My wife and I were visiting my niece, and on our way out of town we came across a little BBQ spot called Sugar and Smoke. It's a neat-looking place--nicely decorated, inviting, and full of that good smoky aroma that hits you as soon as you step inside. We were welcomed immediately, told to sit wherever we liked, and our waitress followed us over to take our drink orders right away. My wife ordered the meatloaf special, and while I teased her for choosing meatloaf at a BBQ joint, I ended up going with the Smoked Reuben. They brought her an entire meatloaf, along with green beans and mashed potatoes. I'm not exaggerating--this loaf easily could have fed three people. It was so good she nearly hurt herself trying to finish it. She almost made it through all the green beans, too, but I managed to snag the last one--and it was delicious. Then came my Reuben: a massive, five-layer monstrosity. I actually asked the waitress whether they made it that way just to impress me (since I had announced upfront that I'm a bit of a Reuben snob, lol) or if all their Reubens are like this. She swore they're all made exactly the same. You've got to see the photo. The marbled rye was sturdy and didn't collapse under the weight of two layers of thinly sliced smoked beef and a thick layer of juicy, tangy sauerkraut. I'm a kraut lover, so I really appreciated how generous they were. The house-made Thousand Island-style sauce tied everything together perfectly. In the nearly 17 years I've been posting on Urbanspoon, Zomato, and now Yelp, this Reuben easily sits in my top three--maybe even my #1. The smoky flavor made it unique, and I loved it. My only regret was not being able to finish this monster of a sandwich--it was delicious but messy, and I went through a handful of napkins. A lovely lady came out to ask how I liked the Reuben and introduced herself as one of the owners. (I apologize--I've forgotten her name!) My only suggestion would be to keep the meat thinly sliced--shaved would be even better--and maybe offer a half portion at a lower price. As it was, I could barely touch my perfectly cooked French fries. To top off the experience, my wife ordered the bread pudding. She has a "gold standard" bread pudding from years ago that she compares all others to, and she said this one was just as good, if not better, than her all-time favorite. I wish we had a Sugar and Smoke closer to home, because it would absolutely be a regular stop for us. It's so refreshing to find an establishment that cares this much about its food and its customers. read more

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Stopped in S&S for lunch and the experience was hometown happiness topped off with exceptional service! I had the Rueben (pictured), which I would order over and over! My husband had the lunch special of meatloaf, which was also very yummy. Can't go wrong stopping in. We'll be back! read more

Sugar & Smoke - Mouth watering Deliciousness! Rueben! - Barbeque Near Me - Pittsfield, Illinois

Stopped in for lunch last week and it was delicious! Service was prompt and our food arrived quickly. We ordered the sliders, strawberry salad, and Mac for our kiddo. And the portobello mushrooms for an app! It was all fantastic! It's definitely a hot spot. I did wish there was a sampler platter for trying all their meats. read more

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Wow! Great Barbecue, beans and slaw and corn bread! Our service was friendly, accurate and efficient! Loved the ambiance! Great decor! Clean! read more

Sugar & Smoke - Ambiance! - Barbeque Near Me - Pittsfield, Illinois

Traveling from IL to KS, Yelp helped us find this delightful lunch stop. I had the spud w/smoked chicken and hubs had the Pulled Pork. Both were delish and generous portions. BBQ sauce was just right - sweet and piquant. This place is a 'lil gem for this community! Staff were helpful and friendly. The interior was large and fun. Decoration theme was 'country' with barn chic. We thoroughly enjoyed our stop and lunch. read more

Sugar & Smoke - Spud w/smoked chicken - Barbeque Near Me - Pittsfield, Illinois

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Me and my husband loved it! The food was delicious. The servers were kind and attentive. Good vibes all around. I had the Pork & Mac Bowl. It had a ton of pork and the Mac was so good. Husband loved the S&S Pork Sandwich. Fries and slaw were great. Bathrooms were super clean. read more

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This is a great spot for BBQ lovers! I myself, kind of struggled to find something vegetarian or close to it, but the pulled chicken salad was pretty good. Our waitress was excellent, attentive, and nice to talk to. Seems like a cool place to hang out. I recommend it read more

Sugar & Smoke - Pulled chicken salad - Barbeque Near Me - Pittsfield, Illinois

Everything I have eaten there , so yummy . I love their ribs , corn bread , bread pudding , cheesy hashbrowns . The staff are so nice !!! Yes I work there , but I'm a customer as well ! All my friends and family love it , The decor is very barn like and rustic. Everyone should try it! read more

This is such an amazing addition to this community! My husband and I regularly frequent Pittsfield to visit family and they always want to take us somewhere new to eat. We were so surprised to see such a trendy and well put together establishment. The BBQ is very good, well smoked with a very sweet sauce. I'd love to see them add more sauce options in the future, even if it's just for the table. They were busy on the weekend, but we found ourselves there pretty close to their grand opening so it may slow down over time - hopefully not! The portions are very big, don't be afraid to share. Pricing and service was fine - no issues. I'd definitely recommend a visit! read more

Sugar & Smoke - Loaded fries with brisket - Barbeque Near Me - Pittsfield, Illinois

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Had the ribs I am here to tell you the food was as good as Kansas City's finest on the same level as Jack stack and Q39

We are in town visiting family and we met them for dinner here. The inside is super open with table and decor is nice. Our server was fantastic and super pleasant. I ordered the smoked Rueben is was fantastic the corned beef was super tasty and the thousand island dressing was amazing. The sandwich was so big I could only eat half. It's nice to see a restaurant that good in a small town. I will definitely be back next time I come to town. read more

my husband and I have been here twice and have not been dissappointed yet! between the food and the service the place is top notch! you have to get there early to get the ribs before the sell out if that says anything but the reuben is my second favorite(hands down best ive ever had) and we've never left hungry! we could actually probably split the meal and be satisfied. The staff has always been very kind and the owner comes by to check on things! probably our new favorite bbq joint! worth the hour drive! We'll be going back! read more

Driving through on the way to the lake and saw this place on Yelp and based on the reviews,decided to stop and wow,what a gem!! Really nice atmosphere both inside and out and fantastic food. Chicken sandwich and burger was fantastic. The owner took our order and was talking about some of the prepared food they had for people taking home or on vacation so I grabbed some chicken and pasta salad and glad I did,some of the best I ever had. Parking lot was pretty full when we pulled in but they are super fast to get your food ready. This place will be a must stop again when we are passing through. I highly recommend!! read more

Love this place! Food is always top notch! The servers are fantastic! Love the variety and it has inside and outside seating! Highly recommended read more

First time going here after hearing great reviews! Very nice building inside and out! Drove about an hour to get there and it did not disappoint! The service was some of the friendliest I have had in awhile! Get there early the place gets busy! The Ruben has a great smoke flavor, ranch was a little lacking on flavor pop but still very good, nachos were huge, I think like ten bucks for cheese curds basket and it was loaded! Can't wait to go back! 5 outta 5 also enough food no one finished there whole plate but it wasn't for lack of trying! read more

Sugar & Smoke - Smoked Ruben - Barbeque Near Me - Pittsfield, Illinois

I ate at Sugar & Smoke on Friday night November 3rd with my two daughters after visiting the area for a funeral. We are from northwest Kansas. One of my daughters and myself ordered a pulled pork sandwich and my other daughter ordered the Squealing Spud. All three of us fell in love with the place and the food was delicious! The pulled pork was tender and moist and you can tell that it had truly been smoked. I was born and raised in North Carolina and actually have a relative who owns a BBQ joint in eastern NC where I was raised on eastern NC BBQ. For me to rate a BBQ joint in Illinois so high is unheard of! I would definitely recommend Sugar and Smoke. read more

Fantastic place to eat with the family!!! They have big picnic tables for large groups and something good to eat for all ages. My 2 favorites are the Asian Thai Chili Wings and the Ruben. My kids love the Mac n Cheese and Fries. The service is fast and friendly and this place never disappoints. As far as our family is concerned this is the best place to eat in town hands down!!! read more

This is a new restaurant in the quaint town of Pittsfield. Adorable and spacious- outdoor dining is available as well as tables inside. I got the brisket topped baked potato- it was delicious! The brisket was so tender and juicy, the potato perfectly cooked, and plenty of toppings to last until the last bite. Definitely will be visiting again! read more

Great food and prices. You can't go wrong with this place. Located right off I-55 it's a great eat Place to stop in when traveling to or from St. Louis. Friendly staff and all around great experience read more

Love it. Everything is so good ! great atmosphere, great staff owner is always present making sure things run smoothly!

Great new restaurant in Pike County! Most of the menu items are smoked, but pretty lightly. I'm not a big smoked meats fan but love everything I've had from here. The wings are my favorite with lots of sauces to choose from. I get my wings naked with sauce on the side and recommend getting them that way. The wings themselves are crispy and delicious and when you dip them in the sauce---wow! Their best menu item in my opinion! The ribs on the weekend are very good as well. I've tried the nachos (huge portion), prime rib French dip, Ruben sandwich, sweet potato fries, breaded mushrooms, pulled pork sandwich and all are outstanding. The Ruben is probably my favorite sandwich. PLEASE get the bread pudding at the end of your meal. You won't be disappointed. They occasionally have soups and salads and specials of the day. And if the parking lot looks full when you get there, don't let that stop you. There is usually plenty of room inside. Leah and Robin have done a great job of building this business from the ground up and you won't be disappointed. An added bonus is the little women's/children's clothing boutique next door if it is open! read more

The absolute best barbecue pork, chicken, brisket !!!!! Better than Kansas City and Rudy's in Texas! Robin and Leah have the best smoked meats in the Midwest and possibly the U.S.!!!! read more

One word- WOW. This restaurant is brand new and the food doesn't disappoint. The special pulled pork sandwich is to die for, and the cheesy potatoes are my favorite. There is outdoor seating as well as indoor seating. Super cute place, we will be regulars here! read more

Good, but.... Attempted to go here twice only to find it closed. Closed Sunday, Monday, Tuesday. Open for lunch 11-2, then closed a few hours and then reopen for dinner 5-8, except open until 9 Friday and Saturday. A recent post on their Facebook page said they reopened at 3 the days they are open, but that clearly isn't true, as we showed up at 4:00 on a Friday, and it was locked up tight. Confusing? You bet. Burned some time and went back, waiting outside in the sweltering heat for about 15 minutes as a throng of other guests continued to arrive awaiting the opening. Pretty much every table was filled in a few minutes. (There is an outdoor patio dining area as well, but the sweltering heat we have had this week did not make that even remotely a viable option unless you were accustomed to living in the Sahara.) That was good for a new business (open only 2 weeks). Simply and nicely decorated. Not too noisy, even though there are a lot of hard surfaces and there quickly wasn't a vacant table to be had (including several unconnected couples sharing a long "communal" table, and people waiting for a table to open up. We were waited on fairly quickly and drink and food orders placed. So far so good. We had some doubts about our waitress, but in reflection, it had more to do with the volume of costumers she had to cover (only three order taking servers). Then the waiting began... other service staff was good about circulating and checking on soft drink refills, as well as "adult beverages" (beer/seltzer) on request. However, getting our food seemed to take a congressional act... an hour passed... no food. While others were getting food before us, we did note every table seemed to be waiting a long time for food items. There were tables that seated about the same time as us that were served, finished, and departing, while we still sat waiting...waiting...waiting. Unfortunately it took our server WAY too long to check on why we had not received our order. She later revealed that the kitchen had lost our order... Not good! Plus it also had become very clear the kitchen was also putting too much priority on carry-outs over the in-house patrons/customers. Food arrived finally 1 hour 30 minutes after admission (doors opened a few minutes before 5pm). Ample quantities and delicious, but the waiting frustrations had worn on my elderly parents, so the enjoyment was significantly diminished. We had ribs that were meaty and nicely seasoned with both a dry rub and "wet" barbecue sauce.... BUT... with the dull "butter knives" offered with the place settings, and an unusual rib cut (more on that in a minute), the ribs were difficult to cut apart to eat. About the cut.... You could see the ribs sticking out of one end, but unlike ribs we have grown accustomed to, you could not cut in a straight line between the ribs to separate them and eat. The rib bones in reality were deceptively short, but actually continued on with a long "tail" of gristle that went in many directions - sometimes curving left at the end of the rack, sometimes right, often curving back along the other side of the slab to a point several bones further away before you could fully separate the rib! But, boy, what a lot of good eating once you got one free! Onion rings were delicious. Sweet potato fries also great, but had we known how huge the basket of fries would be, we would have only ordered one, instead of two (for two people). The cheesy hash browns side were perfection, but again a more than ample portion for a side (FYI - sides are not included with the ribs - you order ribs, that's all you get is the ribs, but really with the quantity of meat on those ribs, you don't need a side). After finally paying the bill, our dining experience had spanned almost 2 1/2 hours, and not by choice. The food was worth giving this place another try, but the owners need to make some serious corrections in their service and prioritize their focus on the in-house customers over carry-outs. Lots of other things on the menu that I would like to try, but not sure how soon we will try to go back after the service fiasco of this first experience. read more

I have been here several times since it's opening date because bbq food is me and my husband's favorite! The pulled pork sandwich and the wings are the best in pike county! If you're wanting a side I would skip the fries but the mac and cheese is to die for! The reason I gave a 4 star and not a 5 is because a couple of the waitresses I'be had we're not the nicest. I also wish there was a delivery option. I love the food, but sometimes the place is too crowded and I would just rather eat at home. Overall this is a must try spot and my favorite place to eat in Pittsfield! read more