Hard Eight BBQ

Reviews 4

NA

Nam Nguyen

Ive been all over tasting all sorts of BBQ. Wet, dry, smoked, baked, oven, propane grills, charcoal grills... you name it - ive probably had it. That being said my standard is high. I understand perfection is all relative to ones taste buds. I enjoy a wet rub, not overly saucy though, you still have to taste the meats and enjoy the smokey flavors, a tenderness - a fall off the bone kind of goodness. I like a bit of heat to my sauce too, heat as in spice. And the rub itself has to leave a lingering of flavors in every bite. Hard Eight falls short of my criteria of what makes BBQ great. The layout and atmosphere is lively and fun. Its setup for folks to walk thru a food line and look at a huge menu to decide what they want... but really all that goes out the window by the time you walk up to the pit master cutting all the meats they offer. The first bad thing was that they ran out of ribs... so that already was a huge let down. Secondly - everything was just so-so. For all the hype and how its cooked and all the smoke blowing every where I would have expected a lot more flavor. But everything was just bland. Meats (brisket and chicken) wasnt dried out but just lacked flavor of any type. The chicken skin was nicely crisped but was just boring in flavor. I had the brisket put in my baked potato and that was just lack luster as well. The sauce was sub par. Nothing to rave about but didnt have any kick in flavor and/or spice. I would have preferred sweet baby rays. The apple honey (i think) bbq sauce had the most flavor but was really watery and did some what of a good job as a dip but not a sauce. Generic tasting mac and cheese and the potato salad was "mehh." Overall a fun lively place without a doubt - the folks seemed semi friendly for the most part. But this is far from the best BBQ in the south. Perhaps they were good at one point but I should have known when I saw the fleet of catering vehicles out back that perhaps theyve just been too commercialized and focus more on quantity rather than quality.

TE

Terrell Sharplin

I travel and eat BBQ all over the 48. I have never seen a better presentation than at Hard Eight. Some may be put off by the heat and smoke, but I love that the ordering line allows you to see the whole BBQ-making process. If youre not hungry by the time you reach the pit master, something is wrong with you! I am a little disappointed with their corn (Ive had both the grilled and buttered, neither are great) and their half chicken (dry, not a great flavor), but the rest of the food, along with the atmosphere, are more than enough to keep me coming back. Theres a friendly older man (the owner or manager, perhaps) that will ofttimes greet you as you come in. He asks if its your first time; if so, he gives helpful pointers. Hard Eight has a big patio, and on cooler days its enclosed with heaters, and there is a fireplace! Sometimes there is a live band as well. If youre not in the mood for BBQ per se, order a ribeye; it comes covered in butter with grilled onions and a jalapeño (see my picture), plus two sides, for $27.50. Worth it. Pros: -The presentation and atmosphere -The steaks -The "BRUSH POPPERS"! These little bacon-wrapped chicken pieces on a stick with onions and peppers are a MUST order. Get 3-4 to try and/or take home. -Their "cornbread salad". Dry, crumbled sweet cornbread with cheese and more- the best side dish Ive had here. -The fireplace - ... Too many more to list. Cons: -Not hands down the best BBQ meats Ive ever had. The chicken is too dry and lacks flavor. The other meats are pretty good though- Ive just had a little better. -It gets crowded and loud, especially on the patio with a band. Overall, this is a great place to bring your friends and family. Id recommend it to anyone (except that one crazy person, er, vegetarian that you know...)

WO

Wonju Jeong

We went to Hard Eight BBQ on July 4th - expected a huge crowd, but maybe we had arrived just after the lunch rush. The parking lot is huge there are plenty of spots. As soon as you walk in, you can see the huge pit (one on either side as you walk in to make the line go quicker I guess) and all the bbq food items laid out. It was a little overwhelming at first and I had to look around for the menu. The price is on a normal scale, maybe a little bit more expensive than your every day bbq. The line wasnt that long when we entered and went by fairly quickly. Maybe I was a little too excited for the bbq, but I was definitely not blown away by the brisket. I am a big fan of moist/marbled brisket, which is what I asked for when we were ordering and it seems that they have given us the most marbled one they had. The brisket was soft and was not overly chewy, but had a rubbery texture which I was not too fond of. I also had their regular sausage, which was much tastier than I expected. Paired with their special sauce, and it was very good! Their potato salad is pretty average, nothing out of the ordinary, along with the corn. Overall, I give this place four stars, knocked one off because I was a little disappointed by their brisket and also their seating. There are plenty of seating inside (and outside), but the seats do not have backing and are all bolted to the floor at awkward heights, making it really awkward/weird to sit on. Other than that, great place, I recommend this place for the bbq lovers - but if you are a fan of moist/marbled brisket, know that it wont be the best brisket!

A

A Private User

I have lived in TX nearly 38 years now and only recently was introduced to "market pricing" (Pay by the pound) when it comes to BBQ. Rudys is another BBQ that prices similar to this. 15 - 20 is about what you pay in Dallas for 2 BBQ plate dinners and thats about what you pay for 2 people here. Its over priced in my opinion for the quality, but for the amusement I suppose its priced right. I found the pits to be rather nasty but then thats what I tend to expect from a bbq pit. Anything less is just not bbq. The beef tastes like roast, most likely because its over cooked and they slice it incorrectly and too large. It ends up tasting a lot like a chipotle burrito of all things because of the way they slice their meet. I actually had them reslice it thinner three times before giving up. There is a limit to how thin you can cut dry meat before it falls apart and that about 1/2" which fully explains why they cut their meat so thick. Any thinner and it falls apart. Beans where ok, but none of the "salads" were any good. Stay away from the bread crumb and tomato salad. They have one BBQ sauce thats pretty good, but the rest are not. I found the table sauce and the thicker sauce by the beans to be much too sweat and very similar to a Kraft or KC BBQ. They also have a warm thin bbq sauce that would be much better with a thinner meat then what they are capable of serving. The sauce reminds me of Rudys. I highly recommend Rudys, Spring Creek or as mentioned earlier, even Dickies or Sonny Bs. I will not be eating at this place again.