Extremely disappointed in Big Mikes BBQ. The chicken and brisket were quite dry. The French fries lacked seasoning and there were only 2 sauces available (a BBQ sauce and Frank's hot sauce). Customer service and the Arnold Palmers were the only positives during our visit. Unfortunately, I don't think we will be back here.
Adam B.
Raleigh is a fine area to visit, but their idea of BBQ and mine are not the same. But I'd heard plenty of good things about Big Mike's and I made my way over. I sat at the bar and had a 3 meat platter. Brisket, burnt ends, and chopped BBQ chicken. Actually, I had asked for ribs, but got brisket instead. Not that I was complaining as things would turn out. I was expecting pulled chicken and instead it was roughly chopped chicken breast. I was glad it wasn't pulled but the meat was a little dry which can happen easily with chicken breast. I needed a decent amount of sauce for it. It was seasoned well though. Burnt ends were fine, not the best, not the worst. But the brisket was incredibly good. In the mid Atlantic, a lot of BBQ places do the pork well, but not the beef. Well Big Mike's does a great job with the cow. Moist meat, a nice layer of bark on the outside. I would certainly order this again. Thumbs up for the sides, the smoked potato salad is one of the best BBQ sides I've ever had. Potatoes were all dente, the dressing was super cheesy and thick. Cucumber salad was a fine refresher for the palate. Service was pretty good, though it did take a little more time than I would have wanted to get my drink refill. But the check was processed in a timely manner. If anything, maybe some more sides like mac and cheese and cornbread would be a nice addition. But a good BBQ spot for sure.
Mike B.
We were near the Raleigh Durham Airport and looking for a place to eat a late lunch. We are not very familiar with the Raleigh area and decided to check Big Mike's out based on Yelp reviews. We arrived about 4pm and were immediately greeted by a young lady. She told us we could take a seat anywhere. I should note there wasn't another customer in sight. We took a seat at one of the large tables and we were brought menus. We immediately noticed the floor was very slippery. She agreed and said something about the people who mopped the floor the previous night. The menu is on the small side and we thought the prices were higher than what we see in the Triad area but they may be very comparable to the local Raleigh-Durham area. We were told they were out of fries and also a second item which I don't now recall what it was. Two of us decided on the pulled pork while the other two decided to order brisket to share along with assorted sides. The sides ordered were mac n cheese and slaw. The interior seems clean and comfortable but did have a bit of a dingy feel to it. While we waited for our food we did see to go orders being picked up but no one else came in to sit down. Our food arrived in a timely manner and looked good. We dug in and thought it was decent but not fantastic like the BBQ we had earlier in our trip which we all compared it to. Overall, this was a decent experience but did not blow our socks off. Maybe we were there on an off day but there is room for improvement in our opinion.
Stephanie Jackson
This place used to be great but boy oh boy is it going downhill fast. We kept giving them another shot because the food was really good but each time we've come back over the last 3-4 months it's been worse. Portions are smaller, prices are insane and they overhauled the menu getting rid of most of our favorites.We did end up trying the burnt ends and chili fries but they were not good. Sorry to say it but we'll have to find a new bbq spot :(Gave 2 stars instead of 1 because the servers are always sweet.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 5
Elisa A.
As usual, my favorite bbq restaurant around. Food came fast and was fresh and delicious! Service was amazing!
Tj W.
This place has absolutely amazing burnt ends, which was the lunch special the day the crew and I ate there for the first time, miss Kim suggested it and she didn't disappoint! The food was a 10 outta 10 and the service was even better! I've been back many times since and would recommend them to anyone and everyone!
Kari D.
We used to love Big Mikes but it has been so inconsistent and disappointing the last handful of times we've gone. Today was our last visit. Not only was my food not warm, but it had a hair in it. Thankfully, our server was very nice and didn't charge us for that portion of our food, but that was the last straw for me. He is the only reason this review wasn't 1 star.
Shannon B.
Seated without menus for 5 minutes. Not busy either. Bbq place is out of ribs. Seriously? Ordered brisket. One inch thick dry af meat is not "Texas brisket". Beans were bush beans from the can. Potato salad made with taco seasoning?? Cucumbers were good. Hubs liked the beers. Disappointing North Carolina bbq experience. Dickies has better bbq hands down lolol. Signed, Texas. Ps. Y'all should visit to learn how to bbq.
Peyton ..
We used to love Big Mikes and even now the service is always great! But the new menu... not so much. They got rid of many fan favorites like the "Big Cheesy". Definitely disappointing and we likely wont be back for a while
Stephen Fleming
I've been eating here since 2016 and once they got the loaded fries that's all I ever ordered and now they have the brisket chili fries which I'm excited to try. Definitely recommend.
We are long time fans of Big Mike’s BBQ Cary. We live close by and regularly walk there for dinner or lunch. Over the years, the menu has changed bit by bit, but the latest rendition is drastic. They took many favorites off - bbq tacos, mac & cheese, big cheesy,, etc. with much less variety to choose from. Not only that, but the prices have increased considerably ($19 for 1/2 chicken, $28 for 2 meat platter, $31 for 3 meat platter) while portions have shrunk according to last night’s experience. I regularly order the 1/2 chicken that is typically plump and juicy, but last night was dry and shriveled. It was a disappointment compared to the norm from the menu to the food, service was still very good. It was also quite empty in the restaurant for a beautiful Thursday evening. We hope that this limited menu and food quality is a temporary change while the Pittsboro site gets started so that the Cary site does not suffer.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 5
Timothy W.
Food is over priced, not good at all, fryer wasn't working, food tasted like old leftovers, paid about $50 for 2 rib dinners, don't give you enough food for the price, don't waste your money like I did, i will never go there again, I'll eat the Wendy's across the street before I ever go there again
Robert F.
My favorite BBQ in Cary! Service has always been great and I've never been disappointed. Everything I have ordered here has been excellent!
Jacob Stevenson
Great BBQ, prompt service and a chill atmosphere. We will definitely be back for more soon.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: BBQ
Shaina Mortenson
This place has been my favorite BBQ place for years. We always take friends and family from out of town. The staff is always great and until recently with the menu changes the food was the best.How does a BBQ place not have a chopped BBQ plate?! Also taking away the Mac and cheese is disappointing. Lastly the burnt ends, it was both exciting and top notch on Wednesdays and Saturdays, the bark was crispy and made them. Now having them everyday in the sauce it’s a totally different flavor. Overall disappointed in the changes, I understand things evolve but don’t lose the quality in the process.
Extremely disappointed in Big Mikes BBQ. The chicken and brisket were quite dry. The French fries lacked seasoning and there were only 2 sauces available (a BBQ sauce and Frank's hot sauce). Customer service and the Arnold Palmers were the only positives during our visit. Unfortunately, I don't think we will be back here.
Raleigh is a fine area to visit, but their idea of BBQ and mine are not the same. But I'd heard plenty of good things about Big Mike's and I made my way over. I sat at the bar and had a 3 meat platter. Brisket, burnt ends, and chopped BBQ chicken. Actually, I had asked for ribs, but got brisket instead. Not that I was complaining as things would turn out. I was expecting pulled chicken and instead it was roughly chopped chicken breast. I was glad it wasn't pulled but the meat was a little dry which can happen easily with chicken breast. I needed a decent amount of sauce for it. It was seasoned well though. Burnt ends were fine, not the best, not the worst. But the brisket was incredibly good. In the mid Atlantic, a lot of BBQ places do the pork well, but not the beef. Well Big Mike's does a great job with the cow. Moist meat, a nice layer of bark on the outside. I would certainly order this again. Thumbs up for the sides, the smoked potato salad is one of the best BBQ sides I've ever had. Potatoes were all dente, the dressing was super cheesy and thick. Cucumber salad was a fine refresher for the palate. Service was pretty good, though it did take a little more time than I would have wanted to get my drink refill. But the check was processed in a timely manner. If anything, maybe some more sides like mac and cheese and cornbread would be a nice addition. But a good BBQ spot for sure.
We were near the Raleigh Durham Airport and looking for a place to eat a late lunch. We are not very familiar with the Raleigh area and decided to check Big Mike's out based on Yelp reviews. We arrived about 4pm and were immediately greeted by a young lady. She told us we could take a seat anywhere. I should note there wasn't another customer in sight. We took a seat at one of the large tables and we were brought menus. We immediately noticed the floor was very slippery. She agreed and said something about the people who mopped the floor the previous night. The menu is on the small side and we thought the prices were higher than what we see in the Triad area but they may be very comparable to the local Raleigh-Durham area. We were told they were out of fries and also a second item which I don't now recall what it was. Two of us decided on the pulled pork while the other two decided to order brisket to share along with assorted sides. The sides ordered were mac n cheese and slaw. The interior seems clean and comfortable but did have a bit of a dingy feel to it. While we waited for our food we did see to go orders being picked up but no one else came in to sit down. Our food arrived in a timely manner and looked good. We dug in and thought it was decent but not fantastic like the BBQ we had earlier in our trip which we all compared it to. Overall, this was a decent experience but did not blow our socks off. Maybe we were there on an off day but there is room for improvement in our opinion.
This place used to be great but boy oh boy is it going downhill fast. We kept giving them another shot because the food was really good but each time we've come back over the last 3-4 months it's been worse. Portions are smaller, prices are insane and they overhauled the menu getting rid of most of our favorites.We did end up trying the burnt ends and chili fries but they were not good. Sorry to say it but we'll have to find a new bbq spot :(Gave 2 stars instead of 1 because the servers are always sweet.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 5
As usual, my favorite bbq restaurant around. Food came fast and was fresh and delicious! Service was amazing!
This place has absolutely amazing burnt ends, which was the lunch special the day the crew and I ate there for the first time, miss Kim suggested it and she didn't disappoint! The food was a 10 outta 10 and the service was even better! I've been back many times since and would recommend them to anyone and everyone!
We used to love Big Mikes but it has been so inconsistent and disappointing the last handful of times we've gone. Today was our last visit. Not only was my food not warm, but it had a hair in it. Thankfully, our server was very nice and didn't charge us for that portion of our food, but that was the last straw for me. He is the only reason this review wasn't 1 star.
Seated without menus for 5 minutes. Not busy either. Bbq place is out of ribs. Seriously? Ordered brisket. One inch thick dry af meat is not "Texas brisket". Beans were bush beans from the can. Potato salad made with taco seasoning?? Cucumbers were good. Hubs liked the beers. Disappointing North Carolina bbq experience. Dickies has better bbq hands down lolol. Signed, Texas. Ps. Y'all should visit to learn how to bbq.
We used to love Big Mikes and even now the service is always great! But the new menu... not so much. They got rid of many fan favorites like the "Big Cheesy". Definitely disappointing and we likely wont be back for a while
I've been eating here since 2016 and once they got the loaded fries that's all I ever ordered and now they have the brisket chili fries which I'm excited to try. Definitely recommend.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
We are long time fans of Big Mike’s BBQ Cary. We live close by and regularly walk there for dinner or lunch. Over the years, the menu has changed bit by bit, but the latest rendition is drastic. They took many favorites off - bbq tacos, mac & cheese, big cheesy,, etc. with much less variety to choose from. Not only that, but the prices have increased considerably ($19 for 1/2 chicken, $28 for 2 meat platter, $31 for 3 meat platter) while portions have shrunk according to last night’s experience. I regularly order the 1/2 chicken that is typically plump and juicy, but last night was dry and shriveled. It was a disappointment compared to the norm from the menu to the food, service was still very good. It was also quite empty in the restaurant for a beautiful Thursday evening. We hope that this limited menu and food quality is a temporary change while the Pittsboro site gets started so that the Cary site does not suffer.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 5
Food is over priced, not good at all, fryer wasn't working, food tasted like old leftovers, paid about $50 for 2 rib dinners, don't give you enough food for the price, don't waste your money like I did, i will never go there again, I'll eat the Wendy's across the street before I ever go there again
My favorite BBQ in Cary! Service has always been great and I've never been disappointed. Everything I have ordered here has been excellent!
Great BBQ, prompt service and a chill atmosphere. We will definitely be back for more soon.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: BBQ
This place has been my favorite BBQ place for years. We always take friends and family from out of town. The staff is always great and until recently with the menu changes the food was the best.How does a BBQ place not have a chopped BBQ plate?! Also taking away the Mac and cheese is disappointing. Lastly the burnt ends, it was both exciting and top notch on Wednesdays and Saturdays, the bark was crispy and made them. Now having them everyday in the sauce it’s a totally different flavor. Overall disappointed in the changes, I understand things evolve but don’t lose the quality in the process.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5