jethro's bbq

great stop. i was driving through des moines and saw that jethro's wasn't too far off i-235. although i wasn't thrilled about the smoked sausage, the tenderness of the brisket made up for it as well as the mound of sweet potato fries. the restaurant itself is somewhat cramped but retains a friendly atmosphere.

this was the new waukee location. my previous review was for the new location in waukee.


-----11 dec, 2011-----

a 3 hour wait at 7pm on saturday. this past saturday evening our party of 6 was told along with many others walking in and waiting, that there was a 3 hour wait. it was 7pm and the place had about half of its tables open. the head chef told the staff not to sit anyone for 3 hours due to the fact the kitchen was backed up and couldn't keep up. just unbelievable! a friend also told me the day before that they were told it was an hour wait for lunch! the food may be good but that is not good service nor worth a wait like that.

jethro's bbq fail. first experience at jethros was an epic fail. maybe it was because of game night and being alittle busy but... brisket was cold chewy and tasted like leather. horrible service! others in my party shared the "adam emmenecher challenge" and stated the brisket was the worst part of the sandwich but the fried parts where good. thats not sayin much for "smokehouse".
really!! quit livin off your reputation and start livin up to it. just sayin!

big sandwiches. the sandwiches are huge with plenty of smoke flavor. love the jalapeno cream corn!

last trip was dissappointing. have been to jethros many times because i love their sweet potato fries but the last couple times they've been sitting around so they were cold and mushy. pulled pork was dry like it had been sitting out. may sunday nights aren't a good choice!

excellent but way overpacked.. iwas extremely impressed with this place...yes the man vs. food guy was here and lost the challenge. bbq was great, so packed the bartender convinced us to eat at the bar instead of waiting for an hour. when your that busy 1 of 2 things should happen. open a few more location, other than the first 2, or raise your prices. prices seem about right so they consider a few more. bumpin into ppl is not my style but for the food it was worth it.

wings on tuesday are amazing! highly recommend the garlic wings. service was passable nothing to brag. this place is all sports bar/grill. don't expect super fancy decor or service but do expect amazing wings! the outdoor patio is great to eat outside and see everyone you know walk or drive by.

bring back the old jethro's. my husband and i have been regulars of jethro's since the place opened and we used to come in 2-3 times a week for lunch and dinner. we love the food, love the beer, and love the servers. however, in the last 4-5 months our visits have been pretty rough.

we've definitely noticed a new batch of people working here and we are not fans. the whole reason we go to jethro's aside from the food and the beer is because the host knew us, the servers knew us, and the manager always made an effort to come over and talk to us. it made us feel like valued customers, so we returned. lately the food quality has been pretty poor and service is lacking. for a while now the hostesses have been high school kids, with no personality and don't talk to us at the door and when we get to the table it's the same with the girl serving us. we enjoyed the old servers who had fun with what they were doing and joked with us, not these new girls who lack any sense of a personality. although when we do get the old servers lately, they're definitely not as happy as they used to be, and the reason is obvious.

last week when my husband and i came in and sat at the bar we were sitting close to the server station and we were not happy with what we overheard. throughout the night, the bald guy, who we've assumed is the new manager (he's never once introduced himself to us) who was handing out food berated his staff, made fun of them when they walked away, and was generally rude to everyone in his path. we were thankful when it was his turn to go home. i could not believe the way he treated his staff and it shocks me that the owner would let this happen to a place that used to be so fun and free. we've definitely cut back our visits to jethro's and i can imagine other people have as well.

fabulous when it opened; slowly downhill from then. tonite meat was cold, sides and sauces watered down and we didn't get what we ordered. the upside of this place starting to tank is that we got right in with no wait.

ick.. this may be some of the most consistently awful food i have ever had! period. fatty meats. awful flavors. unappetizing presentations.

good bbq joint in des moines! prices are reasonable, service is good, lots of bbq sauces to choose from, yummy sides (mmm mac-n-cheese)! good selection of beer and lots of big tv's to watch the game on! i'll definitely be back!

mmmmm mac & cheese!. i always need to try the ribs, and these are tender and full of beef flavor! tasted his brisket, and yet as a not-fan of brisket, i would order jetho's beefy brisket ... if the ribs were sold out.
five of the six sauces are tasty - their white sauce is more bland than the color white - don't waste your time.
i've enjoyed all the side dishes. if i could only have one source for mac & cheese - it would be jethro's!!!

this is a sports bar. so if you don't like crowds and noise, please don't come during major-local sporting events like drake relays, university of iowa games, etc.

i gave it a "like" but..... i've eaten there a number of times. if you run a barbecue joint in iowa, you are going to get compared to hickory park or battles (both in ames).

it's ok. if you are in des moines and hungry for barbecue, it's a place to go. if i was near famous dave's, i would probably go to famous dave's.

it's near drake university so during the school year, it's usually fairly busy.

i've had a mixed bag with the beef brisket. sometimes fatty and greasy, sometimes perfect.

they charge extra for sweet potato fries. why? is that extra dollar going to break the bank?

i am writing this review to commend two people on staff at the jethro's bbq, at 3100 forest ave, in des moines, ia. i was issued a riteinrain pen during my tour in iraq, and this pen holds tons of sentimental value to me. i now work for the department of homeland security. in between details today (june 14th, 2011), we decided to stop at jethro's bbq for lunch/dinner. the food was outstanding and the service was exceptional. but more than that, i left my pen there on accident. i called approximately 6 hours later, and spoke with chad burton. he remembered our group and our server ann bobo. she still had my pen! she noticed it was different from the other pens in her apron and had separated it from them! chad told me he would mail it to me in omaha. i cannot begin to express how thoughtful, empathetic, and helpful these two individuals are. and now on to the food! i ate the catfish w/ fries, and a 10 piece wings with their signature "bbq rub". they are seriously out of this world! i brought home half the order for my wife to see if i can sway her loyalty from another wing specialty restaurant! again, my most heartfelt thank you goes to two of your staff, chad burton and ann bobo.

disgusting, i don't undestand why people rave about jethro's...need to try it again and see.