If it's too loud your too old used to be my mantra. Â I guess I'm old. Â I love the food here. Â The collard greens are simply ambrosia, the first time I went with my wife I had the brisket and it was delectable. Â The second time I had the pulled pork and it was sweet and tangy, really done North Carolina style. Â However, the second visit was on an open mic night, and my wife and I were literally reduced to texting each other from across the table. Â This was after the waitress warned us to sit in the back.
For a beer lover too I made two great discoveries here. Â Captain Lawrence a local New York beer and a Scottish brew called Innis and Gunn.
We've tried the Brisket, the Pulled Pork and the quarter Chicken, any one of which is a winner. Â For sides the collard greens and baked beans are the best I've had anywhere north Virginia. Â Just go on a night without music, unless you like your blues pounding on your skull.
If you like great micro-brew beer, great live music and barbq, Brian's is a must! Â He keeps several hard to find beers on tap, and they are rotated out regularly. Stone, avery, abita, to name a few.
We like the smoked wings, burgers, and barbq ribs, but we recently ordered a smoked Turkey for Thanksgiving, that was the hit of our very large turn out (30 pp).
Decor is that of a biker bar, but adds to the feel of the blues bands.
Bar staff if genuinely nice, as are the young waitresses. Â If you get a chance to talk to Brian himself, he is always cheerful and full of information on the bands and the beer!
It is a must stop for us after a tough day/ week at work, to just kick back, have a cold beer ...or two and listen to some great music.
This is what BBQ tastes like - smoked meat that is so moist, so flavorful and well cooked. Â Making my way through all of the sides, I've got just one left to go, and it makes it tough - I can't figure out how to focus on just one favorite.
If it were just that... it would be enough. Â It's not just that. Â There is live music - fantastic blues and rock bands - almost every day of the week! Â You really can't beat it.
This is a TOTAL hidden gem located between Scotchtown and Montgomery. I grew up in the Scotchtown area and in recent years have really tried to steer my family clear of the chain restaurants that had overtaken 211. We started going to Montgomery to dine for special occasions and enjoy all of their artisan style farm to table restaurant options. I recently visited for Thanksgiving and decided to stay and spend the weekend with my family. I was so happy to find Brian's when doing an Internet search for something different in the area. They have a great selection of smokey BBQ, tasty sides, and a great craft beer menu. The prices were amazing and the portions were generous. We had a great time with the only issue being the live music was pretty terrible that evening and extremely loud making it a bit challenging to have conversation during dinner. Otherwise, I highly recommend checking it out and if its not your scene...order takeout! It's well worth it!
Review Source:A couple of weeks ago my boyfriend and I went for a hike up in New Paltz and on our way home we drove past this BBQ joint. Now by bf is a HUGE lover of BBQ so as soon as he saw the sign, he whipped the car around and zoomed towards Brain's Backyard.
The place inside (and outside) looks a little rough, very dark, dingy, and "biker barish". I wasn't sure what we had gotten ourselves into...it was either going to be really good or really bad.
We decided get a plate and try a couple of different things, so we had the cornbread, brisket, and rice and beans. We tentatively took a bite and were instantly in love! It was SO good!
The cornbread (my favorite) as extremely moist. I think I stole almost the whole piece from him (only giving him a sample) and then ordered a second one (only for myself). The brisket, which I am never a fan of was delicious. Extremely flavorful; I defiantly ate more than my share of that too (good thing my bf is so good to me :-) The rice and beans were not my favorite, a little dry for my liking, but my bf liked them, so that was good, since I let him have all of it.
Needless to say we def will be coming back!
I'm surprised by the bad reviews here. We had the friendliest waitress, Jenn, and the BBQ was well above average. The chicken was moist and my husband said his ribs were really good. Their sauce is terrific as well. Â My collard greens were super flavorful. I'd come back here anytime. Very reasonable prices and good blues bands play too. Â Casual atmosphere...what's not to like?
Review Source:Ordered take-out here with my family and the food was okay but the prices on their menu online were different then the actual take-out menu and what we were charged which is highly aggravating. After numerous attempts at contact via e-mail and phone with no response I definitely will not be bringing any further business to this establishment.
Since the hours are not posted online and the phone keeps going to an answering machine I'm not sure when
you are actually open. Â We found you online and used your online menu
to place an order. Â We were visiting my brother in the area and after
my husband and I went home I was reviewing the receipt and felt the
prices were a bit off. Â After looking again at your menu online I saw
that on everything we ordered we were charged differently. Â More
money!
We ordered a 20 piece wing which your website advertises for $17 but
we were charged for two 12 pieces @ $12.95 each - there was never
anything said such as "we don't offer a 20 piece" when we ordered.
The blackened chicken sandwich advertised at $8.25 we were charged $8.95
Pulled pork sandwich advertised at $9.00 but we were charged $10.95
Brian's bite puppies advertised at $9.50 but we were charged $10.95
Beef Brisket dinner advertised at $12.50 but we were charged $15.95
For a total of $16.45 + tax in what we felt was a false advertised
overcharge. Â We really enjoyed your food even though we were missing
and charged for only 1 pulled pork sandwich when we ordered 2 but we
made do. Â My husband came in to pick up and pay for the order and we
do not live close by so I would like to resolve this either over the
phone or with an e-mail back. Â I do visit my brother often and your
place is somewhere that we would probably like to go to again but
probably can not justify it with our disappointment in lack of response to this complaint. Â Will be looking for another BBQ place in the area.
----------------
Although this place would like to lead people to believe that there was no menu online when I ordered on 3/25/12 using their website even though they say it wasn't there 4 months ago, there was and it was a different menu, oh and at the time we had no idea if they were open since on there were no hours posted. Â Glad they heard my complaints and changed it. Â Hope they have happier customers in the future because I will never be back to order $80 worth of subpar BBQ.
Went here for dinner with friends and kind of had an idea of what to expect after reading the reviews. The food was ok, better than most local BBQ, but as one other reviewer said, it wasn't Texas BBQ. IMO the ribs were the best. I had the sampler platter and my friends each had some other entrees so I got to try everything. I wasn't wild about the brisket, the batch we had was over-cooked. But I did like he ribs so I would give them another go. I usually like to try things a couple of times, everyplace has its off days.
Service was fine and friendly, no complaints there.
DO NOT GO HERE!
First off the only reason I can agree with giving this place a rating of at most 1 star is because they actually have my favorite beer on tap: Holy Grail Ale.
We decided to go here on a Saturday night, we arrived at approx 6:40. It was a bit crowded but they had a side room where the band plays. We were seated right away ordered drinks and an appetizer, pulled pork nachos, which were good but the pulled pork was just plopped right on top in the middle, would have been nice if it was evenly distributed. Anyway, we didn't order right away b.c we were waiting for the fourth person of our party. It took 20 min for him to show up, and when he did we put our orders in. My husband ordered the brisket, friend ordered the 1/4 chicken dinner, and me and our other friend ordered the pulled pork sandwich, and for the table some cornbread. Unfortunately my friend who wanted the veggies from the specials menu with her chicken couldn't get it, and had to order some sides she really didn't want. 5 min later waitress comes out to let us know there was no more brisket, my husband had to order something different. Then maybe at LEAST 30- 45 minutes after they tell us no brisket, waitress comes out to tell us that there is no more pulled pork...... "WHAT?!" Yeah... She tells us that b.c she is the floor manager she can give us 15% off our bills, fine whatever, we all order something we did not really want. Then we wait... and wait... and waited some more.. AT THE VERY LEAST an hour (+) goes by we all are getting a little agitated.. but thankfully the company is good. Just to give you an idea of the time we had to wait: We get there at 6:40 (approx.) and the band for the night starts at 9pm... We did not receive ANYTHING to eat and the band was up on stage beginning to play.. In the meantime other tables were being served, that had arrived maybe 20 mins from them receiving their food. Our one friend went over to the waitress and told her that we are about to leave if we didn't get our food very shortly. She came to the table and apologized and said she would see whats going on, she came back a minute later telling us that it would be out shortly, apparently it wasn't made, the order didn't go in, or something. As I'm watching the goings on in the place at this time its VERY crowded and VERY loud, I see our waitress was very red (maybe crying) and PISSED, telling her coworkers that she is done! Yep... our waitress QUITS, and walks right on out the door! So we follow suit... but we did pay for our drinks and nachos... we did get the very small 15% off, but after going through what we did, shouldn't the bill or something had been on the house!? I think so, there was even another table that was taking their evening somewhere else, b.c they mentioned they were walking out as well!
    Â
   So maybe the food is great... I'll never know, What I do know is that MANAGEMENT SUCKS! If your going to have a busy night and be successful order what you need and hire the help you need!! And when you have an annoyed table offer something to try to appease them other then a measly 15% off!! Till then I will not be returning!
I love the Brisket, Beans, and collard greens. Â The service is decent and Brian is a super nice guy. Â He supports live music and does all the cookin. Â His BBQ sauce is worth a try. Â This is a place to see great music, eat good food, drink your face off, and hang with down to earth cool people.
Review Source:Forget about how great the blues are here. The food alone is outstanding! I always have my ribs dry with sauce on the side. These ribs are smoked to perfection, chewey  & delicious. Recently had the half smoked chicken (sauce on the side). Incredibly juicy & flavorful. Also the sausage gumbo is a must have. Top this off with a great selection of draft beer & some top shelf Woodford bourbon and you have the makings oif a great night. And then there's the blues!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review Source:What a little hidden gem in Middletown NY. The atmosphere is rustic and the aroma is intoxicating, you can smell the BBQ when you walk in. They serve BBQ and Cajun cuisine. The beer selection is outstanding with a nice selection on beers from New Orleans along with a great selection of imports and craft beers.The wings are exceptional and tender with a great selection of sauces.(Brian's Backyard BBQ Peanut Sauce and Sticky Bourbon are my favorites) They serve all the BBQ standards,Po-Boys,Burgers and Seafood.They have daily specials,weekly entertainment and a very pleasant wait staff. Their chefs are CIA Graduates.They prepare their Blackened Chicken Po Boy as authentic as New Orleans as I am a frequent visitor to New Orleans.(other restaurants should learn how to blacken from here)(Blackened and burning are not the same).
RECOMMENDATIONS: EVERYTHING
This is a very casual restaurant and bar with decent barbecue food. Â Other reviewers have said that the atmosphere is less than stellar, but I think they're just missing the point. Â It's not meant to be a fancy or even chain-style restaurant. Â It has more of a hole-in-the-wall type feel to it. Â Appetizers are served with paper plates (like you'd have in your BACKYARD).
I went here with a group of 8 on a Saturday night. Â They weren't really busy, but were picking up as we were leaving (around 8:00 pm). Â The service was indeed quite slow, but I didn't really mind because we were not in a hurry anyway (plus, I think it's a better sign if the food takes too long, rather than too quick). Â We had pulled-pork nachos as an appetizer. Â They were pretty good, but the pork reminded of a Slim Jim (perhaps too much liquid smoke?) in a weird way. Â For my dinner, I ordered the half chicken which was really very good - the best thing of the night. Â The cornbread was not impressive and too sweet. Â The mashed sweet potatoes were very good (but on the sweet side). Â The collard greens were not at all what I was expecting - they were in a vinegar-type sauce - but they were okay. Â
I would go back again to give it a second shot. Â Based on one visit, the food was pretty hit or miss - either spot on or way off. Â It's a good place to go with a large group if you have a lot of time and just want to hang out for a while.
I love BBQ. Â Love ribs and the sides. Â Decided to try this place out tonight after wanting to try a new place. Â We arrived around 6pm, well before the band opens and were promptly greeted. Â There were only 2 other tables seated. Â
We ordered 10 of the Peanut Sauce chicken wings, 10 chipotle-rasberry wings, rib plate with mac-n-chese, baked beans and cornbread. Â My other half ordered pulled pork with mac-n-cheese. Â
The wings were meaty and had a nice crisp to the outside of them. Â The sauces didn't excite me as much as I would have liked. Â I felt like the peanut sauce should have had some zing or kick to it, although the menu didn't say Thai peanut sauce wings. Â But the chipotle-rasberry wings didn't have ANY zing to them and I was expecting some sort of punch. Â
The ribs were smoked, meat to the outside was tougher and drier than inside portions of the rib. Â The rub was good and I had the house BBQ sauce with them. Â The mac-n-cheese was standard fare but the beans I was disappointed in. Â They tasted and had the consistency of Bush's baked beans with bacon. Â Texas roadhouse has WAY better beans. Â Â
The pulled pork was alright, it was wet with juice, not so much sauce.
The soda in this place was flat - no carbonation at all- I told the waitress who refilled the cup but it was still flat.
My sister and I love going here. Â When we go to Brian's we know we can relax and enjoy ourselves. The food is always amazing. The nachos with pulled pork are out of this world. The potato skins are even better. Everything we have tried, we have loved. The pulled pork sandwiches are always a great choice, but the shrimp po boys definitely have the delicious Louisiana flare. Â The food here is not to be missed.
Review Source:A few months ago friend of mine had mentioned to me that she wanted to try this place out. Â We finally made plans to go here, and I decided to look up reviews, just to see what people were saying, and I almost didn't go here because of the really bad reviews the place got (particularly on yelp, which I trust!) Â We decided it would still be a good place to see a blues band perform, and we were all not sure if we would want to order food (as that was what had bad reviews) so we made sure we didn't go starving. Â I must say - we were all pleasantly surprised.
I went with a group of 4: Â My friend & her husband, and me with my boyfriend. Â There is a nice size parking lot. Â The interior of the place was nice. Â Pretty big with lots of tables - not crammed together. Â There's seating at the bar, too. Â If you want to come for dinner, but don't want to be right up by the music, they have it set up nice where there's a dimmed room where the stage is with tables, but also a room further back with bright lights, though it is completely open to the stage room, so you'll still hear the music...just not as loud. Â We went on a Friday night & there was a cover, but it was worth it for the music.
The service was really good. Â Our waitress was attentive & helpful. Â However - there were a few beers listed on tap that they didn't have, but she did make suggestions, and even gave my boyfriend a sample of one of the beers so he could see if he liked it before ordering. Â One thing that I thought was weird was that this is a BBQ place with lots of messy foods (I ordered wings), and they don't seem to bring you extra napkins or wet-wipes unless you ask. Â I thought maybe she just forgot to give them to us, but then heard another table ask for extra napkins, too. Â She brought them to us when we asked though, so not a big deal.
OK...so like I said, we didn't go starving because we were a little weary about the food. Â My friend's husband didn't order anything because he was stuffed from earlier. Â It smelled good in there, though (that great smokey BBQ smell), and I'm always tempted to try new food at a new place, so I ordered wings w/ chipotle-raspberry sauce. Â I really liked them. Â I could taste the raspberry & they had a little bit of a kick to them. Â The sauce was abundant & the outside was slightly crisp while the meat was juicy. Â (I'm not a BBQ or a wing connoisseur, but, if something makes my taste buds happy it's good to me.) Â My boyfriend got the potato skins, and I tried them & they were delicious! Â He really enjoyed them as well. Â My friend did order a meal, and liked it, but she wasn't hungry enough to eat the whole thing, so she brought the remainder home. Â She ordered the brisket w/ a side of honey sweet-potatoes & cornbread. Â She & her husband said the brisket was good ("Not Texas good, but it's good.") Â We all tried the sweet potatoes & they were very sweet, but we all liked them. Â The cornbread looked good, so I ordered a side & it was delicious. Â I could have had several more! Â (It's the sweet kind of cornbread - thought I should mention that as I know some people like it that way & some don't.)
The entertainment was great. It was nice to find another place we can go out locally & see some great live music. Â The intermissions were a little too long (two 45-minute intermissions), but the waitress said every band is different. Â Including the intermissions, the music started at 9 & finished up by 12:30, and was wonderful, so I'd say it was worth the $10 cover.
We all kept talking about how we were so pleasantly surprised about the food, and what a great time we had, and that we are planning on coming back again & hopefully introducing more friends to this place. Â I know the other reviews as of now aren't so great, but personally, I would recommend this place.
This is a very weird review for me. Â I am rating this place lower based on the experience of my family who came with me, even though this place would get 3 stars otherwise. Â Its a very divey barbeque place that is a little off the beaten path. Â Service was very good, beer tap selection was decent, and bottle selection was good. Â I tried their homemade pale ale which didn't have much flavor to it; I appreciate that they tried in the first place. Â Later I tried a Southern Tier that they had on tap which was very good. Â Their cornbread was a little sweet but I liked it. Â Against the urgings of my family I got their grilled shrimp, which came with cajun rice and beans and a old bay spice remoulade. Â This turned out to be a good decision. Â
The shrimp were heavily spiced and a little salty, but otherwise very good. Â The rice and beans was good and was supplemented by the remoulade. Â However, I wouldn't have structured the dish like they did, with the shrimp on top of the rice and then the old bay on everything, as the shrimp already had flavor to spare and didn't need anything else. Â Regardless of my whining, this was a very good dish that I would come back for--especially considering there is no other good cajun place around here. Â
My family's results were more mixed, and need to be noted unfortunately.  My father got a rack of ribs which were inedible.  He questioned whether they were completely cooked, as they had the consistency of raw meat and he couldn't even cut them with a sharp knife.  They looked absolutely disgusting.  He rarely complains about his food even when it isn't good, and he ended up sending the rack back and getting a pulled pork sandwich instead.  I was actually pissed and surprised that they still charged him for his meal.  He said that was okay, and I liked the fries that came with it.  My mom's brisket was okay but she felt it needed sauce. My brother's half chicken was massive and juicy, so he did better at least.  I didn't try the barbeque sauce but everyone else said it was way too sweet  Ironically enough, the barbeque at this barbeque place was underwhelming. Â
This place has a cool concept with a really nice backstory (check their website) and I may end up coming back eventually between the cajun dishes, the beer and the live music they have on weekends, but making 2/5 people at a table happy isn't a good batting average for a restaurant. Â Looking at these other reviews, looks like they have some problems.
What a disappointment. I should have read Yelp before we went, our experience was similar to other negative reviews.
Got past the unimpressive outside, same with inside - but it's about the food, isn't it. The air conditioning problems from last week are still there. We went 3 hours before band was to play, caught the ear shattering set up.
Good beer selection - although draft list and what they have are nowhere close.
Chicken Gumbo was spicy, very thick , a bit of a starchy taste. Served traditional style - over rice. . Ribs (St. Louis sauce) good. "Cajun" Rice was several beans thrown into rice.
Brisket was OK, and who ever heard of a BBQ place without sauce on tables? Cole slaw and corn bread - not good.
CIA chef? Where.
This seems to be a music venue and bar rather than a restaurant. Read the previous reviews. The only thing we didn't experience was poor service or cold food. (We were there before music crowd arrived, lots of staff.)
We won't be back.
We ate there on a Sat evening & the service was very good so looks like they've improved that. The food was OK ... I've had worse BBQ and I've had much better. Wings were very good- smoked and sauced really nicely. Gumbo was flat out awful (we lived in Louisiana for 2yrs so know the real deal...this wasn't it! Lol). Ribs had a fiery rub on them plus sauce...too much...edible..but the smokiness was overwhelmed by the rub. Pulled pork was OK, but not enough of the bark. Catfish poboy was good but just a sandwich, not a true poboy. And the brisket had some good smoke on it but too dry. Â Brian seems like a great guy with great blues connections. He needs to get a handle on the quality of his BBQ though and stop calling stuff Cajun that's really not. Â Also, I've never seen a BBQ with no sauce on the table. Little things guys!
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