Big Al’s Texas BBQ

This place is delish! And the décor is super cute I love it. You should definitely try this place out if you want BBQ, the sauces are great and the sweet potato fries are amazing! I wasn’t really a fan of the onion rings. they were more like onion chunks and strings. But everything else was pretty tasty. I’ve been several times and will keep going back.

Had a bbq melted cheese sandwich. It was tasty but probably a bit pricy for what I ended up with.

$ 10.21 for 4 ounces of chopped brisket is too expensive. That’s the cost of a brisket sandwich, side, and drink.

I love Big Al’s. I’m from Texas (Dallas, and family in east Texas). The food here reminds me so much of BBQ places I’ve eaten at in east Texas many times. The beef brisket is quite good — definitely a Texas staple food. I’ve eaten here as often as I can when visiting Provo. Also, the Chisket (grilled cheese with brisket) is great! I really enjoy the creamy sweet corn. It’s a nice take on corn and seems to have just a hint of barbeque sauce in it.
Yay for good Texas barbeque in Provo!!!

When I saw this place advertised alongside I-​15, I got the impression it might be a chain, but they were pushing the Texas BBQ motif pretty hard. When my lunch appointment fell through, I went looking for the sign on the way back and located the spot. I was nervous when I pulled in, since everything about the place screamed «chain» and I’m not big on chains in general, but definitely not BBQ chains. My fears were somewhat mollified when I walked in and smelled the smoker. If nothing else, this place smells right.
My standard motif with BBQ is to order 1 of 2 pork dishes, either pulled or ribs, usually ribs and whatever else looks good. If I see sausage, such as here, I order that and with Texas BBQ, that’s an automatic to me to order brisket as well. So, that’s what I got in the meats. They have quite a few sides, but if I see fried okra, that’s a gimme and I also saw fried zucchini and picked that up as well (these are cook-​to-​order, which meant I got them after the main course). Their drink selection is frankly kinda crappy, but it’s a BBQ place and that’s what has to really star. As another reviewer noted, they have bottles of sauce in a hot water bath, which is a nice touch, but which also makes them sort of overly runny.
This place is also notably pricier than almost every BBQ place I can think of in Salt Lake, so it had to come out of the gates flying. Sadly, with my first bite of brisket, that I had to fight, it started pretty dismally. You know that whiff of scent you get when opening a can of moist dogfood? I ran into this a few times with the brisket and it had the definite texture of potted or canned meat. Flavor was ok, but it was sort of mushy and they appeared to do a not very good job of cooking it in an oven as the connective tissue had not separated much, if at all.
Up next was the ribs, also very clearly done in an oven (with a dry rub). For these, the server pulled them from a heat tray, unwrapped plastic from around them and cut off a few bones. They tasted exactly as appetizing as that description just sounded. The only chain that really gets away with that, even on the sort of declining level they are, is Tony Roma’s, but they’re not saying their authentic Texas BBQ, either. At the very last was the sausage links, which were ok, but tasted better with BBQ sauce. If you happen to have a BBQ restaurant that serves sausage that tastes better with BBQ sauce, you’re doing it wrong. Oddly enough, what was missing from all the meats was the smoke flavor. Maybe the only thing they smoke is the turkey, which I didn’t get and probably won’t be back to find out.
The fried okra was arguably the best thing, but it came in this sort of pseudo-​tempura batter that was just… plain. I wound up having to get a side of ranch to save them as they were just not cutting it solo. Not able to be saved was the zucchini, which was overcooked and tasted, for lack of a better word, dirty.
For the kind of money I kicked out on this visit, I would be demanding of any place and if I’m going to rip on Goodwood (in Ogden) for substandard food, even though this place is local and the server girl was very nice, I can’t give them a pass for overpriced and greatly substandard food. There’s a lot of good to really good BBQ joints in Utah. This ain’t one of them.

Disappointingly small portion of meat, but pretty good flavor. I am pretty sure they just run next door and buy their Mac and cheese from KFC.

Nice BBQ here. It has all the standard fare, like brisket, ribs, and turkey. I got the BBQ wrap, and it was awesome. Fried pickles are a guilty pleasure too, even though I know they are giving me a coronary.

Horrible food! Dry ribs, cold potatoes. Do not waste your money.

I’ve been to Big Al’s a few times and I think the 3.5 star rating is just about right. There’s nothing overwhelmingly amazing here, but it’s a good solid BBQ joint. I’d bump them up to to 4 stars if they had some beers to go with the Q. But they don’t. So I won’t.

Really dry ribs. Didn’t have Mac an cheese or steak fries when I went. Way over-​priced. My visit to this restaurant was my first and LAST. I do NOT recommend this place whatsoever.

I’m offering the B.O.D. here (that’s Benefit of the doubt) and erring on the side of optimism. If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that I’m an optimist.
There’s plenty to enjoy at Big Al’s. The space is everything you’d expect from a BBQ joint, though eerily reminiscent of a Dickey’s. Big ups for having a handwashing station out there by the soda machine. Nice touch. And the pre-​warmed sauces. I like that. They were a little fast coming out of the squeezer, but YMMV.
I read through a few reviews and decided on the smoked turkey. Oh ya, good choice! I also got to try some ribs and a little brisket, which were just a touch on the dry side, but delicious. For sides I ordered the beans and the potato salad. Sadly, the potato salad was pretty ordinary. I had expected bigger things when it had dill in the menu description, but it was around grocery store level. Not bat, but maybe just improvable. The beans were okay, better than some but I’d try two different sides next time.
BBQ is always more expensive than I remember. Not break-​the-​bank, but if you have a whole family of kids, stick to the smaller stuff menu. Mine wasn’t bad – one meat, two sides, and garlic toast for around $ 10. That’s pretty average for the fare.
I’d go with the turkey again, and if I’m back here I’ll try the sausage. It looked mighty fine as well.

This was our first time eating here so we tried the Feast For 2 (which was definitely a feast but a little pricey at $ 25 compared to other «feasts» at BBQ places). The atmosphere is actually pretty fun with the Texas-​style décor, cafeteria-​style ordering (think Café Rio), and the owner’s Texas accent (I assume owner or at least manager since he came to our table and talked to us about our food).
The feast gave us a good amount of each meat to try so here’s the rundown:
The turkey was the best turkey I’ve had at any BBQ place in Utah. It was perfectly seasoned and moist. It didn’t even need a sauce although the sauces did enhance the flavor. I will come back just for the turkey.
The sausage was my next favorite meat. My wife is not a big fan of sausage but she even thought they tasted good. Dip them in the sweet sauce if you like sweet or in the spicy sauce which gives it a nice kick.
The ribs were disappointing as mentioned by other reviews. The meat was sparse and what meat was on there was overcooked and basically just jerky. I would not recommend the ribs.
The brisket was pretty dry. I was disappointed but most BBQ restaurants dry out their brisket so add a bunch of sauce and it tastes OK.
The pulled pork was also a little disappointing. It was dry and possibly from earlier in the day or the previous day’s cut. And it was a little too shredded for me. Unfortunately pulled pork is my favorite BBQ meat so this was a letdown. But just like the brisket, if you added enough sauce it tasted fine.
The Texas toast was nothing special (Sara Lee bread) but it tasted good with the garlic butter. And I thought it was a nice touch that you get half a slice in line as you’re ordering.
The cris cross fries weren’t very flavorful. They tasted like something I could buy at the grocery store. Kinda bland even with ketchup. Maybe add a homemade sauce or fry sauce for them?
The funeral potatoes made me feel a bit at home in Utah but they weren’t that special either. Just kinda standard funeral potatoes but still a nice side with all that meat.
Other comments…
The washing station is unique and a welcome sight in a BBQ restaurant. I hope other restaurants pay attention because I hate walking out of a BBQ joint looking for hand sanetizer in my car since the restaurant didn’t provide wet napkins or some way to wash your hands.
I’m a fan of having big squirt bottles of sauce at the table. It’s just easier to squirt a little sauce on your ribs or your other meat. Instead this place has their 3 sauces (sweet, tangy, spicy) in little plastic cups next to checkout. It felt a little like they were being stingy on their sauces. And where’s the classic BBQ sauce? Sometimes I want a bite with just a normal Costco-​style BBQ sauce. But overall I still liked the suaces.

I’m from Texas and Big Al’s was a good cure for food-​homesickness. It’s great quality. But we won’t be going back anytime soon, just because unlike getting it in the South somewhere, it was so dang expensive. My husband and I shared ONE plate/​combo thing and a drink and it still hit in the neighborhood of $ 15.00.
It makes me sad actually, because it’s great food and the service was also pretty excellent. Just not friendly to a college town budget.

There was a great atmosphere but the BBQ had some issues. I went there with my wife and we loved the layout. The restaurant was clean and It felt like a Texas cabin. Dining was casual and set up like a Chipotle or Café Rio. There is a cafeteria style line where they prepare your meal as you watch. The service was very friendly and helpful. It has a polished feeling like it could be franchise. However the food also tasted like it came from a franchise which to me is bad news.
We ordered the Big Al platter which comes with each of the different meats that they prepare and 2 sides. It included Pulled Pork, Brisket, Ribs, Smoked Sausage, Smoked Turkey, and 4 slices of Garlic Toast. For the 2 sides we got the house salad and the Sweet Potato Fries. We also asked to try all of their 3 sauces, sweet, tangy, and hot. All of the meats are smoked in Hickory.
Disclaimer I did go on a Saturday Afternoon shortly after opening. It is very likely that the meat was not from that day. I didn’t ask but I don’t know if they had time to smoke all the meats that day before opening that day.
individual ratings:
Brisket: It was well smoked and had a beautiful pink smoke ring on one side of the brisket. It looks like the brisket may only get exposed to the smoke on one side, because the other side of the brisket had no smoke ring. The portion was generous and the bark was very delicious. Once you eat the bark and smoke ring you will need sauce because it was very dry for me. The Brisket was cut on the bias instead of directly against the grain. This made it so there were more meat fibers to chew through. For the most part it was fall apart tender and had good flavor. With some tangy sauce it worked out perfectly well.
Pulled Pork: I could tell that the pork portion I received was from yesterday’s run. It was dry and shredded to the point of taco meat. It tasted like left over chicken. It was in desperate need of sauce. The spicy and sweet sauce made it more than palatable. There were some pieces of bark that were very good. Overall I would not attempt this pulled pork without sauce. It was satisfying but I would most likely go elsewhere for pulled pork.
Ribs: The bark on the ribs was smoky and sweet. It had a very good flavor. Unfortunately there were some technical errors that made my ribs unappetizing. My ribs were overdone and most of the rib had been converted to rib jerky. Also the silver-​skin was left on the bottom of the ribs. It was not a big deal for me that the silver-​skin was not removed but I know some people dislike it. The main reason to leave it is that the ribs may maintain more moisture. If this was the point of leaving this membrane on then that was a failure. The Ribs had good potential and if you love a sweet barky rib you may love this recipe. As long as you get a less dry batch.
Smoked Sausage: The sausage is bought from a distributor; they do not make it in house. I asked the staff. It was a very good sausage but mine had picked up zero smoke. The redeeming grace was the sauce. Without sauce it was like any store bought sausage on the market.
Turkey: Sweet savory flavor and a good amount of smoke. You could tell that the turkey breast was a water-​packed loaf. It was like that same kind of turkey they make cold cuts from. The flavor was good but the meat quality was disappointing. I could not tell if they cooked the meat or just smoked and warmed it. I like my smoked turkey to be smoked pink all the way through and super moist like a thanksgiving turkey. The turkey was good and the portion was large but it was not the best turkey ever.
House Salad: Bagged salad, nothing special no complaints either.
Sweet Potato Fries: They are waffle cut and have a good crisp. They are certainly good and require no condiments to have good flavor.
The Food was average for BBQ I would most likely go somewhere else to satisfy my BBQ cravings in the future, but I did not dislike the food. It was adequate. The atmosphere was fun and clean. The staff was friendly. They asked how my meal was at least 3 times and I told them I was enjoying it. I did enjoy myself at this restaurant but not as much as I love truly authentic BBQ. That is why I rated the restaurant A-​Ok 3 stars.

Big Al’s is expensive for what you get. The food is good and the atmosphere is nice. The employees are all very friendly. I think I prefer Tommy’s, which is very close by, because it is cheaper and the food is just as good (and the menu is much larger). Big Al’s is a little bit fancier than Tommy’s.

Good barbecue. They have all of the normal barbecue dishes with ribs, brisket, pork etc. Tasty sides and they even had funeral potatoes, a Utah staple food! I enjoyed the sweet and spicy sauces that came with the meals. Good casual dining atmosphere. The service was nice and friendly and the wash basin is a unique and nice touch. A lot better than cleaning yourself up with a small napkin or towel.

i wanted to try good bbq, so i thought i would try this place out. the pulled pork sand was not bad but i got 4 sides to try them all and they sucked no flavor or taste. and pretty expensive … after this experience i tried tommys just up the street and loved everything there… and the service at tommys was friendly and very helpfull… so go try tommys !!!
also avoid poor boys in payson. ewwww yuck worst food ever.

This place was great. It reminded me of my uncles BBQ in the south during family reunions. The portions are big and will fill you up. It’s pricey but worth it.

One of my favorite places to eat, blows any other BBQ place out of the water by far. Try the brisket sandwich. They made the prices better.

It’s a nice facility with better than average BBQ. I love the nice wash basins along the wall to wash up after the meal. They deserve a star just for that.
The wife and I tried it out for dinner tonight. BBQ really needs a beer to go with it, but since nobody else has beer, it’s a moot point. We split the three meat meal. I asked for ribs, pulled pork and brisket. At first I was told they were out or ribs, so I asked for sausage. Then they said they had some. So, they threw in the few pieces of sausage already cut for free. Superficially, it’s all looks like it’s going to be great. However, upon taking some time to eat it, the issues show up.
The girl making the texas garlic toast over griddled the bread. It tastes somewhat burned, and it wasn’t the best to start with. The guy cutting the brisket didn’t know there was a fatty and lean end. After talking a little, I got some cut off the fatty end. It was very moist and cooked well. It was the best of the meats we had. That’s a big kudo to the smoking of the brisket. It moved the review from 3 to 4 stars. The pulled pork looked moist, but it turns out it’s not very moist. I didn’t get any bark either. The real disappointment was the ribs. Instead of a smoke ring, it was «smoke ring» all the way through. That made the ribs somewhat bitter. There doesn’t appear to be any rub, so there was no flavor but the smoke. The sausage l got was really mild. Too mild for my taste. The sauce was OK. The cole slaw was mayo based with no vinegar to cut through the BBQ.
I know I’ve been pretty harsh considering the rating. In some respects that’s because it’s better than many places and it’s only in the details it’s not the best. So far it’s my number two choice in the valley, but there’s more to check out. BBQ seems to be everywhere these days. So, the verdict is better than average BBQ. I’d come back again if I was in the Provo area.