Robinson's No. 1 Ribs — Restaurant in West Chicago Township

It's been awhile since I've tried out an actual restaurant devoted to the craft of ribs or bbq. While I was downtown Robinson's seemed like a place worthy of trying out. Walking up I noticed there wasn't a long line (maybe 5-6 people) for it to be near summer time in downtown Chicago and it was around 12pm which is the lunch rush hour.

The food looked good, nothing really stood out, but I decide to chomp down on the chicken and rib tip combo. The combo was $15 and came with 2 sides and some bread (2-pieces), no drink. Side entrees consisted of the standard fare of mac 'n' cheese, coleslaw, baked beans, corn, etc. that we've all known to appreciate.

I watched the cook as he took a delicious looking half slab of ribs (which was surprisingly big for a half slab) and put it on the grill. After it was done he cut it into chips. He then proceeded to go in the back and grab 3 pieces of raw chicken to freshly fry to my delight. Service was honestly not as fast I as expected. Altogether it took about 15-20 minutes to complete my order which consisted of a half slab of rib tips, 3 pieces of chicken, coleslaw & baked beans. I asked for a receipt and the cashier accidentally pressed the wrong button and couldn't generate one. Obviously 2 people (one of them clearly new) weren't enough for this job so they had to bring in the manager (or owner) to help out. Once he got involved the ball started rolling and orders were coming out regularly.

One thing you notice with a lot of these franchises is that some of them are pretty much turning into "school lunches". What this means is in-order for them to cater to the general population they don't do anything special or season anything so nobody gets sick. This leads to bland tasting food pretty much.

Robinson's #1 Ribs is the school lunches of ribs. No marinating, no seasoning, nothing special done at all making the ribs about as average as you can get. They weren't even as tender as they could be. Honestly, I've had way better food at family functions and know family members that can easily out cook Robinson's. The bbq sauce wasn't that great as well, there was almost no zing to it leaving you majorly disappointed since they didn't skimp on things at all. At a place like Robinson's you should expect sub-par to decent quality food showered in a great sauce like "Sweet Baby Ray's", but I guess Robinson wanted people to appreciate it's sub-par food more.

The chicken, beans, coleslaw were just as average with the coleslaw being unusually spicy for some reason.

Pass on this one people. You get some bang for your buck, but in the end you might as well go down to the park and crash someone's family reunion. You'll find better food there and it might...

Been to Chicago Union Station many times over the last several years but I had yet to visit Robinsons #1 Ribs until this weekend. I must say I was impressed. I come from a BBQ meat smoking family so I know good wood smoked meat when I taste it. Usually food court places are a toned down version of the larger places and the food is expedited because the staffing is minimal. I was skeptical because I couldn't smell the BBQ aroma in the air as I stepped to the ordering counter. I decided to take a gamble and order the Deluxe combo platter. $28.00. Wings, ribs, baked beans, roll and a smoked sausage. The meal was Doing-The-Darn Thang you hear me!!!!! The ribs were tender and had the backyard lighter fluid taste!! The chicken was fried right and the baked beans were just that but tasty. And....And....And..the best way you can judge good BBQ is when you eat it does it leave that BBQ smoked smell on your fingers . Real smoked meat will, even after washing your hands. Robinsons is legit and I don't co-sign BBQ joints easy I can't wait to visit an actual restaurant one day and...

I've traveled through Chicago's Union Station only a few rimes, but luckily for me I found this place the first time I was there because this is a treasure for travelers looking for great food. I always make it a priority during my layovers to stop in at Robinson's. Union Station's food court has plenty of little fast food places to choose from with burgers, hot dogs, and subs, but this place isn't one of those. These guys serve hot and delicious BBQ done up the right way, with baked beans on the side, or fries. You may have to wait a few minutes to get your order, but the taste of their BBQ is worth it. Even while walking through the food court your mouth waters from the aroma pf the BBQ ribs, and pork and beef these guys are cooking up. Prices are reasonable for their location, after all they are located inside of Union Station in Chicago. BEST...