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Sweet Baby Ray's Barbeque
Category: Restaurants Barbeque Barbeque [Edit]
800 East HigginsElk Grove Village, IL 60007
(847) 437-9555
- Hours:
Mon-Tue 11 am - 9 pm
Wed-Fri 11 am - 10 pm
Sat 11:30 am - 10 pm
Sun 11:30 am - 9 pm
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
92 reviews for Sweet Baby Ray's Barbeque
Review Highlights
"For my sides I had green chile mac and cheese."
(in 6 reviews)
"Pulled pork is wonderful - tasty and tender."
(in 43 reviews)
"They were excellent and sweet potato fries were great."
(in 16 reviews)
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92 reviews in English
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Review from Pari P.
10/18/2011 1 Check-in Here
Sweet smokey ribs in the suburbs? Yeah, baby. Sweet Baby Rays is the place where I go to satisfy my craving for ribs and barbeque.
If you love ribs but never had smoked ribs, you don't know what you are missing. Most other places including higher end restaurants will braise their ribs in the oven. I have had Memphis ribs and these are the closest that you'll get to ribs done right in Chicago.
As an appetizer, I would highly recommend the wings. The wings are smoked and then deep fried to get the skin crispy and smothered in their house BBQ sauce. For the sides, make sure not to pass up the Green Chile Mac and Cheese and Corn Maque Choux. The mac and cheese has a kick from the green chile and goes really well together. The corn maque choux is corn mixed with sweet cream and vegetables - simply delicious.
Don't want to pay for a full slab of ribs? Get the rib tips which is almost half the cost and gives you all of the flavor of ribs and is surprisingly filling. They also have daily promotions and all-you-can-eat ribs on Wednesdays for only $18.99.
Sweet Baby Rays has me singing "Oh Baby Oh" like Justin Bieber. The only difference is that my mouth is covered with barbeque sauce and I'm legal to drink. -
Review from Lydia Z.
Lisle, IL
11/6/2011
Stopped by for dinner and it wasn't that great. Perhaps if we ordered something else it would have been better. I tried the pulled chicken sandwich while a co-worker tried the pulled pork. My chicken had so much sauce on it that it tasted bad. Oddly, the other sandwich had very little sauce.
Neither of us finished our sandwiches because, honestly, they were not very good.
The service was good. Even though it was busy she answered our questions and she stopped by every once-in-a-while.
I like the sauce at home but the food wasn't good enough to make a trip back. -
Review from Ryan H.
11/3/2011 1 Check-in Here
The food here is pretty average.. or even sub-par depending on how much you know/like your BBQ. If you are used to Kansas City BBQ you will not enjoy it here..
The wait staff is very friendly and knows the menu like the back of their hands..
But other than that there is nothing very special about this place at all -
Review from Mick B.
10/9/2011
This place needs new management and servers who understand what "serving" means.
If they'd do that, it might be a decent place.
If I wanted to be bossed around and given a dose of "attitude", I would have gone to Ed Debevic's.
The acoustics (or lack of) do not allow what I would call "normal conversation". Noise seems to bounce everywhere- causing anything said to be garbled. -
Review from Don Z.
6/24/2011 1 Check-in Here
I have been to this Sweet Baby Ray's a few times for lunch. I mostly come back because my coworker suggests it.
There is ample parking and plenty of space inside. It is never busy when I go around 11:45AM.
Unlike a lot of BBQ lunch places, I like the fact that this one has cloth napkins and metal utensils to eat with. I really hate getting paper napkins stuck to my fingers and trying to cut through meat with shitty plastic utensils.
The servers are generally friendly and efficient at Sweet Baby Rays.
The menu is what you would expect with pulled pork, rib tips, chicken, etc. I usually get the pulled pork sandwich. It comes with the tiny amount of sauce, but there is a bottle of cold sauce on the table. The meat is fair, but it is not particularly tender and there is no hint of smoke. I have no idea how they prepare their pork, but I have had much better elsewhere. Perhaps I need to try something different. Stay away from the red beans and rice. It is a sloppy mess that looks like watery refried beans with a few grains of rice thrown in.
Since I go here for lunch I have no idea what the beer or liquor selection is like.
I will probably be back, but only because my lunch companion seems to enjoy this place.Listed in: Bensenville Lunch
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Review from Nancy H.
Hoffman Estates, IL
11/5/2011
My husband does not like BBQ anything - HE LOVED Sweet Baby Ray's Smoked Prime Rib. The Tchoupitoulas Potatoes were wonderful. Best of all was they had lots of gluten free items and they even understood cross-contamination.
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Review from ivy P.
Hanover Park, IL
7/3/2011 1 Check-in Here
TIP:You gotta go to All u can eat ribs on Wednesdays for $20 :)
The waitress we had this past friday was absolutely amazing
My BF & I we're sharing aplate & the plate came with soup
she brought him an extra soup just because she said she didnt like eating alone & that way he could also try the soup instead of us sharing a little cup. I also tried the Chile Mac & Cheese loved the lil spicy kick still cheesey though. We went an hour before close we ordered a full slab & the ribs I got was two 1/2 slabs put together & it wasnt hot I could tell it wasnt freshly cooked but I guess it's understable because it was almost closing time. I've been there before & I really liked the ribs :) -
Review from Alie S.
Chicago, IL
8/25/2011
So I'm look forward to a delicious and possible seafood dinner for my lil brothers bday. My 19 year old brother decides he wants to go to Hooters for his bday.... Thank God my parents said no. I wasn't too pleased with Sweet Baby Ray's as his second choice either. I admit I was being a brat, but I had my little heart so set on lovely fish,dinner... oh well.
So with low hopes I was actually impressed. The bbq shrimp appetizer was absoluetely delicious!!! It sounds weird but its just amazing, trust me you need to order it. I ordered the 3 meat combo, which came with a lot of food, 3 nmeats, soup or salad, cornbread, and 2 sides.
I got
Salad-small garden salad, the red wine vinagrette was good though
cornbread- was only ok, i've had better
1/3 ribs- yummy, not too saucy just the way I like it
pulled pork- a lil saucy and really tender agian yummy
beef brisket- a lil smoky and very good with my green chile mac
green chile mac- I miss the cheesy flavor because of the intense heat, and I like spicy foods my family lvoes it, and eatign it with the beef mad it better
sweet potatoe fries- to die for!!! OMG cannot say enough good things about them. Order them, just do it. Don't be lame and get regular fries, go for sweet potatoe fries and you won't be dissappointed.
So in recap, while it wasn't the fancy gourmet dinner I was hoping for, it was downright good and filling. (I even have leftovers for lunch, score!) Though service was super slow in the beginning I think it was due to the large amount of people there for the Wednesday all you can eat ribs and they cleared out and serivce was fine. Overall I liked it, and I'd def go back if I was in the mood for some yummy filling bbq. -
Review from Aaron L.
Chicago, IL
6/13/2011
4* Corn Bread
3* Baked Beans
2.5* Baby Back Ribs
2.5* Chef Paul's Corn Maque Choux
3* BBQ Shrimp
3.5* Calamari
2.5* Jumbo Chicken Wings
2* Pull Pork Nachos -
Review from Tim Y.
Updated - 3/7/2011 1 photo
Oh for the love of Christ, what the hell?
I ordered take-out lunch for the office. I didn't want a full meal, so I ordered a side of cole slaw and a side of red beans and rice. What did I get for $4.98? I got a tiny, three-bite cup of red beans (and rice grain) and an even smaller two bite cup of cole slaw. I'll even post a photo because it was so underwhelming.
I understand the cost of food is increasing, but if I ordered these sides in the restaurant and got these portions, I'd laugh and send it back.
Very disappointed. We won't be doing group lunch here again.1 Previous Review: Show all »
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7/31/2010
Pretty decent meats here. The gumbo is a little bland, but still alright for what amounts to a chain… Read more »
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Review from Ericka A.
2/9/2011
I've been to this location a couple times and really enjoy it. I'm a big fan of meat and particularly love me some BBQ. Everything I've had is really delicious, but still not the best of the best, in my opinion. I was able to sample quite a few of their dishes by doing the 3-meat combo and I have leftovers for days.
Pulled pork nachos were really good, Mac n cheese is meh, baked beans are yummy, the ribs can be hit or miss, beef brisket is tender and fatty, the chicken is probably my favorite of the meats and banana pudding dessert is just the right amount of sweet to finish it off. My absolute favorite part of the meal was the sweet potato fries. I could eat just a plate of those and be perfectly content.Listed in: NW Suburban Dinner Do's &…
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Review from Aimee M.
2/22/2011
3.5 stars really.
Visited on a Sunday for lunch with a group of 5. Seated immediately.
We started with the pulled pork nachos for the table to share and even with the cheese, tomato and black bean topping, everyone felt it was "missing something". It didn't seem like the pork was the star of the appetizer, it was dry and a bit bland.
Then came the salads which were wilty and icy. I think their fridge setting was on too high because it seemed like the salad was frozen and just put out to thaw. I like my salads nicely chilled, but not like this.
There was definitely some redemption in the main course. I opted for a half slab of baby back ribs, but the server said there was a special that day, that for just $3 more, you could get a full slab. Bring it on. Figured it would be good for leftovers as well. The ribs had a nice bit of char on it and very nice flavor. They weren't saucy enough for me, but no matter, they have their signature BBQ sauce on the table to add. I prefer their sweet and spicy sauce and our server brought that out upon request. My 2 sides--baked potato and Mac N Cheese. The mac n cheese was very creamy and very well made--loved it! The baked potato was also well cooked--kind of hard to mess up a baked potato.
Service was good and attentive. Constantly refilling water and bringing refills of our sodas. Nice and tidy restaurant.Listed in: Suburban Carnivore
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Review from Rachel J.
Updated - 2/9/2011
I will never eat here again.
So much has changed since my first review. The service is barely passable as such, and the food is terrible. The last time I ate here, we were seated on top of a few other tables when there was plenty of room in the dining area. Seemed like they didn't want to clean the entire place at the end of the night, so they shoved us all in a corner.
The server did the bare minimum. He was not warm or friendly at all.
The food---the one shot they had at my future business.........sucked. The pulled chicken was sinewy and I found more than one rock hard something or other in the pile of "meat". I got to have exactly two bites before hitting the "wall of what the hell is that".
Bye, and no thanks.1 Previous Review: Show all »
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4/18/2008
Walked in on a Friday night around 7:30. We were told that it would be up to 20 minutes for a… Read more »
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Review from Ed A.
2/9/2011
I was really hungry for some barbecue, great barbecue and cornbread. Man, I love some good cornbread with a drizzle of honey.
We didn't have time to sit in and eat. So a friend went in and grabbed some take-out.
We both got the pulled pork plate. It came with coleslaw, french fries and cornbread. The coleslaw was terrific. I have looked for great coleslaw since my favorite deli closed and the stuff was a good find.
The pulled pork was good, well, pretty good but not great. They give you quite a bit but the pork is just too chopped up or broken up. It's a mouth feel kind of thing. You want great taste but some texture as well.
I mean, my Cheerios drowned in milk has more texture. Sorry, minus one star.
The barbecue sauce was very good. But, it still doesn't beat that fantastic sauce prepared over at Dale Street inn. Not even the sauce over at Smoke beats Dale Street.
The cornbread was... they forgot my honey! WTF? Again, minus one star.
This place was okay if you're in the area. I may go back and try the ribs and other stuff.
^ -
Review from JP J.
Schaumburg, IL
1/28/2011
Absolutely will not eat here again. So for starters this was out first time here. we had a gift card and figured we would give it a shot. When we got in one of the first things we noticed was that they support local brewery's. Being a beer geek I liked this. So we sit down and I order a beer, oh wait we our out of stock on that one. Ok I'll take this one, no problem. We order an App of Ribs and some Cheesy mac and cheese for the little guy. As i get up to go use the rest room I see the cook pull out a slab of ribs from where they are stored. He slightly cuts them in half, then breaks them in half with his bare hands. He then proceeds to put the ribs in the MICROWAVE. Yep, the Microwave. I watch as that order goes from the Microwave to the frill to a plate and to our table. I guess I didn't realize that BBQ and Microwaves went hand in hand.
Now during this whole time we are watching the kitchen staff work. No gloves, bare hands, taking off their hats, scratching their heads, brushing their hair back, putting back on their hats, touching their noses, wiping things on the work space etc. Then of course handling all the food that is being served. never once washing their hands. Yeah that was it. We asked for a manager. We explained to him that we saw our ribs go in the microwave and he proceeded to tell us that's what some of their dishes call for. We then explained to him how unsanitary his kitchen staff was. He said he would have a talk with them, but that they are a very clean restaurant. He really didn't get what we were trying to tell him. We grabbed our stuff, paid our bar tab and left.
lesson learned and we will never go back again. -
Review from Mike O.
3/3/2011
I came here on a bitterly cold night in February, exactly a week after the Ground Hog Day Blizzard of 2011. In the world of barbecue, February is a strategic month, as it is about 5 months since the last official BBQ holiday (Labor Day), and nearly another 4 months till the first official BBQ on Memorial Day weekend. In the cold, dark days of February, the smell of smoked meat and barbecue sauce is reassuring, despite the snowy surroundings and arctic air.
While I had called twice regarding my reservation for 12 people and they had me down both times, somehow they couldn't find my reservation once I arrived with my group. However, they got us a nice centrally located table with lots of space all around. We got to see the kitchen in action from our vantage point, including a loud, dish-shattering moment that drew a holler from the dining crowd.
As part of the NW Suburban Dinner group, we split a dish of pulled pork nachos - thanks for the tip, Renita. Those were fantastic indeed. For my main course, I went with beef brisket and some ribs in a 2-meat combo. Their coleslaw and baked beans were awesome too. Fries and a baby-sized corn bread rounded out a fantastic meal. I was too full for dessert and even had leftovers to bring home.
Definitely a good place for a carnivorous experience in the dead of winter. -
Review from Renita M.
Updated - 12/27/2010
After talking up SBR to a friend for months, we finally brought him here. He was suitably impressed.
It was all-you-can-eat rib night. My husband and our friend, well, they ate all they could eat. In fact, the restaurant ran out of baby back ribs and had to switch to St Louis-style. (They let us know of this as soon as they could and were very gracious. I think the guys might have been part of the reason they ran out!)
I had, HAD to get the nachos again. They're so freakin' good. I also got a side of the green chile mac & cheese, which is like crack. I shared the nachos so I could snarf some of the ribs, and .... oh man. They're really good. I'm not even that big a rib person and I was raving. The crust was just perfect, sauced just right... my only wish is that they would offer the ribs with their Carolina sauce, which is my favorite of their regional sauces.
Service was pretty good, after an initial little bit of slowness our server was on top of things; the food was all excellent and I just cannot say enough good things about their 'cue...
Sweet Baby Ray's, you are one meat-tastic restaurant.Listed in: Not yo' nachos, Pigs are delicious, The best of the suburbs, Oh hi, O'Hare!
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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2/23/2009
Finally visited this one after eating at the Wood Dale location months ago.
The EGV SBR is bigger, a… Read more »
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Review from Sarah S.
11/21/2010
I went here for lunch today with my friend. I've heard of Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Products but never been to the actual restaurant for a meal.
We started with the New Orleans Barbecue Shrimp as an appetizer. it was $9 for 6 small pieces of shrimp and 2 pieces of garlic bread. Way overpriced! The shrimp was doused in bbq sauce as advertised but to me it tasted like it was sitting in the same bbq as a bunch of burgers. I lost the shrimp taste and just got a meat taste.
For my entree I had a Baby Ray Burger which came with my choice of a side dish. I chose the mac & cheese which was some of the best I've ever had---super thick & creamy the way I like it. The burger was incredibly good, too...grilled perfectly well done as requested. I also asked for no fried onions, tomatoes or lettuce and had no issues with that.
We had a groupon for part of our order and had no problems at all using that. Our server was attentive our entire meal, making sure our drinks were always full. The hostess seemed friendly as well. I would definitely go here again but steer way clear of the overpriced appetizers!!! -
Review from Michael L.
Park Ridge, IL
8/31/2011
This place has great food but is extremely stingy with the portion sizes. I spent $30.00 on takeout (no drinks) and barely had enough food for 2 people. They nickle and dime you to death on the sides - a side of cole slaw for $99 cents is a mini cup - like what you would get on your plate with a sandwich at a diner. It would cost you $5 - $6 dollars to get a meaningful side for 2 people.
I bought the $13.99 2-meat (pulled pork and brisket) dinner. For that price, you would think you would get some nice pulled pork at least - no, you get a spoonful. Maybe a soup spoonful. Plus 3 mini-slices of brisket. The meat is very good. It is just so little of it, which really makes it very, very expensive. When I opened it and looked at it, I nearly gave it to my dog as a snack.
We also ordered the $7.99 takeout special of rib tips. This was good, with a good amount of rib tips. I was told that this (Tuesday) special is the same size as their normal $10.99 dinner. The problem again is the sides. Don't expect meaningful sides without spending $5 - 6 for each one. Or at least $3.00 each (depending on what it is). So you start with $7.99 (or $10.99 on a non-Tuesday), and if you really like cole slaw, baked beans, a piece of corn bread and perhaps some fries for a normal man to eat, you are going to spend another $5-10. So that $10.99 non-Tuesday plate is over $20.00. Very expensive for this type of food. There are many places that give you good meat and sides at a better price.
So I am not saying that the food is bad - no, the food is good. It is just that BBQ should come with plentiful sides. So you stand there and order something, and then if you want this it is 99 cents more, if you want that it is 99 cents more - you add all that on, get home and there still is not enough food for 2. I am a normal sized man, my wife is a normal sized woman, and we actually had to add a Trader Joes Mac n Cheese to make it enough food for us.
Summary - The food is actually good - nothing extraordinary, but good. But they totally insult you by the rip-off of portions sizes. The $13.99 two-meat and $16.99 three-meat dinners are complete rip-offs. If there is a special, have that, or go somewhere else. -
Review from Pari S.
Schaumburg, IL
I love it here!!
This is one of those place, when you are hungry for some good bbq... and you just want to inhale the smell... the atmosphere... the food!! go here!!!
It is always buzzling here... but I have never gotten to wait longer than 5 minutes to be seated. The service is fast... and as many times as I've been here.. not once has my order been messed up nor do I have any complain about the service here at all.
In fact one time, there was a magician walking around entertaining people. I can also vouch for the many nights of live band and music... the game nights. All very entertaining... the only thing is, it does get loud in here. So If you dont like loud... then it may not be for you. However the food is awesome and just makes it worthwhile.
Now to the food... I love love love most on the stuff on the menu. Yes, I've been here more than once... and have tried practically about everything on the menu by now. My favorite, since I've been on a diet now, is their Chicken Ceasar Salad. The grilled chicken that they add onto this salad is just delicious.
I always go here with my hubby and friends. We have tried everything from the baby back ribs, to beef briskets, pulled pork, smoking wings, bbq chicken...steak and hamburger. All sooooo good. I dont even know where to start. Lets say the bbq sauce is excellent. You just have to go here and try it all... every thing is smoked and is just right. I've never had any complaint about it being too dry or overly seasoned. Everything is perfect to my taste. I also want to mention, nothing is overly priced either. The smoking wings is an appetizer. It is about $7 for a very good portion. A plate of Rib tips with 2 sides is around $9.
I do want to mention my "must have" sides... I always get the sweet potato fries... and my most favorite side of all the Green Mac... oh soo good. I want to learn how to make this!! Everything pretty much comes with the cornbread... which is just yummy.
Should u go here... Absolutely!! If your into bbq's.. then this is the place for you. -
Review from Matthew M.
Lombard, IL
1/4/2011
As Bob Swerski of the Superfans once noted Chicago is "da birtdplace of da baby back rib." While I highly doubt the veracity of that statement, barbeque is definitely one of the many fun foods in which this city takes tremendous pride.
Ladies and gentlemen, Sweet Baby Rays is the best barbeque in a city that does it as well if not better than anyone else.
The first thing to keep in mind when you eat here is you're going to get a lot of food. I mean... A LOT. On our first trip my wife and I made the mistake of ordering pulled pork nachos as an appetizer. The mistake wasn't the nachos, it was the fact that by the time our actual entrees came, we were able to eat about two bites before we were full.
This most recent time we decided instead to have one of us order the nachos and another order the ribs and we'd split. Then we found out it was all-you-can-eat ribs night... hoooooo boy.
My best friend/co-conspirator and I literally cleaned the place out of baby backs, the had to start giving us St. Louis style instead.
As for the actual ribs? Oh, perfection on a bone. They always have the biggest, meatiest pieces that just fall right off. The meat has that perfect char on the edge that's so filled with flavor but never tastes burnt. The inside juicy and delicious with that awesome smoked ring.
And they do have choices beyond the usual barbeque fare, like the aforementioned pulled pork nachos which I thought sounded terrible and are actually some of the best things on the face of the earth.
I will say I do prefer the Wood Dale location just a tiny bit more, maybe there's something about eating barbeque in a shack that just feels a bit more authentic, but the EGV full-service locale always has great service and it has the nachos which the Wood Dale one doesn't.
So if you're a barbeque fan, go, go now. It's a true Chicago legend and even the Superfans would have to admit this would knock even Ditka on his ace. -
Review from Char Y.
Chicago, IL
9/24/2010
We came out with the groupon and did not know what to expect. Some place like Patio's in Downers Grove? Actually it's a sit down & serve restaurant with some good BBQ. Complete with the sweet baby sauce of course!
rib combo - REALLY good BB ribs & St Louis style.
gumbo - ok
A great value for the ribs, just wish we have this in the city! -
Review from Michelle K.
Naperville, IL
8/24/2010
Hooray for Groupon for enticing me out to Elk Grove to try out some fantastic barbecue!
My own Sweet Baby and I started the meal off with the New Orleans Barbecue Shrimp, eight pan-seared shrimp in a mildly spicy barbecue sauce, served with two slices of garlic bread. Definitely recommended. Our entrees came with soup or salad, so we both ordered the New England Clam Chowder. This was really tasty - and I say this as someone who just spent two years in the Boston area - lots of plump, juicy clams. Definitely a pleasant surprise.
My boyfriend ordered the Pulled Pork Plate and I had a half-slab of the Baby Back Ribs. Our meat was so tender and delicious, and I really enjoyed the Corn Maque Choux (creamy corn with peppers), baked potato, and cornbread I chose as sides. As you can see, we had a LOT of food here, so I ended up taking most of my entree home and finishing it the next day. Still delicious!
We didn't have room for dessert, but everything looked good - including the dessert drinks (hello, Chocolate Covered Cherry)! Next time, we may skip the appetizer so we can indulge on dessert!Listed in: Five-Star Rock Stars, I'm Meatatarian, Eating in the NW 'Burbs
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Review from Phillip C.
Schaumburg, IL
I love me some bbq so had to try this place. We were seated right away and we started off our meal with the bbq shrimp. The shrimp was "okay", but I think I enjoyed the garlic bread it was served with a lot more. Also, it wasn't worth the $9 I paid for 6 regular size shrimps. I got the chili for my soup and it was decent. You could definitely taste the bbq sauce with some kick.
Oh well, onto the main course. I got the beef brisket plate, with green chile mac & cheese and tchoupitoulas potatoes (roasted potatoes with bacon bits/peppers). The beef brisket was good and was tasty with the sweet baby ray's bbq sauce. The green chile mac & cheese had great flavor. The tchoupitoulas potatoes weren't anything special... wish I had some more of that green chile mac.
Overall a bit over priced and not the best bbq I've had, but makes a good filling meal. -
Review from Doug M.
10/15/2010 2 Check-ins Here
I visited Sweet Baby Ray's today after a visit to nearby Busse Woods for some R&R. I had heard good things about them and decided to see for myself.
I started off with a cup of their gumbo, which was presented with white rice and diced scallions on top. Very nice presentation and I could hardly wait to dig in. I was rewarded with a great tasting gumbo chock full of flavor from the chunks of chicken and sausage. It was served nice and hot the way of soup should be.
A short time later my meal arrived, which was the pulled pork sammich. I chose their fries as my side, and they have lots of sides to choose from. The pulled pork was moist, tender and delicious! There were bits that were slightly crusty and carmelized and every bite was a taste sensation.
The portion size was impressive as well and the fries were done nice and golden.
They have a full bar and serve up all sorts of cocktails and all of your usual beers, including Stella Artois. Beer prices ranged from 2.50 on up for pints.
The atmosphere or decorum was nice and the place was clean. Service was good. I'll be back to try the ribs or brisket hopefully soon! -
Review from Steve R.
2/12/2011
We recently went to Sweet Baby Ray's with our Groupon. We ordered a full slab of baby back ribs and the mixed BBQ platter (pulled pork & brisket) with sides of chili mac&cheese (delicious), regular mac&cheese, red beans & rice and something else. Everything was good. Graham cracker banana parfait for desert was good as well. Leftovers didn't heat up great, so come hungry.
Service was good, the bartender kept our drinks refilled throughout the meal. -
Review from Iris M.
Philadelphia, PA
11/24/2010 1 Check-in Here
I recently took a business trip to Des Plaines and while driving back to the hotel, I spotted Sweet Baby Ray's. Being an east coast girl, I'm accustomed to seeing Ray's BBQ sauce in Whole Foods, Wegman's, and the like so I was thrilled to see the actual restaurant.
As soon as I parked the car and got out, the smell of smoky goodness wafted across the parking lot and I just knew I was in for some good ol' down home bbq. Unfortunately, I was a little let down when I got my pulled pork platter with their "famous" green chile mac n' cheese. The pulled pork was good but not great and had none of that smokiness I smelled in the parking lot. I don't know if they just smoke wood out back behind the restaurant for effect but I certainly didn't taste any in the food. The much-hyped mac n' cheese was a little on the runny side and I got no heat from the tiny specks of green chile. Turns out, the sweet potato fries were delicious and the highlight of the meal...go figure. -
Review from Jennifer S.
Bartlett, IL
10/24/2010
Sweet Baby Ray's really lacked in the service department, so I had to drop a star. The last time that we visited, it wasn't very crowded but I am convinced that our server was busy doing something because he sure wasn't serving us. Empty glasses. A shift change. Missing condiments until after the food was cold. It was just an annoying experience overall.
Thankfully, the food was okay which made things better. We started with a tasty shrimp and garlic bread app. I wish there had been a little more bread to help soak up the yummy sauce. My son had chili while I had the gumbo. Both were very tasty (the gumbo had HUGE chunks of meat), but both were served almost room temperature. I had a two-meat combo with ribs and chicken, the potatoes that they make with peppers and bacon and some mashed potatoes - carb overload! The ribs were good, the chicken came home for leftovers and I was hoping that the pan fried potatoes would be great, but I think they make them in large batches and just serve them as needed. The flavor was there - the texture was not. They were too chewy. My son had a pulled chicken sandwich with mac n cheese. He liked both, but he's 13 and would eat Kraft from the box everyday if I would let him.
Bottom line, we won't head back here in purpose anytime soon. -
Review from Franklin D.
Arlington Heights, IL
6/14/2011
Love the pulled pork nachos, green chile mac'n'cheese, and of course the ribs.
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Review from Arlene G.
Updated - 5/31/2011
Took my daddy here for his bday this weekend & of course ordered some ribs. We tried the ribtips too & the hot wings. All of them were delicious! However, we ordered the calamari for an appetizer & they were not that great! They did not taste fresh & wasn't too happy with them. Otherwise everything else was great! Will come back again but just skip the calamari!
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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10/9/2009
Great BBQ ribs! I use the sauce at home so the restaurant has to be good too. When you think of BBQ… Read more »
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Review from Brent W.
11/25/2010
I used to like SBR's BBQ sauce back in the day, back when my BBQ palate leaned a bit more to the sweeter/Memphis side of things. With that, I thought it important to at least check out the place that was spawned by "The Sauce is Boss" BBQ sauce.
Good. Decent. Bit above average. Et al. Etc.
Whatever you call it, pick any pedestrian-ish adjective or phrase and there you have it (Sweet Baby Ray's that is). You prob won't go wrong with many choices here but you clearly won't be wowed or surprised either. -
Review from Ajay S.
Streamwood, IL
2/26/2011
First time going to Sweet baby ray's after using the BBQ sauce for years. This place is pretty good I had a combination platter of ribs, chicken, and pulled pork. All of them were very good and I thought the Ribs and Chicken we're excellent.
The meal included a gumbo for a dollar more and I really liked it. Just enough spice to give it a kick. My son who doesn't eat spicy food even liked it.
My sides we're the green mac and cheese, which was different.
I'd definitely go back and consider it one of the better BBQ places in the burbs. -
Review from Vicki W.
Chicago, IL
12/19/2010
I came here with my brother, sister and cousin to use a Groupon on Black Friday.
Here's my dish:
Combo appetizer platter-enjoyed everything including the BBQ shrimp since they were not overly smoky, plenty of onion strings to save for jazzing up our entrees & taking home, but the highlight for me were the pulled pork nachos-wow! pork w/o BBQ sauce overkill, real cheese, jalapeno, salsa & sour cream in every bite
Beef brisket sandwich w/choice of one side (garlic mashed potatoes)-on the lean side, but tasted great with the signature SBR sauce at the restaurant and the next day, served on a sizeable kaiser roll; potatoes were decently good/garlickly
apple tart with vanilla ice cream-thin and flaky, but kind of a weird onion/savory taste on the bottom (this was ordered after the banana pudding became unavailable :( (something about someone accidentally breaking glass into it/making it unservable))
While I'm not a barbecue enthusiast by any means, Sweet Baby Ray's is a place for solidly good food. Come here and come hungry. -
Review from Kymberly J.
Oak Park, IL
9/22/2010
You just cant get good BBQ in the 'burbs. Or can you?
We walked in 15 minutes to close and were greeted and treated as if we were the first customers of the day. And when I whipped out the groupon the owner came over and made sure everything was OK. I always wait until the end to get out the groupon because of the horror stories I've heard about bad service because of it. I'm very impressed with their customer service.
I had the brisket. Tender, juicy and enough left over for another meal. For my sides I had green chile mac and cheese. It had a homemade taste and not too salty. the one thing I was uneasy about was it was swimming in a pool of cheese. My veggies were crisp but sauteed in butter.
Don't go here looking to have a nice healthy meal!
Good prices, great service, great food. -
Review from James L.
South Elgin, IL
7/5/2011
This might be my favorite Pulled Pork sandwich in the area. If you have any other suggestions, send them my way, but I love the sauce and hefty portions. And I'm so grateful that they also serve Gumbo. However, I haven't tried anything else here yet. If you're looking for a good pulled pork and gumbo to go, then look no further!
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Review from Jason R.
Morton Grove, IL
4/23/2009
First off, let me start off by asking...WHO THE HELL RUNS OUT OF BBQ RIBS ON AN ALL-U-CAN EAT BBQ RIBS NIGHT!!!!
So I paid the $17 bucks or so for the all you can eat, and a few slabs into it, our server comes back and tells us that they're out. I was a little surprised that a place that advertises an all you can eat ribs night somehow doesn't prepare enough ribs for the night.
However, the ribs were delicious, seeing as how the restaurant is known for their famous barbeque sauce. The meat was tender up to a point, but then the ribs started to get a little dry. I'm a glutton when it comes to all you can eat, but about my 5th slab in, the ribs became dry and running out didnt help either.
My suggestions for people looking to spend a night getting their fingers dirty on some ribs is to go early, eat your fill and chill with your friends while you digest on some of their beers. The atmosphere was relaxing and the servers seemed to be in good moods. Overall, i'd go back for the ribs....the cole slaw wasn't that bad either. Hopefully next time, they'll have enough ribs to satisfy my savage eating habbits. -
Review from Becky B.
Arlington Heights, IL
10/28/2010
I lived in the South for 8 years, and didn't expect much since BBQ is so great down there. I was pleasantly surprised that this pretty decent BBQ. The sauce is pretty sweet since it's Memphis style. I was surprised that they didn't have sweet tea - takes away some of your BBQ street cred. The mac & cheese was meh...any decent BBQ joint should have much better mac & cheese. The pulled pork sandwich was really good though.
Overall pretty good, but not authentic. But it IS the burbs :) -
Review from Jessica G.
Villa Park, IL
8/20/2010 1 Check-in Here
This is some pretty good stuff - aside from all the screaming kids.
We got in really quick on what seemed to be a pretty busy night. Friendly waitress, decent service. I liked my pulled pork, though I guess I was expecting it to be more saucy than it was. The pork had a good flavor by itself. The spicy mac and cheese could have used a pinch of salt but it was pretty good. And the corn bread was very dense and sweet, just like I like it.
It is a family place so expect kids and a very casual atmosphere. Solid food at reasonable prices. -
Review from Spider J.
Temple City, CA
10/14/2010
Pros: The meat was awesome. The brisket was tender (though cut on the bias -- it could have been even moreso), and the chicken was falling apart. Our server was pleasant, and he didn't sing when he brought my birthday surprise (My husband is a ninja, apparently). The sweet potato fries were nice, though I could only eat a couple. Generous portions.
Mehs: The mac and cheese was very reminiscent of Kroger's deli mac. VERY. I happen to like that, but I can understand why it gets so much flack from others. My husband liked his garlic mashed potatoes, but I didn't think they were particularly awesome, and far too peppery.
Cons: The cornbread actually made me depressed to bite into. Also, they don't use the sauce right. When I grill with Sweet Baby Ray's, I put the sauce on the meat while its cooking so it gets a nice, carmelized char. They put the sauce on after the cooking at the restaurant, which was kind of unceremonious, and not showing it off to its best advantage. -
Review from Sherwin C.
Palatine, IL
5/13/2011 1 Check-in Here
Judging from the all-you-can-eat brunch, the food is alright but pricey for what you get. I feel that most of the meat is less than spectacular and occasionally overcooked to the point that it's a bit dry. The choices of all food were a bit underwhelming for the $25 price although it at least was pretty complete and included a salad bar. Most of the desserts are overly sweet. I would have been happier if the meat was great and everything else was acceptable but I was not impressed with any item I tried.
