Dinosaur Bar-B-Que

Growing up in Syracuse I’m just kinda used to the greatness of the BBQ here and every time I come
back I make sure to make a run. We got the family meal to go last night and it lived up my expectations. Brocket, BBQ chicken and ribs were fantastic… the chicken is the best I’ve had anywhere. Mac and cheese along with mashed potatoes make great sides! If you’re in or near Syracuse this is a must.

BEWARE OF GLUTEN CONTAMINATION !!!
We got sucked in because they came up on Unilocal as gluten-​free and have a gluten free menu, but contamination comes quickly after that.
The kitchen is clearly not seperated, and the staff seems most focusd on serving beer.
Barbecue tastes great, coleslaw and beans are average

This is the original restaurant. I go to the NYC restaurant more but whenever I’m in Syracuse, I go here for ribs. Be mindful of the wait if you go on Saturday.

Did not know it as a chain with all hype. This place is definetly a cool place to go. However when it comes to BBQ, there are much better BBQ food at local restaurants. Had all the meats and they were flavorful but know differt then the other chains, and mac n cheese. was good but had better right down the road. 4 stars because of the place but a 3 for food.

Eating at the Dino can be quite the experience. Most of the time you’re going to need to prepare yourself for long wait times and loud music. However once you are there you will have a great experience!
I love BBQ and the Dino doesn’t disappoint. You can get all kinds of different BBQ there from pulled pork to their brisket. For big eaters out there like me, you can get a multi platters that have a combo of multiple entrees. I recommend the delicious mac n cheese as one of your sides! Also… don’t underestimate the power of their cornbread, for its deliciousness will rule the cornbread kingdom.
I can’t really give it a 5 star for a couple of small reasons. Firstly the food, while most of the time being amazing, can sometimes taste old/​cold. That could be that I have come at the end of the day, but that bums me out. The second issue is sometimes the service is a tad iffy. 90% of the time you will get an amazing server but on occasion, you get one that will forget you’re there.
They also have a take out counter where you can order food to go if you really don’t wanna wait. I’ve ordered from there and the service is usually pretty quick.
Other then those small issues, this joint is one of the best BBQ places in the ‘Cuse!

Grabbed lunch there on a gorgeous May day, so took advantage of sitting outside to eat. The Dinosaur came highly recommended to check out for BBQ. I know, I thought great BBQ in central NY seemed a little odd as a recommendation when I heard it too… But, being from the South, I thought, why not check it out and see how it goes.
Setting
The Dinosaur is just off the downtown area and easily within walking distance from many of the newer renovated business and shopping areas just south and west of the city itself. It’s located on a corner with straight-​up, old school picnic tables lined up down the sidewalk on one side. Please read, casual in a biker-​bar meets urban hipster sort of way. There were even guys that looked like they stepped off Harleys at many of the tables as well as guys that wear all that stuff that sort of screams, «Yea, I’m an accountant, but I want to look like a biker guy while I eat my barbeque.» Basically, a mix of lots of different people sitting down to some darn good BBQ in a casual setting.
Food
Never having been there before, and coming from the South, I thought I’d try what looked popular, the brisket plate. Side item options are plentiful, with a mix of traditional BBQ sides and some I’d not seen at a BBQ joint before. I was disappointed that no potato salad was available as a side. I love that with brisket, just a personal preference but to the owner, consider adding potato salad and fried okra to your sides if you want to take great offers to awesome.
The brisket plate arrived fast and looked /​smelled awesome. Four generous cuts of brisket with a bead of fat still on and a gorgeous smoke ring, two signs of brisket treated right. My chosen sides where the baked beans and collard greens. Each side had pulled pork bits in them and were delicious. The even had Texas Pete on the communal condiment tray, which is the first time anyone in Syracuse had offered it. Maybe it’s a southern thing, but Texas Pete on greens knocks them out of the park. The only offering that seemed odd to me at first was that they had spooned some of their mild BBQ sauce over the cut brisket and I would have rather added it on the side so it wouldn’t overpower the meat so much. That having been said, the brisket was perfectly tender, slight char to one side and nice smoke accent. Almost forgot to mention, big slab of cornbread came right on the plate as well. I have to go gluten free and that was the only item in the meal I had to avoid, but my lunch partner happily ate it and gave it a thumbs up!
Definitely a place I’d return to next time I’m in the area and one you should check out as well!

Living in Syracuse and only a few blocks from the Dino this place is pretty much a staple and have never had a bad meal. We enjoy this place so much that we have been to every location except Baltimore and Chicago.
Tonight had the pulled jerk chicken and now I remember why this is my favorite. The chicken is so moist and has a great flavor, but I like to add the Wango Tango sauce to it for an extra kick. Tonight’s sides included the fresh salad greens with Bar-​B-​Blues dressing, can’t go wrong with this and the dressing is great. Also had the carrot raisin salad which was really good. Perfect size for the sides.
BF had the chopped brisket melt with coleslaw and the backed beans. The brisket is a great choice always moist and flavorful. Also can’t go wrong with the slaw and baked beans.
They have a nice draft beer selection.
Our waitress was great, attentive but not overbearing.
Another great meal at the Dino!

I had lunch at Dinosaur Bar-​B-​Que when I was passing through Syracuse. I thought the pork ribs and collard greens were fantastic and that the fries were really fantastic. I can’t wait to go back when I’m in Syracuse next year!

Upon landing in Syracuse, I asked around for a good restaurant and everyone said to go visit Dinosaur BBQ. Being from Texas, my colleague and I were a bit skeptical.
However, we caved in and visited this place at 9:45pm on Thursday. There was still a line and we thought this place may be worth it.
We ordered the tres ninos, which consists of brisket, ribs, and pulled pork. We also got Mac and cheese and the collard greens. The brisket was good but not as good as the ones back home. such as Franklin’s or Pecan Lodge.
However, the ribs were by far the best we’ve ever had. My previous favorite was KC Joe’s but this blew it out. The sides were really good as well.
We came back the very next week and was still very impressed.
Our server, Reannon, was the best server we had in our two weeks in town. Very friendly and outgoing. Thanks for everything!
This is definitely a must go for those in town.

Great BBQ food! While Returning from Niagara Falls, Syracuse was our stop and we headed to this place for brunch. Even in the 11.30 am on a Sunday morning it was hugely crowded. We had to wait for 30 mins to get a table. The food was worth the wait. Fried Green Tomatoes, Creole Spiced Deviled Eggs, Bronzed Catfish and Brisket plate were all we had! Each of them is worth mentioning. But best was the deviled eggs! It was just amazing! We really loved their food, ambiance, decors and service. The best BBQ we had till date.

Stooped in for dinner. Go the catfish bites and he churrasco chicken sandwich.
I enjoyed the catfish, and the sandwich was decent. Got the baked beans as my side.
This restaurant has a roadhouse feel. Pretty neat inside
Beer selection is extensive. Had the Southern Tier double IPA. Quite good.

This place is a must do every time I am in the Syracuse area. In fact a few weeks ago when I was in town and ate here, I was reminded just how damn good the food is!
We ordered $ 100 worth a food through their take out desk. Yes, they are so in demand they have a separate counter area JUST for take out. The food was all packed perfectly my only complaint was the lack of any sauce on the side. Now I get it, I didn’t ask and I could always buy a bottle. The lack of sauce didn’t stop any of us from enjoying our meals.
What I love about this place is the sides are just as delicious as the main attraction– the smoked meats. Most other places I go tend to have lack luster sides. Maybe that is because this is my standard?!?
We got a bit of everything and shared. The ribs, pulled pork, brisket and chicken were all big hits. The BBQ beans, REAL mashed potatoes, Mac salad, side salad with house made ranch and Mac and cheese were all great. You could tell everything was made from scratch and these days– that’s a big deal!
Now don’t over stuff yourself because dessert is just as amazing. We had a slice of peanut butter pie and a slice of chocolate pie. We basically all had bites of each and were wishing we had more room.
The atmosphere in the dinning area is loud and biker bar themed but the people are just hard working people who enjoy good food. Highly recommend this place to everyone! Wish they would come to Indy!

There is not much to say about this place except: AWESOME!!!
Rocker style bar & grill that is mostly crowded. Plan for dinner to wait between 20 – 40 minutes. It’s worth it, though! The ribs are unbeatable as well as the BBQ beans.

Lot of hype of the chain however when it comes to their offerings on the BBQ, its not there compared to other BBQ joints that I’ve visited in the US. Now, I always say, going to BBQ joint is a hit or miss activity… when going to the same place twice, you walk away with two different experiences. I will definitely be back when I’m in Syracuse again, but again, maybe I should try their original location next time.
First complain — parking. It sucks! Street parking is the only option. Go about a block over there’s a lot of parking available. There are two entrances — so make sure you go into the right one. The one entrance by the BBQ pit area and in front of the car repair shop is mainly used for pick-​ups. For dine in or bar, use the side door and make sure you get your name down. We waited about 15 minutes. While waiting we reviewed the menu to make the ordering easy.
This is what we got.
— Tres Ninos with mac-​n-​cheese and beans and rice
— 2 combo — pulled pork and brisket with mac-​n-​cheese and potato and gravy
— 3 combo — ribs, brisket and hot link with cole slaw and greens
— Dino Poutine
— Catfish Strips
Dino Poutine — this was good, but on the salty side… the pulled pork and the melted cheese was excellent, but having the cheese curd would been awesome.
Catfish Strips — not worth it, skip it if you can.
As for the BBQ meat — pulled pork was decent, the brisket was good, but could have used little bit more time in the smoker. The rib was decent again, the meat could have stayed in the smoker for bit longer.
I wasn’t a fan of any of their sides, the greens were bit sweet, cole slaw should be removed from the menu and the mac-​n-​cheese was too undercooked.
Again, will revisit and try it 2^nd time around when I’m back in town in few months.

If I’m craving BBQ, this place just raised the bar. I’ve ordered take-​out from this place twice before, and both times I had the succulent ribs (which fall right off the bone) with the mac and cheese (which is to die for) and the cole slaw (nice and tangy). Cornbread was yummy too. Both times I did have to reheat my food because it was not served that hot, but that wouldn’t stop me from devouring this meal.
I will secretly admit that my first time eating here was way better than the second time (hence the 4 out of 5 stars), but the food is overall solid.
Also, if you order «to-​go», just call ahead. There is no space to stand and wait for your food, or else, you’ll be the girl originally from D.C./Maryland, who is wearing 4 inch heels in the Syracuse’s snow, standing in everyone’s way-​blocking the freakin’ frig with the «to-​go» drinks, all while waiting for your order…
Haha…everyone there was nice and gracious, but they mean business when it comes to their BBQ
Overall, good eats!

Just to give you a bit of context this was my pit stop (perhaps my excuse) to stop by Syracuse on the way home from Boston. Pulling into this town (god bless them) it reminds me of a less ruined industrialized version of Detroit. Everywhere you look it’s worn, old, dated yet somehow it’s still functional. Anyhow to say my hopes were high is an understatement! I’ve been somehow convinced by Unilocalers to make this journey and for hours I was boiling with anticipation!
Ultimately, I am going to say this is good barbecue overall. Is it the best I’ve had? Probably not. I love the bark on my ribs and it had a lot of it but maybe just a touch too much. I love my ribs that fall off the bone and these are just a tad clingy I would say. The flavours though are excellent and perhaps it’s only missing a bit of tanginess and smoke. The chicken really fell flat though it was well cooked. It was a little dry and lacking a bit of sauce. Nonetheless, it was flavourful. I liked the coleslaw (had a lot of tanginess to it!) and the corn bread was some of the best I’ve had!
Dinosaur is probably the barbeque institution with a legendary status that you’ve never heard of. I think it’s worthy of a try should you be in the area but «legendary» is a lofty standard that very few can keep and I am not sure if they can. Regardless, great barbeque!

This is the very original DINOSAUR BBQ, so I decided I would like to try it! We got there about 2.45pm but there wasn’t much available parking around the area. But we got a somewhat close by, it was rainy and windy.
Anyway we were given menus as soon as we got in. I have tried Dinosaur before but this time I am getting the Tres Ninos for $ 15.95 (you can add the drunken spicy shrimp for another $ 6.95 but I didn’t do it). The Tres Ninos comes with pulled pork, brisket and BBQ ribs. It was about two pieces of small brisket, as seen in pictures, and a spoonful of pulled pork and two rack of ribs. The pulled pork and brisket come with slight sauce but the ribs comes dry. You can add sauce if you want (available sauce on the table). I got mashed potatoes and salad with house dressing, the dressing is a little strong for me so I jus had the salad by itself. I love the mashed potatoes and its gravy. I didn’t really enjoy dinosaurs corn bread so I gave it to my boyfriend.
Overall I’d recommend it to my friends if they ever come here for dinner/​lunch.

I stopped here during my drive to Rochester and I figured I need to reward myself after a long drive. I was so excited to be back here again, I was super hungry and have the urge to order everything on the menu. Instead, I ordered the triple meat combo. Ribs, Chicken and Brisket.
All of them were so good and it was the perfect amount of smoke. It was so juicy and it’s so affordable.
I gave this place four stars not because the divey feel or the okay service. This place deserves a five stars because of the food. It takes a certain level of skills to produce an awesome bbq meats.
Will certainly be back soon!

This is THE Dinosaur BBQ, the ORIGINAL! FIRST ONE! And even though I live near other Dinosaur BBQs, they do not compare to the original!
I stopped by here with a friend for dinner as we were in the middle of a road trip, and this was a great place to stop at! When you first see this place, you cannot help but notice the parking area for motorcycles. This truly feels like a biker joint when you enter, as the atmosphere has an old-​school feel to it. You see the graffiti on the walls, the artwork on display, and you feel like you went back in time.
I ended up getting the brisket meal with mashed potatoes and mac & cheese. This also comes with cornbread, which I enjoyed greatly here! I was surprised to how good this tasted that night. The brisket that I had was moist and delicious. The mashed potatoes and mac & cheese were also on point. Having had southern BBQ, you do not expect a place like this up north, which is surprising to me since Syracuse is so far from the south and it truly reminds me of being back there.
Next time I am in the area, I’ll need to come back here to Dinosaur BBQ and try more of their meats! Should I get the pork? The ribs? Or BOTH?!? Decisions. decisions.

Oh my chicken wings! After reading all the reviews, we were convinced to order the wings and damn, you guys did not lead us astray.
The wings were hands down the best thing we ate, and some of the best wings I’ve had in my life.
We also had a full rack of ribs, which I thought were okay. They weren’t as tender and fall off the bone as I had hoped.
We were so full from the wings and ribs that we barely had the sides. Mac and cheese was really cheesy and a good choice. Wasn’t too impressed by the slaw or mac salad.

Auf Grund der Beschreibung von Unilocal entschieden wir uns für das Dinosaur Bar-​b-​Que.
Es war ein gewöhnlicher Donnerstag und schon recht spät. So gegen 21 Uhr. Als wir dort ankamen war der Laden rappel voll! Innen und außen.
Wir wurden jedoch keines Blickes gewürdigt vom Personal. Wir liefen also einmal durch das Restaurant. Hinten spielte eine Liveband die so laut war das man sein eigenes Wort nicht mehr verstand. Also gingen wir wieder.
In jedem verdammten Restaurant in den USA wird einem der Tisch zugeteilt, aber genau dort wo es am nötigsten wäre ist niemand. Der Eindruck von diesem Restaurant war grauenhaft. Eher eine abgefuckte Bar mit vielen Rockern, als ein Restaurant.
Schmutzig, laut, uninteressiertes Personal, sehr altes Mobiliar.