Real Smoq'ed BBQ, Inc. — Restaurant in Cleveland

Overall, I give Real Smoq'd BBQ three stars (only because I couldn't give it 3 1/2 stars).

I'll start out with the facility itself. This is exactly how a BBQ joint should look and smell.

The interior is small, but has about six or seven tables of four seats. As we sat and enjoyed our meal, many people came in for pickup orders, but I could imagine it gets difficult to find a seat at busy times.

The ambiance is what you'd expect out of a BBQ joint...plenty of photos and memorabilia everywhere.

Five stars for the location!

Now on to the service.

We were greeted immediately and the servers brought our food to our table promptly.

Five stars for the service!

The food only gets three stars.

I've traveled to many states and have tried BBQ from all over. Lately, I've been trying to find the best BBQ in Cleveland.

I read a lot about Real Smoq'd BBQ, so I was expecting five-star food.

Whenever I eat BBQ, I start out with the sides. Usually, if a BBQ joint has great sides, the meat is going to be excellent.

I had collard greens that were very bland. There wasn't much if any seasoning/pepper on the greens. This is the first time I didn't finish a side of collard greens.

Onto the meats:

I ordered the Ultimate Platter with three meats: Ribs, Brisket, Sausage. Somehow, I ended up with pulled pork as well...so bonus!

I started with the sausage because it looked amazing, and it was. This was the best meat on the platter. The exterior was almost crunchy and the interior was as tender as ever with great flavor.

After that, I went for the brisket and that's when things really took a turn for the worst.

The brisket was slathered in a tasty BBQ sauce, which helped to mask the overdone brisket I was served.

I was worried I was going to break a tooth on the hard edges of the brisket, that's how crusty the meat was. Much of the meat I received was inedible, and I didn't finish it.

The pulled pork was tender and matched well with the BBQ sauce.

Finally, I dug into the ribs.

With Real Smoq'd BBQ winning best ribs in Cleveland in the past, my expectations were sky high.

I was a bit disappointed.

The ribs were fattier than what you'd expect and were a little mushy.

Overall, I'd go back to Real Smoq'd BBQ because the flavor is there, they just missed a bit on the meat they served me. That could be completely different on a...

This is the best smoked BBQ spot in the city. I met the owner Nav who is a native of Canada. He is a very nice business man and he has a very soft spot for community servants like myself. He gave me and one of my friends free dinners and desert and something to drink. I couldn't believe how big his heart is. Wow this man didn't know me from a can of paint to a hole in the ground and gave me a free meal and my guest. I was about to leave the store because I didn't have enough money and he said no sit down I'm going to give you something to eat. My heart was full of joy because I'm a restaurant owner and I do the same thing for people and for the first time in my life someone did something for me. Nav you have all of my support definitely I would definitely tell people to go there because the food was delicious the peach cobbler was so delicious and homemade the cornbread oh my God was so delicious it melts in your mouth the baked beans had pulled pork in there which was so delicious I never had baked beans with pulled pork but it was so so delicious the ribs were smoked to perfection tender oh man they were tender and delicious I'm not just saying this because he gave me free food let me tell you I speak the truth when I speak the truth about people's food being nasty or being good and this man has the best smoked ribs I tasted anywhere and I've been to a lot of places please don't forget that I'm a big eater I love to eat but I also love people and people persons and people who love people and like I said earlier this man has a big heart for first responders so if you are a law enforcement officer an EMS worker a fireman there's a 20% discount there for you he appreciates us and he takes care of us I love you Nav. And yes I'm definitely bringing my mother there yes I'm a momma's boy if y'all didn't know and what I eat she eat because she know I'm very picky see you...

Ok sooo let’s talk about the bbq ribs!!, Oohhh my goodness, some of the best ribs I’ve had in a very long time.! They’re sooo delicious!! They have just the right amount of flavor, sauce, & tenderness!! They’re very meaty & I especially love the fact that the sauce isn’t too spicy!! Yesss,! they’re some scrumptious ribs!! The fries with bbq sauce were delectable as well. Not undercooked, not overcooked, not salty, nice portion of fries, enough for 2-3, & they’re not stingy with the sauce which is a very pleasing fact because usually a lot of other restaurants only put sauce on the top so you’d ask for extra & be charged for more. Sooo yeah, the fries are on point. The polish boy was delicious as well. Very juicy, great amount of fries, coleslaw, sauce, & the bread didn’t fall apart or get mushy after a few minutes. Great combination. Now the Mac mama,, I honestly enjoyed the pulled pork, onion straws, & sauce together but the homemade Mac & cheese wasn’t as homemade as I expected it to be. I’m talking about the flavor, the texture, & the flavor. I said flavor twice because when it’s comes to homemade Mac & cheese, it’s a must that you get it right because it’s a favorite & top side for soooo many people & if the flavor isn’t there than what do you have?, just some noodles. I mean together with the sauce, pulled pork,& onion straws it was pretty good but I think the “homemade Mac & cheese “ could use some work. Overall I have to say that pretty much everything I’ve tried at Ohio City BBQ was delicious & I’ll most definitely come back for...