Famous Dave's Bar-B-Que — Restaurant in Modesto

Food 1 of 5, Corn Bread Muffin 5 of 5, Service 1.5 of 5

Disappointing Experience at Famous Dave's BBQ I recently visited Dave's , a chain I've been to before, but unfortunately, my experience this time left a lot to be desired. We ordered the burnt ends and ribs, which came with two sides -- famous fries and macaroni and cheese. The atmosphere was pretty underwhelming; the place felt empty and lacked any real energy, which made it feel more like a forgotten spot than a BBQ destination. The service wasn't much better. Although the restaurant wasn't busy, we were never checked in on, and no one asked if our food was to our liking. Now, about the food -- it was honestly the biggest disappointment. The burnt ends were absolutely horrible; they were tough, overly charred, and completely flavorless. I'm not sure why they're even on the menu, as they were nothing like the tender, flavorful burnt ends you expect from a BBQ place. The ribs were better, but still nothing special -- they were fatty and lacked that smoky depth you hope for. The macaroni and cheese was bland and forgettable. If there was one bright spot, it was the cornbread muffin, which was delicious and the only thing that saved the meal from being a total letdown. It's sad to see a chain I've enjoyed in the past take such a dramatic downturn in quality. I'm not sure if it was a one-off bad day, but given how many great BBQ joints there are out there, I won't be coming back...

My experience was good up until I received my to-go order. I am very particular about the presentation of my meals. With that said, I reduced the food rating down to 3 stars. After receiving it I always check my bag for discrepancies and requests. The 1st thing I noticed was how greasy the cardboard container holding my food was to the wrinkly plastic bag."I hate that with a passion." So, I opened it up to check for accuracy and presentation. I immediately removed the COLD potatoes salad from the HOT food tray bc it's just stupid how restaurants mixed to two. Hot n cold don't MIX!! It's like putting ur ice cream inside a bag with your fries. Outside of that it was decent in comparison to other locations I frequent. I requested butter and wet wipes from the server who brought my order out who stood there watching me the entire time. She had the audacity to ask me, "what I needed butter for!" I said, "my corn muffin." She said, "the muffins are already buttered." At that point I got annoyed and gave her the (side)eye. She came back with 2 and 2 wet naps. 2 WET NAPS...REALLY!! I'm eating ribs not a hamburger and 1 napkin packet. I just smirked at her then left. I needed plates too bc I am staying at a hotel here in Modesto on business but I was annoyed as hell therefore let it go. I didn't even tip after that. I kept my $20 in my pocket and bounced. Will I go back to that...

3 issues we experienced today: Upon being seated the chairs were really filthy with dried lettuce and crumbs on every single stool. I asked for them to be wiped and the lady did just that. She wiped and left seats wet. Who wants to sit on a wet seat. She did not remove anything off of the back of the cushions on the chair in between the cushion and the frame so I took a napkin and cleaned the crumbs out myself . It was soooo noticeable. After being seated we noticed a server in a black shirt wearing a bandaid with no glove. Absolutely not acceptable! Lastly we watched the cooks. One cook was sweating profusely while wearing a glove and wiping the sweat off his forehead at the same time he was placing food on the counters for the servers to pick up not once, not twice but three times I mentioned this to our server who brought Sam the manager over. He said he already had to correct an issue of an injury earlier today and that he will handle these issues immediately too. I told Sam I would pay for our drinks but I won’t eat here. He took care of our drinks and we left. I was highly disgusted with the atmosphere. I own a commercial cleaning service, I would love to offer my services upon closing to ensure the cleanliness of famous Dave’s that way it stays up to par because what I seen today was totally...