Big Bore Barbecue — Restaurant in Hanover

We went to celebrate our daughter's birthday, from the get-go all servers wished her a happy birthday.

The place has a large capacity, with an indoor and patio outdoor areas. We opted-in to outdoors because it has a much better atmosphere and a lot less noise. Also, it was fresher outdoors Also plenty of parking

Waiting time about 20 min, even though there're plenty of tables available. We guessed it was because of the number of servers available. Mean while you can have a drink, it wasn't our case though :-)

Our server was top of notch, and since it was our first time coming, she gave us a quick overview of the menu, people's favorites, and suggestions. She didn't press to order right away, in fact, we order some drinks and have time to understand the menu and finally order

The menu: Plenty of options to stuff yourself with all kind of food goodies, from apps to dessert. Large variety of drinks, all perfect to pair with the type of food offered

Some items are sold by the pound and others just by the item price. So be aware of that when picking yours. If more than one person is ordering the same by the pound item, you can add all up to one order, and it can be served in one large plate, so everyone can share as much as you want.

Important, sides are not included and if you want some you need to order them. Plenty of sides to pick from, and different sizes to accommodate your hungriness or sharing if more than one wants to eat the same

Food quality: We ordered brisket and ribs, all of them were cold, not even a little warm!! That's a pity because it tells the meat cuts are already cooked/smoked and put aside in a place just waiting to shaved/separated from the cut to be served. For us the food needs to be at least warm, specially anything that come from a grill/smoker. When you eat something that is cold like that you really aren't enjoying all the flavors and magic of eating a great piece of smoked/grilled meat. If it's like you go to a Italian Coffee shop and order an expresso and it comes cold and in a paper cup... you know what I mean :-/

Food flavor: Split decision, 2 of us say it was great, and 2 of us just OK. I've had better smoked briskets and ribs in many other restaurants in Minnesota Cole Slaw was OK, and fries were superb !! actually it was the best piece of the whole meal feast we're expecting A complimentary Birthday ice cream for my daughter was also pretty good

Portion sizes: By the pound, just buy as much as you want. We ordered a pound of brisket, 1/4 ribs rack, 1 large fries, 1 pint coleslaw, and 1 brisket melt sandwich for all of us. It was just enough

Pricing: Drinks go from 4 to 9 average, a cocktail a little more. Meals, a little to high for the quality you're getting. I want to highlight the food wasn't in bad conditions or served (besides the meat were cold). It just wasn't and explosion of flavors or surprisingly tender and fabulous. Only the fries ticked it. Expect to pay 25-35 per person

Just a last note, we needed to ask for napkins and a couple of knives because there weren't on the table and it wasn't the server fault since they were supposed to be in a tin bucket that was on the table with 3 different BBQ sauces and silverware

My wife and one of my daughters say they'll come back, my other daughter and myself will try other side instead

As you can read in others reviews, there're ones that are impressed with the food, but others aren't. This is my case

I'll say, if you've never eaten before in this place, treat yourself and give it a try. You won't be disappointed (I hope so) and have the opportunity to judge the place and food. That's the beauty of going places to try...

Atmosphere Big Bore is a cleaner and more modern experience than a BBQ place in the south. That being said, it will give you the full feeling and environment of a true BBQ joint with a more restaurant feel. Do not think this is the place to go for a quiet conversation. I would never suggest any BBQ place for that type of event.

We arrived at 5:30 pm on a Saturday, which is in the heat of dinner time. The parking lots were full. When we got in the door to check in, we were told it would be an hour wait. As I have been there 5 times previously, it is well worth the wait. We were buzzed at about 15 minutes and were seated immediately. We had our food within 45 minutes of our arrival.

It was me and my wife. She ordered 1/4 rack (4 bones) of ribs with sweet potato fries. I ordered the BBQ Sundae (not a desert), which is pulled pork, baked beans, Mac n Cheese, Cole slaw, with one rib bone. My rib was as it should be.... Let me go on a tangent for a minute. Ribs are meant to be where the meat can be cleanly pulled from the bone. We are not a bunch of Neanderthal pathological loon-a-ticks that naw meat from a bone like a farral raccoon with rabies from a bloated deer carcus on a hot July day from the side of a highway. On the flip side it is not even called BBQ if the rack of ribs were placed in a stock pot with 3 gallons of water to boil for 10 hours only to get a bloated piece of meat with the flavor profile of cardboard. Properly BBQ/low/slow/smoked meats are meant to be juicy, succulent, flavorful morsels that are the candylands of meat. OK, back to the review.

The pulled pork was juicy and needed no help from a sauce to make it palletable. Side note; each table has 3 levels of BBQ sauce for those who love their condiments (me being one of those). My opinion on sauce is that the meat is meant to be able to stand on its own. If you choose to add sauce, it is a choice, never intended to make the meat palatable. The baked beans were fantastic. Many times, BBQ places have a tendency to add too much seasoning and, in most cases, way too much Chile powder to baked beans. These were perfect. The Mac n Cheese was homemade and had a great creamy consistency. The Cole slaw, such an easy dish to make, and so many places pour on too much dressing. This was made right. My wife loved her sweet potato fries with seasoned sour cream. Her ribs were the end cut and ended up being a little tough. She also felt it got a little spicy for her liking. Let's just put that in a Minnesota palate situation. Most Minnesotens don't do heat on their palates.

Overall; I will be back. It smells great and tastes great. The atmosphere is what a BBQ joint should be like. The pitmaster was even awesome to meet and very friendly. See my pics from the pit. My drive one way to get this is 1 hour and 19 minutes. Not going to do that if it isn't damn...

I almost rated an overall 4 star because of the sides, however, the meat taste and quality overpower everything else and I couldn't rate any lower than a 5.

MEAT: We would 100% drive the 30 minutes to come here again. We did "Build Our Own Platter" 1lb of Ribs, 1lb Pulled Pork, ¼ Brisket.. all amazing. The meat was flavorful and juicy. ZERO complaints. We had pulled pork and ribs leftover and fond that they reheated well. We are very picky when it comes to BBQ because we find that we smoke and cook better than most restaurants. We've been searching for a place to come to when we don't want to do the work ourselves and this is it!

SAUCES: The Sweet sauce reminds me of Big John's Ol' West BBQ & Dippin Sauce. I loved it. County Road 19 sauce was a sweeter BBQ sauce, it seems right in the middle of the sweet and heat sauces. The Hanover Heat wasn't as hot as I thought it would be but it still has kick. The dry rub had my nostrils running a little but I'm a baby with any spice, my husband didn't get bothered by the heat.

SIDES: The coleslaw is mayonnaise based and on the sweeter side. Unfortunately, I didn't find a lot of flavor in it. It was good, just a bit boring for me. The fries were a disappointment. Tasted like cheap freezer fries. They were skinny wedges so you get a lot of the exterior and very little in the middle and about half were overcooked. Boring and bland, waste of our money. I should've asked for a replacement of something else. The beans were great. We assume they use leftover pulled pork as their meat addition. We would definitely order them again. The side salad was made of crispy, quality greens and toppings. I didn't like that it came on a serving platter but that's my preference, I like my salads in bowls.

BATHROOMS: 'Oof da' only one stall for each gender... unless I missed more somewhere, that's rough especially during peak times.

SERVICE and ATMOSPHERE: Our server was really nice. She misplaced an item from someone else's bill on ours but other than that she was very attentive. The atmosphere was welcoming and fun. Many TV's and the music choice was spot on. It was a good range.. I heard some Dwight Yoakam and...