Maverick's Smokehouse & Taproom — Restaurant in Durham

Based on my experience today, I cannot recommend Mavericks Smokehouse & Taproom in Durham. My experience was deeply disappointing on multiple levels, culminating in the worst barbecue I've ever had. Here's why:

The Food - Chopped Brisket Disaster. Texture & Presentation: I ordered the chopped brisket. What arrived wasn't "chopped" – it was essentially minced. It lacked any semblance of texture or identifiable meat pieces, resembling shreds more than proper barbecue brisket. Flavor (Lack Thereof): The most shocking aspect was the complete absence of flavor. There was no discernible smoke ring, no rich beefiness, no seasoning profile – just plain bland pile of meat. It tasted like absolutely nothing, which is frankly astonishing for a smokehouse.

Basic Order Fulfillment Failure: A simple request for barbecue sauce (essential for salvaging such flavorless meat) was completely ignored. It wasn't just forgotten; it wasn't included at all.

Management - The Final Insult: When I talk to the manager to address the missing sauce and the concerning quality of the brisket, the interaction was appalling. Instead of apologizing for the missing sauce or acknowledging the clearly subpar food, the manager chose to argue with me. He defensively debated the preparation of the chopped brisket, dismissing my valid concerns about its mince-like texture and utter lack of flavor. He showed zero interest in resolving the immediate issue (the missing sauce) or the core problem (inedible food). This was entirely inconsiderate and unprofessional.

Overall Impression: The food quality was horrible. The chopped brisket was textureless, and completely flavorless – an embarrassment for an establishment claiming to specialize in barbecue. The failure to include requested sauce is a basic operational error. However, the manager's dismissive and argumentative attitude transformed a bad meal into an infuriating experience. It demonstrated a complete disregard for customer satisfaction and feedback.

Conclusion: Mavericks Smokehouse & Taproom failed on every front: quality of food, accuracy of order, and basic customer service. Based on this terrible experience, I will never support this restaurant again, nor will I recommend it to anyone. Save your money and your appetite – there are far better barbecue options in Durham where quality and customer respect aren't...

TLDR: The food was so bad that we had to get a refund.

I will start by saying Jonbonet, who was working front of house, was very sweet and accommodating.

-No meats are gluten free if that matters to you -Items on the menu are marked gluten free but contain meat (thus containing gluten). This was learned from experience when I noticed my collards contained brisket -A two meat combo will run you $20 for 2.5 slices of inedibly dry brisket and 2 ribs (one containing ligaments) along with 2 sides -Food was received lukewarm -The sliced brisket could not be pulled apart with great force and was “devoid of any moisture whatsoever” (direct quote from the receiver of the plate) -The ribs were tough and greasy. One had sideways cartilage or ligaments in place of a central bone? -The Mac and cheese required salt and pepper in order to not taste like wet slimy milk noodles -The baked beans were better than the Mac and cheese, tasting like “bourbon and dirt” -The hush puppies were hard but okay when dipped in bbq sauce -Sweet potato fries were greasy and salty but overall alright and came as a big portion -The collard greens were marked gluten free on the menu. It was found out that they are not after confirming with the waitress (they contain meat which contains gluten). However the first blissfully ignorant bite was good. They tasted like chili because they contain tomatoes and the spices they use. -I found specs of debris in the bottom of my water cup

Overall: Don’t eat here y’all. My fiancé and I love bbq so much that we will enjoy just about anything that passes for it. He could not finish his plate. I couldn’t even try it.

Tips for the business: please correctly label what foods adhere to dietary restrictions. Also- please include these labels on the website so that customers can make an informed decision before patronizing...

Walked in when they only had two customers sitting out front… and it was as if I was about to rob the place or something… they seemed scared to speak to me. Stood there about 5mins before the two guy at the bar decided to acknowledged me…. When customer walks into a place of business the standard protocol is to greet them right?? Even if you’re busy doesn’t take much effort to open your mouth and speak… I’m not sure why they were being so weird… I couldn’t even tell if they actually worked for the restaurant by their attire. The people in the back making the orders just starting at me as well but nobody seemed to be properly concerned or communicating with each other about the money that was waiting to be spent that just walked in… you lost a potential customer with this poor service… maybe they didn’t want my money or like my kind? Not sure but to act as if you’re so busy when there’s literally only two customers in your restaurant is crazy work! lol only good thing was the pulled pork sandwich, the hush puppies were room temp like they been sitting out and I asked the guy for Bbq sauce and seemed as if he was struggling to manage attending to the other two customers and myself… The other taller younger guy never even spoke to me and walked right past me a couple of times lol. Great job! Because if he’s a manager that attitude says a lot about this place of business… not going back, just wanted to let ownership know this type of stuff will kill your business, might want to address it and maybe that’s why on a Friday at 1:30 you only have two customers in your...