Decent BBQ at this charming location in Half Moon Bay. Beautifully renovated and well-decorated interior, this bright and airy restaurant serves good brisket and Mac & Cheese. The beans and cabbage was bland, though. Large patio area that is ideal for hanging with friends and dogs on a sunny afternoon. Plenty of beers to choose from. Fast and friendly service. Large free parking lot.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Ian
7/10 Spare Ribs: Delicious ribs with too many bones and not enough meat. Not worth $14 a half pound, but still quite good! You will bite where there should be meat, but there will be bones. I would expect better ribs from “one of the best” BBQ restaurants in the bay.
6/10 Pulled Pork: It is okay, featuring a greasy, fatty flavor that is not lean enough. I’d prefer something drier and richer in flavor and personally find the seasoning is not my favorite. Not worth it for the price.
4/10 Mac and cheese: A mac and cheese salad style. Quite expensive for sides here and they come smaller than other places. Not my thing, I prefer a traditional mac and cheese. Would recommend renaming the side accordingly!
8/10 Chili: Quite delicious chili, light spice and very nice! Totally recommend! I believe it has some delicious pieces of meat inside!
2/10 BBQ Sauce: Too spicy and very weird like a hot sauce. Honestly really bad, but only slightly redeemable with meat. Was hoping for a much better BBQ sauce or different sauce options besides their strange hot sauce BBQ and their mustard. I love BBQ sauce! My favorites are Joes KC BBQ sauce and KC Masterpiece, but I’ve enjoyed so many other sauces including Old Greenwood BBQ and old Armadillo Willy’s, but this sauce was not for me. Please add a honey mustard to your sauce selection and more variety in BBQ sauces.
10/10 Pecan Chocolate Brownie: Delicious, amazing brownie that is soft and not dry. Definitely recommend!
Staff are super kind and helpful! I wish they weren’t sold out of brisket, but even then, without a good BBQ sauce, it probably would’ve been disappointing. I would consider coming back to try their brisket, but with how busy it is, how much it costs, and how mediocre my overall experience was, I will stick with Old Greenwood in the bay and Joes in Kansas City. Please provide alternative BBQ sauces or other sauces that fit a Texas or Kansas City BBQ flavor to cater to a greater BBQ audience!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 5
Adnan Siddiqui
Perfect place to have quality fun family time and awesome food. Sides are just too good. Mac n Cheese a must
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Michael Barbarino
I've gone way too many times in the last month ... brisket, ribs, beans, and mac & cheese are all great!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Joel Ferreiras
My partner and I drove there from San Jose (an hour each way) only to be told that the Smoked Meat Market menu was not available today (12/26) because they were closed yesterday. It would have been nice if this had been posted ahead of time so customers knew what to expect before making the drive. We visited a couple of weeks ago and really enjoyed the pulled pork, ribs, and cornbread, and we were looking forward to having it again.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 4
Mary Anne Desmeules
What a pleasant surprise. Great BBQ in Calif! The brisket was melt in your mouth!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
Tee Ponsukcharoen
My friend raved about this barbecue spot for a long time and I finally got a chance to try it out. I ordered a plate of brisket along with the sides. Everything is delicious! I am particularly amazed by the brisket and it is so tender and smoky throughout all the pieces. The amount of food is so generous that I took the leftover and made a bagel sandwich out of it a day later and it is still juicy and tender! I am a bit disappointed by the sauce as it is a bit runny. Still the flavor is on point. I wish the served bread to be toasted. All suggestions are minor compared to the solid brisket though. It is worth trying and coming back again!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Tyler Reeder
Sat next to the owner at the bar and he was super cool! The staff was so friendly and attentive as well. you could tell they liked working there which makes a huge difference in the vibe. The barbecue was excellent. Ribs were top Notch, brisket was cooked perfectly and the sides were great as well. The hot link could use a little more fat but had great flavor.overall I loved the armo and they had a great taplist too!! Highly recommend this place! I will be back to try the burger and the pastrami.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sean Murphy
Great place even better food good choice if you're in the mood for bbq.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Nicholas Thales Giordano
Wow! Some of the best tacos over ever had… seemed to be fresh and cooked with care. Service was solid, atmosphere was good vibes all around, and the location is lovely.
The BBQ was excellent - I'd totally recommend it for the brisket & pork ribs. Prices were reasonable & portions good. They also have a good selection of beers. The atmosphere is loud and informal. It would be great in the summer but in winter it's just drafty & cold.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 4
Trish McCoy
Service is absolutely horrible!! Order take Eker spent 15 minutes, helping the people in front of us to decide what to order while the bartender played a game with the one person sitting at the bar Omg Does anybody have a clue about service there? We ended up walking out
Atmosphere: 3
Service: 1
Kris N
I love the Breakwater tacos - I get one carnitas and one brisket. Yum
Keith Churchill
Our favorite brisket BBQ place. Worth the drive!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Marcus Skilbeck
The meats were great, the sides were underwhelming.
Decent BBQ at this charming location in Half Moon Bay. Beautifully renovated and well-decorated interior, this bright and airy restaurant serves good brisket and Mac & Cheese. The beans and cabbage was bland, though. Large patio area that is ideal for hanging with friends and dogs on a sunny afternoon. Plenty of beers to choose from. Fast and friendly service. Large free parking lot.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
7/10 Spare Ribs: Delicious ribs with too many bones and not enough meat. Not worth $14 a half pound, but still quite good! You will bite where there should be meat, but there will be bones. I would expect better ribs from “one of the best” BBQ restaurants in the bay.
6/10 Pulled Pork: It is okay, featuring a greasy, fatty flavor that is not lean enough. I’d prefer something drier and richer in flavor and personally find the seasoning is not my favorite. Not worth it for the price.
4/10 Mac and cheese: A mac and cheese salad style. Quite expensive for sides here and they come smaller than other places. Not my thing, I prefer a traditional mac and cheese. Would recommend renaming the side accordingly!
8/10 Chili: Quite delicious chili, light spice and very nice! Totally recommend! I believe it has some delicious pieces of meat inside!
2/10 BBQ Sauce: Too spicy and very weird like a hot sauce. Honestly really bad, but only slightly redeemable with meat. Was hoping for a much better BBQ sauce or different sauce options besides their strange hot sauce BBQ and their mustard. I love BBQ sauce! My favorites are Joes KC BBQ sauce and KC Masterpiece, but I’ve enjoyed so many other sauces including Old Greenwood BBQ and old Armadillo Willy’s, but this sauce was not for me. Please add a honey mustard to your sauce selection and more variety in BBQ sauces.
10/10 Pecan Chocolate Brownie: Delicious, amazing brownie that is soft and not dry. Definitely recommend!
Staff are super kind and helpful! I wish they weren’t sold out of brisket, but even then, without a good BBQ sauce, it probably would’ve been disappointing. I would consider coming back to try their brisket, but with how busy it is, how much it costs, and how mediocre my overall experience was, I will stick with Old Greenwood in the bay and Joes in Kansas City. Please provide alternative BBQ sauces or other sauces that fit a Texas or Kansas City BBQ flavor to cater to a greater BBQ audience!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 5
Perfect place to have quality fun family time and awesome food. Sides are just too good. Mac n Cheese a must
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I've gone way too many times in the last month ... brisket, ribs, beans, and mac & cheese are all great!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
My partner and I drove there from San Jose (an hour each way) only to be told that the Smoked Meat Market menu was not available today (12/26) because they were closed yesterday. It would have been nice if this had been posted ahead of time so customers knew what to expect before making the drive. We visited a couple of weeks ago and really enjoyed the pulled pork, ribs, and cornbread, and we were looking forward to having it again.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 4
What a pleasant surprise. Great BBQ in Calif! The brisket was melt in your mouth!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
My friend raved about this barbecue spot for a long time and I finally got a chance to try it out. I ordered a plate of brisket along with the sides. Everything is delicious! I am particularly amazed by the brisket and it is so tender and smoky throughout all the pieces. The amount of food is so generous that I took the leftover and made a bagel sandwich out of it a day later and it is still juicy and tender! I am a bit disappointed by the sauce as it is a bit runny. Still the flavor is on point. I wish the served bread to be toasted. All suggestions are minor compared to the solid brisket though. It is worth trying and coming back again!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sat next to the owner at the bar and he was super cool! The staff was so friendly and attentive as well. you could tell they liked working there which makes a huge difference in the vibe. The barbecue was excellent. Ribs were top Notch, brisket was cooked perfectly and the sides were great as well. The hot link could use a little more fat but had great flavor.overall I loved the armo and they had a great taplist too!! Highly recommend this place! I will be back to try the burger and the pastrami.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great place even better food good choice if you're in the mood for bbq.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Wow! Some of the best tacos over ever had… seemed to be fresh and cooked with care. Service was solid, atmosphere was good vibes all around, and the location is lovely.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
The BBQ was excellent - I'd totally recommend it for the brisket & pork ribs. Prices were reasonable & portions good. They also have a good selection of beers.
The atmosphere is loud and informal. It would be great in the summer but in winter it's just drafty & cold.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 4
Service is absolutely horrible!! Order take Eker spent 15 minutes, helping the people in front of us to decide what to order while the bartender played a game with the one person sitting at the bar Omg Does anybody have a clue about service there? We ended up walking out
Atmosphere: 3
Service: 1
I love the Breakwater tacos - I get one carnitas and one brisket. Yum
Our favorite brisket BBQ place. Worth the drive!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
The meats were great, the sides were underwhelming.
Loading...