Back Forty Smokehouse

This was my first time here and I thought it was decent. Unfortunately, they were out of ribs, which is how I usually judge a BBQ place. But the brisket sandwich I had was pretty good. I found the mac and cheese too soupy, but the potato salad was good. The staff behind the counter seemed distracted, and although we said it was our first time there, they offered no help in describing anything or letting us know what was good. Not a huge deal in the grand scheme of things, but it would have been way better customer service. I’m not sure if we’ll go back, but it was worth trying out.

Nice selection of menu options, beef and chicken and your traditional bbq sides. The dining area is large; able to accommodate at least 30 tables and outdoor seating as well. There’s a bar, however it was not open while we were there.

My first experience with this place was trying the takeout. I was super impressed with the turkey sandwich. The bun was awesome, the meat was moist and there was a ton of it, and the bbq sauce wasn’t too sweet. I really enjoyed it. I wish I could say I enjoyed my second experience as much. The second time, we ate there. We went during the early evening and it was pretty empty. We walked in and the people behind the counter were busy making orders. I’m not sure who the orders were for (maybe a lot of online orders?) because like I said, it was pretty empty. An employee behind the counter let us know they would be with us in a moment. My party just stood there for probably 10 to 12 minutes waiting to order. After we did order, we got a couple of items right then, but also got a number tent to bring to the table for the sides and a meal. Which is fine, no big deal. But after a couple of minutes it felt like they forgot about us. We had to remind them about the rest of our order before the sides came out. Let me say right here that the fries were superb. So good! The turkey sandwich was ok, but not nearly as good or loaded as it had been the first time. The dining area was really, really warm. Like flushed cheeks, light sweat warm. Things just got weirder from here. There was a party of three that seemed to be getting personally served from the owner or manager. They came in after us and had very large drinks from the bar and HUGE platter (delivered with a smile) from the apparent manager before we even had all of our food. We were told that the cashier was new and had forgotten to put in one of the items we ordered. After waiting again, the item came and the manager was honestly really rude about it. The fries weren’t with the burger and he straight up blamed a person in our party for telling him that someone else didn’t order fries. We weren’t pitching a fit or anything and he decided to snap at us. He also very loudly called an employee from across the restaurant at one point. Between blaming his own employee and then blaming us, it seemed like the guy just couldn’t take responsibility. It just all felt very disjointed, unnecessary, and awkward. It was a very poor experience and we won’t be back because of it. The photos are pictures of the super gross sink faucet in the women’s restroom. Another member of my party said the paper towel holder in the men’s bathroom had been torn off of the wall and the paper towels were just sitting in a puddle. If this is the cleanliness of an area the customers can see, what does the kitchen look like?