Sonny's Bar-B-Q Reviews

Excellent food. I had pulled pork sandwich. Best ever. Friendly staff

It doesn't matter the location sonnys never seems to disappoint. I enjoy the great family atmosphere and the exceptional service. Sonnys food is always on point from their salad bar and sandwiches to their delicous selection of pit meats you cant go wrong.

This is the original Sonny's number one. Nothing fancy, but it's the best Sonny's barbeque anywhere. We drive almost an hour to go there.

Sunday evening, out of mac n cheese, waitress was great, food was hot and delicious, person that seated us desperately needs to be trained...

This place is iconic. The first Sonny's Restaurant ever...

Fast service, the pulled pork had a lot of fat but everything was clean and the food was good

Amazing crew! Great service and spot on food quality!

I'm from Texas and Sonny's BBQ is better than most here at home, we'll definitely be back!

Best place in town to eat at. Ask for Eli and he is the best server they have !!

We frequent this specific location and usually have a wonderful meal. For some reason today, it was pretty lousy! The pulled pork was mushy like canned dog food, the egg rolls were not crispy at all, soft as if they they were made earlier then microwaved when we ordered them. I'm really disappointed that I drive 45 minutes passing another location because we usually enjoy this specific one.

Shorted my take out order. No call back from manager . Food was not good. I do not recommend any one to go there. I am personally no going to any Sonny' s again. I have had this problem at other Sony's as well.

Best BBQ around. Just wish they had backs on the seats.

The food was very good. But they ran outta ribs by 7:30 - 8 o'clock

My order was incorrect which is a red flag. The pulled pork had a a couple rock solid burnt pieces and the cole slaw was rank. If it wasn't for the nice staff and potato salad this would have been one star.

It is decent BBQ and fast. This is a very good thing when you have been stuck at the VA for too many hours. However, you get what you get. I always order the sweet potato and corn along with the baby back ribs. Ribs were great, sweet potato was awesome, the corn was a fail as in ice cold and mushy. Husband did his usual of St Louis ribs, fries and baked beans and inhaled them all. However, this is what he does at any BBQ place. He likes his calories.

Service is generally pretty speedy here if you hit before or after the lunch crowd. It is one of the better Sonny's in the chain, so safe to eat here.

Sonny's BBQ on Waldo Road keeps it traditional. Best one in Gainesville!

Great food and very nice servers but an older location so the restrooms are funky.

they did a recent remodeling job on the restraunt and they did a wonderful job!! so much more spacious and the mens restroom is great. and the food is always top notch

Have eaten here for over 20 yrs. Ever since Sonny sold the franchise rights, it keeps getting worse every time. Picked up an order to go and the pork was dry, fries unseasoned and cold, and they forgot to pack a straw. This was my last Sonny's meal. Probably the worst BBQ in Gainesville now. Only got two stars because it didn't make me sick.

Food is good, but prices are higher than I would like.

I travel to go to the original location. The food is better than the location closer to my house. The staff is extra friendly. They seem to be tempting me with their Brunswick stew. Always great.

This is the original Sonny s and it is getting a little tired after heavy use for 40+ years, but it is an institution. This location has the best service, and despite becoming a chain, has decent BBQ. While diehard fans would cry about how it s a shell of its former glory, you will not leave hungry. The place gets packed for lunch and dinner and it can be impossible to gain entry during home football games.

No complaints at all.. Great food with great customer service. ..

Ribs were excellent, sides weren't. Service was good.

This was the fat my wife picked out of her sliced pork dinner, half the meat portion was fat.

Update: 8/24/18 - just came in with my wife for a take out order, two turkey sandwiches with half & half teas.

I watched the girl pour up two sweet teas and i told her they were half & half, she took the lid off the top and poured it back into the sweet tea container..

Visiting Florida always means a stop at Sonny's! Everything was wonderful as it is at every location I have tried. The brisket was moist and flavorful, the BBQ beans were tangy and sweet, the garlic bread was baked perfectly. Great restaurant!

Took a long time to get order and it was a little messed up. Place was crazy busy though. Next time I will probably skip this place for lunch.

We especially love coming here early for lunch or dinner, before the wait gets bad & the parking is still easy. Their pulled pork plate is scrumptious, many great sides to choose from. One especially pleasant surprise was and is their delicious red beans and rice. We have eaten here probably 15 times or more in 2015, always had attentive wait staff, always had a very enjoyable meal. Occassionally we have one of their really super desserts to. They are glorious but calorious! I guess their food has a few calories in it too, but they are really tasty calories.

I love the food at Sony s and I always dine on 39th (closer to where I live). I decided to dine at that location after a long bike ride on Gainesville-Hawthorne trail.

I ordered a tea and a turkey/brisket mix. 40minutes fast forward, no food on the table yet. What was irritating though is the waitress coming by and stating that your food will be soon for the prior 30 mins. It usually takes 5-10mins at most, at all other Sony s location to get your food. I decided to speak to the manager prior to leaving and he offered a I apologize for that .

The two stars only because every other Sony s location I ve been to had great food + service.

Crew is always friendly and helpful! Value their customers and treats them like family

M
Food was great, cashier even better (Maryanne) just lived her

Took my Mom to celebrate Sonny's 50th anniversary. Food and service is as good as ever.

Love this place great lunch sandwiches try the hole hog its the best

Food is a bit different, probably because it's the original Sonny's.

Awesome place fast cheap. Wish there was a place like this back home in Minnesota

Inattentive and cavalier. Not good customer service.

Service was awesome and the food was great can't wait to go back

Love their BBQ and french fries . One of the best in GNV

The last two times I ve eaten their the sliced pork I received was full of fat and grizzle. Won t be going back.

My experience at Sonny's BBQ was definitely one to remember, while there I had some of the best baby back ribs I have ever tasted and my service was outstanding and so kind I hope to eat there again.

Delicious down home BBQ. Stopped by for lunch after a morning of air travel: hungry and thirsty. Meal did not disappoint. Ribs, brisket, chicken, pulled pork all done to perfection. And the bottomless sweet tea is served in quart sized glasses: fresh brewed and ice cold. Left wanting more. We'll be back!

Normally would rate this 4 or probably 5, but today was not a good day. The food was great as always, at least the food they had not run out of, even the brisket was not too dry. Service was not up to Sonny's standards. The waiter may have been over assigned or she was having a bad day, or waiting tables is not her line of work. She claimed to be unaware that a menu item was not available, after serving the plates, she didn't come back to check on us, thus failing to refill empty beverages. And it took way to long to get a clean bill, which required an adjustment because of the unavailable menu item, and the lack of managerial support to make the necessary adjustments.

I'll be back to enjoy the food again, hoping the staff is better prepared to serve the customer.

I just stopped in for a quick take-out snack. Opted for the Redneck Eggrolls. Coming up with something new and novel at a barbeque joint must be difficult but Sonny amjad hit on a winner. These eggrolls are quite good and they are something one doesn't see at every rib shack on the boulevard. The filling is delicious, the smoky ranch dipping sauce is nonpareil, and they are perfect for a snack. I was a bit hesitant to stop at Sonny's since my last visit (at this same store) yielded a half rack of spare ribs was not very good, but they seem to have turned the corner if the eggrolls are any judge of quality.

Was a lot better when Sonny Tillman owned it. They seem to have trouble with running out of things. Out of ribs, out of chicken, out of beans all in the same night. Never had that happen at the other rib place in town.

Service was good. And they had this cold deal that if you wrote a review you get a free BBG bottle house made! I didn t like the food I got, I m not a BBQ person so that explains it. But I just thought my chicken sandwich was soggy.

Good food but that's only when they get the order right. Manager was extremely helpful and accommodating.

Ribs was over cooked or under heat lamp to long. Dry no juiciness at all

OMG.. BEST PULLED PORK EVER. SONNY WAS THERE...89 YEARS OLD... NICEST MAN. TODAY WAS SONNYS BBQ's 50th anniversary celebration.

I ask for barbecue and cinnamon butter and she only threw a fork in my bag didn't realize till I got home now I can't eat my food at all

Disgusting place. The food was okay if you like dry under flavored BBQ. My biggest complaint is how absolutely filthy this place is. The floors and walls are sticky. Everyone at work knows it's the worst BBQ place in town. Any other location I visited was great. Just do NOT go here.

The original Sonny's in Gainesville FL is the best!! All other locations are definitely a step behind!

Always good food, but since Hurricane Irma, they ran out of sliced and pulled pork, but I'm sure they'll get restocked of pulled and sliced pork.

Employees are very friendly and the service is always quick, even during peak hours. Food is very good and prices are reasonable.

Had the Sweet Carolina sandwich, it was great! Always love the bbq from Sonnys.