Up in Smoke BBQ — Restaurant in Escondido

We came here for dinner last night and, unfortunately, had a less than desirable experience. Parking is very limited and tight behind the restaurant itself (there is parking around the other establishments that I’m assuming will allow you to park there). It was “seat yourself “, and since we had a group, we waited for one of the larger tables. When the tables didn’t open up, the waitress allowed for 2 smaller tables to be put together. The drink menu offers a variety of cocktails, but when we ordered one, the waitress told us that even though they are on the menu, they do not have the ingredients to make any of them. Beer and wine are available however. It took about 15 minutes to get our drinks, and about 30 minutes before she even took our food order. It was another wait for the food to actually come out. The portions were a good size. The food tasted okay, but, in my own opinion, was not the best. The waitress forgot to place one order, and by the time that meal was brought to the table, everyone else was almost done eating. Even after taking the order a second time, the waitress said they were now out of one of the meats. Another meat was substituted, and when the meal finally arrived, one of the other meats was also missing. What should have been a 3 meat platter, turned out to be a 2 meat platter. The waitress initially said that they would comp the meal and do a free dessert, but then said there wouldn’t actually be a free dessert. The meal was comped, but placed on the wrong bill. Boxes and bags were brought to the table and just tossed down, landing on top of plates that still had food on them. Before we left, the waitress told us that we would need to return our tables to their original places ourselves, because she had to bus the table herself. She did apologize for her mistakes throughout the time we were there, saying she was working an extra shift and was tired. I understand that waiting 2 shifts can be tiring, but good customer service is part of what people pay for, and expect, when they go out. While the food and portion size were good, the customer service was very much less than acceptable. My two stars are for food and portion size. If I were to recommend, it would probably be for take out only - and even then, check your order...

We had lunch here today as or coupon book had an advertisement for discounts at this location, so we thought we'd try it. It's location is kind of hidden but actually nice because it's not in a busy noisy place. Our server was very nice and accommodating and she had tried the food which helped us know we were getting good info on what to try. I had read reviews on Yelp but it's good to talk to staff that knows the food. Seasoned Popcorn was served to snack on which was tasty. There are cards and games to play if you so choose while you are waiting for food. The food came quickly and we got the pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw on it and baked beans, both very good and there was meat in the beans which my husband loved. Great favor we both agreed on. Here likes bbq sauce on the meat and I like the meat with just the natural smoke flavor so there's sauce on the table you can add if you need more. I got the sliced brisket. Tender and just a dry rub on it. Very good and moist. The cornbread I ordered as my side and it was delicious! The cut the muffins in half and then grill them. Very tasty! I didn't need the butter. The sweet tea is great as well. Ordered a mini pecan pie to go and we heated it up and put the ice cream on it they gave us....yum!! The puff desserts are popular but didn't try them. We are glad to have found this place. They have a food truck and do catering. We liked it better than Phil's BBQ. Owner was there and very nice. There's a pasture out back with cows in it and so it was nice and felt like we're in the country a little bit even though we're right in the center of San Marcos. Looking forward to our next visit. Hope they get some advertising out there. They've been there since September and we're just down the street from them but just now found out about them and only because of a coupon in the mail. We hope they stick around and will pass...

I'm writing this as a queeziness has been setting in in1 my stomach, an hour removed from my dinner at Up n Smoke. This was my second time here almost nine months since my last visit which I remember was decent. However, this time around I ignored a big red flag that I have; even though it was dinner time and the place is off a major road, this place was EMPTY. As I said the last visit was decent so I proceeded to sit and order. I ordered the 3 sampler and the "wagyu" patty melt.

The sampler was TERRIBLE the meat (braise chicken, pulled pork,, brisket slices) were microwaved it was dry and looked at least 4 days old, but my stomach at this point would argue that it was older. Needless to say after a bite I had enough and my dog had its most expensive meal thanks to my poor experience.

The melt was the highlight of the dinner only because it tasted slightly fresher.

Hopefully, I'm one in a few that had a similar experience, as I root for local businesses. I also hope Up n Smoke figures out how to be more efficient with...