Salinas City BBQ — Restaurant in Salinas

I've just barely eaten here...but have a long history with Salinas City BBQ.

First time I went here I walked inti the place and it was empty...not of customers but of staff. Without going into details the staff was in back...arguing over some issue...while about 8 of us waited 20 minutes without being acknowledged.

Second time I went...in the early afternoon, the customers were out the door! Normally a sign of great food. As I waited in line, with each customer's order...one by one...items were out. First the Tri Tip...then the Brisket...Pulled Pork...by the time I was next...I just turned around and left, already knowing I would have a choice of ccole slaw, beans, garlic bread...and Hot links...maybe some chicken.

So round three. I actually was greeted upon entering...told they had everything...and ordered it all! Full rack of ribs, tri tip, brisket, pulled pork, half chicken and hot links. Now there were 3 other groups waiting on orders that I hadn't paid any attention to when I got here...but one by one, as their order were brought out...each one had some issue! Missing food, wrong Item, etc. One guy even told me he'd been waiting 30 minutes for his pulled pork sandwich! I should have began to worry but...I was already ordered and paid up.

One by one each person ahead of me received their food had whatever cirrextions made...and after about 20 minutes, my order came out. After witnessing so many mistakes...the young woman, who prepared our order, named Allie, assured me everything was there as she doubled checked everything. Off I went...but not a block away decided I really should check the order before driving back home to Monterey. Glad I did...because they didn't give me the chicken! I should have been more peeved than I was...but Allie was super apologetic and obviously embarrassed that I didn't have the heart to be angry.

But...to me this is still another strike for Salinas City BBQ in terms of service.

To quickly finish...I see why they've won so many "Best of's" from our local media sources. They really are the best BBQ in our area. Everything was good...nothing to complain about....however, compared to the BBQ available from Texas through the South Eastern states...it's a solid 7 out of 10. For here...10.

BTW, Allie was a total sweetheart (and super cute, which has nothing to do with this review, but...)..as were all the staff as Salinas City BBQ. With that said...if you visit here...be prepared to wait and if getting take...

Reference: this review is for this visit only. I have had dozens of wonderful visits to this location, and by no means was this a ‘bad’ visit, but it didn’t live up to the previously set reputation. Why? Only a few bit picky reasons.

The price of meat has made eating BBQ difficult. You’re either paying an arm and a leg or you’re getting small portions. Or both. This isn’t necessarily the fault of the business owner as they are trying to stay in business and make a living. It’s just the sad state of the current economy. Regardless, I still urge everyone to support their local businesses, specifically those that don’t have a national chain backing them. And yes, prices per portion were difficult to swallow, despite how delicious those portions were. But eat at any BBQ joint and you’ll find the same issue. Even at large, National chain restaurants, so it’s difficult to complain about it. But here I am.

I had a Firebird spicy chicken sandwich. They’ve always been amazing and stuffed, and this time was no different. Unfortunately while tearing apart the chicken, somehow a bone got missed and ended up stabbing the roof of my mouth. Again, this could happen anywhere and doesn’t reflect the other two dozen times I’ve eaten at this fine establishment.

My gal ordered the ‘lil meat’ plate, which consisted of one piece of brisket. After seeing the plate, we realized this must have been their version of a kids menu, but it wasn’t brought to our attention while ordering.

They have a nice variety of beer on tap and in cans. They have high chairs for kids. They have added a semi spacious outdoor patio area since Covid, which is great because indoor seating is quite limited. Speaking of which, there is only street parking available so be ready to walk at dinnertime.

The meats were delicious. The sides seem like an afterthought. They aren’t bad, but aren’t going to win any medals either - again something every BBQ restaurant from Monterey to Gilroy seem to be guilty of: quality meat but lackluster, small portioned sides. And one can’t blame the economy because beans, bread, and macaroni prices aren’t exactly blowing up due to inflation.

I know this review sounds stiff, and I apologize for that, but I want to maintain my integrity in my reviews.

I’ll definitely be back. We will stay far away from the ‘lil’ menu, despite my gal being under five feet, and continue to support our local businesses, despite these tough...

Before I give a negative review, I like to go a number of different times just to give them the benefit of the doubt. We can all have off days once in a while. Unfortunately this is one of the times that things did not improve with multiple visits. First, and foremost the food is never even warm; cold is more like it. Granted, this is Salinas CA, where the temperature outside is almost never hot, but that doesn't mean the food can't be hot. It's to the extreme that the oil on the pulled pork solidifies before you have a chance to enjoy it. Half the pleasure of barbecue is smelling it when it first comes out. Because this food is so cold you can't smell anything when it comes to your table. For a restaurant that specializes in barbecue and charges what they do, I'm expecting over the top flavor. The flavor is pretty so-so, in other words, I've had much better from backyard barbecues many times. I got a triple meat combo that included pulled pork, chicken, and pork ribs. None of them they had a very distinct smoky flavor, again I've had better at back yard barbecues, so it wasn't just one kind of meat that was smacking flavor and spice, it was all of them. I ordered the garlic bread, and so did my wife and both of us made the comment to each other that we wondered if they were out of garlic and butter. In the kitchen they did good did a good job pressing it on the grill, but again no flavor. The last thing that caused me to go ahead and write this review was while I waited in line to use the restroom, I saw a sealed plastic gallon food service jug of barbecue sauce which they use to fill the little sauce cups for individual consumption. They have smaller bottles of their "special" sauce for sale all over different parts of the restaurant, but obviously, it's merely prepackaged stuff that they're claiming to be their very own. I really wanted to come on here and give these folks a good review, but unfortunately at this time, I just don't feel it's a good value, at all. Bad, overpriced, cold food that is nothing I'd ever take an out of town guest to try is what this place...