Fatboys Southern Smokehouse — Restaurant in Ottawa

Went to here last night at 9 PM. Received the friendly greeting when we walked in. I had the ribs and chicken and my wife had the tacos; Both were good. It’s the Covid protocols that tripped me; the waitress that greeted us was dealing with two sets of customers I think she knew but wasn’t sure. In both cases there was a lot of hugging going on. In the first instance with a group of men that had just left her table of which nobody was wearing masks and in the second instance with a female customer at a table Who grabbed the waitress by the waist and pulled her towards her. Under normal circumstances I would consider this waitress very friendly but under the present Covid circumstances I would say lacking foresight. My point here is that the general public is observing behavior all the time and getting a perception of how things are being run as businesses. The general public then go and talk about those experiences with their friends and it has an impact on the restaurant itself and trickles into the industry as a whole. The restaurant industry at present is suffering way too much for this kind of behavior to be going on. On another occasion with this restaurant I believe we were greeted by an owner or manager Who took the time to show us the Covid safety protocols that were being adhered to in detail and made us feel very comfortable. Whoever it was that time definitely showed us that they cared about this place. Owners have far too much invested and staff must realize that they are ambassadors in the absence of higher management or owners and must show good stewardship and professionalism in those instances, It can’t be “the cats away so the mice will play.” We then observed one of the cook come out of the back and come to the front of the bar near the patio we are a few people were congregating around the cash register not wearing a mask. I know it’s a drag guys but it’s attention to details around this Covid situation that will keep the public coming back. I don’t know if the staff here is aware that there’s a temporary mandatory mask by law that deals with common area enclosed spaces as well as unenclosed public spaces, minimize unnecessary contact between customers and staff, minimize the time staff spend within two metres. On a positive note my server was great by keeping his distance although I have to say I’ve been in other restaurants were servers are wearing face shields and even though this doesn’t necessarily have a full proof approach it helps a little but helps greater still in the area of public perception. Food-four stars Service –four...

So, my brother and I were hit with this intense BBQ craving after binge-watching a BBQ cook-off show on Netflix (anyone else feel me?). And off we went to find a place that could satisfy our hunger. Let me start by saying, the place had that authentic BBQ vibe. I mean, it practically screamed BBQ from every corner (definitely not a place for vegans, that's for sure).

Now, let's dive into the food. The starters were absolutely insane! We couldn't resist ordering the nachos with brisket and the wings, and let me tell you, they didn't disappoint. The nachos were loaded to the max, each piece oozing with cheesy, meaty goodness. And those wings? Oh, man, the flavors took us to another planet.

But now, let's talk about the brisket. Sadly, it was a letdown. I received three measly, thin slices of brisket. I kid you not, they were so thin that they ended up drying out. I had to drown them in sauce just to salvage some moisture. I can't help but imagine that the brisket used to be one thick, juicy slice, but people probably complained about portion sizes. And now, we're left with these three sad slices of brisket. It's a real downer. The sides didn't fare much better either. The mac and cheese tasted like the store-bought kind my mom used to get, and the potato salad reminded me of the one from Costco (maybe it was the same stuff). Again, it was quite disappointing.

However, the ribs managed to redeem the meal. They were cooked to perfection, bursting with flavor. But you know what stole the show, hands down? Their freaking cornbread. I'm telling you, I could devour trays of that stuff for days. The only downside was that it was on the smaller side, though it wasn't exactly tiny. I simply couldn't get enough of it.

As for the service, it was just okay. The server wasn't particularly engaging, and to be honest, there were only a few other tables occupied besides ours.

When it comes to Fatboys, I'd say go for the entrees and definitely indulge in their mouthwatering cornbread. It's some...

Wow! What can I say about Fatboys, it was absolutely fantastic from a second we entered the restaurant we had a wonderful experience with the host who seated us. I had called earlier and he even remembered who I was I wanted to reserve a spot since it was close to New Years and it wasn't sure how busy it was going to be, I called again to move our time up and he was completely cool with it. He was kind courteous and funny :-) let me set down our waitress came and got us drinks right away which was great service. The actual restaurant itself is very cozy and has a biker cottage like feel to it. They even suggested a sharing plate option for us which actually saved us money in the long run. We got to try a bunch of different types of meat brisket pulled pork fried Chicken & Ribs. As well as scalloped potatoes and macaroni and cheese. The mac and cheese was something to write home about it was absolutely amazing as well as all of the meat that was provided. I would say skip the scalloped potatoes it was okay but for our taste we preferred the macaroni and cheese next time we will get two side orders of thought instead. My hubby doesn't really like cornbread that much but I ate his. It was really moist and delicious.

The ribs are falling off the bone. The pulled pork was super moist and had a lot of flavor to it as well as the brisket. The beer was great cold and fresh right off the top. Their house brew was amazing. Overall we had a wonderful time and would love to go back soon :-) thank you again for the wonderful people who made our...