Hungry Bear BBQ — Restaurant in Gatlinburg

We've been to Gatlinburg many times but wanted something different than the main strip restaurants. Well, what better than BBQ?

We pulled up to the front smoker going which was a positive sign. The parking lot is a little tight but we fit. There was plenty of seating outside already and even more inside. Luckily it was gorgeous outside so we all sat at the picnic table. We went inside, found what appeared to be what was a house at some point with all the rooms just renovated into a restaurant. There were two seating areas, from what I could see. It was a little run down looking but now let's see if the food made up for it or not.

The menu is all on a dry-erase board on the wall that is quite challenging to read. Alot of item's even just around the ordering area are hand-written on paper then tapped up, not very impressive. Fine, I can absolutely look past it though. I'm there for the food, not the menu presentation. I was craving a brisket and husband was craving pulled pork. So, brisket sandwich it was with a pulled pork sandwich a long side. They had a good amount of sides as well to accompany the main meal. We paid about $36 for two sandwiches, the two sides that come with them, and two coke bottles. The cost wasn't bad for what we're asking for. Now, what we asked for versus what we received was a little different. I am used to a lot more proportions that was we got. I ordered the brisket sandwich, mac n cheese, and french fries. There were a decent amount of fries but the mac n cheese in a small styrofoam bowl was disappointing. The biggest disappointment was opening the wrapped sandwich and seeing just a top and bottom bun. I had to open the sandwich up to see the brisket. No! It should be overflowing with meat! That is one of the only reasons I am giving it 4 stars. The meat was delicious which made up for it.

One final thing that was troubling to me was that on their board it said homemade baked beans. No... they're not homemade. While outside at a picnic table, we saw a pickup truck arrive with a bed full of canned beans, and boxes of everything styrofoam.

Besides those couple points, it was a great experience. Thank you. I would definitely go back for another round and try...

Wow where to start. Looks like the type of bbq joint my family likes. Family of 5 with a teenager, 9yo, 5yo. Hot dog on the menu for kids. $6.50. Just a hot dog (with bun I am told). No drink no side. Ordered foot long smoked sausage meal with 2 sides for $12. Brisket sandwich 2 sides. Pork sandwich 2 sides. Pork special of ribs, pork, and sausage. $17. Prices are all very reasonable outside of kids hot dog. 3 adult drinks 2 kids drinks $73. I'm ok with this especially in Gatlinburg on vaca. On to the food. Brisket over done very little flavor. Has been sitting in lots of liquid. Pork zero seasoning and dry. Sausage plain cheap Ekrich style. Sat steaming for a long time because casing was tough and falling off. Ribs......honestly some of the worst I have had. Untrimmed very fatty fall off the bone crock pot cooked ribs drowned in sauce. Sides. Mac and cheese decent. Fries meh. Cole slaw tasted pre packaged. Brunswick stew was very sweet because of the amount of frozen sweet corn used but no discernable seasoning at all. Sauces were bottled (which is fine, sweet baby rays im looking at you) with a mild and sweet varient. Spicy sauce was just cheap watery hot sauce in a squeeze bottle. Btw not a picky Karen type, just a chef with background in bbq hoping to spread the love of family run joints maybe not known to many. This is unfortunately one that needs to...

First off, this place has a nice decor and curb appeal to it, that's what lures you into the parking lot. That being said, that is as good as it gets. I ordered the 5 rib plate with the 2 sides, which were beans and potato salad. Ok, here we go, the ribs were so tough and had so much fat that I literally had to perform surgery just to find something that was actually edible and that was not meant to be funny. Seriously, these were the absolute worst ribs I have ever had. They were like leather belts the meat did not want to break apart at all. I felt like I was arm wrestling with the meat just to tear it apart. Frankly, it tasted like the ribs were put in the oven and over cooked and the hog was killed twice and sauce was put on the meat.The potato salad tasted like potatoes in chunks with no flavor or any type of wetness to it and very bland. The baked beans were edible and rolls were wrapped in aluminum foil on the hard side. In my conclusion, it is safe to say that this establishment knows nothing about cooking real barbecue and the parking lot was empty with only one other car there. Safe to say that this is not a real barbecue establishment. I come from the Memphis area so I am a native to great barbecue and this was not that. Eat at...