R&R BBQ — Restaurant in Meridian

A week ago, I attended my organizations annual picnic. I was told it would be catered by R&R Barbeque, which I had never had before. I was excited to try it, especially since a co-worker of mine had previously exclaimed how good it was.

When the food arrived, it looked and smelled delicious. I tried the smoked brisket and chicken, and had some of the potato salad. There were many other sides that we had purchased, but with a limited stomach, these were the choices I made.

The flavor and seasoning on the meat was spot on, and it was cooked to perfection. I don't remember when I had last eaten chicken so good! Also, the potato salad was to die for, red potatoes, dill, egg, the right amount of mayo and other ingredients made this an excellent choice.

Fast forward to a week later, my brother and I were running some errands, and I had invited him to visit R&R in person at the Village in Meridian to sample some of their fare.

We arrived shortly after they opened at 11:15am, and there was a ton of space inside and places to sit.

The teenager behind the counter seemed new, he kept having to inquire with an older gentleman from the back who apparently was doing the cooking, and that person came up to the counter several times to answer any questions we had.

We ordered and as I paid my brother went out to their outside patio to sit down. When I arrived at our table, our food order was right behind me and the person who had done the cooking was carrying it and placed it on our table.

Once he had left, my brother said to me "You aren't going to like this, but I will not be eating this food, I am sorry".

When I asked why, he explained to me what he saw as I was placing our order. The gentleman in the back who was doing the cooking and who came forward several times to answer our questions, had placed his hands in his pockets, scratched his ear, all the while wearing black gloves. His shirt/apron was absolutely disgusting and smeared with food and barbeque sauce. My brother observed him then go into the back and prepare our food, all while wearing the same gloves he wore earlier that he touched himself and his pants pockets with, and who knows what else.

Now I am no expert, but I do have my Idaho food safety handlers license, and I can tell you that the practices this man displayed are not ok and at that point totally understood where my brother was coming from.

I ate my chicken, and we left my brother's meal and the rest of the food we had ordered and left.

Needless to say we will never be eating there again.

While the food is amazing and the meat is excellent, the cleanliness of the establishment and the practices of the employees is absolutely gross.

Eat here at...

My wife and I were very excited to try R&R, but unfortunately we were met with disappointment. We visited on a Friday night around 7pm. It wasn't very busy, but when we walked in, the inside was freezing. It was actually warmer outside than inside. No biggie, we ordered and they have a patio. I was a little disappointed in the beer selection, what they had written up on the board was not what they had to offer. Nonetheless, I found something to drink. Once we got out to the patio, they had plenty of table and chairs to choose from, but the problem is everything is so close together that each time somebody tried to get in and out of their table, they were bumping chairs with the person behind them. This wasn't just the case at our table, it was the case at each table as we saw everybody have the same issues.

Once the food arrived, it came in waves. First my food arrived, then some other patrons food came and then finally my wife's. I got the brisket nachos which looked incredible. Unfortunately, when I started eating them, there was a huge issue with the temperature of the food in all the different layers. I literally would have cold food on top and then work my way down and it would be a little bit warmer and then work my way down and it would be cooler and work my way down and it would be hot. You know how when cheese is runny when it's hot and a little bit thick when it's cool, yes the cheese I had on my nachos did the same thing in different spots.

My wife had the bacon wrapped meatloaf with macaroni and cheese. When I asked her how her food was, she said it was extremely flavorful, but unfortunately it was not even warm.

I wondered if the food sitting out inside the restaurant where it was so cold to begin with might have been part of the issue? However, a few days later we spoke to somebody who had also eaten there and they said they had the exact same experience.

We never had anybody come out and ask us how our food was, and because it was such a hassle to get in and out of our chairs so we weren't bothering the people behind us, neither one of us decided to go inside and tell somebody that our food was definitely not hot.

I thought the prices were very reasonable. The atmosphere overall was nice and the restaurant was very clean. The people it took her order were very personable.

I honestly don't know if I will ever go back again or not. After hearing that somebody else had the same issues with their food, I'm a bit hesitant, but I do love barbecue so I may end up giving it one more shot and see if the food is a little bit hotter this time.

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This is a crime against BBQ I really hate to say it I feel like the person who opened up this chain restaurant saw an opportunity without truly being a fan of the quality I don't understand how places like r&r can expand places like big Daddy's BBQ have had to open up and close more than just the main location If you guys want BBQ that'll make you feel like your soul has been refreshed that reminds you of the day that you were baptized and saved and taste as good as the gospel itself I really recommend guys go on over to big Daddy's BBQ as for r&r I not a big believer in chain BBQ restaurants and perhaps it's because I'm from the south where barbecue is an art and only maw and paw shops rule the land when I was here I got the meat plate The pulled pork was actually very good so I can't knock that but the two ribs that I got were very dry and not seasoned too well and the hush puppies were very dry and they weren't even made fresh they were lukewarm no one likes buying lukewarm food The lemonade was actually really good so I'll give you guys that but the okra Y'all should not be allowed to make okra unless you've been making it in the south for a little while and someone's grandma taught you The okra here was over seasoned and tasted salty and that's really what hurt my feelings but anyways like I said big Daddy's BBQ please go try r&r I'm genuinely sorry for my rude review maybe other people really enjoy your food your staff was kind and courteous and your servers were sweet not to mention your facility was outstandingly and astonishingly clean you also have a wonderful location I'm really sorry I didn't enjoy the food and I'll even venture out to say it's not me it's you but maybe it is me maybe I have some issues I don't know why I love leaving detailed reviews but you have my honest opinion I will congratulate you though your staff seemed happy and friendly and like they were having a good time the facility was super clean and that's something I can get beyond I love good management it's my favorite thing because it shows outstanding leadership That's why this place has a five-star review I do Hope the best for...