To be as far south as we are here in Louisville, we sure don't have many good places to eat barbeque. I lived for a while in Nashville, and I used to eat at this place called Whitt's Barbeque at least once every couple of weeks. It was so good that I often consider driving the three hours to Nashville just to get a sandwich. So, I had high hopes for Famous Dave's in Louisville when my friends from North Carolina touted its tastiness. Unfortunately, I'm still on the search for my Louisville Whitt's.
The Experience
There's not a lot that's tackier than a wait staff who refer to themselves as "Famous [Name]" and décor that features cartoon pictures of the restaurant's main ingredient. Even worse was when the server brought me my credit card and referred to me as "Famous Jessica." I think that the owners of Famous Dave's were attempting to be cute and thematic when they decided that everything in the restaurant would be made out of wood and covered in things you'd likely find in a dump or junk car lot. They weren't successful.
The Food
Famous Dave's specializes in barbeque, so it has a menu full of pork and chicken slathered in the thickest barbeque sauce you can imagine. Appetizers include onion strings, chili, catfish fingers, barbeque salad, and chicken wings and are priced between $2.99 and $32.99.
Entrees are all barbequed-something, including ribs, chicken, salmon, pork, and brisket. Most entrees come with a side dish such as corn on the cob, cornbread, fried apples, and coleslaw. Entrees range from $9.99 to $20.99. Famous Dave's also has a sandwich menu, a kid's menu, and a dessert menu.
The Service
The service at Famous Dave's was surprisingly competent. We only had to wait about five minutes for a table even though we dined at 7:30 on a Friday night. I didn't have to wait for a refill once, and our server, Famous Lori, was friendly, knowledgeable, and prompt.
Review
I was really looking forward to trying the barbeque at Famous Dave's after a barbeque-loving friend of mine from North Carolina said the food there was awesome. I had envisioned sinking my teeth into a pulled pork sandwich and choosing the dressing of my choice -- preferably a light, vinegar-based dressing. I'm not a fan of barbeque sauce that is the consistency of ketchup unless I'm eating it with chicken nuggets from McDonalds. I probably should have mentioned that to my friends beforehand.
We began our meal with an order of onion strings that were delicious. I ordered the Georgia Chopped Pork sandwich with Famous Fries, my husband ordered a Rib Tip Platter with extra meat, and my two friends both ordered a special that came with ribs, barbeque chicken, brisket, corn on the cob, coleslaw, cornbread, baked beans, and strawberry shortcake. We voted against the meal for four that is served on a trashcan lid, unable to determine whether that was clever or disgusting.
Our four entrees came with enough food to feed eight people. Even my friend who is in her third trimester of pregnancy complained that she had way too much. My husband's "extra meat" turned out to be another full plate of rib tips. I was immediately disappointed with my food because it looked and tasted like it was made of diced pork tenderloin, and I didn't even get to choose my own barbeque sauce. The pork was dry and bland, and my fries were overcooked.
The dessert was the better part of the meal, though no one really had enough appetite to eat more than a couple of bites. We left with two five-pound carryout boxes that sat in the car while we went to see a movie. The overwhelming smell of barbeque that greeted us in the car after the movie was not one that made me fondly remember my meal at Famous Dave's.
Recommendations
- Onion Strigs
- St. Louis Ribs
- Bread Pudding
Pros
- Good Service
- Good Ribs
Cons
- The food isn't great, the portions are ridiculously oversized, and the restaurant is tacky. This is not a place you'll want to go if you're trying to impress someone.
