This is my neighborhood, go-to BBQ place. I can't count how many times I've come in with the kids for a quick, relatively healthy, and delicious meal. If you've had a busy day and are too tired to cook and clean, you could do a lot worse than to let the good folks at Pokeys take care of you. Good food and it feels as comfortable as if you were sitting in your living room. The food - I'd put the meats it in the consistently excellent over the transcendent category. They have just about anything you'd want including brisket, sausage, turkey, chicken, and pork tenderloin. I think the sides, and particularly the variety and healthiness of the sides are perhaps the bigger draw for me. I really like the broccoli salad and the green bean casserole. They will make you fresh fried okra and fries too, both of which are excellent. The kids love the mac n cheese. The condiment bar has a good selection of tasty additions including pico de gallo, lime wedges, and jalapenos, and they are meticulous about keeping it stocked and fresh. I also enjoy the tea (half sweet and half regular) in a giant styrofoam cup. Finally, we almost always get the oreo-topped chocolate pudding. Yum. The decor - you've got your share of funky old signs and such on the wall, baseball trophy's sitting on top of the TV (usually has a game on). The music is invariably country, but you have to acknowledge the consistency of the music with the overall experience, even if you don't particular like country music (if you don't like country, you might be a hipster..just sayin). Finally, even beyond the food and decor, there's good people here. They're friendly and they're nice to my crazy kids when I'm just about out of energy. During the summer of 2009, when I'd been laid off and money was tight, they ran a special where kid meals (which included a big ole piece of chicken and pile of mac n cheese) were a dollar with the purchase of a regular meal. I was able to bring in my three hungry munchkins and feed them and myself REAL food for under $20. That's cheaper than Thundercloud (my other go-to place). Give them a try. You won't be sorry you did. read more

I always get the half chicken plate, as I don't eat cows or pigs. Costs only about $10 with two sides and toast. The chicken is always moist and tender. Their sauce is sweet but pleasantly tangy. They have these killer bread and butter pickles that I am addicted to. The BBQ is quite good, but I go there for the Jalapeno Corn Casserole. It is heavenly. I want that recipe!!! Their mac and cheese is pretty awesome, as well. It reminds me of the mac and cheese in the school cafeteria when I was kid. (That's a good thing. I was super excited on mac and cheese day.) The fried okra was hot and crispy. And I love me some buttery Texas Toast. The staff there is super friendly. I always joke around with them. They make me laugh after a hard work day. Good food and good folks. read more

Good food and prices, but the prep here isn't as good as some of the other locations. The amount of meat on the sandwiches is also less - maybe they actually limit it to the 1/4 or 1/3rd pound listed on the menu. Staff is outgoing but that's pretty typical. Jams up at lunchtime - there aren't a lot of restaurants in the area for the working stiffs. Also NOT a fan of the new "Belly" loyalty system which only gives you credit for one purchase even if you pay for more, so it takes longer to get your free plate. Please bring back the punch cards - I don't care about the "flexibility" Belly supposedly offers. read more

Thought is try the local BBQ place tonight. As I walked up to the door, I asked the lady " how is this place" she replied " brisket is better than Rudys". Yep I would agree the extra lean has a lot more flavor! Tastes even better with their BBQ, which i took take home. I got the 2 meat plate, with slaw and fried okra. Okra was so good! I missed this. Slaw tastes like it was made with ranch, was tasty. People working were friendly and helpful when I said it was my first time here. Glad I came by, this will be my neighborhood BBQ place. Oh the peach tea is awesome! read more

Worst BBQ in the area. Those whom enjoy it need to try other BBQ places. Seating is terrible at great hills during lunch. Good to-go ordering though... read more

This place is in our list of go-to places for lunch at work. It's cheap, fairly decent, and very quick. A 3 meat plate comes out to around $15 with 2 sides and a drink. There's hardly ever a line and there's always somewhere to sit. The food is nothing spectacular though, but it hits the spot for the most part - moist brisket, tender ribs, etc. What they're lacking here is the strong smoky flavor Texas barbecue is known for. At this price point, it's gonna be hard to get something wood smoked so I don't blame them. read more

I grew up eating Pok-E-Jo's BBQ with the family. The meat is okay and I've heard the staff describe the sauce as "ketchup and vinegar". However, the sides are dynamite. The baked potato casserole is to die for and the mac and cheese isn't too shabby. The best kept secret here is the fried okra - nice and crispy, never soggy like typical restaurant friend okra. I've also heard good things about their burgers. read more

This is a chain, but gets it done like a small local place. The brisket is always mouthwatering and the sides are plentiful. I get my thanksgiving dinner for my office from here every year. Turkey is crazy good. Everyone behind the counter is patient and cheery. Can't beat their sweet tea. Speaking on that, when Austin had it's water boil mini-crisis, the owner insisted on importing ice so people could get a cold glass of ice tea. That speaks a lot to how ownership views the experience of BBQ. This place has my patronage and I will continue to bring my clients here. My employees will continue to enjoy their Thanksgiving dinner from here. If you haven't been, get on in! read more

First of all, the food is great. The Green Bean Casserole is one of my favorites. That's not what this review is about though... We went in to get some dinner to go a week ago... and we got a little of everything. It's impossible not to when you are going down the line and see how good everything looks. When we got to the register, I reached in my purse and my wallet was not there! I had a bit of a panic attack, but said to set the food aside and I was going to run home, grab my wallet, and come right back. Jackie was not having that. She actually told me to just take the food while it's still hot and just to pay next time I was in there. I was shocked by this customer service. We ran home with the food and came right back with payment. One of the young men working there seemed shocked that we actually returned with payment. We live very close to the Parmer location, so when we finally got back home the food was still hot and delicious! Great people, great food, and just great feelings. Thanks for a great experience, JACKIE! PS- I used to manage the Food and Beverage department at a golf course in South Austin and have worked with Doug and the entire staff at the Brodie Oaks location on numerous occasions. They are my first choice for catered BBQ as well (and I've worked with them all)! read more

Amazing food Amazing portions Amazing Service I will be back w/everone I know!!!! Absolutely love this place read more

Pok-e-Jo's - Parmer - Barbeque Near Me - Austin, Texas

Great BBQ. Friendly people . Great portion size for the money . The turkey is awesome !

So good! Wish I could make some specific recommendations but it was honestly all too good to pick a favorite. Loved the spicy sauce although have no complaints about the classic either! read more

Really great food, hot and fresh! The service was just as awesome! Good prices for a good portion of BBQ. We definitely look forward to going back for more! read more

Don't go here. The staff is flat out rude, the food has no flavor, the environment is blah. How do you serve cold brisket? How does brisket have no flavor? So gross. Huge waste of $. There must be a ton of fake reviews on here, out of the 4 of us no one liked their food and no one wants to go back. read more

Having not dined at Pok-e-Jo's in quite some time, I thought I might pay Mr. Jo a visit, and a terrible mistake it was. Pok-e-Jo's Smokehouse is far from a smokehouse. What it rather incites in me is a nostalgic thought of horrendous childhood BBQ after a Saturday morning YMCA basketball game. Yes, it provides a rather humble atmosphere, but really, the meat here is just horrendous. I ordered a little bit of brisket, with a preference on burnt ends, and I was rather distraught. Burnt ends was the least of my concern, as I gave my couple pieces of smoked beef a touch. It sprung back like rubber. Even the exterior portions that should normally yield in tenderness were tough as a gum ball. The flavor was lacking, and it was just mealy overall. Pok-e-Jo's may reign supreme in my least favorite establishments, purely on the grounds of their meat. Price-wise, it is among the worst for bang-for-buck ratio. Oh, and the sauce is pure sugar. Never again will I return. Unless I am forced to dine. read more

I always get the two meat plate and it's usually dark meat and sausage. The prices aren't too bad and it's the closest BBQ place to my place. The BBQ isn't bad but it's not great either but I do love the sides!!! The Mac and cheese and the casseroles are amazing!!! Love the free pickle bar. If Rudy's had the pickle bar and sides I would never go anywhere else. Pokejoes and Rudy's should team up and make a great BBQ joint!!! But overall not a bad place to come to get some BBQ read more

Not great food but great service. Meat had no flavor and Texas fries are puny, not giant (I thought it was all bigger in Texas) Too bad the food is not worth it, cause the employees were so nice read more

I freakin' LOVE this place so much!! Their food is sososo good and the staff is always super friendly. Very quick service too! One of my fav bbq joints in the area. read more

UPDATE : (01/01/17) This crew is one of the best serving teams in Austin. Friendly. On point. Going out of their way to give you a good experience. Five stars for being awesome. ==== Near my house. I regularly get take-out from here. Nothing special, but reliable BBQ. Most of the time their pork ribs are heaven. They cook their brisket to be "drier." That's not an accident. I always order mine "moist" or "flavored." I miss the beef ribs. It's true. They rivaled Salt Lick or County Line. read more

Just had dinner here and it was SOOO good I had to immediately write a review while it's fresh in my mind! My brother is currently in town, so I was looking for something different and out of the norm. Since we hadn't had BBQ in over a month, this would be a good fit. I read some of the reviews and it seemed very promising. WOW! $25 for a family meal that feeds 3-4?! You've got to be kidding me. We couldn't believe it, so we went for it and were amazed by how much food we got for the price. It wasn't too much where we had to take much of it home, but enough to where we had to roll each other outta there. The turkey and moist brisket is perfection. We ordered the green bean casserole, baked cheese potato casserole and cole slaw, all of which were great (I'm not a fan of green beans, but Husband loved 'em). We definitely know where we'll be coming for a yummy BBQ meal next time. Spring Creek BBQ in Dallas has NOTHING over Pok-E-Jo's. What we knew to be BBQ was nothing and shameful compared to this. We're very glad to have gotten a great taste of the real thing. read more

Great price for what you get. For about $10, you can fill yourself up with good bbq. I ordred the 2-meat platter: Pork Ribs, Sausage, Mac and Cheese and the Jalapeno Cornbread mix. Best part was the cornbread. Not to dismiss the meat, but the cornbread was that good. The pork ribs were delicious. Not off the bone, but still pretty good. I liked the sausage more, even though it was dry on the inside, but it did make less oily and went great with the spicy bbq sauce. Overall, I'd come back for a decently priced bbq lunch. read more

Can't believe I haven't reviewed them yet. This is one of our favorite bbq places. Service and quality of food are always spot on. I usually get two meat plate that comes with 2 sides. My choices are always brisket and ribs. My husband usually gets sausage and turkey. The bbq sauces are also really great. I do love their Mac n cheese and jalapeño cornbread casserole. I've just started getting their huge chef salad with a very hefty size of brisket. It's actually a really pretty and tasty salad. Yum yum! read more

The BBQ here is good, but it's not over-the-top stellar. My wife and I come here for lunch pretty often, and it's reasonably priced in my opinion. I recommend the pork ribs and the moist brisket. My wife orders the lean brisket because she likes well done cuts. Moist cuts of brisket here are tender and not too fatty. They're just right at Pok-e-Jo's, whereas they might be too fatty elsewhere, so keep that in mind if you like a tender brisket. The flavor of the meat is on point, but it can't compare to a BBQ joint that smokes the meat overnight. It's close though. I don't know the method of BBQ they use for the meat, but I'm in like with it. What pushes this place from 4 stars to 5 stars is the service and care they take with customers. They are super nice and helpful. We have a 7-month old baby and every time we've eaten there, an employee is quick with a sling and helps carry the food to the table. They just seem like nice folks. Lastly, I've never had a bad meal here. The consistency of the food makes them a reliable go-to for quick and tasty BBQ. Highly recommend this Pok-e-Jo's location. read more

Great experience today. The staff was on top of it, friendly, and very fast despite it being a slow Monday. The food was perfect, brisket melted in my mouth and sausage is my favorite around. Their cornbread is delicious and I can't think of anything to say other than a perfect lunch stop. I've been coming here 20 years and it's been amazing the whole time, and continues to be. Thanks guys read more

I've been to a few Pok-E-O's and this was not much different, however I found their brisket to be better than what I have been served at other places. Unfortunately their ribs were not as good as their other places. The sides were very good - Had the potato caserole and Oreo pudding. I just wished my ribs were a little more tender and not so wet and they would have been fine. read more

Excellent choice for Texas bbq. I liked it better the Rudys. Try the pork loin and turkey breast. Wow awesome find. read more

See all

Great service and food is off the charts! We came in for catering options and David was our host. This place has the best cream corn in town and the ribs were our favorite. Definitely a must try if you are in the area -- read more

Pok-e-Jo's - Parmer - Barbeque Near Me - Austin, Texas

See all

Pro: I go for the turkey or brisket. They give large sides and drinks. Very convenient places around town. Con: Not very consistent with their chicken or ribs, hit or miss when I order it. read more

Great bbq lunch spot. Pork lion on Wednesday is always good. Great brisket, sausage and chop beef sandwiches. Recommend the birds nest brisket sandwich read more

Okay bbq but the person cutting the meat should be aware that there were bugs on the cutting board. Ants walking back and forth on the cutting board made me lose my appetite . read more

While Pok-E-Jo's may not be the ultimate bbq place, it's just plain good. I love their sausage (made by them) and ribs, and the chicken is tender and flavorful. The side dishes are good, if not great. I'd like more choices, but given what they are, I'm very happy. The service has gotten better and better over the last few years. Whatever they're doing is working. They are friendly and attentive. read more

I've always liked this place, they are always consistent with the food and the customer service is on par as well. The reason for my review today is for my experience yesterday. I decided to get our office staff lunch from here and called them when I was on the way, about 10 minutes from the restaurant. The guy on the phone was very nice and helpful and took my order very quickly. I thought that an order of that size would take some time, but it was ready at the counter when I arrived. The food was perfect, our staff loved it and I didn't have to wait in line to order when I got there. read more

Brisket and sausage with two sides - it was decent, I have had better brisket here in Texas but It's hands down better than I can get a home..sausage was good, sides also good. So all in all, I would say it was a good meal..you can do better here in Texas but if your in the area it's a decent spot with good atmosphere. read more

Pok-e-Jo's - Parmer - Two meat plate ! - Barbeque Near Me - Austin, Texas

I've been eating at this Pok-E-Jo's a lot for the past few years and finally decided to write a review on it. All you really need to know is: the BBQ is good, the sides are good, and the peach cobbler is dang tasty. Oh, and try and get there around 11:30am (or a little earlier) during lunch time or expect to stand in line. I've rarely been disappointed here, and when I have its always been on the weekends... and always the sides, the meat has always been good, the mac and cheese.. not all the time. read more

I have eaten at quite a few bar-b-que joints in my day and I have had some that were the Top of the line, and some that were "Oh my god" bad. While Pok-E-Jo's is not the fancy mans eatery, it does serve up some very good barbque. I am not all to thrilled about their side dishes, it seems that every time I have been in there the sides have been sitting for some time and gotten... Well not so good to eat old and nasty. (though they are pretty good when they are fresh) Their meats are well done, and their cutters do a great job at getting the very cut that you want. Oh yes, I can't forget the service. It is excellent, the counter staff were very pleasant and attentive to the customers needs. This establishment is one that I will return to in the future and one that I don't mind referring to my friends and family. read more

The chile and turkey is really good. All the staff is Texas friendly! read more

Pok-e-Jo's - Parmer - Barbeque Near Me - Austin, Texas

Food cooked by angels, that's the only explanation I can think of, I've really never had BBQ like that (was visiting TX from California). I'd suggest the beef brisket, even if that's not normally your thing; get the "moist" option. We tried almost everything on the menu (and I normally prefer ribs), but the brisket was quite memorable. They'll give you samples if it's your first time. Very casual, friendly place. Open seating. Interesting side dishes, I especially liked the creamed corn - NOT like the stuff you get in a can. read more

Great place for lunch. The combo specials include a drink which is awesome. Their menu offers a lot of options and they have daily specials which is nice. Staff was super friendly and welcoming. The restaurant was clean which was reassuring. They put a lot of effort into the atmosphere and it pays off. T.V.'s everywhere read more

Pok-e-Jo's - Parmer - Chopped beef sandwich. - Barbeque Near Me - Austin, Texas

See all

After reading all the great reviews of this place, I obviously had great expectations of this place. We ordered the brisket, sausage, chicken and a side of green bean casserole. The brisket was moist, as expected. The sausage however, was just not something I was used to. The meat in the sausage was crumbly, and tasted a little gamey and raw, like it had deer meat in it (woohoo!), but just didn't seem as flavorful as the sausage at other joints I've been to. I always order sausage whenever I get barbecue, and the sausage here was definitely a little different. We also ordered the chicken, which was pretty decent. So was the green bean casserole, but tasted like it was made of canned green beans. To add to the experience, we had our order completely mixed up. While the service was great, we ordered 1/3 lb of brisket, 1/3lb of sausage and a 1/4 chicken. We ended up with 3/4lb of brisket and 3/4lb of sausage. More food than we could eat and paid way more than we expected to. Overall, its decent, but won't be my first choice when I am in the area. read more

Good tasting brisket and great tasting buns. Carry out did not include pickles and onions in the bag.