Lane's OAK'D BBQ — Restaurant in Addison

This was probably the worst BBQ I’ve had. My expectations for BBQ joints is tempered because I do so much meat smoking at home - so most place miss the mark. This place, however was not even in the ballpark of being good.

I understand Texas prides themselves on oak wood and only salt, pepper and garlic for meat seasoning. So naturally I expected the food to lack flavor. But this place literally forgets what the “S” in SPG stands for. The food has ZERO flavor or seasoning. I trusted the food server with a 4 meat plate to give me their best meats. He provided a prime brisket, burnt ends, a smoked sausage and what I THINK was pulled pork. More on that below.

Brisket - so dry that I literally had to cut it with a steak knife. It tasted like a dried out, over cooked, non seasoned, piece of chuck roast.

Sausage - probably the best executed meat but the stuffing of the sausage had so much cheese that it literally tasted like one of those Oscar Meyer cheese stuff hot dogs you get at the super market.

Burnt ends - they have several types . I honestly couldn’t tell what he gave me because the pieces looked and tasted like pieces of saw dust that were cooked as chunks. No seasoning, terrible texture and a bark that was lack luster for burnt ends.

“Mystery meat”. - I’m assuming it was pulled pork although I couldn’t tell if it was pork, chicken or turkey. It had ZERO flavor and absolutely no bark or smoke taste at all.

In Texas they feel they SPG and Oak smoke stand up to the additions sauce often provides. This place has 3 sauces and they were all terrible. In addition, you can only choose one and they give you a small side with your food. The tables only had ketchup and mustard. What kind of BBQ does that?

I was especially let down with the sides. If you can’t execute smoked meats, that’s one thing. But to have zero seasoning in your sides? Unacceptable. I had the beans and collard greens. The beans had a number of ingredients in it. But it still tasted like a can of Bushes with some extra ketchup.

The collard greens were probably the biggest let down of my trip. The fat they use to season the collard greens had zero flavor. While not sure, I’m suspecting it was the fat trimmings from brisket. While this makes beautiful tallow, it did absolutely nothing for the greens. I honestly felt like I was eating lettuce that had been in a water bath…not even a butter bath.

This plate cost me $40. Which is crazy expensive for a plate of food that was almost inedible.

If you are a foodie, and especially if you are a BBQ person, I highly caution to stay away. I’m blown away at the number of positive reviews for this place because the food just seems to be how they do things, not simply a one time bad experience. I went around 1 PM - which is hardly close to the time that most BBQ joints start to suffer food quality in...

So, I'm obsessed with smoked wings so when I see a place that offers smoked wings - Count. Me. In.

I came in on an early Sunday afternoon and it was pretty quiet. I decided to dine in and catch the end of a couple of the football games on. They have a pretty large eating area, including a bar and game area as well. The bar is not full service, meaning if you decide to sit in the bar area, away from the actual bar, you will have to go up to the bar and order your drink. More on the bartender later.

There are menus on the wall and also on the inside area where you actually place your order. It's cafeteria style, like old school Luby's lol I knew I wanted the wings but I didn't know which sides I wanted. I asked the gentleman that was working the line what he liked and he gave me this long convoluted response about what he's responsible for (the meats) and what he doesn't do (cook sides) and pretty much make my own decision because he doesn't eat nothing he doesn't cook and he didn't cook nunna that. Okay buddy. I ordered the Mac and cheese and greens (because my friend that told he me the wings were good said the greens were good too).

I ended up getting my wings before I even finished through the line and paid for my lunch - partially because I forgot to tell them to add extra time to make them crispy.

I grabbed my tray of food and headed to the bar to sit down and dig in. There were four people sitting at the bar (a parties of two) and then I sat in the area. I waited a while to see if I would be acknowledged by the bartender. I wasn't. She wanted no parts in serving anyone not directly at the bar. Okay no problem. I walk up to the bar and she's too busy eating her lunch to notice me. I finally get her attention and was able to order my drink. I ordered the pineapple martini. It was good, but I probably wouldn't order it again. It wasn't as refreshing as I thought the pineapple would be. I thought since I ordered one drink maybe she'd pay more attention to me just in case I wanted to order another drink. Later on I did but she was too busy eating and talking to even notice me again. When I got up the second time, the couple at the bar that she solely focused on even waved at me to come to where they were so she could help me. No. I'm not.

Anywho, the food. Meh!!!! I'm disappointed in everything. I think the wings have the best potential only if I remember to tell them to fry them hard. Because no one likes chewy wings. The Mac and cheese was bland and the greens weren't cooked long n enough and didn't have a sprinkle of flavor in them. I should've gotten French fries and a side salad like I originally thought...but I didn't.

Will I be back? I'm not sure because barrel & bones is closer to my condo with amazing smoked wings and service. The...

Awful. $150+ down the drain. Husband made the comment this morning that he wanted some good barbecue, and unfortunately we were bamboozled by the 4.8 review rating and ended up here since we were in the area for a birthday party. When we pulled in the parking lot my husband made the comment that he didn't smell any barbecue cooking & once we walked my 8 year old daughter said she couldn't smell any inside either... that should have been our cue to leave, but we knew the kids were hungry.

I don't even know where to start, but...

Customer service is basically nonexistent... butcher was the only one who put forth any effort. Food is bland & dry. Brussel sprouts were the only decent thing I had. My kids love ribs... but they refused to eat the ribs we were served here after the first bite. That says A LOT! They left still hungry. The brisket tasted like lighter fluid ...it's been 30+ years since I've had "BBQ" that tasted of lighter fluid. I asked how the lemonade was made & was told it tasted like Chick-fil-a ...........that was a lie. There were ANTS ON THE TABLE and all over the floor. Enough to make me uncomfortable & ready to go.

I will say the esthetic of the restaurant itself has potential... it's unfortunate that the food is subpar & customer service is lacking.

I'm pretty convinced at this point that the "Good" reviews are people who just wanted free cookies.

Pictures are what we left with with intentions of giving to someone in need, but my husband decided that was a bad idea & so I stored it in the fridge for the dogs, but will honestly probably just throw it away in Wednesday's trash pickup.

*After reading through other reviews (which I wish we would have done beforehand) I see that the owner has a knick for insulting those who have left honest reviews & suggests in many instances that they would have made it right.... there isn't enough time in the world, the kids were hungry, so we ultimately chucked it up as a loss, politely followedthe directions left for us to clear our table & left to get something else. If he so chooses to reply to my review, we have already made up our minds that we will not be returning, so no need in bothering to...