Pastor Hamilton’s BBQ

CLOSED — My wife and I enjoyed Pastor Hamilton’s in the past but appears the storefront is now closed as the signs were taken down and the website now only mentions the sauce and catering.

Absolutely wonderful BBQ. For our first experience it was something to be remembered. Fall off the bone smokey ribs and collard greens cooked to the level of perfection I have never seen in Minnesota till now. I would highly recommend. The quality makes up for the meager storefront.

This place is great, quick service, excellent BBQ sauce, and all local. Worth the stop, even in the odd stretch it’s on. It isn’t open regularly, so you need to pop in when you can.
It isn’t the best BBQ place you’ll go to, but the sauce is good, and everything you buy benefits local children. Totally worth it!

I feel bad for ruining their streak of 4 and 5 star reviews; however we simply weren’t impressed. I had the beef brisket with jo-jo’s and beans and hubs had the rib tips with potato salad and beans.
The brisket was the toughest I think I’ve ever had and it was quite dry — thank goodness for the bbq sauce with added some moisture to the meal. (The sauce is a decent all purpose sauce that we both enjoyed)
The rib tips well good, were certainly not the best we’ve had or even a close second.
Not a place to avoid; however not a place to rush back to
The 2 star definition sums it up best — Meh. I’ve experienced better

The Pastor definitely makes some tasty slow-​cooked ribs and even better chicken wings.
Limited hours and a very modest storefront off of east 7^th make getting your hands on this Q a bit of a challenge, but it’s definitely worth it. Pastor Hamilton makes his own sauce, which is a great balance of slightly sweet, slightly smokey and a not-​to-​thick consistency, which most menu items come swimming in (you can buy jars of it in the restaurant).
The ribs are very tender as a result of being slow-​cooked and the pulled meat sandwiches are pretty good as well. However, the wings, in my mind, are without a doubt the stars on the menu. Yes, you’ll drop a bit more coin on these wings, but that’s because they’re freaking huge (entire wing, not just the drummy), and damn good (hope saying damn isn’t sacrilegious). The sides I’ve had haven’t been anything revolutionary, but the beans, potato salad and collard greens are all enjoyable.
The Pastor himself is very friendly, prices are reasonable, there are a few seats for dining in (hope you like Christian radio) and a portion of the proceeds go to charity — hallelujah, amen or whatever one is appropriate.

I’ve lived about a mile away for a few years, always wondered about this place. Finally checked it out once… and I keep reminding myself I need to go back!
Great hole in the wall (almost literally) place for real deal BBQ. I got the BBQ rib dinner ½ rack with jojos and bread. You’ll have to wait a little while but the wait is worth it.
I’d like to try the chicken but I have a hard time imagining I wouldn’t order ribs when I actually step foot in the place.
Check the website before going to make your menu choices and to make sure they’re open. Limited days/​hours.

Dang, Pastor Hamilton’s has got it going on!!! No holy roller music during my experience either.
Wish I would have tried it sooner. The BBQ chicken delicious, chicken wings a true delight, and all of the sides absolutely scrumptious! A bit cleaner on the inside than what I expected, considering it is just a hole in the wall. I called ahead and my food was hot and ready when I got there. YUM! The sides that come with the dinners are a bit small so keep that in mind, but you can order additional sides. LOVED IT! My husband liked all of the food but he ordered ribs and was not super impressed with them, I tried a bite and have to agree. They tasted really salty and not sure why. Would have given a 5 but not sure if we just got a bad batch with the ribs or what happened, since all of the other items were exceptional.
Will try again!

Fantastic food, even better service. If you like meat, this place is for you.

I can’t imagine anyone not loving this place. Anyone with a soul that is. It is only open Thursday through Saturday. It’s mostly for take out, but there is enough room for 7 Unilocalers to sit at a table for an awesome meal.
Ribs are excellent, maybe second only to Big Daddy’s. However, the sides make the meal and are second to none. Mac & Cheese, Collard Greens, Mashed Potatoes and Corn Bread, mmm, there ain’t nothing wrong with that.
Bonus too: the proceeds of this restaurant go to help Pastor Hamilton’s youth groups. Good food and a good cause.

MMMM… and I was just thinking I wasn’t a BBQ fan. I was wrong.
I had the rib tips-​which came with hot hot jo-​jo potatoes, beans, and some wonder bread that ended up in the trash.
They were hot, sweet, fantastic. Ten bucks for two meals worth. I like BBQ again.

Pastor Hamilton is back!
Th, Fri, Sat. for lunch and dinner. Stopped in today and he has recovered from his rotator cuff surgery and is back in business.

So my quest for the best bbq in the Twin Cities is off to a slow start.
This is only our second of the summer, and hell, summer is almost over!
We drove and drove to get here. It is pretty far east, even for somebody who lives in St. Paul.
We go there and were already hungry. The sun was setting.
There were three other people there who ordered a good amount of food.
We ordered enough for 6 and had to almost yell over the tinny boombox blaring, and I mean BLARING the holy rollin’ music you would expect in the church next door where Pastor Hamilton must be in the mornings and weekends, or whenever he isn’t making the sauce or ribs he is famous for.
Which sent the wife over the edge, especially after about 25 minutes of waiting.
It was almost like torture, or like sitting through a seminar on time shares in Florida.
I suspect that Pastor didn’t like the fact that The Wife, when ordering, said «Jesus!» and «Good Lord!» when he mentioned the price for the dinner specials, and made us wait because of it.
(bbq pork or beef sandwich on nice thick sub like bun that didn’t get soggy on the drive all the way to s. mpls, excellent beans and potato salad).
So, despite the wait and the music, we would come back. Not for the church, but for the BBQ!