Sonny’s BBQ

For a Sonnys, I give it four stars. We have visited this location probably a dozen times over the past couple years and for the most part have had pretty good experiences. The dining area is well kept and clean and the waitstaff are usually pretty attentive to refills, etc. As with ANY restaurant though, sometimes when they’re busy the staff is spread pretty thin and they’re not as attentive as they usually are. That’s understandable though.
I’ve only ever had a bad meal here one time and I honestly can’t remember enough about it to go into detail about why it was sub par.
The food is pretty good, and has always been fresh and hot for us. If you’re craving BBQ, this is a solid choice. Though I don’t consider it TRUE southern BBQ, it’s better than none at all.

Average at best. Hubby ordered ribs and they were pretty chewy. I had the sampler platter. Nothing over the top, average BBQ food. The cornbread is very good. Service was average. Waitress never took a dirty dish off our table, I can’t stand that.

BBQ at its finest!!! Laid back atmosphere, top notch wait staff, and the best barbecue around! With four great sauces to choose from, you’re sure to find one you like! The salad bar is very fresh, the bbq is cooked to perfection, and the Redneck Egg Rolls will rock your world! Drink choices are many, including the BEST sweet tea you’ll find anywhere, soda, and beer.
The restaurant has several tvs where you can catch your favorite team. And the fact that they have many of the same waiters they had years ago speaks volumes for the way the restaurant is managed. Definitely one of my family’s favorites! Would highly recommend to anyone!
Tip: If you like a cheeseburger well done, order it medium well (well done at Sonnys taste a bit like charcoal). ;)

We stopped in for the lunch specials while we were in Richmond. The hostess and waitress were very nice and took good care of us; the waitress made some good suggestions on which sides to order. I got the pulled pork with baked beans and macaroni, and my husband got the baby back ribs with coleslaw and macaroni. Both specials came with garlic bread.
The meat was spectacular. The ribs had been cooked in such a way that the sauce caramelized on the outside, which was amazing. The pulled pork was deliciously sweet without even putting any sauces on it. The four sauce options (mild, sweet, sizzling sweet, smoking) were delicious; my favorite was the sizzling sweet, which was sweet with enough heat to keep it from being overly so. The sides were mostly just OK. The beans were my favorite, and everything else was good but not great. I didn’t like the garlic bread much at all, and my husband ended up eating most of it with his favorite sauce (the sweet).
If I could, I’d give this place a solid 3.5 stars. Since that’s not an option, I’m bumping this up to 4 for how good the meat and service were.

Disappointed. We ordered the ribs for 2. Lots of gristle and skins. Didn’t get much meat out of it. Baked beans had a weird taste. Unedible. Cole slaw did not taste homemade. Good corn muffin!. Also got the Red neck egg rolls stuffed with pulled pork, Cole slaw and pepper jack cheese. Couldn’t distinguish any of those flavors, but took them home for dinner.

Three words: Baby Back Ribs. Went there for lunch two out of the five days I was in Richmond. This time got the Baby Back Ribs lunch with sides of bbq beans, garlic bread and warm cider apples. All for $ 10 and so delicious! The pulled pork is to die for also! It takes a little longer to prepare but it’s definitely worth it! A staple here in Richmond!

I hope I just happened to catch them on an off-​day, a REALLY off day, because I can’t give this BBQ more than 1 star. I ordered carry-​out for my office for lunch today and it was very disappointing. I tried the pulled pork lunch special and some of the smoked turkey. The turkey was very dry and the pork was just mushy and tasted similar to something you’d get frozen at the grocery store. I really didn’t like my meal one bit.
The coleslaw was bland and didn’t seem very fresh. It had way too much sauce on it but I do realize that’s a personal preference and some people like it really creamy. The green beans were BRIGHT GREEN, Not a natural color at all. I threw most of them away in fear of Green Number X coloring I was eating.
The cornbread muffin was ok.
I noticed they have a salad bar and it looked like it might be good. I was thinking if I ever came back, I would eat there and have the salad bar with my meal. But I don’t think I will be back.

The food was so delicious! We got the pulled pork, chicken, the sliced pork, and the Sonny’s sampler. The corn muffins were moist and made to perfection. The meat was absolutely fabulous and cooked to perfection!!! We were just passing through and used Unilocal and the reviews to make our decision. Defiantly worth the stop. The wait staff was friendly. The place was clean and the bathrooms were very clean. I wish we had one of these were we lived!

Great place Unilocalers! Stopped here based upon Unilocalers recommendations! Just a few minutes off the highway. Sit down place but very casual. Had the brisket sandwich. Was awesome! Flavor was amazing and definitely left full. Didn’t personally care for the coleslaw. Will definitely put this on the list when we are driving through again!

I owe my fellow Unilocalers a great THANK YOU! We stopped here because we looked on Unilocal while on the road and it was close and had great reviews! And boy were ya’ll right!
We were greeted by a very friendly host and shown a seat in an ample booth. The atmosphere was very relaxed and pleasantly friendly. I must say the atmosphere was perfect with the smokey sultry strains of Koko Taylor playing on the muzak (If you don’t know Koko Taylor do yourself a favor and look her up great jazz legend) I’m already in love!
We divided and conquered the menu. He got the brisket and i got the pulled pork. Both scrumptios options. Both perfectly done with a great flavor. My pulled pork had a great flavor that could easily stand on it’s own but willingly lent itself to the selection of sauces available. I’m a big fan of Carolina style BBQ and this was a big hit for me.
I tried all sauces available and loved them all even the hot was tasty even though I’m not a hot person I settled on my personal fave the mild although the sweet was delicious as well. I appreciated how the meat could stand on it’s own yet played perfectly with the sauces. I must add that the meat was also perfectly done it was moist and had perfect texture.
Now in the spirit of a «balanced» review I will add the only criticism I can think of for Sonny’s and that was their homemade coleslaw needed a little salt. There I said it! It was very well flavored and had a perfect texture with the shred of the cabbage.
I would say if you’re local ya must try it and if you’re passing by it is definitely worth a pit stop. Stop and smell the BBQ life is short LOL

I recently started attending church in Richmond, so I’ve started to try local places for Sunday lunch. Today I talked my husband into stopping here. When we first walked in, I noticed the salad and soup bar. It’s $ 6.99 for endless trips, and an extra $ 3.00 to add a meat… except ribs.
I didn’t get a menu, but I glanced over at my daughter’s menu and nothing seemed appealing, so I decided to go with the salad bar. After everyone ordered, after about five minutes, the waitress brought me two plates and a bowl and I made my way to the salad bar. There really wasn’t much of the things that I like on a salad bar, no broccoli, no potato salad. There was a few odd items that some might enjoy, but I didn’t… like bread pudding, some sort of stuffing concoction, you get my drift. There was only one soup and it was vegetable and not very good at all. My husband added turkey to his salad for the extra $ 3.00 and the turkey portion was tiny, not worth $ 3.00. The people at the table across from us were enjoying the endless pulled pork and their portions were huge. My daughter got the pulled pork sandwich meal that even included the soda for $ 7.95. She said that the pork was too dry, I thought that was a good price though.
The worst part of the experience was the service. Our waitress never took the dirty plates, asked if we wanted more plates, a soda refill or any of the norm.
If you’re passing through and wanting BBQ, I recommend heading on to Lexington, we have a ton of great BBQ here.

BBQ is a touchy thing. People who like bbq are usually very particular about which kind they like. Sonny’s is a chain restaurant that does a decent job at bbq. Sure… there’s better, but there’s also much worse. The place is always clean. The staff is friendly and prompt. The food is good with decent sized portions. There is also a soup & salad bar that is kept well stocked and fresh.

Several years ago my family and I first tried this place, bc we had heard many good reviews. We ate here nearly every time we were in town for several months. To the point we were getting tired of it, and didn’t go for a while. A few months ago we went back and it was as good as ever! I would recommend this to anyone who likes southern BBQ! Jut don’t go so much you get tired! And to top off the great food, they have probably the best staff in town!

Great service and great food (Baby Back Ribs)… I will be back!

This place has good food and I haven’t found a place in Cincinnati that has all you can eat chicken and ribs everyday. Decent price for the amount of food you get.

Curing my BBQ fix for 20 years!

Ate here on my last night of a week in nearby Berea and wish I had gone sooner.
Very good BBQ. I had the babyback and St. Louis ribs and couldn’t pick a favorite. They were cooked very well, tender and juicy but not falling apart. They have four kinds of sauce right on the table so you can try them all and doctor up your meat however you want.
Service was friendly and fast and since I was there early I was surrounded by families with small children. The layout of the place and the ambient sound made this no big deal.

Very friendly Service. Excellent amount of food for the price. Love the wings!

Tender, juicy pork with 4 sauces. Very limited salad bar, but not bad.

so when you fly in from cali, and you need some REAL tender meat… stop by sonny’s and you are guaranteed a quality, juicy, phenomenal bbq plate. and i’m not just saying that cause the owner had me over for his son’s wedding. it’s cause this food rocks. period.