Jimbos Pit Bar BQ — Restaurant in Lakeland

My husband, our dog and I went to Jimbo's Pit BBQ on Saturday night at about 8:30. There was only one person ahead of us. We walked up to the window and ordered a full slab of ribs, coleslaw, BBQ beans, and a chocolate shake. They are very fair on their prices and what you get for what you pay for is amazing! I have never had such good ribs from a place other than home, these are comparable to my husband's ribs which is saying a lot. They also gave us a bag of hush puppies for free. We are not big on hush puppies but we ate almost the whole bag. They were incredibly quick we only had to wait five or six minutes before they were bringing us our food. We will definitely be eating here again, probably going to the inside next time :-) we are still full this morning after eating last night. My husband could not stop eating, he is engorged and so is our dog. We have a Chihuahua and she ate three ribs to herself minus the bone. My husband ate over half of his slab, he just couldn't quit they are so delicious! The ribs were very tender. I think it's a balsamic vinaigrette barbecue sauce that they use I've never tasted one like it and it is so delicious, it's tangy, has sweetness smokiness. The coleslaw is fresh, it was sweet but not overwhelmingly sweet. I am very picky about coleslaw and I really enjoyed their kind. It's nothing like Winn-Dixie's are Walmart's Deli coleslaw, it's actually really delicious. The barbecue beans where Smokey and sweet you can taste the brown sugar in them but not to where it was too much. They were perfect. The hush puppies were so crunchy and kept well. They didn't get dried out, mushy, or hard, they had a slight sweetness and oniony flavor. I would definitely recommend this restaurant to everybody I run into. We were so full we were able to eat the shake that I took a bite out of it this morning and it's really good too.

Needless to say, we are very impressed and will be eating here...

It took a while to work up the courage to try this place. From the street it looks, well...meh. it's by no means a dump, but it doesn't look like anything special. But it's been around a long time, so I gave it a try. The dining room is on the smaller side with beautiful rustic wooden tables and benches. The walls and windowsills are loaded with pig-themed knick knacks, historical things and other conversation pieces likely accumulated purposefully and kept free of dust and cobwebs. Sit where you like, no pretenses here. It doesn't take long to realize this is a local favorite. The waitress seemed to know everyone in the room, giving it the feel of a big family get-together, unrushed and familiar. The food did not disappoint, nor has it in multiple return visits. Not once has it been dried out or overcooked. I think it could use a little more seasoning rubbed in but I like barbecue strong enough to still have the taste in my mouth an hour later, so don't go by that. They start you with some tasty pickle slices that are the perfect palate prep for the generous portions to follow. They made me fall in love with hush puppies all over again and their sweet tea will make any self-respecting southerner ask for a refill. So having become a regular, the only thing I can't figure out is why there's an hour wait to get into the chain restaurants but you can walk right in and sit right down most of the time at Jimbo's? Aw, don't be scared, it's a nice place with nice folk and great barbeque! It's a bit of a throwback to old Florida, so be sure to mind...

4/17/17: I drive through Lakeland, from Tampa, every 3-4 weeks, but never stopped at Jimbo's. Why? I've visited Jimbo's in Tampa, but wasn't impressed. After my 2nd visit this year, it's now time to share feedback.

On each visit I've ordered a half slab of ribs to go. The wait has never been long and surprisingly the ribs were tight and right!

Meaning, they were tender, smked well, plentiful... they were just right. Or, as some would say, they wus bussin! LOL!

I travel all over the US looking for great BBQ. I never expected much from Jimbo's but they have been consistently great!

Now, the sauce was meme, and only came in one flavor, regular. Good hush puppies, too. I'm looking forward to my next visit!

NEW VISIT 4.24.17: As usual...didn't disappoint!

I drive from Tampa periodically through Lakeland to get to Winter Haven. This is starting to become a regular Pit Stop.

I know that with every restaurant there can be times where the quality isn't as good. This was not one of those times.

Half a chicken and a half a slab of ribs to go. The sauce is very vinegar-based, but I like it like that. Some folks may not like it as thin and they don't have a sweet version of it. Everything...