Lucille’s

Seasoning is key with BBQ and most any kind of soul food… isn’t it?
I ordered 2 shrimp and grits meals, and a burnt ends BBQ meal for delivery which took 2 hrs, thankfully I wasn’t extra hungry, and we just wanted to try them out… the food needed more flavor and seasoning, and while the food was decent it honestly taste like left overs and I wouldn’t believe it if I was told it was made the same day I ordered it (you can see from my pictures it’s not fresh). I was underwhelmed by the experience, and had it been from a friend or family’s home I would be ok, but paying for it… I have a few things to say about my meals.
The burnt ends weren’t well seasoned and had a light BBQ sauce on them, there were maybe 7 pieces of burnt ends BBQ pork, one of which was not edible as it was pure fat. There was Mac n cheese, red beans and rice… nothing special, and greens which had a lot of salt and seasoning in them so you had to eat it with the mac n cheese to balance it out.
I also ordered 2 orders of the shrimps and grits, with 4 pieces of shrimp each, again there was minimal to no seasoning. Just shrimp on top of grits. There could have been more of a sauce with the shrimp, and the grits weren’t creamy, but thick like they had been made the day before or that morning.
Overall the food didn’t taste fresh and needed more flavor. I like leftovers, and this taste like left overs, but I don’t want to pay $ 46.51 for it.
I can’t say that I will be eating hear again, it might be a hit or miss type of place.

I love BBQ so we got a groupon for take out. We ordered Burnt Ends, Hot Links, Mac & Cheese, and corn bread. The corn bread was good, and everything else was incredibly delicious! I read the reviews on Unilocal before I ordered so I knew not to expect great customer service. I ordered over the phone and since the online menu doesn’t totally match the in house menu, it took a while to work it out with the guy to what I wanted to order, but we worked it out. I found the guy and his mom amusing. This is a mom and son restaurant who seem like they are just trying to make an honest living serving people BBQ. If you have expectations of a typical restaurant experience, you’re going to be disappointed. If you go here for great BBQ, you will be pleased.

My wife and I went there on a Tuesday evening with no expectations and it was a really pleasant experience. The owner Gail is very nice and loved to tell stories. Her son was cooking and told us that they were out of a few things, but that didn’t bother us. It felt like going to a friend’s house for dinner and sitting around talking about stuff. We ordered the fried chicken with sides of plantains and red beans/​rice, and another plate of fish with sides of greens and yams. We were stuffed by the end!
We read the reviews on Unilocal and it is hard to believe that any of the comments are true. In my opinion to truly get to know a place, and enjoy the experience you have to go in with an open mind, heart, and stomach. Having and running a business is not easy. If you have an experience that isn’t as good as you expected, try thinking about how tough it must be to please so many people everyday before writing the review. I get it though, people expect the world for their hard-​earned cash, but also the world needs a little more mercy too.

This was a couple of months ago… There was a Groupon and I was craving chicken &waffles with a side of mac n cheese. The place was empty and looked like the only ones who had ordered food. It sounded like the cook was frying my chicken, I forgot what my boyfriend ordered. The cook walked out after 15 min cooking… We were confused like okay, wtf? Lol so he comes back after 5 – 10 min… Overall our wait was about 45 min which is understandable cause the chicken and waffles are made to order.
Once we got home, my waffle was not as thoroughly cooked. Oh and the chicken which I thought he took so much time on, was hella greasy and was not cooked all the way! I couldn’t eat anything but the Mac n cheese. I was so sad! I really wanted to like this place cause it was across the street from the house. I convinced my boyfriend to try it and it was a bust!

I wish I could give it a 5 star but due to the customer service I will average it out to a 3.
Decided to try this place after driving countless times after picking my sister up from school.
We got to the restaurant at 4:55pm; the sign on the window said Opened, however on the door it said closed. After pushing the door opened I asked if they were opened, in which a lady said they were and why would they be closed? I replied that it was confusing as one sign said opposite to the other. Anyways, the entire restaurant was empty and we found a table to sit down. The lady brought over our menus then took our orders. We both ordered a small plate of Jambalaya & side order of Mac and cheese. In the waiting period; the table was empty. We were not given any waters as we had asked; no utensils or napkins. The lady started chatting it up with a customer or friend who had walked inside the place. We waited for an hour!!! we see the cook huffing and puffing and brings us corn bread? In which I was confused but he said it was on the house. Then we hear him telling the lady you didn’t bring them waters, no utensils? then walks back to the kitchen. 15 mins later our food finally comes. But still no utensils or napkins. When I asked for a knife the lady asked me what I needed one, I told her because I’m used to eating with one. In which she tells me oh you don’t need a knife to eat Jambalaya. but what am I to tell you, this is a mom & pop restaurant.
The jambalaya was too spicy for me to eat and enjoy after a couple of bites I gave up. The mac and cheese and corn bread were just right. In the time we were eating, the lady continued to chat it up with the other customer and another client had walked in to place a to go order. I guess after 15 mins of waiting to be attended the client left. The chef apologized several times and he told me that his mom is the owner of the restaurant and he and his brother are usually the cooks but his brother couldn’t be there today. He also apologized for the long wait and was upset his mother didn’t inform us of the wait or bring us waters and utensils.
Not sure if I will be coming back, the food is delicious but it was the service that made my experience such a debbie downer.

Visited with a Groupon about a month ago and found that they were extremely slow. But… the food was actually excellent! It’s a shame because they simply weren’t staffed to deliver great service asking with great food. The chef was the son of the owner and his mama or somebody taught that man how to cook!
We ordered the oxtails and the gumbo. Both were excellent. I will say that the plantains were just okay, but that could have been the plant or the prep. Not sure. I did find myself wanting to go wait tables while I waited because the owner is funny and sweet as pie. For those who’ve had bad experiences, please give them another try — but this time, maybe call ahead… Hopefully the staff situation has been addressed.

This is the suburb… San Leandro, CA… the no man’s land of restaurants. San Leandro, home of Lucille’s, a joint that we would award ZERO stars if Unilocal allowed that.
First, the phone call to place our order… though they offer delivery in big letters on their in-​store sign and online, they obviously do NOT want to follow through on that. Quickly realizing that from the attitude of the Lucille’s employee who took our order, we volunteered to come pick up the grub. About half of the items we had chosen to order were unavailable, we were told, so we settled on beef brisket with sides of mac and cheese, string beans, and black eyed peas.
The brisket seasoning was pretty good, but the meat had the texture of a BF Goodrich tire. Our plates were covered in spat out, non-​chewable pieces in no time. For reasons of health and self-​respect, almost none of the meat got to our stomachs, because it was difficult to find actual flesh among the pools and rivers of fat and gristle. When you cut a piece of brisket (and really good brisket doesn’t require a knife!) and you hear a sawing sound, there’s something amiss. The remains of Lucille’s beef brisket now lines our green bin, and neighborhood dogs have shown interest. But in the interest of the dogs’ safety, we have turned them away.
If you MUST try this place, the brisket should be your last choice.
The side orders, mac and cheese, string beans, and black-​eyed peas, are rather tough to screw up, and though they weren’t delightful, they were at least edible, providing us with the fuel that could not be extracted from the worthless and cringe-​worthy beef brisket.
If you drive by Lucille’s and notice people dining inside, rest assured they are there for their very first time. Because no one would go to Lucille’s twice. We sure won’t.

#FAIL.
I ordered a delivery tonight. They did not confirm. Did not answer my calls, yet they accepted my money. Just a another business that does not hold their end of the bargain. I imagine that they’ll end up like every other soul food restaurant in the the area. Doomed like «The Nacho Spot». Do what you say that you’ll do and be there when you say you will. Otherwise, you’ll be another boarded up shop like the rest in San Leandro.

I had a Groupon $ 10 off if you spend $ 20, so we tried it. I ordered the Burnt Ends rib dinner and my two sides were potato salad and rice and beans. My boyfriend orderd the Fried chicken dinner with potato salad and rice and beans.
First of all I have to preface my review by saying we got there before 5 and they opened at 5. You seat yourself so we found a table. The ONLY complaint (an it’s not really a complaint) is that it took a long time to prepare our food… but like I said we got there earlier than their opening time. Also, their entrees are cooked to order so it takes a little longer. But I’d much rather wait than to have food heated up.
My Burnt Ends dinner was to die for. I have never had better tasting ribs, which, because they were burnt ends, were almost ALL meat with a few little bones, nothing to speak of. The potato salad was delish, it reminded me of the kind my mom used to make growing up. The rice and beans were yummy. My boyfriend’s fried chicken was excellent. We got our corn bread late because it had just come out of the oven (like I said, we got there too early). It was piping hot with the butter melting down the sides (I like it that way). The only thing I wish is that you could order it without the jalapenos because they were too hot for me… they are baked in the corn bread. It was delicious otherwise, not dry at all, nice and moist.,
We will definitely go back and I’ll probably order the Burnt Ends Dinner (which isn’t on the in house menu, it was on their website. I gave it 5 stars because everything was EXTREMELY TASTY …

After weeks, I still shudder in udder disgust when thinking of «eating» here. After waiting 50 minutes for food you get hungry and you eat just about everything.
Like many other folks here, we too had a very, very sad experience.
Dear Management: you have nobody to blame but yourself. Don’t blame the chicken, or the alleged help you can’t find. I wouldn’t want to work for you either. I am really sorry you are spending all your energy, time, money and hopes. You need to first learn how to run and manage a place where folks can come and eat and enjoy food. You have potential, just no clue.
The sorry list:
— — — — — —
— trashy tables and floors
— 50 minute wait time for food
— Cabbage was not suitable for human consumption, probably from the cold war era
— Fried Chicken looked good, but was bland
— sticky bathroom floors
— blaring television with news. Management: who is the TV for? You or the guests? Put it on mute and turn on closed captions if you feel you want to provide news feed to your guests.
— Mac ‘n Cheese was some sticky dish. Was edible though.
The fries on the other hand were surprisingly good. Did you get them from the box?
Folks you have been warned.

Gots to keep it in the family when you want soul food. Stop by today on my lunch break and got the works full and ready to go to bed taste so good you’ll want to slap your mama

Checked in here the other day with a friend and a Groupon. They were late opening up. We ordered the cat fish but we got flavorless nuggets instead. They were over cooked in what appeared to be old oil. In addition, they were hard, crunchy and Vienna sausage small. The greens were crunchy like chips, tart and not edible but compose ready. The dirty rice was actually seasoned white rice with ant sized pieces of meat and green onions. My friend had the yams and described them as tasting like cotton candy — YUCK!
Did I mention that we waited 2 hours for our (COLD) food and I lost 10 pounds waiting for it? Geez!!!
The diet Coke was flat and watery, as was the lemonade. I am a huge supporter of local, small businesses and I just cannot support people that open doors as a side line hobby, as opposed to a functional business. This is as bad as it gets. I would bet my two front teeth that this business does not sustain for much longer.
Bottom line: I would not donate the food that we tried to consume. Shut the door now!

So wanted to have a local place for good cuisine. Don;t waste your Groupon money here. Waited 40 minutes for some of the worst food I’ve ever had. What went wrong? See below:
1. You cannot call a hot dog a hot link, regardless how its prepared
2. Mac N Cheese made with spaghetti noddles?
3. If you stir grits enough, they won’t get lumpy. If you get lumps, fork them out before you serve
4. Two prawns and a sea of bay shrimp in the lumpy grits
5. Greens tasted like the pot got burned and mines were in the middle of the pot. Did not taste burned, but smelled like a burned pot. Smell is half the taste of any food
6. Canned yams, Seriously… CANNED YAMS?
7. Waited 40 minutes. Oh I already said that
8. For people with MSG allergy’s make sure you tell them not to prepare your food with this poison. I told them and hope that I don’t end up in the ER in the morning.

I so wanted this to be wonderful and to be the one person who would leave a good review.
I am sorry to say I cannot. I wish I had listened to my fellow Unilocalers.
The menu is great. That’s all.
We ordered around 4:45. It arrived after 7. The order was wrong. My lemonade was delivered to someone else. They gave us beans instead of yams. They forgot one of our bread puddings.
The food was not cold but lukewarm.
It was just a bad experience.
I so wanted to say positive things. Unfortunately, I have to agree with others. They may not be in business long.

Lucille’s had a single table at 6ish. i looked at menu on line before coming. menu in house is totally different. very few offerings. fine with me. easier to choose.
eats: oyster ‘po boy sammie (9.5)
–3 semi-​fried dollar sized oysters in a hog dog bun. yep.
–seasoning little beyond red onions and mayo?
–nice fresh oyster taste. not a food value
fries lightly browned, not crispy
–not exactly mushy but ate it like fried mushed potato
take outs:
–chef cheerful and welcoming, thanked me for coming
–waitress/​moody. smiled when she handed me the food.
–food is fresh, pricey, 2.5 stars for value.

I found out about this place via Groupon because there was one listed there for this place $ 8 for $ 18 worth of food for takeout. So I looked them up on Unilocal and the first few reviews were good then I went to look at their Facebook page, the food looked so good and I thought I would give them a try. Lucille’s is located in San Leandro and the building it is in has been quite a few places that didn’t last like a previous soul food restaurant and a BBQ spot. I was a little apprehensive in that regard but still bought the Groupon and gave them a try.
I walked into the restaurant about 1 hour before closing and there was only one patron in there dining but I didn’t see any employees. I waited at the register looking around for about 5 minutes then someone finally came to greet me and hand me a menu. Looking over the menu I was a bit disappointed because there wasn’t too much to choose from so I just picked what sounded good and quickly ordered Shrimp & Grits, Mac N Cheese, Greens and Dirty Rice. I wanted some dessert (which wasn’t listed on the menu), I saw on their FB that they had Red Velvet Cheesecake but the cook said the baker only did desserts on a certain day or something like that, like seriously?! I’ve never heard of that so that had me a bit annoyed.
I sat down and waited for my food, considering there was nobody there I felt that my food would have come out fast but I waited a long 40 minutes. I got it to go which was a good thing because a little bit before my food was ready they were already closing up and locking the door. The shrimp & grits was a huge let down, I’ve had many different variations from a few restaurants but this was by far the worst I’ve had. The grit definitely weren’t stone ground grits, they tasted like those instant out the box grits, the sauce was not good and the shrimp were rubbery. Mac n cheese was very sub par, not flavorful and cheesy like I’d expected. The greens were ok but the dirty rice was blah, glad I had a Groupon for this place because if I paid what they were charging for food I didn’t even enjoy then I would have been mad. I will not be returning, by the looks of all the latest reviews and how their food tastes they won’t be around too much longer.

Waitress didn’t say ‘hello’ or smiled. just handed me the menu which wasn’t very extensive. Got a groupon deal and did not expect the wait to be so long. Manager i think was friendly and threw in bourbon bread pudding for me and the bf to try while we waited for our food, so an extra star for that. Fried catfish poboy was in a hotdog bun… weird, but ok. The catfish poboy lacked in flavor, but prefectly fried. Not worth the $ 8 though… Bourbon bread pudding was delicious. Don’t think i’ll be back though…

Oh how I wish this was good. First it was so so slow the food took forever. Then when we finally got the food no no no flavor. I really wanted to like this place! the yams were dry and not seasoned. the chicken was the only decent thing we got. The greens tasted like they came out of the can. Hopefully they can step it up after reading all the reviews.

Very DISAPPOINTING experience… thank goodness we had a Groupon for this. I woulda been really pissed if I paid for that at reef l regular price. Maybe I’m giving 2 stars because we were hungry &the best thing we ate was the fried chicken… but then again it wasn’t as crispy as I would have preferred. In any case that was really the only thing we liked. We got $ 8.50 fried chicken with greens & yams (she didn’t tell us till 30 mins into our wait that they were out of black eyed peas) & $ 11.50 shrimp étouffée with makk & cheese & yams. I got 9 tiny shrimp in my étouffée… not very seasoned & unimpressive. Yams tasted like they just finished boiling them & forgot to include seasoning. Makk & Cheese was just as disappointing… greasy & no flavor… common theme no flavor! Not coming back.

I don’t think this place will be in business very long. I came for take-​out a little after 7:30 on a Saturday night and the sandwich board out front said «OPEN» even though the sign on the door read: «Sorry, we’re Closed.» I should have listened to the door instead of the sandwich board…
At first they told me they were closed, but I explained how confusing the sign out front versus the sign on the door was and the chef agreed to take my order as long as it was simple. «Catfish plate. Dirty Rice. Greens.» — that was my wife’s order. That’s when they told me they were out of dirty rice. I should have left as soon as they told me that (a CAJUN & CREOLE place runs out of dirty rice???), but I didn’t listen to my second warning, asked them to substitute mac & cheese and gave them my order. «Jerk Chicken?» Not available (I realized it was a daily special later, which made sense). «Today’s special?» Not sure. Let me check…
Long story short, after I repeat my wife’s order to a new guy who came from the back (the manager?) and place my order («Fried Chicken. Yams. Green Beans.»), I find out that they only have chicken wings left. Fine. I’m hungry.
While I’m waiting, a family who had been there since I walked in complained to the manager (?) about the music being too loud because they were sitting right under the speaker. The manager goes to turn it down and the server tells him not to turn it down too much, even though he explained the family was sitting right under the speaker.
Anyway… I get my food, drive home, open it up…
…and there’s one piece of fish in my wife’s order. And it wasn’t even a big piece (see for yourself:
sugar packet is there to show relative size)! That’s when I got mad. Didn’t I pay $ 21 DOLLARS for our meals? The least you could do is put another piece of fish in the dinner!
Too many stems on my wife’s greens. Way too much black pepper on my green beans (is that supposed to be Cajun?). The three wings I got tasted okay, but overall the meals were disappointing. Needless to say, I won’t be going back.