As an avid follower of SI's Andy Staples' food recommendations, I was looking forward to a mini-BBQ tour of Lexington. We started with a classic, Billy's, and I wanted to follow that up with Staples' rec, Red State BBQ. Alas, it was too far of a hike to make pre-basketball game, but City BBQ (the new location) was very close by our hotel. I had seen it rec'd on a couple other Lexington sites, and I would be comfortable proffering it to Mr. Staples' visit list. City BBQ has a clean, new-school look, not unlike a Rudy's BBQ in Texas. The counter line is bright and welcoming, with a gamut of meats to satisfy your fancy, and the requisite sampler platters to boot. We went with the city sampler, a quadtuplet of the finest meats City has to offer. I requested substituting ribs for the pulled pork, in addition to the brisket, chicken, and turkey. First, since I am a born and bred Texan, the brisket. It certainly looked the part, juicy and fatty. Similar to Smoque in Chicago, it's by no means as as good as the stuff you can get in the Lone Star State (think Snow's in Lexington or Franklin in Austin), but it wasn't chopped liver, either. I got equal portions of the point and flat (fatty and lean), which was well done by the slicer. I'm a fatty brisket kind of guy, but the lean acquitted itself well. The white meats, both turkey and chicken, were moist and succulent. The chicken was far better than the offering at Billy's the night prior. The ribs were also good, not quite as good as the fine pork you can find in Chicago, but well-seasoned. The meat was more partition off the bone rather than fall off the bone soft. Texas Toast with the meats (apparently a thing in Lexington) is inspired, and I wish it were a thing in Texas. The sweet tea, like Billy's, blows Chicago's out of the water. Service was friendly and expedient. Also, bonus stars for the sampler platter fit to feed a small army, as opposed to just the two of us. Good for leftovers, that. read more

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City BBQ has quickly become my favorite restaurant. Of course the beef is outstanding but the smoke turkey is coming my favorite. All the staff is always friendly and has a smile on their face. I noticed on this visit that they had added two large picnic table to the dining room. Great idea for large groups. Keep up the good work. Can't wait to try the covered pavilion for pickup ordered. Call in your order and order online. They have cameras to let them know when someone pulls in. They bring the food to your car. read more

Meat smoked in house, sides made fresh daily; with City Barbeque you can taste the quality. My favorite meat is the smoked turkey. I also tried a serving of peach cobbler with whipped cream that was divine! It wasn't merely sweet, but also contains some spices like cinnamon and others. City Barbeque freezes unused food and donates it to those in need. This is a great casual barbeque place. I wish that I still worked close by so I could come here for lunch! read more

City Barbeque - Sampling of the menu - Caterers Near Me - Lexington, Kentucky

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My wife and I have recently visited this location recently since its a little closer to our home than the Richmond Rd. The restaurant itself is always clean. Staff is friendly. I will say that the sides are consistently on point: Mac and Cheese is delicious and creamy, greens are tender, gumbo has that same great meaty consistency. The pickles are fresh and crispy. Fountain and Bottled Sodas all here. They have the Peach Nehi we all know and love. But something is missing. Whenever I order the pulled pork, it tastes smoky and tender, but it always seems like it's sat on the counter too long. Parts of it are a little cold and oddly crispy, not uniformly warm and tender like I've come to expect. Maybe I just come in at the wrong times. I still recommend coming here, I would probably just prefer to get the awesome smoked sausage(s) at this location instead. read more

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Grabbed dinner here while in town for business and really enjoyed it. Employees were friendly and helpful. The rib night Tuesday is a great deal at 40% off.The ribs were tender and smokey, but could have had a little more robust flavor. The brisket was super tender, rich, and flavorful. The BBQ beans and tangy slaw we're ok, but the beans were very sweet and the slaw could have used more pepper. The banana pudding they hooked me up with had nice banana chunks and wafers- really enjoyed it. The ice tea was smooth and robust. Overall I was happy with my meal and would say it is above average for chain BBQ. read more

City Barbeque - Good meats! - Caterers Near Me - Lexington, Kentucky

Super friendly staff at this location. I attended a free event before the restaurant even opened, and everyone was very knowledgable as if they'd been working here forever. Really enjoy all the smoked meats especially the brisket and pulled pork. I love City BBQ and have been to several of their locations. I was introduced by friends in Columbus, and since I'm from Cleveland and there are no locations in north east ohio, when they opened the first store in Lexington a year after I moved here, I was thrilled. read more

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The good: the smoked meats, the majority of the sides, customer service, the random drink selections, interior and exterior. Barbecue sauces The bad: the Mac and cheese, the French fries. The rundown: from outside you can smell the meat smoking, already a great sign. Around the back, attached to the building you see the smoker and all the wood that will be used to cook these glorious meats. Inside reminds you of a small town BBQ joint. They have Cherrywine, ginger soda, and other old fashion sodas along with a personal favorite of Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale. Ordering the food is very easy and quick, and you move down to watch them cut and pull apart your food right in front if you. The corn bread, hush puppies, and most importantly the corn pudding are amazing. The only sides I don't like are the French fries, and the Mac and cheese. The fries are soggy, limp, and just don't taste good. The Mac and cheese is grainy, not cheesy at all, over cooked, and overall tasteless. The impression: this is a fantastic restaurant. The food is amazing and the people are some of the most polite around. This is a great place to go in groups or by yourself. This is a place I will go to time and again. read more

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Don't know how the food is because I could not call in an order and pay cash when I picked up! To bad... But I did have a great meal from Long Horns next door. The RIBS were wonderful!! read more

We came for dinner. The ordering process was a little confusing at first but not to bad. I had the beef brisket tacos with pickled onions. A first for me. I also got a sweet tea. The tacos were really good the sweet tea was so-so. We sat outside on the patio which was way quieter then sitting inside. We both thoroughly enjoyed dinner. We'd go back again. read more

City Barbeque - Beef brisket tacos! - Caterers Near Me - Lexington, Kentucky

I rarely go to anyplace that has a location outside of the state I'm in, but I got recommended to try this place out and was not disappointed. My favorite sides at any bbq place are potato salad and cornbread. I tried both of them and they were amazing! As for the bbq, I decided to try the sandwich called "more cowbell". I don't know what award they say the brisket has won, but I was definitely impressed. Their sauce was great too. The only thing bad about my experience was there was too many bell peppers covering up the delicious brisket's flavor. Other than that, beats a Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich in my mind. read more

Well, well my old friend.. We Meet again. Is exactly how I felt when I walked into this place. You see WAY back in the day, a group of friends and I, and the wife stopped at a City BBQ in Columbus Ohio. When we first walked into that place the smell of BBQ and Smoke just fills your nose so pleasantly. The same for this place as well. It just takes you back a bit.. Anyways, we ordered the 2 meat platter and ordered Brisket. Which you can NEVER go wrong with Brisket. The 2 sides we ordered were Baked Beans and potato salad. So it took about 20 minutes for the food to be delivered to our table and we thanked the staff for bringing it to us. While in line I spoke to another staff member who recommend the Brisket Tacos, which I'll try the next time I come back. So as started eating, let me tell you that the food was delicious and the meat was tasty as well. So after eating the wife decided that she wanted dessert. So she tried the Peach Cobbler. Well right off the bat it tasted like it had some form of cherry taste. After finding out that the crust had an almond taste we decided to return the peach cobbler and go for banana pudding, which you can never go wrong with banana pudding. So glad we did, it was delicious too. From beginning to end, Everyting was satisfactory even though we didn't like the peach cobbler. The staff was very friendly and also very accommodating. I'm So glad we came here, can't wait to eat this place again. read more

We ordered a meal called "The Motherlode" for delivery. The website said that it would "feed 6", with six sides. With delivery charges and tip, the order came to a price of just over $100. What we got was not nearly as much meat as we expected, and the "sides" were in small individual cups. I called the store thinking that perhaps there had been a mistake, but I was told, no, that's it, the "feed six" means enough for each person to make a sandwich and get a side. It's a very deceptive marketing strategy and makes me not want to eat here ever again. I feel that I didn't get nearly what I paid for. One other thing I forgot to mention: how was it? They didn't include any sauce with it on top of that -- guess that would have been extra -- and so much of the meat was fairly dry. read more

I spoke with the general manager today and was very pleased by the empathy and genuine concern. Look forward to experiences in the future.

Although my previous visit was good, today was not. The meat was over cooked, almost burnt. The lolo sandwich was overloaded with slaw and the meat was in such large chunks that one bite caused most of it to come out of the bread. Corn pudding was dry. And none of the sauces are labeled so you don't know what you are getting. I just think it could have been better. read more

Order sandwiches... were amazing simple and delicious.... tasted fresh Liked what I ordered and will dine soon for one of their popular dishes... read more

I asked several people at Keeneland , where would they go for bbq and many of them said, City BBQ. So, when it was dinner time, off we went. The restaurant is very clean and the layout is well-organized. The staff is friendly. Between the two of us, we ordered pulled pork, chopped brisket and pulled chicken. All had a delicate texture without hard chunks. My favorite would have to be the chopped brisket. It was moist and a wonderful smokiness throughout. The same could be said for the pulled pork. While the chicken was tender,and moist, it was too heavily seasoned (for me) but it was very good. The potato salad, cole slaw and fries were delicious. My knock would be the sauces. They just tasted a little too artificial and bottle like. Their consistency was way TOO thick and once you put several types in the little cups, you couldn't tell one from the other but none of them was great. While that's not a deal breaker, it is something to consider. read more

So I really like BBQ. When traveling, I try to find new BBQ places to try out. Lexington, Kentucky was no different. When I Googled "BBQ places near me" City BBQ was one of the ones listed. It had great reviews so I said "why not"? First off, it's one of those places that you order your food, pay and then it's presented to you at the counter. No sit down service here. What I really liked and what got us off to a great start was that I was able to try the cole slaw, baked beans, mac & cheese etc before ordering After my "samples" I got the full rack of ribs with vinegar cole slaw and mac & cheese. Let me tell you...when you hear the words full rack and you see what they give you it is amazing. The ribs over flowed on the plate and judging by looks alone they were meaty and smoked wonderfully. My wife got the pork sandwich and some sides. She did question how much meat they put in the sandwich but aside from that it was a great meal. I took over half of it home and had it the next night for dinner as well The employees were friendly and accommodating. Service was great and we left full and happy. If I am ever in the area again, I would surely go back and try the brisket. If you are in the area, you need to stop here and get some ribs. You won't be sorry read more

This Cali girl hasn't ever had BBQ like this!!! The closest we had in California was dickies BBQ which is pretty awful in California. I always get half a chicken and it's enough for me to be in BBQ heaven for two days. My husband always gets ribs and he always seems to enjoy them. It's one of the fire depts. go to lunch places. It's just a little pricey but sometimes you just need some good BBQ! read more

Food was not good. Brisket was extremely dry. The fries looked like we got all the bits of end of the basket. It was delivery and everything was cold also. read more

Horrible first impression! Family decided to try out City BBQ on a Sunday afternoon. The restaurant was not particularly busy and no one was in line to order. Nor was there anyone at the register for several minutes. When the cashier did come up there was no greeting or acknowledgement. By the time we were ready to order, the cashier and, I think, co-owner, Michel took our order. He seemed put off having to wait on us and was extremely rude. He cut me off as I was speaking and interjected his self into a conversation I was having with my son about his order. No "excuse me" or explanation just wanted to make his sales pitch. He was curt, and just plain rude. No customer service etiquette what so ever! I was so taken back by his terrible attitude I had to walk away! My husband ordered and after dealing with him said he was jerk to him, too! Not even going to review the food as the whole encounter left a bad taste in my mouth. Considering the current state of business nowadays, you'd think businesses, and their owners, would be more customer service friendly and welcoming to their patrons. We won't be returning to this establishment. read more

This is good barbecue with plenty of sides to try. Are there possibly better places in town to get barbecue , yes. But this place has always been a good option. read more

One of the most consistent and mouth watering bbq in Lexington. Great spot for a quick lunch or dinner. Went here recently craving bbq, but my girlfriend was more hesitant as she's normally not a fan. I went with the pulled pork cow bell. Staff was very accommodating for the change in meat request. She had a smoked leg and thighs chicken. The chicken converted her thoughts on bbq. It was smoked to perfection. Rich, tender, and juicy with the right amount of sauce. I thought the cowbell was tender, bursting in flavor, and had me wanting more with every bite. We'll be adding this spot in a normal rotation. read more

Obviously Leftovers. Door Dash delivered on-time. Pulled Pork and Turkey completely dry. Is the store open in our Timeline? . read more

From the moment you walk your mouth begins to water from the delicious smell of smoked meats! Three girls on the town put down a pound of brisket, with 3 sides: cornbread, baked beans, and green beans. Too many sauces to name, all pretty tasty-- bourbon and brush fire were notable! Only complaint is they were out of peach cobbler. Thanks to the counter staff for tailoring our order so we didn't go overboard. read more

City Barbeque - Caterers Near Me - Lexington, Kentucky

Clay, keep doing your thing in the back. Brisket sandwich was perfectly cut. Thanks again!

For a chain, this place rocks! City BBQ has outstanding brisket, pork and sides. My favorite dish is "More Cowbell" sandwich which features brisket topped with onions,cheese, and peppers. Prices are about equal to other BBQ places around time. Service is friendly and atmosphere is nice. read more

One of my favorite lunch spots. Best potato salad in town, and french fries come with a lot and are so good! Rib Tuesdays are a great deal, and other days I typically go for a pulled-pork sandwich lunch combo. A couple times I've had cold pork, but one time I gave feedback on the app and got a free sandwich, and another time an employee brought me some fresh pork and it was great. Excellent service and food. read more

Very tasty BBQ with a nice sized dining room and patio. Order at the counter and wait on your name to be called is a little chaotic but once the food came we were very happy! read more

We've ordered curbside twice during the COVID-19 pandemic. They're pickup process is great and the order is ready to go upon arrival. No long wait times! It's not the best BBQ I've ever had but it's consistent and as expected. We have had the pulled pork and brisket. read more

I'm not sure what has happened to this location in particular, but it has gone way down hill. Recipes are still fantastic, and the meats are a great value, but sides have become horrible. The last few times I've been there the sides have gotten worse and worse. On my most recent lunch visit I had to throw out the majority of my green beans. They had a texture of rubber and plastic. I think they were just old and overcooked almost to the point of being burnt. The cheese and bacon fries were a little better but not much. I used to love this place, and eat there at least once a week. I know they've had trouble keeping managers and employees. Must be a rough place to work as turnover is very high. Hopefully they'll get their problems fixed, and get back to serving good food. read more

Food was good but still dealing with Covid stuff. We shared a City platter and it was plenty for 2. Sausage and Texas toast were ok but the corn bread, bbq beans, brisket, pulled pork, and turkey were excellent . read more

BBQ is always a tough sell for me because I am a true believer that the best BBQ meal is one Mae on your own porch, but I believe that Backyard City BBQ gives you that summer porch grilling that everyone knows and loves. This review focuses mainly on their CATERING MENU, but features many options that are on their menu as well. Backyard City BBQ would be an excellent catering option for tailgates, baby shower, weddings, etc. I started my meal with a refreshing lemonade that hit the spot on the warm spring day. It complimented my meal perfectly and was a great balance of sour and sweet which I love in a lemonade. They often put muddled berries in the lemonade as well which elevates it from your basic lemonade drink. Their lemonade catering would be an excellent choice for a nonalcoholic wedding venue. I tried the beef brisket and turkey with the original BBQ sauce. Both meat selections were moist and tender with tons of flavor. The original sauce on either was an excellent choice and I always try the classic first before exploring the different sauce options but if you are an explorer of flavor, carry on because I feel that any sauce would be delicious. The Mac N' Cheese was fantastic as well, but I want to focus on the Banana Bread Pudding with Whipped Cream. I have a love/hate relationship with bananas because I feel like often they take over the flavor profile, but not in this dessert! It was so well made and I really enjoyed the balance of the banana flavor with the bread mix-in. I truly feel like you won't be disappointed with having Backyard City BBQ has your meal or catering choice. Attention police/firefighter/military personnel! If you come to the restaurant in uniform, you get a discount on your meal! Love company's the reward our civil servants and defend our country! read more

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Very good..except for the mac and cheese. My daughter got it and it just didn't taste right. Everything else was great!!! I have dairy allergy and one and often get sick when eating out but I did NOT get sick at all and the brisket was DELICIOUS Must use the "Swine Wine" read more

City Barbeque - Caterers Near Me - Lexington, Kentucky

This place is always fresh! Meat and fixings tasty and hot. Exceptional service and nice atmosphere with desired ambiance.

Always on point like a . Everything strait fire. They done smoked the hxll our they meat. They go hammer wit the banana pudding it's just amazing read more

This is our go to for bbq in lexington. We have dined here for lunch, dinner and even had my husbands tenure party catered by city bbq. Every time we have friends and family visit this is a go to and they always want to go when they come back. in my humble opinion the best barbecue in Lexington. read more

Yeah it's a chain. But if you tasted the brisket these guys and gals are slinging, you'd give them 4 stars too. Favorite sides are the handcut fries and corn pudding. 4 stars for the brisket. The chicken is a good deal too and pretty good. It's a chain, but this place has solid food. The atmosphere and the way you stand in line to order is not the greatest, but the service was good and prompt, and the people working here seemed nice. read more

Your brisket is mind blowing! Best I've ever had (and I travel a lot and have tried many places). I love the "full cut" for the FULL flavor. Everything you make is excellent, right down to the banana pudding! I'm also glad you carry an IPA in your beer selection. The staff was super friendly and welcoming and a pleasure to talk to, especially the manager Steve who is clearly passionate about what he does! Thank you for yet another memorable experience, it made my night! -Fred Montreal, Canada read more

I'm usually very skeptical of chain BBQ spots, BUT City Barbeque has a lot of the hallmarks of your favorite hole-in-the-wall local BBQ joint. I had a sampling of their catering menu at an event and enjoyed the brisket, mac & cheese and banana pudding. The brisket was super tender, and so well-seasoned that I hesitated to add sauce to it. I am pretty hard to impress when it comes to mac & cheese, but theirs was so yummy! It could use a tad more seasoning, but would definitely get again. The banana pudding was a great way to round out the meal and wasn't too heavy. If I attended another event catered by City Barbeque, I would be a happy guest for sure. read more

Returned for some iced tea. The unsweet tea tastes just as good as the sweet tea--I prefer my tea "cut" or half sweet. The smells were amazing! I was sad to not be eating lunch here today. Looking for to returning soon. read more