Walking into a new barbecue joint can be exciting, but ordering the wrong items might leave you disappointed and overpaying for mediocre food. Some menu choices seem like safe bets but actually reveal whether you know what you’re doing or if you’re about to waste your money. Smart diners avoid certain dishes that either taste terrible at most places or fill you up before you get to the good stuff that makes barbecue restaurants worth visiting.
Baked beans are usually disappointing outside Texas
Most barbecue restaurants completely mess up their baked beans, turning what should be a sweet and smoky side dish into a bland, watery disappointment. Outside of Texas, many places don’t cook their beans long enough to develop that deep, caramelized taste that makes them worth eating. They also don’t understand how to properly prepare pinto beans, which require specific techniques to achieve the right texture and depth. The result is often mushy, flavorless beans that taste like they came straight from a can with minimal effort put into seasoning or preparation.
Even worse, beans are incredibly filling due to their high fiber content, which means they’ll take up valuable stomach space that could be used for the restaurant’s specialty meats. Studies show that people feel 31% fuller after eating meals with beans compared to meals without them. When you’re paying good money for expertly smoked brisket or ribs, the last thing you want is to fill up on mediocre beans that prevent you from enjoying what the restaurant actually does well.
Mall food court barbecue is almost always terrible
Real barbecue requires fire, smoke, and wood – none of which work well in shopping mall food courts due to safety regulations and ventilation issues. Most mall barbecue joints are satellite locations that receive pre-cooked meat from elsewhere, raising serious questions about freshness and proper handling. The meat was likely smoked hours or even days earlier, then reheated in ways that dry it out and destroy the texture that makes good barbecue special. This is completely different from ordering takeout from a standalone restaurant where the meat was just pulled from the smoker.
The timing issue makes mall barbecue even worse because proper barbecue has a limited shelf life once it’s sliced or shredded. Unlike pizza that tastes decent cold, barbecue becomes dry and tough when reheated, requiring heavy sauces to mask the poor quality. Mall locations might not get daily deliveries, meaning you could be eating leftover meat that’s been sitting in a warming tray for way too long. That’s why places like Franklin’s Barbecue in Austin only serve until they sell out each day – freshness matters tremendously.
French fries waste space for better sides
Ordering french fries at a barbecue restaurant is like going to a steakhouse and getting chicken nuggets – you’re missing the point entirely. Fries are available everywhere and rarely offer anything special at barbecue joints, where the kitchen focuses on smoking meats rather than perfecting fried potatoes. Most barbecue places use frozen fries that taste exactly like what you’d get at any fast food restaurant, except you’re paying premium prices for them. The oil used for frying often isn’t changed frequently enough, leading to fries that taste stale or overly greasy.
More importantly, fries fill you up with empty calories when you could be trying sides that actually complement barbecue, like coleslaw that cuts through rich meat or cornbread that soaks up sauce. Barbecue restaurants usually excel at traditional Southern sides that have been perfected over generations, making fries a wasted opportunity to experience authentic regional cooking. Smart diners skip the fries and focus on sides that enhance their barbecue experience rather than distracting from it.
Chicken and turkey often taste dry and bland
Poultry at barbecue restaurants frequently disappoints because these lean meats are much harder to smoke properly than fatty cuts like brisket or pork shoulder. Chicken and turkey dry out quickly in smokers, especially when restaurants try to hold them warm for extended periods throughout the day. Many places overcook their poultry to ensure food safety, resulting in meat that’s tough, stringy, and requires heavy sauce just to be edible. The delicate nature of poultry also means it doesn’t absorb smoke as well as beef or pork, leading to bland results that don’t justify the price.
Additionally, most barbecue joints focus their expertise on beef and pork, treating chicken and turkey as afterthoughts rather than specialties. The timing required to properly smoke different meats simultaneously is challenging, and poultry often suffers when restaurants prioritize their signature brisket or ribs. Unless a restaurant specifically advertises their smoked chicken as a specialty, you’re better off sticking with the meats they’ve built their reputation on rather than gambling on potentially disappointing poultry.
Generic coleslaw rarely adds anything special
Most barbecue restaurants serve the same basic coleslaw that comes from large food service containers, with little effort put into making it distinctive or complementary to their smoked meats. This generic slaw typically consists of shredded cabbage drowning in overly sweet mayonnaise-based dressing that masks any fresh vegetable taste. The texture is often mushy from sitting too long, and the overwhelming sweetness competes with barbecue sauce rather than providing the crisp, acidic contrast that good slaw should offer. Many places clearly buy pre-made slaw mix and add minimal seasoning, resulting in a forgettable side dish.
However, some regions do coleslaw exceptionally well – particularly the Carolinas with their vinegar-based versions that perfectly complement pulled pork. The problem is identifying which restaurants make their slaw fresh versus those that rely on mass-produced versions. Unless you’re in an area known for distinctive slaw styles, or the restaurant specifically advertises house-made coleslaw, you’re likely getting a generic product that adds nothing to your meal except unnecessary calories and disappointment.
Combo platters often include lower quality cuts
Restaurants use combo platters to move their less desirable meat cuts while making customers feel like they’re getting a deal. These mixed plates often include the tougher ends of brisket, smaller rib sections, or pulled pork that’s been sitting longer than their premium individual orders. The variety might seem appealing, but you’re essentially getting multiple mediocre portions instead of one excellent serving of the restaurant’s best work. Combo platters also make it harder to identify which specific meats the restaurant excels at, since everything gets mixed together with heavy sauce.
Smart diners focus on ordering the restaurant’s signature item individually rather than getting distracted by combo deals that seem economical but deliver inferior quality. Barbecue experts recommend trying a restaurant’s specialty first – whether that’s brisket, ribs, or pulled pork – to judge their true capabilities. Once you know what they do well, you can return for combo platters, but your first visit should focus on experiencing their best work rather than settling for a sampler that might include their worst cuts mixed with their best.
Vegetarian options are usually afterthoughts
Barbecue restaurants typically treat vegetarian dishes as obligatory menu additions rather than carefully crafted options, resulting in bland, uninspired food that wastes your money. Most places offer generic items like plain baked potatoes, basic salads, or grilled vegetables that have no connection to their smoking expertise or regional barbecue traditions. These dishes often cost nearly as much as meat entries while providing significantly less value, both in terms of portion size and cooking skill involved. The kitchen staff usually has little experience or interest in preparing vegetarian food well, since it’s not their focus.
Even supposedly smoked vegetarian options like portobello mushrooms or veggie burgers rarely benefit from the restaurant’s smoking expertise, since most places don’t want to dedicate smoker space to low-margin vegetarian items. The seasonings and techniques that make their meat exceptional typically aren’t applied to vegetarian dishes, leaving plant-based diners with expensive, underwhelming meals. Vegetarians are better served at restaurants that specialize in plant-based cuisine rather than trying to find satisfaction at establishments built around meat preparation.
Sandwiches hide poor quality meat
Barbecue sandwiches often serve as dumping grounds for lower-quality meat that restaurants don’t want to serve as individual plates. The bread, pickles, and extra sauce help mask meat that might be too dry, too fatty, or simply not up to the restaurant’s standards for their premium plates. Pulled pork or chopped beef sandwiches frequently contain the scraps and less desirable portions mixed with heavy sauce to hide textural problems or off-tastes. The additional ingredients make it impossible to judge the actual quality of the meat, which defeats the purpose of visiting a barbecue restaurant.
Furthermore, sandwiches typically cost only slightly less than full plates while providing significantly smaller portions of actual meat. The bread fills you up without delivering the protein and smoke that you’re paying premium prices to experience. When you’re evaluating a new barbecue restaurant, ordering sandwiches prevents you from accurately assessing their smoking skills since everything gets hidden under bread and condiments. Save sandwiches for places where you already know the meat quality is excellent, not for your first visit to a new joint.
Desserts rarely justify their high prices
Most barbecue restaurants charge premium prices for desserts that come from commercial suppliers rather than being made in-house, making them poor value compared to what you’d pay elsewhere. Items like cheesecake, brownies, or pie typically cost $6-8 per slice but taste identical to frozen desserts from restaurant supply companies. The kitchen staff focuses their energy and expertise on smoking meats, not baking pastries, so dessert quality suffers while prices remain high. After spending money on quality barbecue, paying restaurant markup for generic desserts feels like getting ripped off.
Additionally, most people feel quite full after a proper barbecue meal, making expensive desserts an unnecessary expense that often goes unfinished. The rich, heavy nature of smoked meats and traditional sides like mac and cheese or cornbread leaves little room for additional food, especially overpriced sweets. Your money is better spent on extra meat or higher-quality sides that complement the barbecue experience rather than generic desserts that add nothing special to your meal and might end up wasted due to lack of appetite.
Next time you visit a barbecue restaurant, focus your order and budget on what they actually do well – expertly smoked meats and traditional sides that complement the regional style. Skip the items that restaurants use to pad their profit margins or hide inferior ingredients, and you’ll have a much better dining experience that actually showcases why good barbecue is worth seeking out and paying for.
