Big John’s Alabama Bar-B-Q

I would have to say one of the all time best BBQ in Tampa!!! Family owned and operated from the beginning and the love and passion shows in the fantastic BBQ they serve. If you plan on having lunch come early or late cause it’s the prime busy time for this place and you might have to wait a bit for the tasty goodness you will receive. The chopped Pork and sausage are some of my go to as well as the Mac and cheese and greens. If your looking for some authentic Florida BBQ look no further if you have landed here!!!

This place is awesome! Everything I have had has been on point and so delicious. It is now my family’s go to spot for great BBQ. The staff is friendly and the food is always fresh and hot. The portions are generous. I would definitely recommend Big John’s.
Ps– their peach cobbler is some of the best I’ve had.

TAMPA — Tampa Catholic had everything going its way this season. A 16-​game win streak. A pair of Division I recruits — Thomas Dziagwa and Kevin Knox — who ranked as the top two scorers in the Tampa Bay area.
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But the Crusaders still have trouble getting past their Catholic counterpart in Hillsborough County.
Jesuit continued its stranglehold in the series, beating Tampa Catholic 63 – 51 on Friday in a heavily anticipated matchup between two of the top teams in the area. The Tigers have won seven of the past nine meetings.
This was supposed to be the year the Crusaders (16 – 2) broke through, especially with the talent they possessed this season.
But the Tigers (15 – 2) had been equally impressive this season and had some quality wins, including one against powerhouse St. Peter’s (N.J.) Prep on Dec. 29 at a national Jesuit tournament in Washington D.C.
Still, nothing can top Friday’s victory over the rival Crusaders.
«It’s the best feeling in t

Same owner, slightly different location. This place has been around for many years.
I like the new restaurant as there are more tables & it makes it easier to eat on site.
You see Big John back there working the meat like a seasoned pro that he is!
IMHO, you really can’t compare indie Florida BBQ, to Carolina, Texas, Arkansas or any other state, each is totally unique.
I have been coming here for many years & hope to continue for many more. Gotta admit my fave is the pork ribs, but I have never had a bad meal here. Often, if I am in the area, I grab a bag of food to go.
The meats are always super tender, without being overcooked. They are moist & not chewy. I like the rub & ok, I admit I have had better sauce, but it is unique. Not too sweet or overwhelming with vinegar.
The sides are all good & 1 thing I can say for this restaurant is, it is consistent, down to the white bread.
For sides I love the baked beans & potato salad, I have tried all over the years, but usually pick these.
The sweet potato pie is totally delish. If you think you don’t like it, just give it a try!
What’s a girl to do? White bread… I can always feed the ducks.

Rare I get over to this side of town, but totally worth it! Big John’s has what you need to feed the hunger!

This place was great! Found them here on Unilocal,as I am visiting a friend and from the west coast. I had the ribs and sausage, greens and macaroni salad. The ribs were good and full of flavor, even without the BBQ sauce. I had the original BBQ sauce on the side and it had good flavor. The sausage had great flavor too.
Good/​large size portions for good price. I didn’t finish all my food and had enough for left over for lunch the next day.
The staff was really nice. Gave some suggestions when asking about the items on the menu and checked how we were doing after getting our food.
I will be back if I am visiting the area again.

Everything is really good! Pulled pork, Ribs, Mac n Cheese, Baked beans, Collard greens, coconut cake.

Excellent smoked BBQ meats. The BBQ is tender, well cooked and jiucy. My favorite is the thin end rib dinner with collards and Mac n Cheese. Smoked sausage is also terrific. The place is very smoky with the huge pit right behind the counter but exactly what you expect in a sho-​nuff BBQ Joynt. A mixed crowd dines in or take the goodies with them.

I have said this in one other Unilocal review but here it goes again. If you don’t like this place, it’s YOU! April and the crew are simply the best. After my heart surgery one the things that I could not wait to get a taste of was some (although, not as much or as often) was some Big John’s! I too have been eating here for years and have no idea what people are talking about when they say it was better before. It has NEVER been better than it is today! Better food, food choices, faster service, better parking, Better everything!

This place is amazing! Great food, friendly service, very clean restaurant with a wonderful «homey» feel. Fair prices too. Everything is homemade from scratch and you can definitely taste the love! I like how you can see the BBQ pit when you order at the counter (olé Betsy!). The only downside is I don’t live close by:(

After reading some of the other reviews, I had to wonder if we were all talking about the same place! We have been loyal customers for many years. Like 10 + years since they were in the old location that had to have a police officer at the door… not good. But hey, I’m willing to risk my life for some great BBQ! :-) the family that runs it is AWESOME, we love them to death. They are a wonderful bunch who all work hard to keep the business going. I usually get at least one hug. My son who was about 12 at the time, he’s in his mid 20’s now, nicknamed this place Uncle Fat Asses BBQ, (sorry: ()as the guy who ran the oven was BIIIIIIGGGG, he has since lost a lot of weight but the name kind of stuck and although its rude, its a family joke name and we mean no disrespect at all, in fact its more like a term of endearment and used with love… for the yummy stuff that comes out of there. The meat is all tender delicious and fresh. The ribs are huge. They actually chop the pork and beef so its tender and yummy. Chicken is moist and tender. Sauce outstanding but mild is definitely mild. Try the hot. Their baked beans are not canned. They are homemade with a brown sugary cinnamony flavor to die for. They will NOT give out the recipe or even tell you whats in it. Its more jealously guarded than the recipe for crabby patties. Potato salad macaroni salad and mac n cheese all yummy. If you are lucky, they will have some lemon cake or sweet potato pie left BUT don’t hold your breath. The best buys are the 2 meat or 3 meat dinners with sides… plenty for 2 hungry people. The sausage is spicy and killer. I like the 3 meat with ribs, white meat chicken and beef. add a rib. Or ribs, sausage and chop pork. We always fight over the beans so get double beans for your sides and a side of something else. They always give u a couple pieces of white bread (unnecessary). This place has been nationally recognized yet you don’t see anything on the walls like awards etc. I asked once and a very nice lady told me they had all the business they could handle right now without any formal advertising, if word got out that they were a BEST OF place, the lines out the door would just get longer. Aw. love!!! :-)

Boyfriend and I were out of local bbq joints since Mike’s up the road is closed for renovations. We tried the beef, chicken, pork and sausage, as well as potato and macaroni salad sides.
Verdict?
All of it was amazing. Great taste, quality, price and portions. The service was great, too.
We’re fans and will gladly be returning.

AMAZING barbecue place! Both times I’ve been in, the guys in the front have been cool and really nice. The pulled pork is tender and smoky and the macaroni and cheese is gorgeous. Go and enjoy, but make sure you grab a lot of napkins!

I had heard this was the place to get bbq when in Tampa. I got the hungry man platter. It was HUGE! Two people could share it. I didn’t. It had a variety of all the meats and two large sides. The brisket and ribs were my favorite. I got collard greens and baked beans as my side. Delicious is all I can say. The bbq was some of the best I have ever had. Definitely on my next trip to Tampa, I will be back. I wish the dessert menu had been better. I passed on that. I would also suggest getting the food to go. The smoke had alot of people coughing. At first I did not notice it until my friend and I were eating and my eyes got irritated.

This place has the greatest BBQ in the world, I love it the give you way more than what you deserve, their baked beans, macaroni salad, and potatoe salad is awesome, I try to go every friday.

During this visit I was with a group of 5 we came in for lunch @ 10:30. The food wasn’t good & neither was the customer service.
They were out of thin end, so I got the center cut rib dinner. The ribs were not cooked today it was obvious they were warmed up. They were tough & cooked too quickly. The meat doesn’t come of the bone easily and the flavor was weak. The sauce served w/​my order wasn’t impressive. Taste like something off the shelf in the grocery store. Someone in my group had the sausage which was good. The side dishes weren’t however. Over cooked mac n cheese, canned baked beans drowned in sugar, cole slaw also not homemade.
Another observation, there wasn’t much hand washing or organization amongst the staff either. The woman who took our order was also making plates moments later. Not even hand sanitizer was used. I could go on but save yourself the time & $$. Award winning barbecue not even close but it is palatable. This was a good spot years ago unfortunately the quality has declined. Best ribs in Tampa is still Kojacks.

Big John’s Alabama BBQ was a great, home-​cooked meal w/​amazing sauces & Mac & Cheese sides! We were referred here & we’d recommend it to everyone else too. Definitely a local favorite by the foot traffic we observed.

We love Big John’s Alabama BBQ. The BBQ Sauce is awesome and I like to get the Pork/​Beef/​Sausage chopped sandwich. It is to di for. The greens and Mac & Cheese is banging. My other half loves the beans. If the tell you the is a wait on any of the 3 and you want them wait for them to come up. You will not be sorry for the wait. This little place is my addiction,. Priced right as well it is about $ 5.00 more then I spend somewhere else and well worth it. Come and enjoy the good food and friendly people.

They’ve let this place go way down hill over the last several years. I NEVER thought I’d say I won’t eat there again, but after three really bad experiences they’ve lost me as a loyal 25 year customer. I wish John was still alive and taking care of business. They sure don’t any more.

It’s Saturday afternoon. close to noon but I was able to beat the rush by about 5 inures. When I turned and looked behind me there were about 10 people behind me.
I guess I was mesmerized by the smell and the visual of the open pit full of meat. That had me distracted in a good way.
The best thing I had was the sweet tea.
Seriously …
It tasted like they had fruit cocktail or something in it. You tell me what that taste is! But — it sure was good!
The sides… were average. Nothing special BUT edible. I have to try the baked beans & potato salad. That way I’m comparing apples with apples.
I always get ribs… they were just a little too firm, in other words just a sliver ahead of being tough… just a sliver but I will try them, again.
Chicken was moist .that is hard to do with the white meat.
Not the best I’ve had but pretty good …