Bubba's Smokehouse BBQ

The sauced beef ribs were extremely salty. The unsauced ribs were the dryest ribs we've ever had. It was dryer than beef jerky. We couldn't finish it because it was terrible.

Food: 1

Bar was extremely loud. This is a sports bar. I wouldn't really call it a smokehouse although they do offer that type of food. Brisket was mediocre at best.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 2

Service: 3

Olivia was the nicest person I’ve ever met

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Beef Brisket, Tri Tip

Worst BBQ I have ever had. The brisket had no flavor, very bland and tasted like something that never touched a smoker or BBQ. We waited for an hour for the food, and only one meal initially came out. We watched one of our family members eat while we still waited. She and I both ordered garlic mashed potatoes for our side. They were apparently out and the waitress asked what she wanted to substitute her mashed potatoes for, which she said fries. I was in the bathroom at the time and was not asked about my desired substitute. I was given fries too when my food finally came. I would have preferred something else so that should not be an assumption that everyone would want fries as the side. There are likely better BBQ places in San Diego, but don’t go here for BBQ. If you want drinks and a sports bar, then this place is fine.

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 1

Service: 3

Food was amazing, got the happy hour sliders and the loaded fries, and drinks were good too! Service was excellent and they always checked in on us which was a plus and all the food tasted from scratch and homemade which tasted more authentic and delicious, highly recommend

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Sorely disappointed in the food. Reviews were positive so I thought I'd give it a try. The brisket looked and tasted like it came from a microwave. I've never seen brisket that color before. The beef rib was decent- it at least appeared freshly barbequed. Coleslaw was mediocre and likely was just combining a bunch of bagged cabbage and jarred dressing without any uniqueness or home-made qualities.

Bouncer was cool. Server was friendly. Seems like a cool bar but don't go there for the barbecue.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 2

Service: 4

Don’t waste your time with Bubba’s Smokehouse BBQ (inside Society). Google says they’re open until 11pm on Sundays, and their own website confirms the same—but nowhere does it mention that their kitchen closes earlier. I showed up at 9:50pm, clearly well before the posted closing time, only to be told at the door that they were already closed.

I came for the restaurant, not the bar, so that excuse doesn’t hold up. If your kitchen shuts down earlier, post it clearly everywhere. Super frustrating and misleading. Maybe I dodged a bullet when it comes to the food and service—guess I’ll never know, because I’m not giving this place a second chance. Late-night eaters, don’t bother.

Seems like a good place to get together with friends! They had pool, pingpong, and shuffle board from what I could see. Decent amount of TVs to catch the game or fight too. I had the brisket sandwich and onion rings to eat. That sandwich was decent. Very tender, but nothing too amazing. Overall it seems like a pretty nice spot. I would definitely come back.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 4

Mackenzie was a great server and the food was great. Had chicken tenders and friends + the pulled pork sliders. Really good!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

TLDR: Fantastic food, but the new location is so-so and the restaurant needs more staff!

Visited Bubba’s (inside Society) last weekend for lunch with a party of 6. This was my first visit to Bubba’s since they switched locations from Downtown La Jolla, and Bubba’s is now serving as the kitchen/in-house restaurant for Society Pool Bar in Pacific Beach.

The Society bar is large and has plenty of tables and room to move around which is ideal for busy late night partiers at Pacific Beach. It is effective as a bar but has very little charm or character for a restaurant. I understand that it is a bar kitchen now so this might be a picky criticism but compared to the feel of the previous location it feels lacking in identity.

We entered the bar for lunch at about 2pm on a Saturday and while the bar had a medium sized crowd, we did not need to wait for a table which was nice. Biggest downside to our experience was the lack of staff. There was only one waitress on staff for a room with about 50 people and only one person working the kitchen from what I could see. As expected this meant a long wait until we could order and an even longer wait time until our food was delivered. There were probably about 50 people at the bar during our visit and our poor waitress was extremely busy taking orders, delivering food, delivering drinks, checking pool equipment out to people etc and it was clearly too much for one person. Based on the long wait time for the food and a forgotten order it seems like the kitchen was understaffed also. All that being said, our waitress was great and deserves a raise!

When the food arrived it was great as always. I’m very happy to see that the quality hasn’t changed! I ordered the signature sandwich The Bubba and it was out of this world. The sides of mac & cheese, beans and fries were also great. Would love if they brought back the self serve ketchup and bbq sauce stations because I felt bad asking the busy waitress for extra sauces.

All in all 5 stars for the food, 3 stars for service and ambience, but I will definitely be returning again and I will happily revise my rating if the bar gets more staff/improves the restaurant side of the experience.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 5

Service: 3

Would come back solely for the beef rib. Fork tender and perfectly seasoned. The brisket was a bit lean for my liking. Kids liked the corn, Mac and cheese and coleslaw (but sweet for me).

Baby Back Pork Ribs were tender and juicy as always!! Love their beef brisket!! Great customer service! Best BBQ in San Diego!! 🔥🔥

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Beef Brisket, Fall Off the Bone Ribs

TJ Albert was spot on with his review. Went in through society, which is a bar with multiple pool tables, and the atmosphere was great. The service was great, including the drinks, but the food was far from. I had a pulled pork sandwich, and my boyfriend had a brisket sandwich . The sandwiches lacked a decent sauce, flavor, and proper charring. Not to mention, my pulled pork made me sick the same night. Needless to say, go try your luck elsewhere. If you're ever in New York and want an amazing smokehouse experience, try Mables Smokehouse. This place could take a lot of notes from them.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 1

Service: 5

Loved the ribs one of the best sauces I’ve ever had on ribs and haven’t had ribs in a long time so one of the best💗

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: BBQ, Sauce, Fall Off the Bone Ribs

I'm sorry, but I can't see how anyone could rate this BBQ above a 3 tops. If you have any idea of what real BBQ is then you'll know immediately -- this ain't it. The BBQ chicken was tender but bland. The brisket is the worst I've ever seen. It was soggy and slimy as if it had been boiled rather than smoked. It had no char, had no brown, and had more of pale, pink texture. And also bland. Garlic mash tatoes were good, but cold. Sausage link tasted like a hot dog, no flavor. The cornbread, if you want to call it that, is more l

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 2

Service: 3