Oaks Open Pit Bbq - Sarasota

Been going to The Oak's on and off for about 25 years and just about every time I come in for a BBQ pork sandwich, I end up with the damn special, whatever it may be! Had the Cheeseburger with pepper jack cheese and fried Jalapeños last night and finally thought I should leave a review, even though my food has always been delicious there. The burger was cooked perfect. got med rare as usual and was delicious yet again! One day I'll figure out why the special is .75 more expensive than the cheeseburger yet only comes with one side? Either way, one of the best burgers in town, tasty fresh lemonade, always friendly service. See ya' next time.

Not sure about Kendall's taste buds! Despite the staff's friendliness and courtesy, the food is not really good ; I really wanted to like it, but I think I could make better BBQ which is super sad. The only way this place stays open is with loyal locals and that's good for them ; If you're looking for all you can eat BBQ and you're all about quantity vs. quality, then this is the place for you.

Let me start of with saying our waitress was fantastic and the place was clean. Sigh...now for the bad. I hate to give any restaurant a single star, but this place was very disappointing! I ordered the BBQ turkey sandwich with mac and cheese and coleslaw as a side. The turkey sandwich was good, but the meat needed better seasoning. The coleslaw was very sweet but was tolerable. The mac and cheese was horrible...it was dry and tasted like it came straight from the box. They allowed me to exchange my mac and cheese for baked beans. My husband order the fish and chicken combo with baked beans and coleslaw. The meat had almost no seasoning. The chicken did not have the smokie grill taste and was dry. The beans were good but he hated the sweet coleslaw and the pickle relish in it. He was exchanged his coleslaw for french fries. The fries were obviously refried as they were dark, burnt, crunchy and extremely greasy...they were horrible. When the waitress saw the fries she commented that they didn 't look appetizing and sometimes customers come in ask for fresh french fries and she will make a specific request to the chef. Are you kidding me. I didn 't realize I had to make a specific request for my food the be fresh!! Did I mention that the house BBQ sauce was very ketchup-ie? On the bright side they have a hot, mild and honey BBQ sauce to chose from. The waitress did a wonderful job changing our sides out and trying to make us happy. Howrver, at the end of the day the food was not good and I feel like we wasted our money.

Love the Oaks! The fried fish is phenomenal. Huge serving and great sides. The garlic bread is excellent as well. If you go there, I recommend the fried fish and he shredded pork. The coleslaw is also very good. This is a down-home kind of place with animal head mounted and a large alligator mounted on the wall. There is a whole bear in the dining room. Staff is always super nice.

Food was amazing! Service was great! Stopped in on a whim on vacation and so glad I did!