Evan's Smokehouse BBQ — Restaurant in Yorba Linda

As you park near by to begin your journey to this magical spot, you don't even need to look where you are going. Just follow your nose and you'll find it. The smell of smoked meats fills the air and preps you for the feast to come.

When I got there, I was told the best things on the menu was the brisket and the cornbread. Of course I had to get those, and on top of that I got a full rack of pork ribs, 1/2 chicken, baked beans, and potato salad.

Lets start with the best things on the menu. The brisket was one of the most moist and succulent pieces of bbq I've had in a long time. When paired with the bbq on the side, it compliments it perfectly with a slight acidic taste of the vinegar based bbq sauce to cut through the fat of the brisket. Next was the jalapeno cornbread, this was hands down one of the best cornbreads I've ever had. The cornbread had a crunchy top layer with a soft and succulent center. The hint of jalapeno added a bit of heat which I loved. These for sure are the things to get. Do not come here and miss out on these two items.

The next items were great, but were out shined by the brisket. The pork ribs were flavorful and had a nice rub on them, but I thought it could have used a bit more smoke flavor in them. The 1/2 chicken was very moist and the dark meat was to die for, but since it was a bbq chicken I wish there was more smokey flavor.

The sides were all fantastic and my favorite had to be the baked beans. Don't skip out on the sides here; there aren't many, but they are all done very well.

Overall I would love to come back here again and try the pulled pork. The owner, Evan, was very nice and came to check up on us and wanted to know how we liked everything. He also told us about his upcoming plans and I can't wait to see what else he has in store for this place. For being only about a month old, they have some growing to do, but I don't doubt it will only get...

Great food. No question.

Employees all have hostile/unhelpful attitudes towards the customers. Someone needs to remind them that they work in the food SERVICE industry. Not sure how much longer I will tolerate unfriendly staff just to eat BBQ. Their posture towards the customer is not "How can I help you?", it's more akin to, "Why are you here bothering me". I normally tip over 20%, but this is the only restaurant that I've never left a tip at both times that I've visited. My wife and I have shown up twice on a Thursday at 4pm to order. This is their first day and hour of their week. They haven't even had the time to get annoyed by work, so I'm baffled as to how an entire team shows up to work with bad attitudes right out of the gate.

The owner's unwillingness to manage his employees is going to be the downfall of his success. Go talk to Tony at The Old Brea Chop House and find out his secret to good management of his staff. They're always courteous and helpful and attentive to the customers needs.

Finally the atmosphere. We patronized this place two weeks in a row. The picnic table we sat on the week before, still had the same mess of past foods on it. Meaning that in one week's time, no one has bothered to wipe the tables down. Not surprising based on the employees attitudes.

For the prices that Evan is changing, he needs to do better lest we all find better alternatives.

And finally, on our last visit we took the food to go home to eat it. When we got home, we were missing part of our order. Not sure if our order taker didn't hear our order or just didn't care. And yes, we...

This is some very good BBQ. I placed my order over the phone to-go with a very polite and cordial Caesar. I ordered one pound of brisket, a side of the bbq beans and a side of the cornbread. The brisket was very impressive in my opinion. Very subtle smoke flavor with slices about the thickness of a pencil and a hint of seasoning. Just enough fat to meat ratio to fully appreciate all the flavors without the seasoning or smoke overwhelming your palate. Brisket is probably the most difficult protein to prepare in restaurant bbq and is the hallmark of very good BBQ. Evan's really goes beyond expectations on the brisket. The beans, while on the sweet side, were definitely a compliment as a supporting role in this meal. Despite being meager in portion, the cornbread was absolutely delicious! The fire roasted chiles came through very nicely. While I felt we received a very good value for the cost of this delicious bbq meal, I was kinda scratching my head on the portion size of the cornbread.

Hot Tip - Call your order in or text your order in around a half an hour before Evan's opens up. Plenty of picnic tables with some umbrellas. Beer and wine available next door. I will definitely be coming back...