The Smokey Pokey - Orlando

The staff is wonderful. It's clean. With a unique decor. The ribs were like eating shoe leather after being left in the desert for a year. If this were NYC maybe this would be OK but I imagine just about every other bbq in Oklahoma is better than this.

I do not like to leave negative reviews, but I am leaving this one in hopes that the owner is from Finland and believes boiled pork is BBQ. I wanted lemon in my tea but our server said they were out of lemon (0 for 1). I wanted to order a Smokey Spud but the server said they were out Smoked Spuds and I told she was 0 for 2. Then I got my Pulled Pork sandwich (0 for 3) but I did not have the heart to tell her since she was so sweet. The pork had no smoke ring, no bark, no hint of oak or pecan smoke taste, and not a waft of smoke. This pork butt had no dry rub and had not been brined in apple cider or dill pickle juice. It literally was placed in a pan covered with water and foil then placed in an oven and cooked low and slow. My old granny would have said that is boiled meat not BBQ . This might have passed for BBQ 50 years ago, but these days every neighborhood has a smoke expert turning out good pork in his back yard. The owner needs to go down Hwy 51 on game day and checkout a few tailgaters to see what good/great pulled pork tastes like. This review got two stars based on the quality of the staff.

Honestly one of my favorite stops on the way between Wichita and Oklahoma. While I wouldn't write home about their BBQ as the bestest ever--it doesn't need to be that. Service and ambiance make up for it all. Seriously if you're traveling--go eat here instead of the fast food joints like McDonalds, Braums, Casey's etc It's a good home cooked meal by human beings and not processed. You'll be glad you stopped by.

Impressively extensive space. A pastiche of old Americana with some disappointing pieces of modern culture: Kit Carson and Will Rogers meet 25 year old jokes from Austin Powers 2 and barbecue puns about rubbing meats. Anyway, for a highway rest stop this is quite surprising, in a mostly good way. Someone has a vision and drive, and it 's refreshing to see something different. Highlights include An actual petting zoo An arcade upstairs with an array of games A pirate ship for kids to explore If you 're on a road trip and need a place for your kids to run feral for a bit, this seems about as great a place you could possibly hope for. It is the embodiment of extra. I 'm left wondering how and why this all came to be, and how it 's sustainable. There 's a story here. Anyway, the barbecue. We went on a Sunday and ordered takeout. The ribs were tough. The brisket was on the dry side. And it was there we arrived at the crossroads of expectations: as a standalone restaurant, our meal was objectively not great. The staff seemed nice enough, so I 'm wondering/hoping if it 's just Sunday afternoon inattention or something. So there 's really two reactions to have. Option One: In this location, with the size of the kitchen and surrounding facilities, it seems like exactly the sort of hidden niche that you stumble into and end up having some of the best barbecue in your life. It could be symphonic, to the point of tragedy: It ends up so good that when you get home you have the overwhelming need to tell all your friends, but when you try to describe the experience no one quite believes you because it all sounds like a hallucinogenic fugue state: We waited by the pirate ship that had landed inside, you could see the basketball games from the crow 's nest and also there were llamas, maybe alpacas. I couldn 't tell, it was from a distance, I didn 't go to the zoo. Anyway, the cheesy corn was so good you have to try it. I mean, come on, would you believe you? I don 't know where this was, somewhere in Oklahoma. We turned off the interstate and it just appeared. Guanacos. They could have been guanacos. Your friends listen and smile politely each time, but you can tell they 're indulging you. They eventually drift away. Years go by. Every subsequent meal you have for the rest of your life tries but doesn 't recapture the euphoric delight from that one day long ago off a mysterious stretch of highway. You yourself begin to question whether it happened at all. Doesn 't that sound amazing? So when we try the food and it doesn 't result in long term social isolation and the questioning of our own sanity, how can you help but be disappointed. Option Two: The food isn 't the point, the overall atmosphere is. Complaining about the quality of barbecue here is as insightful as criticizing the pizza at Chuck E Cheese. There 's a pirate ship and a goat pen, and a section with tee shirts that contain wry observations about marriage and bad drivers, how good could it realistically be? As with long road trips, it 's never going to be great, but best to just find ways to enjoy the ride. So all this to say, it depends on your expectations. Good to keep them low, but I also think it 's completely fair to want better from the kitchen. They appear to have the resources to make something amazing. It 's just going to come down to execution on a given day. I hope they 're able to tighten it up. In the meantime, enjoy the ride as best you can.

Food was pretty good and my kids loved the petting zoo outside. I don't know that I would drive all the way out here just for the food, but if I was in the area I'd eat here again for sure. Service was very friendly and the kids loved the big pirate ship to play on and burn some energy! Plus they have a free pickle bar! Pretty cool place!