Loco's Motive Chew Chew BBQ opened their doors to barbecue and the world of Merced County dining back in August, 2024, and serves breakfast, lunch, dinner and wood smoked BARBEQUE after 11:00 in the morning. Amazing breakfast, full-service bar, great patio, barbecue, and friendly staff. Loco's Motive Chew Chew BBQ is a Snelling, CA "foodie" destination! As you enter the restaurant you'll be be greeted by a friendly staff member who will seat you. Today, the restaurant was lightly seated, so I simply bypassed the restaurant and steated myself at the bar... at the cantina part of Loco's. From the "Breakfast" page of the menu, I went with "Tri-Tip and Eggs," which made for a great start to my Saturday morning. You get the choice of home style potatoes or hash browns - I went with hash browns - and your choice of toast. Sourdough toast always works with me! Eggs were cooked to order - sunnyside up as per my request - and I went with an optional side of gravy, and a Coors beer as an appetizer. Yowza! The showcase of the breakfast was a generous helping of smoked tri-tip beef... sliced to size and fork tender. The smoky taste, the marinated, tender beef... simply melt-in-your-mouth delicious. Hash brown potatoes were crispy on the outside, tender, juicy on the outside, thanks to the skill of chef Dave. Eggs? Sunnyside up, as per order, and cooked simply perfect. Sourdough toast was my choice, and it arrived... two large slices along with a cup of soft butter to spread on the toast and enjoy. I ordered an optional side of sausage gravy, which was simply perfect for dipping - tri-tip and hash browns - and added an exceptional dimension to my delicious breakfast. How many ways can you say thick, delicious, creamy sausage gravy? The Coors beer made for a great appetizer... or was it dessert? Whatever the case, the beer was perfect and worked with the delicious breakfast. Combine the amazing food and the super friendly service,,, you're talking about five star dining in Snelling, CA read more

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What a delicious surprise! Just 15 minutes from my house. In the historic Gold Country town of Snelling. The absolute BEST Tri-Tip and Ribs I've had in years. If you've been searching for the best flavor-filled juicy Tri-tip and ribs your search is over. And everything else I've had there is super fresh and delicious. Additionally, this place is immaculately Clean! Owner Lalo was wonderful to visit with and server Stephanie was super friendly and sociable. They also have a huge Cantina with full bar and even a cool outdoor patio. On Sunday afternoons they have Line Dancing and I have a feeling more awesome surprises are on the way. Support this family owned business and savor the BEST in BBQ! read more

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This food is amazing, tri-tip teriyaki bowl! With broccoli and pepper rice! The service was awesome The people who work there are amazing! read more

Loco's Motive Chew Chew BBQ - Tri-tip teriyaki bowl with broccoli and pepper rice - Barbeque Near Me - Snelling, California

This was place was pretty nice. We came out one evening for dinner (family of 4 + FIL). Upon entry there's a little merch area. There was a bunch of pink dickies with the Loco Motive logo. We were greeted and seated in a bigger hall style area. They had a few booths in the front, tables and chairs that lined the perimeter and "school" style lunch tables (which where we were seated) It was pretty chilly in that area. I don't think any of us took our jackets off. Our waitress was very nice and attentive. I was a little bummed when she said they were out of ribs. That was one of the main reasons why I came. My boyfriend and son ordered the pulled pork mac & cheese, which they loved. The pulled pork was seasoned quite nicely and the cheese on the Mac was smooth..not grainy. My daughter ordered tri-tip teriyaki rice bowl. She didn't care for it too much. It was more of a plate than a bowl. Not sure what sauce they used but it didn't pair well. My FIL ordered the pulled pork dinner plate. His serving of pork wasn't that big. It also came with a single meal-sized salad. I ordered the tri-tip fajitas. Seasoning was perfect. Loved the bell peppers and onions, not overcooked. The only thing that threw me off was the broccoli that came on my fajita skillet ‍ that could've been subbed with beans or rice. Hoping to go back soon to try the ribs read more

Stupid good. The breakfast loco moco is absolutely ridiculously good. Tri tip burrito was good too. Server was super fast and friendly. It's a family business and they clearly care and do an amazing job. Must stop for breakfast or bbq read more

I hope y'all get your customer service together. we will never come here again. very disappointed in food. I just don't feel right bashing a restaurant. we came from Las Vegas and was looking forward for a good breakfast read more

Incredible food and more than just BBQ!! Their bbq is so good it's hard to try anything else but their breakfast food that is served all day is also incredible. I had their trip tip Casadia and it was exceptional!! My wife loved their breakfast plate that came with bacon eggs and French toast. It's all fresh and home made! I am going to make the trip back here just to eat here again!! read more

Loco's Motive Chew Chew BBQ - Incredible pumpkin pie - Barbeque Near Me - Snelling, California

After many visits, this business does not deserve any support. The restaurant is always out of key items no matter what time of day (ribs, tri-tip and pulled pork), the service is extremely slow and the owner is arrogant and condescending. The owner and wait staff can be seen drinking behind the bar while patrons wait to be served. Keep driving by, this place is high priced, low in customer care and not worth the stop. read more

Heard about this new bbq place in Snelling so we wanted to try it out. Super friendly service. Pull pork and macaroni and cheese was delicious! And it looked very clean. Can't wait to go back! read more

Loco's Motive Chew Chew BBQ - Pull pork, macaroni and cheese with garlic mashed potatoes. - Barbeque Near Me - Snelling, California

Oct 3,2025 this place is closed for good. Ate here in April and was looking forward to eating one of the best ribs I have had. Sad that it is now permanently closed. read more

Decided to stop at this cute bar/restaurant on our way out of town and the food was amazing! Our server Ashley and the owner Lalo were so welcoming and hospitable. Definitely recommend the pulled pork sandwich, the Tri-tip and any one of their meats. Never had anything like it. Just so delicious. Can't wait to come back when I'm in town again. read more

Loco's Motive Chew Chew BBQ - Pulled pork sandwich. So good had to show my happy face while eating it! - Barbeque Near Me - Snelling, California

A nice addition to Snelling. The food was good we enjoyed their breakfast menu. Their staff was friendly and handled it being a busy morning. I love the locomotive vibe. read more

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Great stop if you're on your way to the Sequoias! Husband and I shared a big BBQ plate and premium sides. Really has a small town feel. Ribs were a favorite - so flavorful and tender! A very pepper-heavy flavor profile (which we loved). Even to-go, food tasted fresh! read more

We waited until we went back a second time to write this review, but the service was so bad both times that we won't go back even though the tri tip was our favorite! The first experience we waited 30 minutes for someone (a seemingly drunk waitress) to bring us drinks and the menu, 20 minutes later we had to ask to order. After an 1.5 hours our food still was not out, mind you at this point we've been there for close to 3 hours with 3 small kids in tow. We would have left but the kids were starving, it was late and we weren't close to home. They finally were able to bring out my son's hamburger and my daughter's mac & cheese with tri-tip. We just shared those two meals since mine and my husband's food still had not come out, at this point we asked for it to go. There were three waitresses this night, 2 of which *attempted* to take care of our table and the bar, and the 3rd of which took care of the entire rest of the restaurant on her own, including entertaining one of the customers toddlers so that the parents could eat. I wish I had gotten her name because she deserved an award, unfortunately, she wasn't our waitress. Because this was our first time and a busy rodeo weekend, we decided to give it a second chance. At our second experience today, the service was slightly faster. Our waitress never offered to refill our drinks, we had to ask multiple times for a box and the check, all while we watched our waitress flirt with other customers at the bar. This time, my pulled pork sandwich and my husband's pork dinner plate were both cold. Again, it's really unfortunate because their tri-tip is probably my favorite tri-tip I've ever had. If I could trust that their takeout service would be better, I would just order tri-tip to take home. Hopefully a manager can see this and evaluate their staff. We would love to try this restaurant again if we knew we could be in and out in less than two hours. read more

Hello everyone, I put maybe because I'm not sure yet. So we ate there twice. My husband and I bought a house down the street and wanted locos to be our spot . The first time we came in we were buying our house and stopped by to try since it was the only place in town to eat really. The service was great, the food was good so about four months later we decided to go back. Ok this is when I say maybe and not sure..., so we got there about 7:00 pm and ordered food about ten minutes later a man came out explaining they were out of the stuff we ordered all of it actually so we asked about the ribs and they were also out they only food items available were hamburgers and fries so we all three got that being our only choice. The food came quickly it was good and everyone was very nice. They apologized about being out of everything they said it was a busy weekend and many people ordered out and it was all gone. So that's why I say maybe we would like to go back and try their pulled pork and tri-tip soon. I will repost when we go back. I would like to give them 5 stars but for now it's at 4. read more

Tried both the pulled pork and tri-tip. Both were excellent - tender and tasty. Service was very friendly. Will go back.

Was not impressed with the food. I understand it's newly opened. Everything tasted like it came from Sysco or USFoods canned stuff. Like the beans no seasoning or anything. It was like eating Teasdale beans. Come on garlic, cumin, sooooome thing. The "smoking" left little to be desired. There is a huge difference between a smoke and not cooked to the proper internal temperature. Even the people behind us sent there's back. On a good note the staff are nice. The front half is clean. They have swag to sell. I hope the food turns around because Snelling really could use something like this. read more

Absolutely the best bbq around. I was with my service dog and decided to stop in when I was in the area. I decided to stop and bring a family plate home. The waitress and staff were very inviting to me and my service dog. The waitress helped me pick the perfect family plate and recommended some of her favorites. She was so kind and showed me around the restraunt, which was so kind of her. When I got home to Merced with the food, everybody was absolutely amazed with how the tri tip and ribs had the perfect flavor and was so tender. The mac and cheese and beans were so good. Definitely will be going back. Thank you for being so service dog friendly, kind, and bringing the best bbq to our area. I would truly recommend the short drive to Locos if you want the best food around. Also, if you are looking for a place to take your wife or girl friend out for live music and drinks, this is the place. When I was shown the restraunt, they had an amazing bar with a huge fireplace and an outdoor area for dancing, a fire pit, games, and live music. This place is awesome, and I love that they are so service dog friendly !!! read more

The worst service ever. On the printed menu it clearly read breakfast all day. When we tried to order breakfast we were told it's only served until 11:am. OK so now we order lunch. After waiting over 1/2 an hour we ask the waitress about our meal. She says she will check. After 45 minutes we walked out. Not a good impression of this place, won't be going back. It's not as if they were busy, hardly anyone was there. read more

So glad that Buds was closed or l might not have stopped in here.. The owner Lalo came outside as we were getting off our bikes and recognized me as being his teachers aide way back when he was in elementary. We had drinks and he brought out samples of his tri tip and pulled pork. It was delicious. We are coming tomarrow for breakfast. They have bands that come play here too. Will definitely share this place with others. read more

Had the tritip nachos and the wife had a cheeseburger. The food was awesome. It took 45 minutes from arrival to food delivered. But the atmosphere is good and watching the people and weekend camper traffic made the wait tolerable. Everyone was friendly and polite. I would reccomend this place for anyone who is willing to wait for quality food. read more

If I could leave no stars I would, in fact, if I could go back in time on my decision to eat here I would. I heard such great things, and I was so excited to eat here. This is one of two restaurants that's closest to my house, and I would have loved to be a regular. Either everyone is lying or our experience was just horrendous. The food was absolutely disgusting, I've never had tri tip and pulled pork that tasted like that before. Like the chef has never barbecued anything or seasoned meat before...... the food was expensive and I expected it to taste good. We got our drinks in red solo cups like at a college party or park picnic .... The food was served in small paper containers on a plastic tray, the kind you get at a high school lunch not a restaurant... the silverware was not full size. The service was not the best, the two girls were confused on who had what table, confused on what we ordered, asked a customer what they ordered and who served them then was like crap was it you or me. Really? I usually don't leave many reviews because I don't want to hurt a business and I don't. But do better, buy plates, get some cups, cook better food. Im attaching a picture for a visual. Other people got their food in plastic baskets with paper liners and we got what's pictured. Mind you we got the all platter so it should have been presented better. They were also out of the ribs and I asked for a replacement and I don't think I got it. I felt like a homeless person eating. Couldn't even eat the food as it was pink and I'm pregnant. Also, last thing I will mention, the flies were a paid actor, they were all over the food, flying in our faces. Definitely didn't pay for bbq with fly feces on top. I'm not trying to be rude but Do better. read more

Loco's Motive Chew Chew BBQ - Barbeque Near Me - Snelling, California

Went tonight for take out. What a great place, tri-tip was juicy, great flavor, 2 half racks of ribs were amazing and rosemary mash potato's were great love that they leave skins on! Reminds me of grandmas cooking!! 5 stars!! read more

Absolutely phenomenal food & staff!! Ordered the brunch burger and it was fantastic. Amazing beer selection and fast service. Thank you to our server Breanne and the rest of the Loco's staff! read more

Came back again this morning and had breakfast with my family. Their pancakes were amazing! My husband also liked the French toast and my 4yr old cleaned her plate as well! read more

I really wanted this place to succeed. The whole Loco motive/chew chew concept (that ties into the historic Yosemite Valley RR),I thought, was incredibly cool. I even offered access to vintage photos I possess of the YVRR...for them to put on their walls. After, (happily), emailing these photos to them, I never heard a thing. But that is just one of the small things (however, small things tend to add up). Our first visit was for breakfast. The waitress wasn't overly attentive but she served a breakfast that was pretty good...so we weren't too put off. We decided to give them a second try on this Mother's Day. We came in at about a quarter to 11. We ordered breakfast after being told we couldn't order lunch until after 11 (that wasn't an issue until what happens next). So we sat and waited...and waited. My coffee cup was empty and no one bothered to ask my husband about his soda. The waitresses would occasionally talk to patrons but never really got around to actually..uhh..feeding us. We witnessed one guy leave after not being provided what he ordered. At one point, I stopped a waitress and asked politely for a refill of my coffee. She said "ok" and then asked, as a second thought, "you haven't got your food yet?" We said no and she said she'd go check on it. She never did. At one point we heard one of the cooks ask someone how to make French toast (wow). Anyway, after waiting over 40 minutes (I wonder if they'd have been willing to serve lunch by then...ha), we decided to leave...so did the other family that was there before us. That poor guy had two young kids that were getting very restless. We all walked out without ever being fed. The waitresses really didn't seem to care. I guess, on the plus side, they didn't charge us for our drinks (yeah, not really a plus, but thought I'd be nice). So, if they continue at this rate, Loco's Motive Chew Chew is going to chug right off into oblivion. Do better people! read more

I recommend the western burger it's really good super friendly and professional will definitely come back!

amazing food!!! tremendous service!!!! if you're looking for bbq this is the place!!!