to try everything but getting full before I was even half way done with my meal

05/05/2008 Posted by lcmomtobe

The smell of Daddy's BBQ is absolutely wonderful. My mom, my infant son, and I went in to have a late lunch on a Saturday. The restaurant was almost full, a good sign. I ordered the pulled pork plate with collard greens and sweet potato fries, my mom ordered ribs with mac n cheese and collard greens. The greens were yummy, smoky and meaty. The pulled pork was sooo yummy and I had the smokey BBQ sauce with it which was very tasty. The sweet potato fries were pretty good. The ribs were yummy, a bit spicy but still good. The mac n cheese was made with processed cheese, I think and personally I prefer real cheddar. The corn bread was decent. Overall it was a good experience. I'd definitely order the greens and pulled pork again. The potato salad looked really yummy, I'll try that next time and my mom wants to try the fried okra. Big Mama was funny and warm, very nice to be served by her. This is like eating at someone's home, not being served by strangers but your best friend's mom or something.

Pros: Easy parking (especially for Hawthorne), good sauce

Cons: mac n cheese

05/04/2008 Posted by jmock

The food here has been excellent since they re-opened 6-8 months ago. For the 2nd to last reviewer: who reviews a restaurant they ate at "a few yrs ago"? What's the point? It'd be like me reviewing a restaurant that I ate at when I lived in San Francisco in 2002. It's completely irrelevant to _now_. To the last reviewer: if you haven't been in since they re-opened, you're missing out. Please people, if you're going to review a restaurant, at least make sure you've been there recently.

Pros: great food

Cons: kind of far away from home

05/01/2008 Posted by kestrel_42

Been there a few times in the last two years, and I can't recommend it. First time I went they were out of several things I wanted to try, so I got my second choice entree and third choice sides. The meat was stringy with no smoke flavor at all, and the BBQ sauces were bland and boring. Gave it a second shot a year later, not too bad that time, though I still find the BBQ sauces to be dull. The fried dill pickles with sauce were really good...unfortunately, this convinced me to bring a few friends there for dinner. That was the worst BBQ experience I've had in Portland. The two freaks who were working there were far to busy chatting about their personal lives to waste much time with customers. They were (again) out of almost everything I wanted. Even though we were the only customers in the place, it took over 40 minutes to get our food, and they still got one order totally wrong. Rather than send it back and wait, we tried to eat, but it was truly the worst BBQ I have ever had. Every one of us left at least 1/2 the food on our plates, and none of use bothered to take it home (we usually love leftovers). A week later, I saw the place had closed-no wonder. Maybe it has gotten better again since it reopened, but for what it's worth I'll spend my $$ on a place that has consistently good quality, menu options and better BBQ sauce. Still, those fried pickles were good the one time they had them-if you go there and can get 'em give them a try. But don't go out of your way.

Pros: Fried Dill Pickles are good

Cons: They run out of everything, mediocre Food/service, boring BBQ sauces

05/01/2008 Posted by cornucopia

Tempted many times as I drove by on Hawthorne, I finally stopped in for a sandwich. Ordered the Brisket w/onion rings. In the top 5 WORST takeouts, I've had. Dry, tough and miserable. This was a few years ago, BTW, but MEMORABLE.

Pros: Funky.

Cons: Just poor.

04/29/2008 Posted by pdx12

I don't know what these other comments are talking about. I've been there several times and loved it. Not every experience at every restaurant has been fantastic, but I've never had a bad meal at Big Daddy's! The women who run it are friendly and care about their food, more than I can say for other fine dining restaurants around town. It's fun, the food is great and the beer is reasonably priced. I'll be bringing my southern, BBQ-lovin' family there when they visit.

Pros: food, fun atmosphere

Cons: too far from my house

04/07/2008 Posted by Mohtu

Life is too short for dry brisket, bland pork, and dry cornbread. I admit, I did not try the ribs so maybe they're the specialty of the house, I don't know, but I won't be going back to find out. The service was friendly, but that does not overcome the bad bbq. And yes, I've had my share of BBQ in Portland and other city's so I'd like to think I know what I'm talking about.

Pros: none that I can think of

Cons: the food

02/06/2008 Posted by motherlove1

The only thing good about this place is that it smelled good. The food was disappointing! took forever, the flavor is about the same as a bottle of the generic Winco bbq sauce. My son had chicken which was RAW in the center! For the price, the portions are small, but with the crappy flavor maybe thats better! We have had BBQ from all over the country and this place is the worst!!! The staff was fairly useless so walk by and enjoy the smell but dont stop, eat somewhere else!

01/08/2008 Posted by rocksportland

I had Big Daddy's AWESOME ribs and must say it is some of the best barbeque in town (and I am a total bbq snob). The sides were fresh and generous and the place has a very down-home, friendly vibe to it - quite a contrast to some of the places on Hawthorne. Great food, great value, and great service - I'll definitely be back.

Pros: Staff, Parking, Full Bar