Old School BBQ

Awesome BBQ! Went there today with the work crew for a birthday celebration and the bbq lunch was awesome! Service was spectacular! Had the pork sandwich with mild sauce — deeeelishious! Definitely deserves a revisit!

This is the best Texas style bbq. I wish they were open 7 days a week. But I’m always raving about this place. I wanted to go today (Tuesday) but it’s closed. My favorite is the pulled pork sandwich with the spicy bbq. The brisket was delicious too. I highly recommend this place.

I’ve passed this bbq place a few times and have heard nothing but raving reviews. Today I finally stopped and it was totally worth it after a nice hike at serene lake and bridal veil falls. The couple operate out of an old school bus and are the friendliest people you’ll meet. The menu is extensive and you have plenty to choose from. We ordered the brisket and pork sandwiches with sides of cole slaw. By far the best bbq I have had in a long long time as well as the cole slaw. I highly recommend giving it a try next time your out in the Monroe area. You will not regret it. There is nothing better than enjoying good eats with the mountains as you back drop.

old school bbq is really what it lives up to. The meat is tender, potato salad is the best I have ever had in my 60 years. I like to order the pit boss sandwich with a hot link. It comes on a ciabatta roll with coleslaw added to keep the heat down. It is wonderful. Yes, its on a highway, and yes it has a porta potty. If you care more about the ambience than the flavor, eat some where else. There are plenty of us that will take your seat on the bus. The owners are warm and friendly and eating in the bus is a one of a kind dining experience. Don’t be influenced by some of the reviews, they don’t know what they’re missing and you won’t be dissapointed

This place is really good. Be warned, the smoke flavor is intense. I picked some BBQ up for dinner and brought it home… my truck smelled of smoke for two days.

*Good BBQ if not a little on the dry side and my only gripe is the portions are way too small
*I got the combo plate and the brisket amount was tiny for $ 13 bucks
*Friendly enough lady working there and they have Squirt!

I’ve driven past here a couple times, and have never stopped. I was driving past today and smelled the meat as I drove past, and pulled an immediate U-​turn to stop by. Best BBQ I’ve had since moving to the Northwest, and an equally amazing potato salad on the side.
Definitely get here early; they’re technically open until 6, but tend to sell out early on weekends. I got there at 4 on a Saturday and got the last serving of pulled pork. After reading some of the reviews, I’ll definitely be getting the brisket next time I go.

I absolutely love the BBQ here. If we’re ever passing by, we definitely have to stop by and eat here.

I try and hit this place up every chance I get. Couple is from Texas, and the Brisket is the bomb! They get their mesquite from Mexico. These two are doing it right! Easily the best BBQ around

We made a quick lunch stop here on our way home from Leavenworth. What a fun little BBQ place! Delicious BBQ, wonderful service, quaint mom & pop with kitschy décor. I would definitely come back to this place. The brisket sandwich was the best I have ever had. I got a side of chicken and dumpling soup, it screamed home made and rustic. Delicious! My only complaint is I wish they had homemade sweet tea.

Holy moley! This place was great. Got finished with a long day at the mountain and finally able to hit it up because they are only open Thursday to Sunday from 11am to 6pm I think.
The people are super cool and nice. The menu was well priced but with there were bigger portions. I had the 2 meet combo of brisket and ribs with side of BBQ beans. Soooo good the meat just falls off the bone. Could tap that bad boy off. The inside of the bus was a trip and cool idea for a layout. Being next to reptile zoo is cool but never got chance to see that yet. Drop by for a sandwich or the meats it’s worth it.

Let me just start out with this, it has been such a LONG time since I’ve enjoyed a meal like the one I just had. On top of that, the Texan in me has struggled to find a good BBQ place on the West Coast. That search is over. I’m so excited by this that I’m typing this as we’re driving away. My mouth still tasting the mesquite smoke.
Before I go on, if you’re all about the white table cloth, fancy plates and silverware with some food (of varying degrees of ‘quality/​taste’) on it, move on along.
If you want quality BBQ with quality meats smoked with real Texas Mesquite, and eating out of an old school bus with takeout containers said quality BBQ that’s made and served by the sweetest couple from
the Lone Star State, then I would like to submit, for your consideration, the Old School BBQ.
Don’t let the Reptile Zoo dissuade you.
We had the Brisket plate with Macaroni Salad and Cornbread. And it was simply divine. Finding a sole bastion of good and honest Texas BBQ on the West Coast is akin to a religious/​enlightening experience. I believe — in brisket with a side of Mac salad and cornbread.
Brisket, surprisingly, is hard to make (up here anyways). It’s often rushed and as such is tough and dried out Or soggy and stringy. Done right, however, and this tough piece of meat is both moist, and crumbly. This place however, executed it perfectly. And the mesquite. Good God, the mesquite. I must have more!
The Macaroni salad, is the best I’ve ever had. My experience extends from cafeterias of despair to the Island of Oahu. And this is simply, the best that I’ve ever had the joy of placing in my mouth. The cornbread? I feel like ordering a tray the next time.
I must have more!
In fact, I do have more. Two plates if brisket is following me back home. It won’t last very long through the door.
Thank you for being here. Forgive me for driving past for years. I shall atone with many years of patronage.
Oh, and come early, I hear they sell out fast (for good reasons)!

Best BBQ I’ve found in Washington state. I ordered the two meat combo: pork ribs and beef brisket with a side of potato salad and corn bread. Yes, I ate all of it. The ribs were fall-​off-​the-​bone moist and succulent. I topped those bad boys off with the spicy BBQ sauce that I found in the school bus. The beef brisket was given in a generous heap of smoked glory. I also adorned my brisket with the spicy sauce. The corn bread reminded me of what my mother made growing up, and while it wasn’t a stand out recipe it was still very yummy. The potato salad was creamy and savory enough to cut through the heat of the spicy BBQ sauce. I very much enjoyed this BBQ joint and I will return.

Our experience was ok, but not great. We had heard about this place from a TV show and decided to give it a try as we were passing through town.
I had the pulled pork sandwich and my wife tried the pork rib platter. The meat was good quality and well cooked (slow smoked using mesquite) but a bit under-​seasoned for our tastes. It would have benefitted from a good dry rub IMHO. BBQ sauce was needed. As for the sauces, we found that the mild had a bit more bite than we care for (admittedly, we don’t care for hot foods). The sweet was our favorite.
As for the side-​dishes that we tried, the coleslaw was a solid 4 of 5 in my book but the real highlight was the macaroni salad! That was VERY flavorful and well-​prepared! I might be convinced to go back just for that. Highly recommended! :)
The service was great, friendly and fast. The site itself was clean and fun environment with a tent to provide shade for the picnic benches.

Fun fun fun, and good food.
Ordering your bbq from a smiley Kay inside a school bus is great.
And eating inside a custom school bus is hysterical. We love it.
Been here a few times and it’s great.
Last time our brisket made our tongue numb and thought was kind of peculiar. I did my research and seems to be a common thing when the air does not scape or some other factors.
Other that that we really like this place

I have been so very anxious to check out this place, but rarely was every given the proper opportunity to really do it. One lovely day off with the wife at work and the kiddo all to myself, I lived up to the Risky Business line and said, «what the hell, make your move». See, the wife is fair weather when it comes to barbecue and absolutely loathes reptiles or creepy crawlies of any nature. So I packed up my little girl and went out for our daddy daughter day adventure to finally check out Old Schoold BBQ and follow it up with the legendary reptile zoo in the same parking lot.
Old School BBQ is definitely what one would expect out of ol’ timey barbecue. They are located in two school buses parked off a state route heading out of the perceived valley hick town of Monroe, WA. One bus takes the orders and preps the food while the other bus is the «dining experience» where patrons can sit to indulge. I cannot attest to the school bus for sitting because it was too lovely of a day and they had picnic tables set up to enjoy the nicer weather.
A mainstay of any barbecue joint is how well they execute their brisket, so for this being my first time, a plate of beautiful beef is what I ordered with a Brisk tea, a side of coleslaw, and some cornbread. And it was nice as I only had to wait a matter of minutes for my fare with most of their meat probably worked out early on in the day in the giant smoker piping out aromatic barbecue smells on the side of the «cooking» bus. The food did not disappoint as the brisket, tender, and balanced nicely with mesquite smoke was complimented rather righteously with an assortment of sauces they gave me. I believe the sauces were hand crafted as well. And if so, well done!!! Though I would request if they were ever open to such a thing to make sure a zippier sauce was available. The sauces were more mild and I am sure there are barbecue lovers out there who like a little bite from time to time with their barbecue.
This was my daughter’s first taste of barbecue as well and she took her piece of brisket with a big ol grin like she was born to eat it and definitely wanted more. A grin, that was noticed by the kindly woman who took my order and the nice gentleman in a Seahawks hat who I expect prepared my food. They were both very sweet and seemed equally smitten with my little girl as they paid fair attention while she smiled right on back. A nice compliment to not just their service, but to their hospitality as well.
Anybody who has a criticism of this place in terms of it’s «setting», remember this is a legitimate barbecue joint off the side of a valleytown highway. If you are off put by a honey bucket for toiletry purposes or its vintage character, I am sure there is a fine dining place in some inner city limits with proper plumbing who will simply slather some Sweet Baby Rays on dried out chicken and will gladly take your business. Wetnaps are provided and my 1 year old was perfectly fine. And in regards to cost criticism, my bill came out to 15 bucks that contained the 2 buck tip for my meal. Anybody who knows a thing about barbecue knows it takes quality produce and a lot of love to put it out properly. I didn’t think the prices were too outrageous at all and was wowed you can actually get decked out barbecue sandwiches under the 10 buck mark.
I enjoyed my brief time with Old School Barbecue and can claim it was worth the wait. The only think I’m upset about is that it took this long to finally get out and give em a shot. My bad and my mistake that is now fixed.. .

A little out of the way, but totally worth it! Picked up several of the 4-​meat combos for lunch for work, and they were delicious. The cornbread was yummy, and we liked the sweet sauce the best.

Too expense for what you get. We spent $ 42.60 for a combo meal (two ribs and hot link), hot link sandwich plus one rib, kids meal (pulled pork sandwich), three canned pops, and two potato chip bags (which were kid or mini sized bags). The food was okay. I personally believe myself to be a novice BBQ’er and smoker. I love both and truly believe I’m a novice after years of practice. The point is I can easily produce much better tasting BBQ on my worst day.
They have two buses. One is the kitchen and the second is the dining room. We thought this idea was fun until we entered the filthy dining room. The tables and floor were sticky and likely hadn’t been cleaned in weeks. However, management would likely not consider this their issue as they have signs posted on every table reading: «Your mamma doesn’t work here so clean up after yourselves.»
Also, it didn’t help that the female owner was a bit surely.
They have a sign posted that states this is their last year. This is likely due to two reasons: retirement or poor quality (which would equate to lack of returning business).
I’m surprised by the high Unilocal ratings. This place can easily be beaten in quality and taste and when you factor the two the cost is much too high. Sad!!!

Your Momma Doesn’t Work Here!
Ain’t that the truth!
Which one of these things would you detest the most about a restaurant?
a) Terribly Expensive
b) Unclean Tables, Chairs, and Floor (they have notes on all of the tables announcing that «you’re momma doesn’t work here»…and you are required to clean up after yourself.
c) The only available bathroom for employees and patrons is a «Honey Bucket»
d) When putting things in the garbage can, you have to touch the garbage can (i.e., pry the lid off)
e) Unfriendly staff
f) All of the above
If you chose «F — All of the above» congrats! This restaurant meets and/​or exceeds all of those expectations. And THAT is what I give this place… a BIG fat «F»
Food is just meh, mediocre, and EXPENSIVE… the whole time I ate on «the bus», I couldn’t help but wonder how many people went potty in the Honey Bucket, and came back to the bus to finish eating their meal? Where did they wash their hands? Did the employees handle my BBQ after going potty in the Honey Bucket? How often are the tables and the «bus diner» cleaned? And then in the end, while bussing my table… I had to take the lid off of the garbage can…
I just wanna say… the gross out factor… left a nasty taste in my mouth. We won’t be back.
One star. And I think I’m being generous.
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In recent days, I received this feedback:
«Gkad [sic] you’re not coming back. Petty myopic and untruthful reviewers should stay away from establishments frequented by their betters.»
_​_​_​
(I am not sure which part of my review is considered «untruthful» and/​or «petty») I think a petty argument would be a burned out light bulb. I stand by my review.

The host greets you from the window. Her Texan accent wins you over. Then you see the smoker emitting aroma that envelops you. Your saliva started to flow. Hmm, this is a good start!
But which to order? 4-​meat combo it is. The brisket is as advertised to be tender, juicy, and flavorful. The ribs were heavily smoky that I can smell in 4 hours after I have eaten there. The pull pork was good. The sausage kind of average. There were three kinds of sauces and all good, but I like the original spicy best.
This place managed to thrive as a permanent food truck, from two school buses, on a parking lot with the «Reptile Museum» that is out of no where. Talk about low over-​head. If you are on your way to Stevens Pass or near Monroe, this is a must-​eat.
Of course, just for those BBQ enthusiasts.