Desert Oak Barbecue

Saw this place from the road coming into town. Just came in after some shopping and it did not disappoint. First of all, the staff is amazing and they go outta their way to make sure your needs are met. Our food came out in no time. The sausage had a good snap and the right amount of spice. The brisket was melt in your mouth and the bark was my favorite so far. The ribs had a great smoke when they hit your taste buds and the meat pulls off the bone with no resistance. The sides are good, my favorite was the Green Chili Rice. However, my wife loved their Slaw. Needless to say, we all left full and happy, with no plans on eating dinner. Lastly one of my favorite parts was seeing the pits being worked by an employee, too often BBQ spots hide this and it should be appreciated for the art that it is.

First time trying Desert Oak BBQ with my husband yesterday for lunch and it was a solid 4 stars! Being in TX I definitely wanted to look for more Texas BBQ establishments but it seems there aren’t too many here in El Paso, Desert Oak is one of the top rated places so of course we had to see for ourselves if it lived up to the hype of their reviews. We happened to come on a Friday afternoon for lunch so it was the perfect time to beat any crowds. I can definitely see this place being packed on weekends! Lucky for us there wasn’t a wait when we arrived. I will say the vibe kind of threw me off upon entering cause the place was dead quiet. Even though there were a decent amount of customers I was caught off guard by the lack of atmosphere but I wasn’t going to judge based off of that one thing. Maybe they could turn up the music a bit? That might help so you don’t feel like you’re walking into a library. We were seated right away and the hostess was the one to take our drink order, I believe our waiter may have been on break or busy elsewhere at the time. Jesse was the one to come by and introduce himself as our waiter for the afternoon. Very good service and he gave some good recommendations since it was our first visit. No complaints at all with the service. Jesse was great! We ordered the pork belly bites for our appetizer. Upon Jesse’s recommendation, we chose the sweet sauce to go with the bites. And boy was it a GREAT choice! We absolutely loved everything about the sauce and how crisp the pork bites were. I would give that a solid 5/5. Jesse did let us know it was a smaller portion appetizer but that was perfect for my husband and I. For drinks my husband ordered their Shiner Bock beer and I tried the strawberry lemonade. My husband liked his beverage. I really was neutral on my choice. I’m not too fond of lemonade that tastes artificial (minute made with a pump of syrup). It was a little hard for me to tell if the lemonade was freshly squeezed or not. But it didn’t taste awful so I was more or less ok with it. I would say it was a 3/5. For our main entrees my husband got the BFS which is their brisket, sausage and pulled pork on their sandwich buns. He said he really loved the sausage and the brisket and pulled pork were juicy. We both loved the fresh French fries that came with his meal too. Heavily seasoned with salt and pepper, which we both liked a lot. I ordered the build a bowl with macaroni and cheese with pulled pork on top, along with sour cream and their jalapeño crema drizzled over the dish. I also got a side of their creamed corn. I think next time I will definitely go for their pulled pork sandwich. I understand ordering Mac and cheese at a bbq place isn’t really ideal but it sounded delicious at the time. Just my preference but it would be nice to have had a little more pulled pork on top. Not piled high or anything just a bit more than the bit that was given. The mac and cheese was ok, very cheesy and filling. Probably a 4/5 for me. And I would say the creamed corn was decent. The sauce kind of threw me off at first I thought I was given biscuits and gravy. I would also rate this dish a 3/5 just compared to other creamed corn I’ve had elsewhere. I do also recommend their spicy BBQ sauce but honestly both options provided were good. I just personally prefer a more spicy BBQ sauce. For desert my husband and I decided to share the banana pudding. We’re both huge fans of banana pudding and even make our own at home so I was curious how it would compare. Overall it was pretty good! The banana pudding mixed perfectly with the softened vanilla wafers and fresh banana slices. I think it was a delicious end to our meal. Overall I’d give Desert Oak BBQ a solid 4/5 stars. Everything was pretty good in my opinion. Like I said, I would definitely go for their pulled pork sandwich or another more meat heavy option next time we visit. I think I just ordered something they’re not really known for so that may be why I wasn’t wowed like I expected. Definitely recommend trying!

I had to try the famous El Paso Potato with brisket and it definitely lived up to its reputation. Came out quickly and was delicious and loaded in every way. The brisket was tender and juicy and flavorful and the atmosphere inside is exactly what a BBQ joint should be … casual but spacious. Ali was a super sweet and wonderful server with a beautiful smile. Will definitely be back next time I am passing through El Paso. Definitely a gem along the 10.