The most satisfying bbq restaurant food I've had since moving to Lakeland, 12 years ago. I ordered the half rack of baby back ribs and my wife ordered the brisket platter. The portions of meat were more than I expected but the sides were huge as well. The entire meal was epic for the both of us! The owner was our waitress and server and was very friendly and funny. We highly recommend it. I'm 62 years old and have eaten at many BBQ places in a lot of cities within this great country and so far this place is now my favorite. If you're craving BBQ you must try this hometown establishment! Sincerely "The Cop From Miami" I'll be back next week for sure!!!!!!!!! I almost forgot, the ultra's were ice cold!!! read more

My husband and I absolutely loved this place!!! The brisket is phenomenal!!! Honestly, the best I have had ( for reference my husband and I spend a lot of time in Texas). The pulled pork sandwich, Mac and cheese, coleslaw, and potato salad were just as amazing. The vibe of restaurant itself is a perfect warm cozy country BBQ place. Great food, great atmosphere, amazing service with country hospitality. If you're lucky you may get there when the chocolate chip cookies come fresh out of the oven!! We can't wait to go back! read more

Have been once a month to this little gem. The owners & staff are extremely friendly. The food is amazing. It's a wonderful little mom and pop restaurant that deserves your attention. Even their coleslaw is kick ass! read more

If you like BBQ this is the place. My favs Brisket grilled cheese and pulled pork combo

This is a small place but a lot of character on the walls. I'm not sure what they're putting in those grits but man they were good. My bacon was a little overcooked. The biscuits and gravy were really good also. The poach eggs was spot on. And we also got some extra brisket to take home because of how good the brisket breakfast was.... Only two people working here this is a small place remember The cook and the waitress. All and all we will be back! read more

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What a fast transaction for take out- I didn't expect that. The ordered food items exceeded our expectations in taste. I will choose to eat at this restaurant during my next visit because I want to experience its lively atmosphere and high-quality service. I need to sample every dish available on the menu. read more

This food stop was on a strong recommendation from a local Wisconsin friend. While visiting friends in the Lakeland area, I suggested we give the Red Top Pit Stop a try for lunch. Our friend had never been there before. The place from the outside reminded me of a restaurant of years gone by. We were greeted by staff as soon as we entered the door. We told the staff this was a well recommended place to try while visiting in the Lakeland area. He welcomed us and presented us with their menu. The menu also had a nice selection of breakfast items. I'm a fan of southern BBQ, so decided to try the BBQ Sampler (ribs, brisket and pulled pork) with potato salad and collard greens and my wife and our friend tried the Pit Stop Single Combo with potato salad. We were not disappointed! Very flavorful meals! It was delicious enough that our friend will bring her husband next time to share the experience with him! read more

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We decided to try The Red Top Pit Stop a couple of weekends ago. We almost decided not to as one of their menu items is named after the 34 Convicted Felon and former president. It's kind of off putting giving the feel that people who don't support him aren't really welcome. However, with all of the good reviews about the food, we were hopeful and thought we would try it. We ordered a BBQ Grilled Cheese with pulled pork, Cheeseburgers and Country Fried steak. For sides we ordered fries,, onion rings and fried okra. All of the food was made to order and so tasty. We would order everything again. This restaurant is on the side of a two lane rural highway. The dining room is pretty small with maybe 10 tables. The staff were all nice. Orders are taken at the table and food is delivered by your server or one of the other staff members. The place itself is rustic and looks like it's been there for a long time. Tasty food, good service! Glad we experienced. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - Cheese burger and fries - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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Little shack off of US 98. Very hot inside. Only one wall AC unit in the back. The bathroom was beyond filthy. I wish I would've seen it before we ate. We ordered breakfast. The fryer wasn't working so my fiancé couldn't order what they wanted. Both of our breakfasts were beyond disappointing. Biscuits were cold and hard. They don't have real butter, just a whipped vegetable spread. $4.50 for two pieces of greasy floppy bacon. Eggs were ok but they didn't melt the cheese I ordered them with. Hashbrowns werent cooked crispy. Soggy and plain. The grits were awful. Drowning in grease and the cheese wasn't melted in them either. I was really upset because we wanted to love this place. It's very close to our home. The only thing edible was the sausage. Our server was very sweet. That's why I gave it two stars. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - Greasy nasty grits - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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This is a dive with delicious food. The servers go out of their way to be helpful and friendly. When we were in there this morning, the brisket and pork were still on the smoker. We pivoted and ordered some other things. My husband ordered the rack of ribs with beans and macaroni and cheese. I ordered the hamburger with cheese and bacon and a side of onion rings. I can't say there's any ambiance because this is a down home country restaurant. If you want great food, this is the place. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop has officially reopened 7days a week from 7am to 2pm. Got the ribs fresh off the smoker highly recommend try them

Stopped by for an early dinner!! Love the atmosphere and hood was even better!! Can't wait for 98 to get finished so that traffic gets better. read more

This is definitely a little hole in the wall type place. The staff is friendly and the food is good. I decided to go with the ribs. They were fall off the bone good with tender meat and the perfect amount of smokiness. My order came with fries and coleslaw. The fries appeared to be freshly made and the coleslaw was cold. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - Fries/slaw - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

Hit this place for great BBQ every spring on our week at Tigers Spring Training. Always good though sometimes not ready for BBQ so flexibility is sometimes necessary. Best in the area, if they've got it. You know it's fresh! read more

The food was excellent. The burger was very tasty and well cooked. The staff were very friendly and helpful, and got us our food quickly. The inside of the restaurant is very rustic and a very typical country restaurant. There were only about 8 tight tables inside and 2 plastic tables outside. They had a very reasonable price for such good food. Though in the middle of nowhere, is definitely worth a stop if you are in the area. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - The Pit Stop Single Combo with Fries - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

Great variety of things on the menu! Service was good, food was good. I just wish we didn't live so far away...we have to make a plan to go there. read more

Really wish I was able to give this place a "true review". So... I would give them 0 stars but The Sweet Tea was really good (but over priced $2.89) I can review the food since the customer service was so obvious of his purposefully ignoring us... We rode in.and he seemed welcoming and said to sit anywhere (we sat at a corner booth) he followed us and took our drink order and asked if we knew what we wanted for food the said take your time (all the time you need). After he continually attended other tables and never returned to ours... After finishing our non-refilled tea and nothing from the server for over 15 minutes. We dropped $6 (for over priced beverages) on the table and left. I will not give them a second chance. read more

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We stop here regularly and every time, the food and service is AMAZING. Best burgers in all of Polk county and this Cuban is hands down the best one I have ever had. Highly recommend their entire menu! read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - Whole Cuban - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

Got the Friday night ribeye steak with loaded baked potatoe and salad. All was great. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - Menu - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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Good food & great service!! Ambiance is not anything to get excited about but if you're looking for great burgers & fries or nachos with smoked pulled pork, then I highly recommend this establishment. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop has the most amazing Brisket!! Their hamburgers are also some of the best in town. Please support this local family owned (new owners for the last year) business. Located on the northside of Lakeland makes it a great stop if you are headed home from vacation. read more

There was no working a/c when we went. Def a one and done for us. Ordered a brisket breakfast never got potatoes it said came with, served on paper plates. Soda was flat. Just not for us. We always pass on our way out of Lakeland and decided to stop, would not recommend. read more

Great food Good prices Kozy surroundings Great greasy spoon! BBQ Pork Sandwich It is the only restaurant as far north as you can find in Polk County read more

I used to recommend this place to everyone...not the same quality of food. The prices are the same as when they were worth it.

Pulled up and hesitated because , while the reviews were promising, the parking lot was empty. This place is a quaint little off-the-road BBQ joint, not a chain restaurant for sure. Waitress was very friendly. Got our order right, including our request for condiments and sauce after our meal came. Food was made quickly and was brought to our table hot from the kitchen. Hubby got the brisket grilled cheese with fries and I tried the brisket sandwich with cole slaw. The grilled cheese was delicious; plain brisket was VERY tasty, even without any sauce. Cole slaw and fries were good as well. Prices were reasonable -- like most meals were between $11-$17. The Red Top Pit Stop is kind of out of the way, but well worth the detour. By the time we left, parking lot and dining room were full, including folks waiting on to go orders! read more

The wait staff is incompetent. They didn't know to bring drinks after taking the drink order. Out of sweet tea, out of chili, okay but why not say that when they are otdered instead of 15 minutes later. Full restaurant but no one has their food should have been a clue to how slow the service sas going to be. Sadly we wasted both gas and time on this business. It won't happen again. read more

Driving past thought why not ‍. Food was very good quality truly a steak burger. Husband loved the chili perfect blend of meat, beans and spices. Next time I'll skip the fries and try something more made from scratch. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - Chili and burger - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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the food at this restaurant is excellent, delicious if not a little pricey. My loaded burger fries & unsweet tea came to $30 after tip. The Service is Fine, Destiny took my order and it came out nice & hot. Soon as I tasted it I knew I would like it. In general if they know you, you might feel more comfortable but this was my first visit and I felt the atmosphere was a little stiff it's a rather small restaurant & Destiny was trying to juggle being a mom & a server at the same time (And doing a fine Job) I would definitely return to this restaurant in the near future to taste that Excellent BBQ again. But the restaurant itself could use some help. read more

The reviews here alone will draw you in, so it was no different for me this is one place I was looking forward to trying. After finding a seat just off the main dining area it was only a moment before we were greeted by Morgan our server. She thanked us for coming in and asked if this was our first time visiting then immediately went over the specials and took our drink orders. I did noticed the first few orders being served to a few other customers were not accurate and their server immediately offered a do over which was graciously accepted. After reading over the menu and remembering a few comments on portion sizes from the reviews I decided to downsize my order to one of the specials - quarter rack of ribs and fries, we also order the smoked brisket and two sides think we'd just share all of it to get a good sampling of the bbq here. The baby back ribs were amazing plenty of smoke through and through which I love and a nice tender bark, I ordered them without sauce so I was loving ever bite although the four small bones left me wanting more and the accompanying crinkle cut fries weren't going to fix that. The $9.99 special was less than satisfying as far as portions go the half a rack was $16.99 with two side and I think also would of left the same impression I love baby back ribs there just isn't much to them unless you are only looking for tender. The smoked brisket was sliced thin and served sitting in an au jus which I found rather odd since this is bbq not braised beef, it certainly was fall off your fork tender but the au jus drowned out every hint of smokey flavor and would of paired better with a mashed potato special in my opinion but this seems to be one of the signature dishes here. The onion rings and green beans were good and a solid choice but again the value isn't here, with two iced teas the bill before gratuity came to about $35 and we both left wanting more. The quality of the food and service is beyond reproach, this place is all about service and its a very cute roadside eatery no doubt about it and my three star review means it's okay but I didn't find anything besides the service that was exceptionally. Looking at the menu and the photos I think the breakfast and burger selections are more suited for the heartier appetites and deliver more value and maybe my next visit here I explore those options. I loved the setting and hometown feel these are some very friendly folks with a great vibe... read more

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Good breakfast, food was tasty staff was attentive. We did have to ask a couple times for things that were included with our order. Parking was tight the restaurant was also small inside and kinda greasy spoon vibe, although it was clean. It's worth a try if your in the neighborhood, I would say in my opinion it's not worth a special trip. read more

Red Top Pit Stop is simply the best. Great food, great service and made a new friend for life... 5 stars read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

Excellent food, the new staff is great with a great taste! The food came quickly and the meat was good quality.

This is a small place in the middle of nowhere, you could easily drive past it without noticing. Unfortunately, we stopped in. There were customers at three tables, but we were directed to sit anywhere in the side room. Sat down and was greeted immediately, and offered drinks. We asked if they had any ciders and the waiter did not even know what a cider was. We explained it was a apple beer type beverage, and he said they had wine and beer and white claw. Ordered a sweet tea. Server said look over the menu and take your time, he said take your time multiple times and it stood out odd the way he emphasized it. He proceeded to wait on the other tables multiple times and even at one point was just standing around but never came back to our table to take an order. Our drinks were gone and he never even looked at us. We waited for well over 20 minutes after getting the tea and decided to just leave. We left six bucks on the table and walked right past him, he never said a word. I'm not sure why he discriminated against us, but I would not give them any business or recommend trying it. It seemed pretty redneck and they clearly don't need customers. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - There's my tea and the empty restaurant - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

Delicious. If you look up hole in the wall this place will probably pop up lol. Super country but the customer service was amazing. If you want breakfast or lunch, or dinner platters try this place if you're not too far away from it. It was absolutely fabulous. We hit this place every time we had to Gainesville and or Ocalla. Don't worry about how it looks you'll get good service and have exceptionally good food. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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Great food! Friendly service. Location is a not the best but well worth the drive. Very much recommend the brisket. It was delicious!

Good place to stop & eat lunch with my bride & granddaughter! Quick service & good food!

My son and I took my ex husband here for a fathers day lunch on Saturday before going to the movies. He really enjoyed his sandwich of brisket and chicken. I had the same sandwich minus the green peppers and my son had a burger with brisket on it. Everyone was very happy with their meals. I would like less bread so I took my top bun off which is ok that is just me. Being super picky I was worried about a lot of fat on the chicken and or brisket because I've seen places serve it that way. She said there wasn't much on there and then the cook picked All the fat off knowing it wasn't my favourite. Now that is service. I'm so thankful for that and that was so kind I'm very grateful. The tea was good but I'm from GA so I let it brew a little longer but it was good. The french fries are good as well. Excellent customer service. Three waitresses were on the floor and they kind of tag team so you are never forgotten. Very personal and just super friendly. All of them were. Even the cooks smiled. i would recommended the place and appreciate the attention to all of our needs. Thank you. read more

Wow! Great barbecue! A huge selection to choose from for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The sides are not a second thought! Collard greens, fried okra, Mac n cheese, ... southern dishes made right! Friendly service. Great prices. We will be back! read more

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Great food! Great service! And really good ambiance! Lunch and breakfast are absolutely delicious!!

Enjoyed a great meal at Red Top Pit Stop. The burgers are very tasty. Each burger is hand pressed and cooked to order. Tried the Cajun Swamp Monster which had grilled chicken, sausage, brisket and Swiss cheese served on Cuban bread. The sandwich has a smoky taste. We had an order of fries and onions rings. The fries were crispy...just like how we like them. The onion rings had a good tasty batter. Yum...yum! We're looking forward to coming back so we can try other items from the menu. read more

The Red Top Pit Stop - Dining area - Burgers Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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