Smokey Bones Bar & Fire Grill

If you're looking for a late night place to hit the spot, Smokey Bones is it.  They are open late, as in, "open for that midnight food craving when everything else but Denny's is closed" (I believe they are open until 1 or 2 a.m.).  I have been here twice, and both times, I enjoyed the food and the service.  The waiters are friendly and the food is tasty.  

They have several sauces: A South Carolina sauce, a North Carolina Sauce, the original sauce, and original with a kick of tabasco.  I suggest trying them all, although I think it's the South Carolina (whichever one has the mustard-y taste) and the hot sauce that I liked the best -- I wasn't a big fan of the vinegary sauce.  

My most recent venture came yesterday, when I went to the Riverwalk Blues Festival, and was looking to get a bite in before the show.  I ordered a create your own combo entree, which lets you choose 2 sides and 2 entrees for about $14 or so.  There are different choices to choose from, from pork to chicken to wings to turkey to sausage.  I chose the chicken breast and the pulled pork, with the fries and slaw as my sides.

The food was warm and the pork had a nice smokey taste to it.  I poured the aforementioned 2 favorite sauces all over the pork and the breast and devoured it.  I really liked the fact that the fries were not all greasy and felt "real", meaning they didn't seem to come out of a freezer bag since they had their skin on them and were thick, unlike your typical fast food joint's shoestring fries.  The slaw was flavorful and fresh, which made me wish the portion was larger (it came in a small plastic cup, the kind you sometimes get for condiments in places like Chicken Kitchen).  The breast was pretty good, but nothing to write home about either.

For dessert, they have several options, and thankfully, they copied P.F. Chang's in the shotglass dessert category, which by the way is a great idea because you get to feel less guilty than if you shared a huge, thick slice of cake.  I got a chocolate cake shot glass for $1.99, which satisfied my daily sweet tooth craving without tipping the scale too much.  Delicious!

The server, Tim, checked constantly to make sure everything was okay and was very attentive in bringing new drink refills.  Of course, the fact he was quite easy on the eyes was not a bad thing either ;) I noticed they have several funny double entendre posters throughout the restaurant, which lightens the mood and are entertaining to read.  I am surprised that on both occasions, the place was not very full, although it was fuller today for lunch than it had been the other time I came late at night.  It's definitely better than Applebee's or Friday's, although maybe not as good as Shorty's.  I am hoping to try other barbecue joints to see how Smokey Bones stacks up in comparison, but will definitely keep them in mind if I am up in that area again.

Just went there for lunch...
Firstly, all of the servers AND the manager were standing by the hostess stand socializing...We were seated and then had to wait for our server to stop socializing at the hostess stand before we could order. It took 35 min for two burgers to come out of the kitchen (the dining room was almost completely empty)And our order was wrong...I guess the kitchen staff were goofing around too...Anyway, after our food came, our server disappeared. We were trying to make it back to work. And, when  I handed her my credit card, she became very sarcastic with us when we asked for our check...When we left, the manager and servers were still farting around at the hostess stand...I guess they don't care for our business...Good thing I've got other options...
Definitely the place to go if you WANT to pay for a sarcastic server, an incorrect order, managerial staff who don't care, slow service, and an overall bad experience...
Diner's beware.

I work directly across the street from this place and although the majority of my co-workers shouted at me to stay away, I kept going back.  Why?  Convenience, and a coupon for a free entree.
Today was the last day I will ever go back though- free or not.
When you walk in, the place smells horrible- like day-old grease and sanitizer.  We waitind at the hostess booth for a few minutes while servers stared at us from the kitchen and told each other to go seat us.  I suppose one person drew the short straw, because he begrudgingly showed us to our booth and quickly walked away; leaving us to wonder why the seats were covered with enough food to make a complete side dish for my lunch.  We stood and stared back into the kitchen, hoping to catch someone's eye, but they were good at avoiding eye-contact.  Eventually, one waitress walking by asked what was wrong so we pointed her to the booth.  Her reply: "Eew, gross".
With a sweep of her cloth, we were able to sit.
Our server had less personality than a piece of dry, white, toast.
One guest asked for extra lemons in her water- he returned with 3/4 of a lemon shoved into the glass- dirty rind and all.

The buffalo chicken sandwich was tasty, but the presentation was blah, at best.

So overall, $11 for 2 people to eat lunch (because of the free entree coupon) was a great value, but the ambiance, attitude, smell, and clenliness are enough for me to finally agree with my 300 co-workers.

Sorry Smokey Bones, I am breaking up with you for real this time.