Casual Joe’s

Casual Joe’s is a truly phenomenal barbecue spot. Their assortment of meats are a can’t miss option and the smash bowls offer a delicious, filling, and cost effective lunch or dinner. Oh, and the pies are to die for! I’d highly recommend checking this place out.

What a disappointment. We’ve been to Casual Joe’s about 4 times since it opened, which is saying a lot as I like BBQ but it’s not usually the first cuisine I’ll suggest. While we’ve had gripes (mostly about them being out of brisket), the food was superb — the brisket smokey and chewy, the pulled pork beautifully smoked and sleek with fat, the apple fennel slaw crunchy and fresh, the sauces thick, distinctly flavored, and interesting.
No more. This evening at 5:50 pm we were told they were out not only of brisket but of ribs. When your menu consists of only pork, brisket, ribs, chicken and sausage, this is a catastrophe. Having spoken to an employee of a neighboring business who had gone there the previous week for lunch, we found out that this seems to be happening regularly now. So we ordered pulled pork, pulled chicken, and sausage. We knew something was wrong right away.
The apple fennel slaw had no discernible fennel, only cabbage, and the normally crisp apple slices were so wobbly and discolored I thought I had gotten cooked pears. Now I don’t usually get slaw because I don’t like cabbage, so throwing cabbage in a slaw that’s supposed to be fennel won’t win you my thanks. The usually strongly maple baked beans had only a vague maple taste. The best side was the salad, as the tomato ranch dressing was freshly made and delicious. But that doesn’t say much for your restaurant if the one thing that only requires washing to prepare is the best thing on the menu.
But the greatest disappointment was by far the meat. I had preferred brisket over pulled pork at most BBQ restaurants but had been forever changed by the pulled pork here. So I was surprised and dismayed to find that the pulled pork I got had no visible fat anywhere on my 16 oz. portion nor could I taste that delectable pork fat. It was just dry. Dry dry dry. Not even the least bit smokey. I had hoped their sweet sauce (all their sauces house made) might help, but it was (also uncharacteristically) thin and with little flavor. My husband’s chicken was smokey but the sausage was nothing to write home about. None of the sauces tasted the same (or were interesting), and the «seasonal» sauce — cranberry — was sweet but had no depth of flavor. This was also unusual as we had always found the sauces extremely interesting, and the seasonal sauce was usually the best one of the bunch.
We were mystified. When we brought up our concerns to our waitress, she said that there was a new executive chef as the last had «creative differences» with the owner, Tyler. That explains it. The new executive chef just does not have the talent of the one who started this place for the owner. If he is trying to make his own mark on the place, he is. He has turned a spectacular menu into a mediocre one.
Tyler Sailsbery, you need to make up with your former executive chef, Cara Stradinger. She had the talent to bring your menu to life, and it certainly needs it considering how uncomfortable the restaurant is, with unbalanced high chairs in the front and school tables and more concrete in the back. The space had nothing going for it but the food had. Now it doesn’t even have that.
Cara, do tell us where you’ve gone because we’ll follow you. You have proven that recipes mean nothing if the person making the food doesn’t have talent.

I doubt Whitewater, Wisconsin has ever been considered a great barbecue destination, but Casual Joe’s very well may change that.
Despite a small, cramped interior, this is a must-​visit if you’re in the area.
The service is fantastic. I was sitting at the bar, but between my conversations with the bartender and others, there’s no possible way to rate this category any higher. It wasn’t busy, so I can’t speak to how service may be with a packed house, but with a smaller crowd, they went above and beyond at every turn.
Unlike my usual vast sampler, I decided to scale it back and just order the pulled pork sandwich, with the apple fennel slaw. At first it sounded a bit too complex to interest me, but the slaw is actually a fantastic counter-​balance and a great addition.
The bread is barely noteworthy, which is great, because if the bread is the highlight, the meal was probably garbage.
The beer selection is great, and the employees are great to try to help you select what’s best for your meal. They have some great craft beers, which are great additions to your meal.
However, the pork was fantastic, with a dry rub and a great wood blend for smoking, it turned out to be a truly amazing sandwich. The smokiness isn’t overwhelming, or fake, while being the central focus of the meal.
Both flavored and perfectly cooked, the pork alone stood out.
The sauces were pretty good. Unlike most places, who offer a lot of goofy, schticky sauces to compromise for poor meats, the few offered were dandy. I tried all of them. The spicy, with sriracha, was pretty good, but would be really good on chicken, not so great on pork. The regular was a bit sweet for my tastes, but the stout was bold and very well balanced. The Carolina vinegar sauce was, by far, the best. With a emphasis on the meat, but a slight flavor of red pepper and sweet vinegar, drizzling the sauce on the meat and fennel slaw made for a truly delightful sandwich.
For a side, I opted for the maple baked beans. This was perhaps the only downside of the entire meal. The first couple bites were interesting, flavorful, and well-​designed, but, for me, was far too sweet to be enjoyable. They were really delicious, but not really a great side for a meal, as they made you want to doze off and conclude the meal with a legume-​based finale.

This is my favorite BBQ place ever! We’ve been twice in the past two weeks. My husband asked if there was a rule about how many times in one week we could go, it’s that good! The staff is very friendly and helpful. The food is amazing! It is still new and they are ironing out the wrinkles, but all in all it is another successful restaurant for Chef Tyler!

Ugh I love BBQ and I was sooo disappointed. The meat was dry and super smokey. I like the sauce, plum and sweet. The berry pie crust was under cooked and actually soft. The filling could have been canned. The beans: what is that? canned kidney beans and pancake syrup? The bacon mac and cheese wasn’t cheesy and not worth an extra buck.

First and foremost my food was pretty great. I left not a morsel. I had pulled pork and beans. I liked all the sauces but went with the traditional. Seasonal was a smoked plum and very tasty. One complaint was our table was dirty. Like frat house/​truck stop dirty. Our server was perfectly nice but fairly inattentive but what can be expected from a millennial? Would go again. A welcome joint in the area.

Great food and place. Very friendly staff and the food is very very good. The homemade BBQ sauces are out of this world. Pulled pork and/​or Ribs are our favorite.

We stopped for a drink and loved the atmosphere at this place. The name fits the place perfectly. The staff does it all-​greets customers, waits tables, buses tables, does dishes. They are hardworking, energetic, and work well together. Dennis was right when he made the suggestion to give them a try! He has a great personality and great attitude! Next time we will try the barbecue.

Great place! Had the sampler platter and everything was very good. The BLT mac n cheese was good but other than that, wasnt too impressed with the other sides. Cheap white processed bread on the side. Coleslaw was awful. Other than that, we willbe back if nothing else to order meat to go.

I stopped here for lunch for my love of smoked meat and was not disappointed. I ordered the family platter to try as much as possible since it was my first visit. The platter offered three choices of meat and three sides. Pulled pork, sausage and brisket were complimented by apple fennel slaw, maple baked beans and coleslaw. The pulled pork was delicious. The sausage was spicy but that brisket… Best I’ve ever had! It was smoked to perfection, soft and tender. I throughly enjoyed all meats with the sauces on the table. My favorite was the spicy. The sides were fresh but I barely remember them because I found a place that I would visit everyday for their brisket. Thanks Taylor for a lunch that I thought about all the way home.

Visited Casual Joes this past Sunday. The restaurant is really nice and has a very comfortable vibe. Good beer selection. I ordered the Brisket and BLT Mac-​N-​Cheese. The brisket was excellent. Very tender and had a good taste. The mac-​n-​cheese was good as well. Staff were very nice and helpful. Looking forward to trying the ribs the next time I go.

Fun spot with some pretty good BBQ. While it isn’t Texas good, its great for Wisconsin. The owner is very friendly and always wishes us well whenever we visit any of his restaurants. Good beer selection and do try the chicken nacho appetizer.

Went there on Memorial Day with 3 of my roommates, we shared the nachos as an appetizer and I had the Brisket sandwich, with a side of «BLT» Mac and Cheese.
The nachos were ok. I would love to see a different chip used though something more then what seemed to be chips from the bottom of the bag.
The brisket was good, I took this opportunity to sample the different sauces, those were awesome and I recommend the seasonal sauces.
My «BLT» mac and cheese was not good… It was missing the «B, and the L» all that was added was two whole grape tomatoes.
I thought that the décor and lay out was great, unfortunately if you look at one of the pictures you’ll notice the garage door slides open, and this was cool at first until after sitting down you are constantly bothered by the nats/​fruit flies lingering around your table.
I would love to give this place another try.
Side note, it was kind of weird they sold Miller Lite and not Bud light.

A friend recommended Chef Tyler’s restaurants! My daughter is going to school for culinary, and recommended we go try the amazing food and talk to Chef Tyler. The food was off the charts!!! I’m not a big bbq fan but we had brisket, pulled pork, and sausage and I cannot wait to go back and have more! The apple fennel slaw was great also! My family and I could not stop raving about the food the whole time we were eating! «I love this sauce and this one is good too, I’m so full but can’t stop eating, I want to come back and try the chicken, I’m so full but they have pie», We had pie!!! Kelsey was awesome, so young but so friendly, personable, and knowledgable! My daughter was able to talk to Tyler and left so excited and expired! Tyler you have a great thing going! Great job! See you all again soon!

Fantastic BBQ. Try the brisket, cole slaw, mac and cheese. Really enjoyed the stout sauce

The Basics:
1) We were warmly greeted & seated quickly.
2) Wait staff was friendly, & knowledgeable.
3) Meals were served within 7 minutes of ordering. Plating was unpretentious, but the pulled pork was quite good! –Perfect temperature, moisture content & aroma. The smoke flavor complimented the rich pork flavor beautifully. While all four BBQ sauces were fun to try, my personal favorite is the ‘Sweet’ sauce.
The brisket flavor was good, but it’s rather chewy.
Personally, I don’t care for the taste of the chicken at all, but the portion size was good.
I do however recommend the fennel apple slaw; it was crisp & refreshing.
Be aware that casual doesn’t necessarily mean comfortable! –especially on hotter or colder days.