BIG ZUES Barbecue — Restaurant in City of Binghamton

I'm not a big BBQ fan. I find it messy and usually very tangy. But Big Zues had a gift card special where you get a $25.00 gift card for $12.50. So my husband and I figured we would give it a try.

My husband loves BBQ so I figured this would be a good Friday night dinner spot. When we walked into the restaurant, we were greeted immediately with a smiling face. The young girl brought us over to the register where we could place our order. We ordered the 3 meat meal. We got Turkey, Pulled Pork and Brisket. It also came with 3 sides- So we got 2 mac and cheeses with salt potatoes. Corn bread and coleslaw also came with it. She gave us a buzzer and told us our food would be out shortly. Total bill was $14 something after the $25.00 gift card was used.

We sat in a booth and laughed at all the funny signs they have hanging on their walls. Music was playing, but not overly loud. The place was CLEAN! It didn't even take 5 mins before someone brought out our food.

The food came out hot and fresh! The order was correct. We got the turkey for me, since I'm not a huge BBQ person. It was amazing. It wasn't dry.... it was juicy and easily fell apart when you cut into it. I didn't put any sauces on it, I just ate it plain. We decided to split the pulled pork. It was also very juicy and tasted wonderful. The brisket was 3 slices. About half way through eating the Turkey, I knew I wouldn't be able to finish it all, so I asked the husband to eat the remainder and I'd like to have one of the slices of Brisket. OMG!!!! The BRISKET!!!!!!! Again, I'm not a BBQ person but this changed my mind! I have never had anything this good before. We used the house BBQ sauce on it and I'm not lying when I say I could have ate a plate with 10 slices of brisket on it. I'm already wanting to go back for more!

Things I think that are important to note: The staff is very professional. We sat right outside the kitchen area and you never heard the staff yelling or saying inappropriate things. Everyone was always busy working. No one was standing around, on their cell phones. It was a just so nice to see. Also- the drink situation... Everything is sold in a can or bottle. I reached out, via FB, before arriving to ask if we were able to bring in our own bottles of water. Someone had responded within 10 mins saying it was NO PROBLEM to bring our own bottled water.

Big Zues gets a 10/10...I'm not sure I would change a thing! (other than moving their location closer to where I live, Ha...

So glad I finally got to try here. Originally spotted it while taking a bus between Rochester and the Big Apple. Was road tripping and had left Rochester around 9 so we hit Binghamton & Big Zues at noon. As we walked in no customers were there so I wondered if they even had food yet prepared. Then just as we sat to start looking at the menu a whole crowd of people came in and before we knew it every booth was taken and people were chatting about BBQ and other good things.

I got the spare ribs plate. Probably the Best BBQ deal I have ever gotten and it totally hit the spot and the BBQ craving I’ve been having for a couple of months. It was hard to decide what sides to get but I settled on the onion rings and fried okra. Both were very good and along with the cornbread all three were tasty as leftovers. Which is credit to how well they were made because such things are often not good as left overs or after being in a fridge. (Of course the ribs were good as left overs). And the okra came with what I describe as some kind of sour cream & Dorito ranch like dip that was quite good)

My friend who doesn’t eat meat got the Mac and cheese and vegetarian baked beans and shared my side. And he enjoyed the food and experience as well. …I tasted his Mac and cheese and it was very homemade yummy tasting to me.

We sadly were too full for the banana pudding and didn’t want to get food coma while driving. But I hope to come back again soon to try it and more of the menu.

Great menu. Plenty to choose from but not be overwhelmed. Just wished they had mashed potatoes :).

And I love the motto that bbq might not end world hate but it can at least bring people to the table :)

Also really love the paper towel set up at each table (so smart & charmingly done) and nice how there’s three big sauce bottles at each table.

Great customer service too. Very friendly, cheerful and helpful. And super clean establishment. .A place you can take your mom, grandma...

I’ve been in Binghamton working for a couple weeks and happened to meet Big Zues and we started talking BBQ. Well I’m from Austin and Houston TX and I know good BBQ. I frequent establishments like Fredricks in Austin, Killens in Pearland and Salt Lick near Buda just to name a few. I never would have bothered trying a BBQ joint in NY state, but after talking to Zues, I could tell he knew what he was doing. I got a sampling of EVERYTHING and he had it delivered to my hotel room. I can honestly say that I was excited but skeptical. Well, let me tell y’all, Big Zues BBQ is the REAL DEAL! I went straight for the sliced brisket first, no BBQ sauce, and you could taste that slow smoked oak and cherry wood goodness, just the right amount of marbling for the perfect moistness. I give it a solid 9! Then I sampled the burnt ends. Just right on the cooking time, and the sauce was not overpowering (easy to get wrong) I give them an 8.5 only because I like a little bit bigger piece size, but now I’m just being nit picky. Moving on to the pulled pork. There was a touch of citric flavor I think I detected in the seasoning, whatever it was, it was amazing. Just like the sliced brisket, adding BBQ sauce would only take away from the delicious smoked goodness, so I ate it dry, and loved every bite. Easy 10 Now for the sides, potato salad has several directions you can go, and his didn’t disappoint. Solid recipe and I really enjoyed it. The Mac and Cheese was AMAZING. Love the white cheddar! I’m a big fan! The collard greens had a little kick to them. A little spice, it was unique and it was perfect. Lastly, the cornbread was heavenly. So moist and just the right amount of sweetness.

Thank you Big Zues for making this southern boy feel right at home in NY!!! Y’all have you a BBQ king right here in Binghamton that could easily make a name for himself anywhere in Texas, and the competition down...