Valley Ranch Grill & Barbeque — Restaurant in Texas

June 2022: Went through the drive thru after work to get a bbq chicken stuffed potato, specifically requested extra bbq sauce. Received NO sauce. After sitting in the drive through for 20 minutes to purchase two items and getting home to no bbq sauce I called. They wanted me to come back. I had already spent an hour and 15 minutes driving home from work to have them screw up my order, so the manager Francisco said they would send a gift card a month ago. To date I have received nothing. My parents had gone here for years and I cannot understand why. Service is horrid, they cannot quality check a drive through order and they do not follow through on what they say they will do. Also what barbecue place not only does not put barbecue on their stuffed potato but not a drop on the side? Ruined my dinner, experience, and any motivation to return. Not worth the $20 for the potato and banana pudding.

Update, September 2022. I received a follow up call sometime in September. The manager I spoke to in June sent me two promo cards for $10 to use through January and I finally received them. I decided to return to give them another shot. I tried the combo plate, 1/2 bbq chicken with corn on the cob and potato salad. The corn was great! Crispy field corn, cooked perfectly. The potato salad was also solid, reminded me of summer barbecue. The chicken was fair — smoky, fell off the bone, but the seasoning was ok. I didn’t love it. Their barbecue sauce is still something I haven’t come to love either. I am upping the rating to a three for their attempt to make things right. The meal was fine. I preferred the sides to the meat, but nothing to rave or rant about. I will update again on the second promo...

My wife and I visited this evening for the first time. We ordered sliced beef sandwiches and an order of fries. The amount of beef on mine was fine, but hers looked like it came from Rudy's - not much to it. She asked for more beef and they added more without question. The fries were just warmer than room temperature, so we let them know and they made a fresh batch and brought them to us with an apology. The brisket that they used already had all the fat trimmed, which is fine for some people who like their beef lean, dry and lacking flavor. (Personally, I'd rather have some fat so I can get the flavor and moisture that comes with it. My favorite BBQ places will ask if you want it lean or regular and their brisket is much better.) The decor is nice and includes a waterfall, windmill, and a model train that runs overhead around the restaurant. Overall, the food isn't too bad for the price. If it cost more it definitely wouldn't be worth it. We may give this place another try in the future, or we may not. There are too many options...

I haven't eaten here in years because the most dry and tough brisket I've ever had in my life came from this sad establishment. Hands down the worst BBQ I think I have ever had came from here. That includes amateur home cooking.

Fast forward to today where I decided to give them another chance while I lied to myself thinking maybe "last time was a fluke". I ordered a rib plate and a brisket sandwich. My sides were good so I'll give them a star for that. My brisket sandwich actually had some decent meat as well. The flavor was a little off but at least it was tender. But my ribs good lord they were awful. I probably threw out 1/3 of the meat. The entire outside was completed burnt to a crisp. It was not edible. The meat under the charred outside was okay but the fact that so much had to be wasted really irked me.

Bottom line is if you are spending good money on BBQ go somewhere else. Just go up to road to Rudy's. They aren't the best bbq but they are miles apart in quality compared to...