My review only addresses the bar area. Â The bar has a nice open feeling with the high ceiling and very clean. Â Decent sized dance floor and quick service with the drinks. Â I loved the live music on Saturday night; quality classic rock, a group called Classic Buzz. Â This was my first visit; I live out of town now, but will go back when in town.
Review Source:This place is awesome for all occasions! my work often has them cater for our events, my co-workers and I order take out from them, I came here on my 21st bday this past May 2013 to drink, my friends and I come here to relax and drink, and i've also been here for my little cousins cheerleading team before. It really is great for all occasions!
Food: the food is delicious! my favorite things are the garlic fries and the wings! and the wings are huge! their regular fries are sooo good too!
drinks: priced resonably, i cant say too much about mixed drinks because we always get a pitcher, but im sure they are just as great! they have a happy hour, with food and drinks on it! at really good prices!
service: Service is def a 5 star from me, everytime i come here EVERYONE has a smile on their face! Its family owned which i think is awesome! and all the employees are just super nice, you can tell they enjoy working there!
OVERALL if your looking for a great bbq place in poway, or even looking to get a couple drinks with some friends this is your place!
I like the BBQ pulled pork as well as the sides. Â Not a bad place to go and watch a game either. Â I hope to try the BBQ ribs some day soon. Â I went there on lunch break during Income Tax season. Â The best Accounting / Law firm in Poway is Rundlett & Associates, Inc. Â I'm going to bring that crew there some time.
Review Source:Good but not great, is the place to take my friend Noura, who used to live in San Diego and moved to Lebanon and cannot find decent buffalo wings. Well, here you have galore. With that spicy sauce and some nice music too. This is mostly a sports bar, and I don't care about those sports anyways, so I just go for the beer+wings+enjoy friendship. A nice place to hang out in Poway. At least they are not pretentious and you will have a good time no matter what.
Review Source:I've enjoyed my visits to Kaminski's over the past 2 years. I started with the BBQ items on the menu, but I've finally "committed" to one item -- the grilled rib eye skewers [with gorgonzola cheese]. Â Put that appetizer together with some fries and a microbrew beer [or 2] and you're all set.
Review Source:Creeping back in San Diego history apparently this is the place David Westerfield stopped at before going to commit the murder of Danielle Van Damm. I suppose the restaurant got a lot of flack for that back in the day but in a way to make light of the situation Kaminiski's is pretty solid.
It was selected by some co-workers for a happy hour goodbye to one of our friends. I had never been seeing as working in Poway is too much Poway for me. I don't care to hang out past my scheduled time. Kaminiski's has a decent beer selection. I didn't get a chance to cruise the food options because I wasn't hungry but based on the appetizers my friends ordered it looks like standard sports bar food fair. I thought it a bit odd that there is a valet parking option out front but apparently this place can pop off. Our service was a bit slower than I'd like it to be but I wouldn't say no to going back to give it another chance.
Kaminski's is second rate BBQ. Â Limited parking, high prices, outdated entertainment setup and average to above average food. Â After paying for two beers and two entrees, I left feeling underwhelmed and 50 dollars short. Â
My wife and I checked out Kaminski's in hopes of finding a new NFL Sunday spot. Â No complaints with the cleanliness, service or food/beer selection. Â But based on the prices, I was hoping for Phil's quality and instead I got Abbey's. Â Would I get the $15 mac n cheese, pulled pork sandwich again? Â Probably, but only from their food truck at the reduced price of $9. Â Did I find anything worth blogging about on their $20 sampler? Â No. Â And the sports bar experience? Â It was okay, but their TV's look a bit old. Â
Bottom line, I think I've been spoiled by Phil's $7 Tickler. Â Kaminski's is good but not great, which provides little incentive to return anytime soon (NFL Sunday or otherwise). Â
By the way, is it me or does their water taste funny?
Yelp and Kaminski's website lists the place's hours as
Sun - Thur :11am - 11:30pm
Fri & Sat : 11am - 1:30am
The place was closed well before 11pm on a weekday. If I'm hungry to try something new and it's late at night, don't expect any sympathy from me due to scheduling discrepancies.
i actually enjoyed this place a lot but heres a couple things to keep in mind. First off, make sure you come during a happy hour time. it can get expensive. Secondly, the chicken wings are pretty good but the dont cut at the joints, you just get the leg wing and that little pointy end all connected. Finally, the beef brisket was tasty and the inside is actually very appealing and clean. lots of tvs. I'll be back-terminator
Review Source:I'm giving two stars and I'm being generous. They only get the extra star because of previous experiences which weren't this terrible. The food is good. I love the pulled pork melt, it's juicy and has mac n cheese, which should be a staple in every American's diet. They lost their first point when I realized for two sandwiches and garlic fries I was going to be paying $32+. The second point was lost when I called ahead and was told "5-10 minutes" when it actually took over 20 minutes. It's cool, if you need more time, just don't quote me 5 minutes on the phone. The third point was docked after the gentleman handed me the bag and told me my briscuit sandwich was on top. I advised him we had ordered two pulled pork sandwiches, zero briscuit. SO THE GUY PROCEEDS TO TAKE THE LID OFF THE BOXES AND OPEN UP BOTH OUR SANDWICHES TO FIGURE OUT WHAT KIND THEY ARE! This was not a kitchen worker whose hands are thoroughly washed on a regular basis. No. This was the cashier that probably just sneezed into that hand two minutes earlier. I'm pretty grossed out right now.
Review Source:I've been here before and Kaminski's is OK. Â The meat has been pretty good but everything is prepared beforehand and that works for some things, but not others.
Pros:
The meat
The place is clean
The food comes out very fast
Cons:
Small portions
Early preparation of the sides makes them tough (fries, corn on the cob)
Parking here is atrocious but they do offer valet
The service was good the first time I went here, but poor the second time. This place is in walking distance to my house and has a nice bar. Â I'll probably try it again if I want to stop by for a drink and would eat at the bar. I don't see myself suggesting it though on my family nights out.
Went again to Kaminski's because we remembered how good it was before. Â The meal was good, not great. Â Husband got the beef ribs and was not wowed, I got the pulled pork sandwich and it was pretty bland, I had to add a lot of the table side bbq sauce to flavor it up. Â Our server was odd. Â He found the urge to touch both me and my husband on the shoulder every time he checked on us. Â Some people like that, me...not so much. Â The place was slow when we got there but by the time we left it was hoppin'.
Review Source:The service was very strange..... Â The brisket was meh. Â The baby back ribs is the better BBQ option. The BBQ sauce is meh. Â The mac n cheese was okay. Corn was grilled, which was nice but it was just ok. Â Overall, meh. Â I've had the BBQ from their truck, and the truck was way better.
Review Source:I recently took a business friend from Kansas City (where they know BBQ) to Kaminski's and he thought it was very good bbq... good enough that he wants to come back next time he's in San Diego.
BBQ is such a tough category, with good quality being hard to find and great BBQ being next to impossible to find. Â Kaminski's gets four stars from me because of the combination of very good bbq, great atmosphere and great bar, and excellent service. Maybe we get good service because we go there often enough to be recognized. The owner is there often and monitors the staff. It is a family-owned single location restaurant so it can't rely on the branding bigger operations like Phil's garner.
Easy location to get to, and rarely a long wait to be seated, though they are usually busy for dinner. It is a bit off the beaten path being in Poway.
Try the pulled pork, ribs and chicken. For sides the cole slaw, macaroni and cheese, potato salad, and sweet potato fries are excellent.
Kaminski's is a good value, give it a try.
A nice, middle-of-the-road place, but definitely not a "destination" bar/restaurant. In other words, i wouldn't go out of my way to go there. The Bar B Q is simply "ok". Nothing better. Phil's beats it all to heck. Rings and sweet potato fries are delicious.
The atmosphere is good... maybe a little better than ok if you're only comparing it to other Poway places. I think you all know what I mean. TVs are fairly big and reasonably well placed.
Service was good (only) on my two visits here, though I've heard complaints from friends who've eaten there.
Would I go here again? Sure, if I was driving by the place and got a wild hair. Otherwise, there are much better venues to consider.
Since I work in Poway, I sometimes find myself going out with coworkers around there. We went to Kaminski's for a friend's birthday dinner. I liked it.
We showed up and surprised them with a 12-top, which was accommodated quickly given that it was fairly crowded by the time we got there. Service was friendly, although drinks took quite a while to come out. I had a traditional pulled pork sandwich that was a bit dry, but still really good. Sweet potato fries were amazzzzzing and the aioli they are served with was so good! We put down a couple of baskets of those. Drinks were solid.
Being a native Iowan, I am hard pressed to find good BBQ in southern California, but I'd say Kaminski's is a great start.
Beware a business that issues gift certificates and doesn't honor them.
The food was alright.
When it came time to pay I presented a gift certificate that they had donated to a local organization that sends business their way (and I had won in a raffle), and the management refused to honor it.
I spoke with the manager, even presenting the receipt that they include in the gift envelope, and she and the owner essentially told me to take a walk.
I can't recommend a business that treats customers and supporting organizations in such a dishonorable fashion.
The service is great. Â Love a BBQ place with a sink in the dining area. Â
Very clean.
Love the garlic fries, wings, and Southern style entrees.
Of course, there is sports running in the background. Â Not like it matters to me. Â But it's a plus if you like sports because the TVs are decent size and there are several.
Let's be honest, it's not the best BBQ I've ever had, but it IS the best BBQ in Poway. Without question. The pulled pork was tender and the sauce (I got their "house" sauce) was bold and delicious. Their sweet potato fries are really good, their slaw, so-so. All the other sides are solidly "good" to "great". I appreciated the service as I ordered "double-meat" for my pulled pork plate and they hooked me up with a good discount for the extra meat. I've been here with 6 or more people and have always received good service. They are kid friendly too, so that's a plus.
If you're in the Poway area and don't feel like a drive or waiting in a long line, head over to Kaminski's.
In the last 2 weeks, I've had Famous Dave's, Dave & Buster's, and Phil's BBQ. I think my rating is only 3 stars because the BBQ in my opinion here is just okay at best.
Pros:
-Great place to catch the game.
-Live band during the weekends
-Bar equals beer
Cons:
-Parking (sometimes)
-Price and Value: I don't think you get much for what you pay for. Â Sad when you can actually count how many pieces of fries, onion rings, and chips you get. Â
-Over-Sauced: Â Their BBQ might actually be really good, but tough for me to notice because there's way too much sauce on it.
My Ratings
-Burgers: 4 stars
-Mac and Cheese: 4 stars
-Beef Briskets: Â 3 stars
-BBQ Chicken: 3 stars
-Garlic Mash: 4 stars
-All Appetizers: Â 2 stars (skimp!!)
-Rotisserie Chicken: 3 stars
-Staff: 4 stars, although didn't feel welcomed my last time here. Walked in and there was at least 4 employees at the front that didn't even greet or immediately seat us. Â It took, what I thought was a manager, to point it out to the staff to attend to us. Good save.
The 3 stars is for the food price and value. Probably come back, but just to sit at the bar and drink
When it comes to BBQ in the Poway area, this would be my choice place to eat. But outside of Poway, I'm personally more of a fan of other places in SD. But one thing I've learned is that BBQ food is a personal experience. Every place has a unique BBQ sauce, and when people find the BBQ sauce that is right for them, they are in heaven. So I encourage people to stop here, and give it a chance.
My go-to favorite here is the pulled pork sandwich.
It's got a great atmosphere, and a pretty decent menu. Great for Happy Hours. The "Great for Happy Hours" is what made me knock it up a notch to 4 stars. Nice having a place to gather for big events.
Don't come here solely for the BBQ - because it's simply was NOT worth it. Â The atmosphere was OK, it's spacious and has a bar/loungy feel (comparable to Callahan's). Â
Their garlic fries are GOOD though, but everything else was OK. Â The bread/sweet potato fries were stale, and the chicken was dry (the BBQ sauce couldn't even mask it!). Â They only have 1 BBQ sauce option which is fine, but I think it would've made the food taste a little better if they had other options (sweet, spicy, etc). Â
There are other BBQ places in this are that are WAY better, The hostess was moody and our waiter delivered 2 wrong orders (in our party of 6). Â We only got refills when requested, so I wasn't impressed at all. Â Parking can fill up quick, but they have valet to help out.
We've come here a few times for work happy hours, and I've never been impressed.
First off, the barbecue is crap. I smoke meat just about every weekend, so I know barbecue, and this place just isn't up to par. San Diego doesn't really have great barbecue so I can understand the rave reviews because people don't know better, but trust me, it's not very good. The other food is okay when it actually comes out warm, and they have a good selection of beer.
Second, whenever we come here the service is terrible. They send one waitress to cover 20-30 people, and she takes like 45 minutes to get you a beer. Okay, the bar is seriously 3 feet away, I'll go ask the bartender instead of waiting the better part of an hour. Mission: Beer is accomplished. Except now everyone in our group is doing this and the waitress throws a hissy fit because the bartender is getting all our tips, so she stops showing up to serve us altogether! This has happened every single time we have come here. We place orders for 5 minutes, everyone gets tired of how long it takes, goes to the bar, so the waitress never comes back.
As a bar I guess it's okay (hence the 2 stars) with all the TV screens and stuff, but it gets really loud and really busy.
There are better bars in Poway to go for happy hour, so I'd recommend going to one of them instead.
Ok BBQ place for poway. The place itself is fairly spacious and clean. The food can be a little bit pricey and the BBQ doesn't compare to Phil's.
However, it being a sports bar, there are a lot of TVs showing all the big games and a full bar. So if you're looking for a place to chill this may be suitable.
"Meh. I've experienced better."
I gave it two stars because of the nice TVS, and nicely decorated. Â That would be it..
Food- Â The potato chip nachos - served cold but had potential if they were hot like they should have been.
The wings were good but expensive for wings.
The coffee was good.
The tea was weak.
We decided to try desert.. the apply cobbler is NOT cobbler at best its a fancy expensive for what you get COLD apple tart dish.  It said served hot but it was  not hot. Cobbler should have some juice and crust but this one did not.. it had baked apples sliced onto a plate, with a little crust in the middle with a small scoop of ice cream. We sent it back. Â
Parking get crowded especiall on Sat. I dont get the free valet although it was friendly but I dont want to feel like I need to tip someone to bring my car ten feet.
Service was BAD... friendly when you could get them to your table. I asked for water it never came.. 15 minutes later asked a young  man walking by he brought it right away, he refilled my coffee later on, and also helped out in other areas. He was not our server. I felt at the end I should go find him and tip him instead.  Â
Will probably go back because of the games, and lack of places to watch in our area. BUT, think it is REALLY lame they have no real happy hour, and offer no real play off games specials. Â If you like beer you might like this place, its the only thing on "special" we could see. Â SO many places offer happy hour especially on game days I think Id rather find those spots.
This was our second time to this place. Same review both times.. except when empty (first time) service was better.
Last season we came here a lot during NBA playoffs. They used to have pretty good happy hour deals. I think margaritas used to be $3 or $4, but I recently looked at their menu online and I don't think it's a special anymore. It's now $6 for a shaker margarita. Kind of steep.
I would call to make reservations so we would always have a place to sit by the tvs so we can watch the game. It gets pretty crowded so I suggest calling ahead and putting your name down. They have tvs everywhere so you pretty much have a good seat wherever you're at. The two tables towards the front where the wall of tvs are is the best place to sit, but they're usually taken.
Service is just okay here. I know they get crowded, but maybe they should just step up their game. We haven't been back since last year because each time got less and less fun. Service just went downhill so we stopped coming. Now they don't even have good drink specials. Also, their parking lot sucks. So most times we would have to park in a lot down the street that had gravel everywhere.
If you live in the area, I guess it's an option to consider watching games at. But we probably won't be back anytime soon.
We went to Kaminski's to eat dinner and the food was great.!
The pulled pork was sublime! Â Grilled corn, tasty. Â I don't like coleslaw most of the time but theirs was really fresh and tasty. Â I love the fried potato chips.
The service was great! Â We had great servers who were very attentive and the manager made a point of coming by and making sure we had everything we needed.
I am looking forward to going back soon!
If you want good bbq, do NOT go here! If you want so-so bbq, do NOT go here! It's that bad! My husband got take-out the week this opened. We ordered: cowboy ribs with potato salad and beans, pulled pork with fries and mac salad.
Pulled pork sandwich--I had to ADD my OWN BBQ sauce from my pantry (Sweet Baby Ray's) because there WAS NO FLAVOR! I had to ADD SALT and PEPPER to the mac salad because there was NO FLAVOR! The fries were previously frozen and then fried--you could tell--Ore Ida has better fries than Kaminskis!
Cowboy ribs--My husband had to ADD BBQ sauce to it. It looked like it was smoked and should have a smoked flavor, but there was NO FLAVOR! His potato salad was GROSS and the beans were GROSS!
We threw the food away, it was so disappointing! The prices were TOO much for the sorry, small portions they gave. Smokin Joe's is 10 times better and Phil's is 100 times better than this place!
Bottom line: Do NOT go here! Waste of money!!!
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