Famous Dave’s

Have not been here for awhile but I was expecting the same great tastes as before. This time my chicken sandwich was not that great tasting as it used to be and did not seem to be made the same as it was before. My companion had roasted chicken and told me it seemed like the chicken had been kept warm in water and then some sauce put on it before bringing to the table to make it look better. I tried a little of it and I was not impressed. Yes, the food was brought to the table within about 5 minutes, so it had to all have been made some time before we came. The food was OK, but, not great like it used to be to in my opinion.

We were on vacation for the 4^th of July weekend when we visited Famous Dave’s. This is the 2^nd time I’ve been there since we don’t have one in Sacramento. The best part about this place is THE SAUCE. If you’re a saucy person you will LOVE this place :)
They have tons of different sauces but my personal fav is «Devil’s Spit». If you like spicy this is the sauce for you! It goes great on anything. fries, sandwiches, ribs, chicken etc.
I had the ½ order of BBQ Ribs (6 bones). It comes with two sides and a slice of yummy cornbread. The reason this review only got 4 stars out of 5 is bc of the meat. It was a good amount, but a tad bit dry. STILL DELICIOUS. I had some devil’s spit on the side and dipped each rib into the sauce. My sides were fries and mac & cheese. Both were spot on! With some sweet tea to quench my thirst… I left with a fully belly!
If you’re feeling adventurous try their bread pudding. Comes with a large scoop of vanilla ice cream and could feed the entire family (4 – 5 ppl). I only had just a few bites because I was too full, but my dad devoured it!
⁴⁄₅.

The BBQ Brisket is nothing compared to the quality it used to be. The food was slow to come out. And they do not have the delicious cornbread muffins anymore! That is a failure on their part. Not impressed with the new menu…

OK. It’s Famous Dave’s…it’s not exceptional but it has always been reliable. You know exactly what you’re going to get. Until now. They have made some changes-​some good-​some not so good.
First the good, because I like to keep it positive. They have a new bigger assortment of bottled beer-​and 2 tap beers! Moar beer-​one IPA and one Blonde. I really like IPA and this one was really good. My husband had the blonde and he liked it too.
Now for the changes we didn’t feel were improvements… first, they removed my husband’s reason for stepping into FD’s, the Devil’s Spit burger. Gone from the menu. They made him a regular burger and put pepper-​jack cheese and bacon on it with the Devil’s Spit sauce — but they no longer put brisket on the burger nor do they have jalapeño bacon. He thought his burger was OK, but he declared it was time to find a new favorite burger place when we were finished.
Next, they changed their cornbread. It used to be a wonderful little muffin, and now it is a piece of corn cake. Tasted like a cross between cornbread and yellow cake.
They also changed their plating-​used to come out in a tin lid that kept all your food contained. Now it’s on a white platter. I was constantly shoving my food back onto the plate so it wouldn’t topple over the sides.
They only put Rich & Sassy and Sweet & Zesty sauces on the table. I had to hunt down Devils Spit, and had to ask for Ketchup.
I had roasted chicken and it was good. My son had ribs and he said they were great. So not everything has changed. Our food was much slower coming out to the table than usual, but the server was nice and the food was hot-​and I had a cold IPA to suck down until our food arrived, so I was content.

NO MORE CORN MUFFINS. You read that right. This place has been slowly but surely falling down the BBQ ladder one rung at a time, but they just took a nosedive. Instead of the meal-​saving corn muffins that used to be a staple, they’re now serving a square of cornbread. Smaller. No muffin top. Grrrr!
Corn on the cob. Mushy. Plain. Didn’t these used to come with at least a little salt? Or –something-​?
Fries. A handful. There used to be so many more.
The ribs were good, and that’s why I gave 2 stars instead of one. Carry out dinner for two without drinks was over $ 41.00. WHAT?! I remember when the 6 rib dinner was $ 12.99. The fries were abundant, the corn wasn’t tasteless mush, and there were corn muffins. What did you do with the corn muffins?!
Seriously, Famous Dave’s. If any halfway-​decent rib joint moves into the Cities, you’re sunk. I think I may be officially done with you anyway.

So it’s easy to overlook Famous Dave’s. I love BBQ and consider myself a bit of a connoisseur. Famous Dave’s is a solid option for Bar B Que in the Twin Cities.
We were here to celebrate my Mom’s birthday. it was a great place for a crowd, our service was quick (once the family could decide on what we wanted) and the food was good, even my kids and nephews like it.
My two favorite things on the menu are brisket and the chicken wings. Both are fantastic; we also had some ribs (delicious), pulled pork and chicken. All good… not the place I will go to all the time but solid BBQ.

My husband and I went for lunch today and was very impressed with Famous Dave’s on Snelling. It has been 6 months since we last ate there and it wasn’t memorable. They have changed to serving the food on plates instead of baskets which I really like. The music is a more current picks of country music. The food was amazingly fresh. I had the roasted chicken and it was very moist and served hot. Several staff checked on us to see how things were. Some things are still what you expect here… bbq shack décor, free refills on tea and pop and terrific sides. I will be back.

Sad to say, but Famous Daves is starting to lose sight of who they are.
In this location, only 2 of their sauces are available on the table.
My side of beans had only five beans in it, and a ton of sauce and at least two different meats.
The food is now served on mod style plates, instead of the classic baskets.
Avoid unless you really need a small meat fix.

Sometimes I feel like I take Famous Dave’s for granted because it is a chain but I’m reminded why I keep coming back every time I have a bite of the Wilbur beans and those delicious rib tips with the devils spit. I might not be a BBQ pro but I can tell when meat is cooked the proper way. The Wilbur beans have chunks of pork in them and are perfectly smoky and sweet.
The takeout area can get swamped so I actually prefer eating there because it’s much faster. I usually get the appetizer sampler with a side of fries or else the garbage plate to share. It’s always way too much food but the leftovers taste just as good.
Love: rib tips, Wilbur beans, corn bread (moist), onion strings
Loathe: coleslaw – too creamy/​bland
FYI they have their own parking lot and are right off Snelling.

My wife and I had a free sandwich coupon here from joining the email club and my mom was in town from Rochester helping out my sister in Rochester, so «What the heck?!» Let’s hit a Famous Dave’s I have never been to on Snelling.
It is a counter style joint, where you order and then bring out your food to the table. I got the Texas Brisket sandwich with the voucher and they were super cool and gave my wife a plain grilled chicken breast and 2 corn bread muffins. Her FAVORITE!
I also ordered a Summit EPA, I got this puny 12 ounce glass for like $ 5.75. What?! I was kind of pissed off at this price for like 6 gulps of beer. Anyway, no big whoop, except it was a big whoop. It cost them from 4 to 3 stars.
My sandwich came with cubed brisket hunks, I really prefer their pulled meats, so I know to get those in the future. I drenched everything in the super hot Wilber sauce. I was sweating by the end. I may have to roll it back to Devil Spit. I ordered my mashed potatoes as the side. Super awesome with the BBQ sauce!
My wife gave me two bites of her grilled chicken and they were 5 star, if I could give 6, I would give it for those.
I have heard rumors that they cook all this stuff at a central location and ship it out to their franchises. Dear Lord, I hope not, but as I think of it more, it could be the Applebee’s of Twin Cities BBQ. I hope to God I am wrong. I want a huge smoker around, with a guy sweating over it ever 40 minutes. Pray to God, I am wrong. (I am guessing I am correct.)

we kill our portions everytime we come here. yum!

I haven’t been here in awhile and I thought I’d check back.
We had some nice lunch specials — Rib Tips and Chopped Pork with a side of Beans for me.
The tips were very good. They had a nice crispy outside but the meat was tender. The chopped pork comes on Texas toast. It wasn’t bad, but next time I’ll double up on the tips. The side of beans was tasty as were the signature pickles. The corn meal muffin was a good closer.
My wife had catfish and brisket which she rates «thumbs up» /​«its ok».
Apparently Dave himself was there on some sort of promo — I think they won some recent award. (see the pic with him and the pig). The pig was lively and I even saw him dancing with ladies from a nearby table.
Dance a jig with a pig? I’d renege.

Dave’s smells as good inside as it does outside. A Minnesota classic, dependable, tasty.

Say it loud, I love their sides and I’m proud!

Fantastic Texas style BBQ. Every time we get the two person feast and it’s enough for a family of four. Great food, excellent sides and the price is very reasonable.

Worst BBQ in the cities unless you like fake BBQ. I ate here once and laughed at the supposed BBQ they were serving. NONE of the food is smoked in-​house. They have one place they smoke their BBQ and then send it out to all of their restaurants to RE-​HEAT.
I just judged the KCBS Sam’s Club BBQ National Championship Regional Contest last weekend in Woodbury. Famous Dave’s was entered and «Famous» Dave was there cooking. There were 30 teams in the contest.
«Famous» Dave placed 27^th out of 30.

I’m not expecting real BBQ when I head to Famous Dave’s. I’m under no illusion that the pit master is back there slaving over the low and slow cooked meat with special love and attention. What I am expecting is that they could figure out how to cook and present a burger properly. The new thing here is the Brisket Hamburgers. All the advertising and reviews I’ve seen led me to Famous Dave’s to see what all the fuss is about.
Here’s what the fuss is about: a $ 13 burger that was so overcooked that I felt bad for the cow. I’d be surprised if it was a ¹⁄₃ lb burger. It looked more like a ¼ lb and after being cooked it was probably closer to ¹⁄₈ lb. The bun was cold and stale. The toppings were so sparse and measly I couldn’t believe it. I should have just sent it back but my wife doesn’t like a «scene». I don’t remember the last time I paid $ 13 for a burger. I was so utterly disappointed.
This particular FD is still the walk up counter service, which I like. I’ve been to Famous Dave’s before and the food was OK. The chopped pork sandwich is pretty good. The ribs are OK. But this time was such a travesty that I hope Dave is ashamed of what he’s let his chain become.

The BBQ is pretty good and they have tons of sauces to try. I prefer the Sweet and Sassy, which is also available at Rainbow. I really liked the pulled pork and jalapeño Mac and cheese. The ribs were thick and tender but a tad dry. Same with the beef brisket. It’s decent food but for the money, I’d go to Rudolph’s, Dixie’s or Big Daddy’s.
This restaurant has fun ambience and is very casual. You order when you enter and then your food is delivered. Only a few beer options are available and the Pepsi fountain is self serve. I like the paper towel roll at the table and the sink in the dining room for washing up. It’s suitable for this finger lickin food!

This Famous Daves is pretty good; however, it’s still one of the few left that you need to walk up, order, take a pig number, fill your own drink and then sit down and wait for your food. Most of the others in the metro have been remodeled to be completely wait service with full bars.
That being said, I still enjoy this Famous Dave’s. I think some of it might because it is still very much the «original» layout, not that I do not appreciate the ease of the newer styles.
The food is always fast and tasty — the brisket is wonderful. And the staff are typically friendly.

I went here thinking that I would surely blow my diet and calorie counting. I took it as a sign that there was a sign on the counter offering 600 calorie dinners. I usually obey signs. I ordered the 600 calorie pork tenderloins and had them throw in a couple of «naked ribs.» Everything was very, very good. The pork was grilled perfectly and was moist. The ribs were equally as good and were falling off the bone. The super nice touch was the grilled pineapple (About a third of an entire pineapple). Oh yea, and some broccoli. Great meal and not too long of a wait either.