Dreamland BBQ — Restaurant in Tuscaloosa

I thought it would be such an honor to eat at the original Dreamland. However, I was disappointed from the very beginning. The rude encounter I had from walking in the door should have been an omen for the rest of my experience. My party and I walked in the restaurant and were greeted what looked to be a "security officer by day, host by night." He didn't ask for our name, only how many people we had in our party. I was curious as to how he was going to keep track of every party they had on wait when he didn't take the two seconds to get our name. We had a party of seven this night. Once he wrote down seven, he shoved us outside in the cold. I understand he didn't want us to crowd the restaurant, but he could have been a little nicer. We sat within earshot of the door, however we still couldn't hear him when we called a party of seven. It wasn't until he rudely stated, "Well I guess that party of seven just left," when we finally heard him. He instructed us to head towards a tent and pointed us in a general direction. After walking through mud, we found ourselves at a tent you would see at an outdoor wedding--not at a well-known barbecue restaurant. I was shocked that a restaurant of such honor had plastic tables lined with a cheap, ripped red table cloth held down by paper towel holders. But since I have been to other Dreamland locations and loved their food, I thought it would be a great experience, regardless. We sat down and a lovely waitress came to take our drink order. We discovered that not all drink options are available outside. I would have walked out if they didn't have sweet tea, but thankfully they did. There's your two stars. When she returned she asked if we were ready to order. I was familiar with the menu, however, I still requested one. This is when she told us that they only serve ribs and sausage here, along with three sides. How can a restaurant support itself while only serving two options? why were we not told this when we first arrived at the restaurant? Why was the fill menu listed on the website under this location? (Upon further investigation, I found that Google menus knows this restaurant better than whoever designed the website.) Maybe some people like not having options, but I wasn't a fan. If a restaurant does decide to only sell two items, I would expect for them to be meaty and not full of fat like the ribs served here. Major maintenance is required to this building. On the night of my visit, the boys bathroom was not working and the girls bathroom was trashed with half a door missing. The I think the most disappointing part of my trip was that I lost my love for Dreamland Barbecue. Ain't nothing like it? After this experience, I sure hope not. **Also, don't advertise a false menu on your website and respond to a review saying you will fix it and then don't--that's poor management of your...

Traveling through the area and decided to try this establishment (first time). Maybe it was the wrong day to try it, but it was only a "we tried it" (meaning that we do not plan to return).

Walked into the place at 10:46 am to dine-in. We saw people sitting at tables waiting for orders, but no one dining in; and everyone else were in line to place their orders. So we got in line to do the same. One man (with a white shirt & blue hat) said that he came and got in line after he initially sat at a table to place his order, but no one came to take his order.

Our order was placed & paid at 10:52 am; I went and got our water out of our camper while my husband found a table to wait for our food so that we could dine in. Then 5 & 10 minutes later, people came in and sat at the tables on each side of us; both received their food very quickly (about 10 minutes after ordering). I asked about our food after 40 minutes of waiting and was told that it was about 5 pages of to-go orders and that our order was considered as a to-go order.

One couple who were dining next to us finished their food and left.

After about 50 minutes of waiting, we still did not have our order. Therefore, I asked the waitress who was serving the other tables if we could place a dine-in order and that I would just cancel the order we previously paid for. Thankfully, she was kind and considerate and she fulfilled our order as a dine-in order (with less than a 10 minutes wait).

...meanwhile, the name for our order was called at 11:54 am (thankfully by then, we were already eating).

We ordered a slab of rib (with sauce on the side), 2 sides of baked beans, 1 side of banana pudding, & 1 side of chocolate dream. The food was most definitely not worth the wait; our slab of rib was short a bone. We left wishing that we would have considered...

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ An Old-School BBQ Pilgrimage Worth Every Bite

Nestled in a sleepy hollow outside Tuscaloosa, Alabama, the Original Dreamland Bar-B-Que is the kind of place that turns a road trip into a rite of passage. A friend messaged me when he saw I was headed toward Louisiana: "If you're going through Tuscaloosa Ala-bam, you HAVE to stop at Dreamland BBQ. Until a few years ago, the only thing on the menu was ribs."

From the outside, it looks like your classic hole-in-the-wall joint—but the second you walk through the door, you're transported to another era. The smell of hickory wood smoke greets you like an old friend. This place isn’t just BBQ—it’s history, tradition, and soul, all wrapped up in one unforgettable bite.

I always trust the staff’s recommendation, so I went with the half chicken. Let me tell you—it was a religious culinary experience. Smoky, flavorful, and perfectly moist. I’ve eaten a lot of BBQ in my time, but this was next-level.

Of course, I couldn’t just stop there. I left with a cooler full of goodies: •A full slab of ribs (because it’s Dreamland—you have to) •Another half chicken •Their Legendary BBQ sandwich •And both kinds of dessert: the banana pudding and the chocolate dream

The sweet tea—Big Daddy’s Iced Tea—was the perfect Southern pairing. Everything was authentic, soulful, and utterly delicious.

The vibe? Pure Americana. The kind of place where the story is as rich as the sauce. And that sauce? A vinegar-based masterpiece with just the right kick. Don’t leave without buying a jar to take home.

Dreamland says it best: “Ain’t nothing like ’em nowhere.” I...