Thompson Brothers Barbeque

I am licking my fingers as I type this review. I ordered lunch for my team (50ppl) and I have to say from the order process itself to eating the food it was all top notch service! When the food was delivered the set up had everything we needed, the customer service was great. Then we actually ate the food and everyone had positive things to say, the Mac and cheese is so good! Got chopped beef and chicken, I used the sweet sauce and thoroughly enjoyed it. Looking forward to going to the restaurant on my own with friends and family to enjoy it.

Let me preface by saying I have eaten BBQ all over the place and pretty picky about were I am going to sample my favorite indulgence so last night was a real treat. It was perfect hole in the wall place for me nestled right in between a Goodwill and a Cycle Gear! Lol! Anyway my biggest concern was the food and let me tell the choices here are hard to make that from… from ribs, short ribs, hot links, chicken, brisket, Bologna you name it this place is doing it… I decided on the 2 meat combo brisket with ribs. Completed with cole slaw, beans and I threw in a side of what they call Brunswick stew… hard to explain exactly what this is but it’s a little spicy has some pulled pork some corn and just down right delicious.
Back to the meat the brisket here has just the perfect amount of smoke and literally so tender it just falls apart. Me and a co worker both agreed that this was absolutely to die for. Now the ribs not skimpy in any way. They had tons of meat and the exact same way. The meat literally falling off the bone tender. Now my favorite was the meat didn’t really need BBQ sauce but their spicy and sweet and spicy sauce was so good and flavorful I took my roll and lathered up all I could to not miss a drop. Best part how friendly everyone is in this place and how they take there time with any questions you might have about anything. Plus on the way out they even go old school and thank you for your business… well done Thompson Bros BBQ! Nice to see small businesses like you that truly care about the customer and there craft of making great food.

I heard about this restaurant from a few co-​workers and I had seen this establishment while at other stores in the same shopping plaza so I decided to give it a try when I was in the area. I was highly disappointed and definitely will not be going back.
There was a line when I got there, but it was lunch time so I was ok with waiting. There seemed to only be 4 people in front on me so I figured I would be out pretty quickly. Little did I know that NONE of the people sitting down at the tables had food, so this actually meant there were about 16 people in front of me! I don’t understand how you have that many people waiting without food? Maybe they were under staffed that day or something, but it was pretty ridiculous to have that many people waiting on food at the same time.
I got something super simple, chopped pork sandwich and collard greens, which most restaurants would do a decent job on. Not this place. The pork itself didn’t have any flavor at all and I asked for the «spicy sauce»; however, nothing about it was spicy. If that was spicy, I cannot imagine what their mild would be. But not only was the sauce not spicy, it also didn’t have any flavor at all-​it was very watered down. I usually don’t use a lot of sauce, but between the bland pork and not spicy, bland sauce, I had to use all of the sauce just to try to have it have a little bit of flavor. I will say, the collard greens were not bad. They had a lot of stems in them, but from a flavor perspective, it wasn’t bad. For the amount of time I had to wait and for the food to be as bad as it was, I won’t be going back and I can’t recommend this to others.
Heirloom BBQ just a few minutes away is soo much better.

So I’m reading reviews on Unilocal so hubby and I can find something to eat on a Friday night. We decide to go with Thompson Bros BBQ. I had the ribs with macaroni and cheese and baked beans. My husband had chopped brisket with baked beans and brunswick stew.
I REALLY wanted to like this place. My ribs were very tender and had a good smoky taste. However, I’m a saucy kinda gal and was disappointed in their mixed sauce (sweet and spicy). The sauce had a good taste but was very watery… like they’d thinned it out way too much. Also, there was a LOT of fat on my ribs. The mac and cheese was just okay. The baked beans were a real disappointment — no onions, no bell peppers no flavor. They were sweet and liquidy, like pork and beans straight out of a can. Husband said the brisket was okay, brunswick stew was excellent. He was also very disappointed with the baked beans.
Although our experience wasn’t a good one, we want to attribute our bad luck to the fact that we didn’t get there until about 8:40. They already had some of the chairs on top of the tables although there were still several people in there dining. The employees appeared to be very tired although they attempted to be friendly. Oh, and FYI… they don’t accept call-​in orders for take-​out after 8:00. They close at 9:00.

Oklahoma style BBQ! This is the real deal folks. These guys do everything right. The beef rib was huge and so tender with little fat. The sausage had just the right spice. The smoked Bologna was the best I’ve ever had! Their slaw and potato salad are definitely made fresh. This is the place to visit in Atlanta for BBQ!!!

Sliced Brisket Sandwich was very good. Size was decent but not overwhelming. Quick services and alot of locals.

I am a harsh critic for BBq, as there’s a BBq resturaunt every 10 miles in the south. My particular thing is chicken as I don’t eat red meat or pork. My wife and I tried The Thompson Brother’s out tonight based on the recommendation of several customers at my job. Keeping it 100 here, The good: The meats were simply the best we’d had in a long time. The chicken was tender and so full of flavor i didn’t really want to put any sauce on it. Just wonderful. My wife had the brisket and said it was simply THE BEST she’d ever had. EVER EVER. Wow. The resturaunt is also one of the cleanest with batrooms so clean you’ll feel like you’re at home. The not-​so-​good: We were not impressed with the sides. Many a good BBQ restaurant is let down by their sides. I had the patato salad and greens, She just had the greens. They weren’t bad, they just didn’t live up to the standard set by the meats. I’ll try their other sides before i fully pass judgement.
Its so family owed that our order was taken by one of the owners. That was awesome. I will support this place. I encourage you to try them! I think you’ll come away smiling!

Yeah, you might think this is just another barbecue place but ummmmm it’s not. This is that authentic, smoky, flavorful, juicy, just down right ridiculously good barbecue. I’ve dined here a few times and have always had a pleasant experience. I love the fact that it’s family owned and ran by the good people who own the place and as soon as you walk in the door, you kinda feel like you’re apart of their family. In other words, they have good manners and even better customer service.
There are just enough choices on the menu to keep you confused (not that many side choices but they do have Brunswick stew) about what to eat but I settled on the shredded brisket sandwich, and it came with one side and who could pass up some mac n cheese??? I also figured I better have some veggies sooo I got a small side of greens as well. Best decision I made today. No lie. It was too good. Kind wish the mac n cheese had a bit more buttttt it was still pretty tasty. The greens tasted like my mom made them and the brisket with the sweet sauce… I saw rainbows. So yeah, go here for some good ol home cooked BBQ!!!

This place earned their stars and some. This was my first visit to Atlanta and I was looking forward to some good BBQ and peach cobbler. I ordered the Chicken and Ribs combo, with a side of Mac n Cheese and Brunswick Stew… The Stew is by far the best thing I ever tasted. My Ribs were so meaty NO FAT! Don’t even get me started on the sauce. I tried the sweet sauce and the spicy. Too much food for one meal, so I will have the rest for breakfast, yup, it’s that good.
Now, let’s talk desert. Not being from Georgia I don’t have a lot of Peach Cobbler experience to speak of, but I can tell you this; I only tried two, one from Paula Deans «Lady and Son’s» and the second from Thompson Brothers —
The Dean Brothers need to take a lesson from the Thompson brothers, no disrespect PD, just being honest.
If I ever come back to Atlanta, I will stick my mini fridge with Ribs and Brunswick Stew.
I even asked where they got their skills from and he gave credit to Uncle Cory.
Good Job Uncle Cory! It’s important to keep authentic tradition alive.

As of now this place is my spot when it comes to barbecue! I only had the ribs, but they were definitely satisfying. Great taste and a great amount of lean meat. I will definitely return here on my next craving for barbecue!

I always order before noon. I’ve never eaten here in the afternoon. It’s Grilled food it’s cooked in the morning. I only get the ribs and baked beans.

This food was no good. Chopped pork sandwich: meat tasted reheated, wasn’t hot enough, no seasoning. Tastes like oven bbq not pit smoked. Sweet Bbq sauce was like sugar syrup with cinnamon, gross. Added the spicy, which made the whole thing eatable. Bun was cold hamburger bun from grocery store. Macaroni and cheese was also gross and really bland. Coleslaw was good, tasted like standard slaw, so that’s what I ate. Seems like good family run business, but the meal was a waste.

First time here — pleasantly surprised!
Family run, delicious eats. :)
Very good/​excellent beef brisket! No– I repeat — there was NO FAT on any of the slices!
Impressed.

This review is from a very limited scope because I always get the very same thing each time I go. This is because I simply can’t believe just how good their spare ribs taste.
I absolutely love my BBQ ribs but I quit ordering them at restaurants because I was tired of being disappointed 95% of the time. Here in Atlanta, most places give you bland ribs and then expect you to get your flavor from the sauce. At Thomson Brothers BBQ, no sauce is required because the ribs are the most flavorful I have ever purchased in a restaurant and this is consistent nearly every time I eat at this establishment. I can also attest to the Baked Beans being top notch as well.
As for the rest of their menu, other people I have dined with their tell me how good the other selections are but nothing else interests me because the ribs are JUST THAT GOOD!

I had Thompson Brothers for the first time on Friday last week, and I didn’t expect much. I should have known better. It’s always the little the hole in the wall, or the unassuming restaurant in a strip mall next to a Goodwill, that can and will most genuinely surprise you.
I split half a pulled port sandwich with a friend, and ordered a large container of my beloved brunswick stew. I assumed from the awesomely low prices that the food would be mediocre at best, I could not have been more wrong. I don’t even particularly like pork when I get barbeque, but this was delicious. It was moist and smokey flavored, without being over powering, and the spicy barbeque sauce was no joke.
I frequently bitch in my reviews about restaurants selling things they claim to be «spicy», that are only spicy to the palette of geriatric bingo players with acid reflux and ulcers. The spicy barbeque sauce here was absolutely awesome. It had just enough heat to genuinely qualify as spicy, without being so over bearing that the profile of barbeque sauce was lost.
It was just about the best barbeque sauce I’d ever eaten, with the exception of the stuff my brother in laws dad makes at home. It was great on my sandwich and I liked it so much that I added the rest of it to my brunswick stew. Speaking of the brunswick stew, it effing was delicious. It maybe could have had a few more vegetables added to the mix, but I didn’t care. Despite having been cooked in the stew, the brisket retained its slightly smokey flavor, and the addition of the spicy barbeque sauce elevated the whole thing to near perfection. I ate about half at the restaurant, and intended to take the rest home to save for later. Instead I ate the rest of that damned delicious stew in the car on the way back, and had absolutely no regrets about doing so.
I had almost given up on barbeque, places like Williamson Brothers, with their $ 15 plates of shitty boiled meat and sugary ketchup like sauces had nearly ruined it for me. Even Fat Matt’s which I used to like has earned my contempt for thinking its acceptable to serve me a «barbeque sandwich», in which they can’t even be bothered to pull the fucking meat off the bone before sticking it between two places of shitty plain white bread, and charging me as if it its something special.
Thompson Brothers Barbeque gives hope to fans of the barbeque genre, and it does so at an almost unbelievable price point. I can’t wait to go back and try every single item on their menu. If you aren’t a snob, and you don’t care about being coddled like a toddler, and just want good barbeque, you need to check this place out.

When ever I’m in Marietta I have to stop in. Ribs are very tender and full of flavor. Lemonade to wash it all down with is a must. Red Velvet hunk cause its not a slice is worth the money. Great prices also.

This was by far the most disgusting meal I’ve eaten anywhere — EVER —- The McRib is better. Run away from this place.
They MICROWAVE everything. I asked the girl behind the counter if they microwave and she said ‘only to heat it up’ ! Lmao. I must admit BBQ is my specialty so my bar is set high but never expected something like this. (Full disclosure — I’m a comp bbq cook)
Brisket was gross — microwaved in plastic bag. No flavor and chewy.
Sausage — nuked as well. So much I could not bite through the skin.
Mac n Cheese was gross — microwaved so much it was dry. Lmao how can u make Mac-​n-​cheese dry? Neat trick!
Chicken — Microwaved so dry it broke the plastic fork. Look at the pic. It’s not dog turds in a basket. It’s chicken.
Im not from around here so I can’t tell u if they have gone down hill over time or always been this way but I feel sad for the family as this place will close and all investments lost. With that said, from a BBQ perspective this place is down right disrespectful to the Q and should be ashamed to serve that garbage to the public.
Pictures are worth 1000 words…

Best barbeque that I’ve had in Atlanta since I’ve been here and believe me, we’ve been to a few spots all around Atlanta, including Heirloom, Twin Smokers and Daddy D’s.
Service was great, and had the chipped pork and spicy sweet barbeque sauce and it was soooo delicious! Also had the pork ribs and they were perfection as well. Just enough dry rub on the outside, and tender and juicy on the inside. Yum!
As far as sides, had the greens, baked beans, brunswick stew and mac and cheese. Most of the sides were great, but the mac and cheese was just okay. Not much of a mac and cheese fan to begin with, but this mac and cheese was a twee bit on the bland side. Other than that, this place gets two thumbs up (and big toes too)!!

My fiancé and I went here yesterday. I ordered the dark BBQ chicken with Mac and cheese and greens. The chicken was delish! The smokey flavor was very present but not overwhelming plus they gave two leg quarters. I had an Arnold Palmer to drink and the lemonade was great and homemade.
For desert we got the peach cobbler (they were out of banana pudding) and red velvet cake. The peach cobbler and red velvet cake were okay but maybe it was because I have as really looking forward to banana pudding.
The inside isn’t much to look at however what is notable is the fact they are big supporters in the Marietta/​Smyrna community. There are appreciation certificates and plaques all of the walls from various little league baseball, basketball, and football teams throughout the years.
Any place that has BBQ like this plus they give back to the community is alright in my book!

I was headed to the Goodwill a few doors down and got a whiff of b.b.q. after not eating all day it didn’t take but a minute to decide a snack was needed pronto. Walking in was immediately greeted by a man at the counter and wanted to know what I wanted? I let him know that it was «my first time in» he was helpful & polite we were laughing and joking around at the counter as he gave me a few options then finally decided on the Rib Sandwich it comes with three ribs, two pieces of white bread and you pick a side «collards please».
A few minutes later the order was ready damn it looked good and couldn’t wait to dig in but wait, b.b.q. ribs are something to looked at first. Is there a smoke ring, how much fat is there, does it pull off the bone or does the meat stick to it when given a tug, is there any crust or charring on the outside, is the meat moist or dry ?
These ribs met most of my expectations meaty, moist, you could peel off the top layer then sink your teeth into the rest and had just enough fat to keep you lickin your fingers.
The side dish being collards were really tasty so much so that after eating them that I went back to the counter and bought a pint to go.
Sauces — There are three of them and don’t really care for any of them two are sweet the other hot so you may have to concoct your own.
Upon further investigation the next visit an order was placed for a ¾ lb. plate knowing I would get 2+ meals out of this, choices Sliced Brisket & Hot Sausage with (2) greens and mac n cheese. (No bread)
Downside —
The brisket came out in thick hand cut slices but was dry and in need of sauce for moisture. The mac n cheese was over cooked mush and exchanged it for more greens, btw these are flavored with turkey.
Upside —
Hot sausage — Yum the sausage has a nice «kick» that lingers and keeps your attention if you are shy about spicy food this is not for you. I shared this with co workers & we all enjoyed it. Still liking the greens.
The «Pork sandwich» seems to be popular this will be the next item to try.