Johnnie Macks BBQ

Carolina style sauce. For those that don’t know, it’s a mustard based sauce. For the Alabamians in town, if you’ve been to Twix n Tween in Brent, it’s the same style sauce. I had the Big Johnnie pork sandwich, which is advertised as ²⁄₃ lb… it is huge. There was enough meat to make 2 sandwiches. The price was $ 8.00. I had 2 sides, baked beans, and mac & cheese. Both sides had pulled pork mixed in. The beans were awesome. The mac & cheese is an acquired taste. For the old school crowd, think government cheese, macaroni noodles, and pulled pork. If you are looking for Kraft Mac & Cheese, go grocery shopping. As a bbq place, without great sweet tea, you’ll never get a 5 star rating out of me, no matter how good the bbq is.

Have only been here twice their meat is great just not a huge fan of the sides. Service is friendly and fast. Plus let have some good tunes going. One thing I wish is to have a beer with my beef sandwich.

The BBQ here is really really good! I don’t agree with any of the lower reviews on here. BBQ is about the MEAT and boy I tell you, they do it right here! Rich smoky flavor to the ribs and pork but not overcooked tender and delicious! Bbq sauce tastes like they make it here, its good a little sweet but not overpoweringly. As for the sides, yes they are hit and miss but this is place you come to for the meat. Also very reasonable price wise. The young man working the front was extremely pleasant and funny, made eating here enjoyable. I never saw him stop smiling and although there is no wait staff he was very attentive to the customers, clearing empty baskets and asking everyone how their food was. I will definitely be back as long as the smoker is smoking!!!

Their meats are the stars here
I had ribs, wife had bbq beef sandwich
Wife enjoyed the beef, said the bun was a very generic hamburger bun, could have either toasted it or gone with a better bun in general.
Their sides:
Some are store bought, some are homemade
The baked beans are homemade and were my favorite, the Mac n cheese is homemade and had some meat in it smokey flavor not too thick, I enjoyed both. My wife had the beans as well along with coleslaw, that is store bought and she said was just ok
My ribs came sitting on 2 pieces of plain white bread something like wonder bread, it would have been a lot better with some Texas toast or buttery garlic toast.
The building /​inside is nothing fancy at all, but who needs that when what you come for is the BBQ !!
Drinks are just canned soda in a cooler or bottled water, not sure if they have sweet tea which is almost always my go to drink with BBQ
Also, you order at the counter and take your seat, no wait staff here

They are no longer open on Mondays and Tuesdays! I was excited to try this place and I was starving. Needless to say I was disappointed to find they had new hours that had not yet been posted online. Hope I get a chance to eat there soon!

I have been here 3 or 4 times every time i go i have a very pleasent experience. First time i had the rib they were amazing and had a good bark to them. Side were alittle small but meat delicious. the sauce here is amazing make sure u get a bottle. Second time Ihad the pulled pork sandwich. The meat was very juicy and the sauce once againade it that much better. Only complaint would be they need to toast bun.

This is by far the dirtiest joint ever… drive by smells good right? Do yourself a favor keep driving and go to sonny’s or something!
Flies l
Flies
Flies
GROSS

Apparently a BBQ restaurant can survive on 2 – 3 stars, and I hope it can, and improve, but the comments on here could be very helpful if actually reviewed and put in place. I recently read a book Franklin’s BBQ, that describes how difficult it is to run a BBQ restaurant. And I know some places in Central Texas, i.e. Kreutz Market, got away for years with having people wait in two lines, not having any decent sides, and just getting by on the meat. But that’s not the kind of Place Johnnie Macks is trying to be, and so I have to review it on what I got.
I went on a Sunday about noon. My favorite BBQ joint only serves M-​F lunch, so I went looking for another place and found Johnnie Mack’s was open. There was one table occupied, and one guy waiting for take-​out. The restaurant is a tad dark, and I ordered and then sat by a window. The table was clean. There is salt, pepper, and Tabasco sauce on the table, and that’s it.
The young guy taking the order was in his teens and was very pleasant and professional. I asked about sausage, not seeing it on the menu, and was told it was no longer sold. So I went with the 4 rib plate, which was very low priced — about $ 10. And a can of soda, reasonable at 85 cents, but no cups or ice available. No napkins or sauces on the table reminded me that I was not in a very nice part of town, and they likely have had past problems with vagrants eating up the profits in sauce and napkins. The nearby McDonald’s likewise operates on the conservative.
The ribs and the potato salad arrived first, and I was told that the mac and cheese would be right out. The ribs were four large spare ribs, cooked well, and like it or not, covered with sauce in the kitchen. To me, that would be okay if the sauce were cooked on the meat, but this was sauce applied just before the ribs came out. That sauce should be on the side. It was tasty enough, but nothing so good I would definitely want it in every bite. The four ribs were generously sized, and I almost couldn’t eat them all. The meat was tender and tasty.
Not to be gross, but I ended up burping up a rank smoked smell and taste for the rest of the day and well into the evening. I don’t ever recall eating lunch, and later eating dinner, and then after that burping up the smell of lunch. Reading some other reviews about the wood or starter fluid (if they use it, which would surprise me) makes me think something was off for my meal. I doubt seriously that would happen to me again, but I am making note of it to see if it does.
The potato salad was okay. Mix mustard and mayo, and toss in the potatoes, maybe onion, and that’s roughly what you have.
The mac and cheese was a disappointment, and I didn’t eat it. I tried a bite, then another bite which came with a hunk of gristly pork that I had to spit out. I decided the flavor was off. I don’t know what the wait was on it, either, as it came out lukewarm five minutes into my meal. The mac and cheese did not look like that pictured by other reviewers.
The attendant who took away my plate noticed I didn’t eat it, and I told him I wasn’t that hungry anyway. I was amazed at someone’s noticing! Lately most waiters just take away the uneaten food without even noticing whether an item was clearly not enjoyed, which I find to be careless. So I give the young man points for taking note.
Most of these comments have been said before, and if this restaurant has such a line out the door at other times, I have to assume my experience is a bit of an outlier on the negative side. That said, comments like mine have appeared from several rational-​sounding reviewers, and I hope they can help the restaurant improve and stay in business as we don’t have many BBQ places locally. Here’s hoping they get to consistent 4 and 5 stars in 2015.

I ordered the family platter so I could try all the meats. The ribs and brisket were above average. A nice balance of smoke and sauce made these meats exceptional. The chicken was good but no dark meat available. The pulled pork was ordinary because there was an absence of smoke and bark. The potato salad was outstanding! The beans were just equivalent to a good canned variety. I would have tried the mac and cheese but they were out. The restaurant ambiance is forgettable. Dining plates are styrofoam and only bottled water.

Went in last night, almost left after seeing flys everywhere. Wish I would have. Guess this would pass in fla. Could not taste the smoke, meat drowned in sauce. Ribs were tough and chewy. Pulled pork was good. Can’t wait to get back to K.C. and get some real BBQ.

Not at all impressed. In fact, very disappointed. It smells great, but that’s it. The kitchen was dirty, the food was terrible. The man behind the counter waited until after we paid to tell us they have no high chairs. Seriously? Who has a restaurant with no booster seats or high chairs. The beans were canned, the sauce was nasty, the Mac and Cheese not edible. My son eats everything, and he spit the Mac and Cheese out. We will never go back. If I could give a ¼ star I would. That ¼ would be because then running the place were friendly.

Drive by this place everyday and decided to give it a shot. Stopped in at 6 PM and ordered a beef brisket sandwich and mac and cheese, they were out of mac and cheese and out of buns, my brisket was served on slices of white bread and was given potato salad instead. While the brisket had a nice flavor it was not warm and did not taste right on wonder bread, potato salad was ok, there is better bbq in the area then this.

I live in the neighborhood and was thrilled to see a small restaurant open up. But that’s where my excitement ended. The food is barely mediocre and the portions are paltry. The ribs, which I was so looking forward to, we’re really below standard and the «home made sauce» is nothing to write home about.

I’ve seen this place for a while and decided to finally try it. The gentleman behind the counter was smiling and friendly. I got the Rib dinner plate. 4 ribs and two sides (I got Slaw and Mac & Cheese). Drinks are cans of soda, so no free refills.
The ribs came with a layer of sauce, but no sauce on the side. Underneath the ribs was a slice of plain white bread. The ribs were overwhelmed by the sweet sauce because they did not seem to have any seasoning on the ribs themselves and no real smoke flavor. The ribs also did not have that slightly tough outside that comes from grilling or smoking — they may have been mostly cooked in an oven. It seemed to me that the ribs were in desperate need of a spice rub before cooking.
The slaw was pretty standard — nothing special, but not bad either. The Mac & Cheese was disappointing — very little cheese. It seemed like it was slightly sticky macaroni with a few little bits of pork in it. It desperately needed a bunch of cheese.
A few simple improvements would have made it better: Spice rub on the ribs. Sauce on the side or give the option of sauce on top. Some variety of sauce. Toast the bread and add a little butter. Add some cheese to the Mac & Cheese (and not just generic cheese sauce). Do something to make the coleslaw have some kind of character.
Overall, the service was friendly and good. The food wasn’t bad, but could have been a lot better. I think there are better BBQ places in the area

All of their food is great. You have to get a jar of their sauce to go for your home as it is a perfect combinations of spices. I always get their pork or ribs but the beef, chicken are also very good.

From the moment I walked through the door I was impressed! Greeted with a smile, and an invitingly smokey aroma. I have been to BBQ places before, but this place taKes the gold. They keep it simple, yet sophisticated. Sinatra playing in the backround, cheerful banter between the two owners. you know they mean buisness with the giant double wide smoker in the parking lot. These guys know what they are doing. My plate was mounded with mouth watering pulled pork, chicken, beef, and a sausage. Topped with a homemade sweet BBQ sauce. I couldn’t help but attack the plate as soon as it hit the table. It got to the point where I was so full they hollered «MAN DOWN!!!» we need a to go box for this guy. the atmosphere was perfect for me. I HIGHLY recommend going here if you love smoked meats, and a great attitude. I came from Maine visiting family and they told me to try it. No regrets.
~Steve~

This BBQ just sings to me. The ribs oh my! I love the Mac and cheese the greens and just want to hang out here. Best ribs I have ever had and I have had a lot! Just come!

I’m amazed at the Unilocal reviews for Johnnie Macks. I really debated about giving them 5 stars. I am knocking off a star for two sides we didn’t like, but this could have easily been 4.5 stars. Our experience was pretty dang good here and we will be back… often.
First of all we walked up to the door at 8:02pm. They closed at 8pm (which we didn’t know). We saw this and started to turn away when we were told to «come on in». My Husband said «are you closed?». The answer was «Yes, but we will take care of you». This pretty much never happens in our experience. We have actually been turned away from several local places 30 – 60 minutes BEFORE they close. On top of it, he was super friendly and joked around with us as he took our order. They even took another customer that walked in after us! 5 star service for sure.
Our bill which included 2 dinners AND a bottle of their signature BBQ sauce was $ 23! My Husband showed me the receipt with wide eyes and we proceeded to scan it… yup…we were charged for everything that we ordered.
We took our food home to eat. The first thing we noticed was that the sides were TINY. The smallest Styrofoam containers I have ever seen. Knowing the cheap price, I wasn’t surprised or put off by this. The important thing is that the meat was plentiful and looked dang good. We were also both served bread. My pulled pork meal actually came on a HUGE and deliciously soft bun. My Husband’s rib and beef combo meal was served with two pieces of bread.
The BBQ was good… really good. My pulled pork didn’t have any fat in it at all and was lightly sprinkled with their BBQ sauce. My Husband’s ribs were fall off the bone delicious and his shredded beef was really flavorful. We also really liked their sauce. It is not too sweet and not too vinegary. I dig it… a lot.
Now for the sides… this is where some disappointment came in. They were out of Mac n’cheese (understandable at closing time). We had two sides each meal and ordered greens, baked beans and potato salad between the two of us. The greens and the potato salad were just not good. I ate the greens even though they tasted odd, but I wouldn’t order them again. The potato salad had a really weird seasoning that was off putting (coriander maybe?). My Husband couldn’t even finish those. The baked beans were good, but nothing special. We are hoping to order the baked beans and mac n’cheese next time.
We learned some lessons, but overall we still really liked Johnnie Mack’s. Their meat and sauce are great and that is what matters with a BBQ joint. See you soon Johnnie Mack’s.

My grandma insisted on going here otherwise I wouldn’t have gone after reading reviews. They didn’t have Mac n cheese. The ribs were room temp and tough. The pulled pork was room tempt/​cold. After granny complained they brought us more and they were rather perfect except for the fact they drown them in sauce.
The staff gets 5 stars as they were very friendly and attentive. Asked no questions and tried to make it right when granny made the complaint.
I would give them a second chance except for the fact that most other reviews had the same experience.

So rib smoker looks good when you pull up, and we’re greeted by an employee smoking a cigarette as he opens the front door for us. Outside was a quick paint over with old bar hours showing through. Walking in to a kind of grungy but somewhat acceptable looking space, you see the trays of meat through the kitchen window covered in tin foil. TIN FOIL to keep the meat to temp ??
So we order anyway from the misprinted crossed out menu, brush some some flies away and sit down. Sure enough ribs and pork come out cold. I eat two and have the nice kid at the counter get another order. Warmer but chewy, likely poor cut of meat or undercooked. I’ve had worse (once) and I was hungry so I ate them anyway. Kid behind counter offered us a sample slice of the homemade sweet potato pie, which aside from the Mac and cheese was the only good thing we ate.
Too many good places in the area to bother coming back here again. I’d be surprised if they make it a year.