Red’s Smokehouse & Tap Room

Red’s has amazing barbecue and a very hip atmosphere. The wedge salad with chicken and burnt ends was delicious, and a good size portion for the price. The brisket and pulled pork combo was awesome. And also a very generous portion. The barbecue sauce that was with the brisket was very tasty and the best I’ve had in Tucson, and the sauce for the pulled pork was tangy and perfect. There were also grilled onions and peppers under the pulled pork, which was an awesome surprise.
Also had a Tucson Sunset cocktail — yum! If you want very good barbecue, a fun modern/​industrial atmosphere done right, and you’re hungry come here!

Environment (city) was nice.
Service was slow and a little friendly
Food was not really up to expectations.
Wings were pinkish, beans not quite cooked all the way.
Mackenzie did not really have attention to detail, ice tea needed refilled for about 20 min.

If you love real BBQ (I mean REAL BBQ) hit up Reds for ribs or brisket. If you’re a fan of slowly cooked meat them this is the place. Great beers on tap and solid beer choices. They know who they are and I like that about a place. Not sure where all of these 3 star reviews are coming from… It’s a solid BBQ spot.

Since this place is relatively new, I’ll cut them some slack. Some of the items we wanted were on their online menu, but weren’t on the in person menu. This was a bit of a bummer, because we wanted to try the fried potato sandwich, but they apologized for the error, and the chef or manager even came out and personally apologized for the discrepancy, because they’re still gathering supplies for their full menu, so no biggie.
The food looked great! The presentation was fun, the service was excellent, and the beers were fun to try. However, the food was very «nothing special» and deserves a SOLID ³⁄₅.
The menu itself makes the food sound great, and it looks the role, but the taste just isn’t there. We tried the brisket, cornbread, macaroni salad, and corn on the cob. All of which have extravagant details on the menu that get you excited for the taste, but overall have mediocre taste.
I acknowledge that this place is still new, and is still working out some kinks. So far, I would definitely try it again later and see if the flavors become more spectacular.
P. S. I saw another review that suggested they ditch the macaroni salad, and add fries, and I couldn’t agree more. We found ourselves hungry for fries after eating barbecue, and actually went to Mcdonald’s after we ate to get some, ha!

the experience there is fabulous! A group of us went for happy hour yesterday. The drink was pretty good! I ordered desert blonde, which was tasty and not that strong. The service is fantastic! it’s pretty quick. The wings are so good, and I personally more prefer the jalapeño and the creamy slaw.
Would definitely revisit this place again!

Atmosphere is consistent with any franchise spot like «Red Robins» or «Applebee’s.» Bright, modern, with tvs. It’s the type of place students would bring their families as the average age of the typical customer was close to 40. Seemed to attract a lot of «locals» I.e., older guys that would be more comfortable in such a place while still surrounded by college kids.
Service was quick and friendly. I had the ½ chicken with potato salad and I tried the two different stouts. Chicken was well cooked and a good portion for being so inexpensive. I liked the extra, unexpected, snacks like saltines which was a surprise. Also came with bread that was fresh and tasted good with the sauce. Potato salad wasn’t special in anyway. Pass on that.
Porter and stouts are my preference. I had the Mission Dark first and I wish I stuck with it for my second round. It’s a good dark beer. I had the Murphys next and found it to lack flavor and was a disappointment.
Overall, food was better than most places. Really affordable. Atmosphere was too sports bar like for me.

We sat on the patio on an absolutely beautiful day. The food, especially the wings, was very good and the service was great. They even had Murphy’s Irish Stout from a nitro tap. What more could I ask for?

Just went to Red’s for the first time. Overall, VERY impressed! LOVED the space; it’s open and roomy with indoor and outdoor bar, dining, and patio seating (cool art too). Located right next to the University, this is a great place for students and visitors to Tucson to have a quick drink at.
Our bartender/​waitress was so friendly and knowledgeable about the beers.
Great drink menu.
I wanted to give four, even five, stars for all the reasons above. Unfortunately, where this place loses appeal for me is with the food and menu. The food definitely wasn’t bad (at all!), but I couldn’t describe it as more than average.
Best of luck to Red’s. My friends and I are hoping this place sticks around for a while!
My NUMBER ONE piece of advice would be to ***GET FRIES***! :)

The last time i went the service was ridiculously slow and poor. The restaurant was half empty but we were told it was a 20 minute wait for a table. After 30 minutes we were only seated after coming back up and asking– they had clearly forgotten about us. The hostess never brought a high chair as promised. We couldn’t order drinks for a while because they ran out of clean glasses. The food took over an hour to come out and all we ordered were 2 sandwiches and 6 wings. The table next to us had to leave without getting their food because it took so long and we had to get ours to go because our baby got so fussy from the wait. And the restaurant was never more than half full the whole time. On the plus side the food was pretty good– the pulled pork is juicy and flavorful and the wing sauce is unique. But it’s not 1.5 hours out of your life waiting good.

The two-​star rating really describes my reaction to the food. Service can only be described as bi-​polar, 5 at times and 1 at other times. Upon arrival on a busy Friday evening, our table was not ready. This is not a major complaint. And as we waited we were provided nice tall glasses of iced water while being given an informative tour of their interesting beer collection housed behind glass coolers near the entry. A 5 rating would be appropraite if we were to proceed no further. Unfortunately we proceeded to be seated and ordered meals, after whiich things went downhill to a 1 star experience as we waited and waited and waited for our dishes to be served. Despite several requests to check on our long overdue meals, it took about 45 minutes before we were finally served. Our party had tickets to Centennial Hall and despite an early reservation, we barely got to the theater on time. On the plus side, a manager admitted the problem was theirs and took a sizeable amount off our bill. Classy and professional… suggesting we’re back to a 5.
Aside from service, there were other issues. It would appear that the restaurant clearly has little interest in courting a more mature clientele. This is evident in the printing of their menu. The font is so tiny and in so light a shade of gray that it was impossible in that lighting for our group of seniors to read it. With the aid of an iphone light, only one of our party of five could make out the text and so had to read the entire menu to the other four in our party.
As for the food, I must first quallify my comments by admitting that I have lived many years in Texas where brisket is mother’s milk. Boasting a state-​of-​the-​art smoker, I was very hopeful Red’s would present me with something reminiscent of a true Lone Star BBQ. First disappointment was the absence in the restaurant of that compelling aroma of smoking meats that excites the palate. The absence of smoke was also apparent in the brisket itelf. Well smoked meat should have a distinctive red smoke ring around the cuts of meat. The red ring was faint in color and the smoke flavor even fainter in the taste of the beef. So although moist and quite tender (an notable achievement with a tough cut like brisket), the flavor just didn’t say .BBQ’. The pulled pork was extremely tender and moist and the better choice between the two meats. And although flavorful, the pork too lacked that smokey infusion. The single bbq sauce accompanying the meat was a bit too sweet for my taste. While I don’t require half a dozen different BBQ sauces, a couple of alternatives would have been welcome, perhaps including one with a little more spicy kick. On the plus side, reports from our diners about the side dishes were quite favorable: bacon-​wrapped japalenos, corn bread (nicely moist with a hint of sweetness), beans (pork or beef).
My quest to find great BBQ brisket in Tucson continues.

I debated for a couple of days of what kind of rating to give this place. I mean the service was good, so there is that. The flavor of the food was actually very good, so there was that. But the longer I waited the more bummed out I got. First off, the price is astonishingly outrageous. Of course I saw the prices before I ordered so shame on me. However what I didn’t know is what is included with that price. I got brisket, $ 9.50, which wouldn’t seem so bad, except that it comes with no sides, and is actually three moderately thin slices of brisket served cold. I also got a «half-​rack» of baby back ribs, which apparently is 3 ribs… though of course it isn’t so there was false advertising on top of it. I mean for 18.50 I do expect more than 3 pork ribs and three slices of cold brisket. Part of teh joy of BBQ is that it is extremely cheap cuts of meat made delicious through know-​how and time. I don;t expect to pay an equivalent per ounce cost of filet mignon. Since there is literally great beer everywhere now, especially in the area, I won’t be back. Which is a shame, because they apparently know how to use the smoker quite well.

Folks, this is not BBQ. 3 slices of brisket with some petite looking onion and apple, placed for décor is NOT bbq. Memphis style sauce my ass… I don’t know what that stuff was, but it was not Memphis style sauce. Yeah. The meat was good, but that does not make it good BBQ.
Good beer selection and the drinks are very good. BUT if you want real BBQ, go to Mr. K’s at Park and Valencia. This is overpriced, not worth the money or the time. Go to the bar at happy hour, then drive out to Mr. K’s for the real deal.

Red’s turned out to be a surprisingly pleasant find! The smell from the outside lured us in, and just in time for their 3pm-​6pm happy hour! I must say, the happy hour prices are not very happy… You’re still paying what one normally would at another restaurant, $ 7 for a cocktail, $ 5 for half chicken ($ 2 less than normal). I had the smokey peach cocktail to start. I think I’d go back for that drink alone! It was delicious! I also ordered a half chicken and cornbread to go. The cornbread serving was large and the half chicken had a perfect smokey/​bbq taste without being overwhelming. Looking at other dishes around me, the serving sizes aren’t as large as you would get at a typical bbq type place. Don’t let that deter you, this place still rocks!

Yummy food and good service!!! I had the pulled pork sandwich and there barbecue sauce was awesome. Would definitely come back!

Good was good. Great atmosphere. Menu could have a few more choices and prices for some things are a bit much. Drunk menu didn’t have prices, and when I asked the waitress she wasn’t even sure.

This new barbecue joint is nestled amongst many places to eat and shop on University Boulevard. Parking is a little bit crowded but there are many spots in the rear of the building which might be easier than stalking people and waiting to claim their spot.
I love the open airy industrial style bar and the outdoor seating. They have many beers on tap as well as several cocktails, something for everyone. The menu is extremely diverse offering something for the low carb as well as vegetarian and or vegan. The bathrooms were not attended to, I’d say messy but clean, which is okay I suppose but there were plenty of employees there so there should have been no reason that it wouldn’t be sparkling.
Now for the food. I ordered the Jalapeño Torpedoes and the Smoked Grilled Hot Wings. On the menu the description on the Jalapeño Torpedoes included brisket cream cheese wrapped jalapeños but when they arrived I saw no brisket, unless they blended teeny amounts into the cream cheese. It wasn’t what I was expecting and while they were good, not exceptional. The Smoked Grilled Hot Wings were huge, larger than normal and not as tender as I would have liked but they were tasty. They were tossed in a light sweet glaze and accompanied with grilled onions and fresh cilantro… supposed to have come out topped with blue cheese and a side of ranch but the server went back to the kitchen to bring that out when she noticed it wasn’t plated correctly.
My friend Eileen ordered the brisket with a side of corn on the cob and said the brisket was a bit dry.
Our visit was nice, the bartender was very friendly but I missed something in the food department. When I think of barbecue I guess I expect tender delicious bits of meat that melt in my mouth. I’ll try it again and give an update.

Great atmosphere, but overpriced for so-​so food that’s not plated very well. The food gets brought on these big tin trays yet they package it in these small cardboard bowls that they use on food trucks. Skip the garnish — there’s no need for the scallions, orange slice, etc. And the cornbread was dry… you need to refine that recipe!

I come down to university Ave a lot and I like to try out new places. I figured I would try out Reds. Well I guess I must have ordered wrong for my first time. I ordered the brisket and had it made on a sandwich. The amount of fat that was on it was pretty bad, I would say almost 30 percent. I had to rip all of it off before I even attempted to eat. Not much flavor at all and had to add some of the sauces they provided. I wasn’t too thrilled on having to spend an extra 4 for a side when I feel like a bbq meal should come with a side. I ordered the potato salad and wasn’t impressed either. It was pretty bland and not much flavor. So those were the cons. The pros were the server was really nice and really attentive. The place is clean and has a nice atmosphere and is set up pretty nice. I don’t want to judge this place off of one experience and off of one menu item so I will prob try again but not any time soon. Usually that’s all it takes for me is one time to not come back to a place. I eat out everyday and enjoy trying new places and new things. This place didn’t do it for me. Or at least their brisket and potato salad didn’t.

So initially this place drew me in because it was new and the food smelled great from outside
Décor/​Atmosphere
Nice spacious seating and good for groups. Some booth type seating and bar stool type seating. A nice bar with some tv’s to watch sporting events.
Service
Fairly attentive staff and nice manager’s and owners. Tried to be present but not intrusive.
Food:
I had the Miller time combo and the sausage was good as well as the brisket. The food wasn’t made by the sauce and that’s a good thing. Quality of the meat was good and we’ll seasoned. Fairly small menu that is still under construction. None of the typical things you’d expect from a restaurant serving Southern style food as far as food that you find that’s deep fried. Most of the vegetables and other things were deep fried. The brisket was moist and juicy and we’ll seasoned. The house special sausage was juicy too and we’ll seasoned. Pulled pork was tender but under seasoned. Also placing the Coleslaw (vinegar coleslaw) gave the meat too much acidity.
Menu
I wish that there were more combo options. Everything had to be ordered Ala carte and for what I was getting portion wise I thought that the food was a little overpriced. But it is located on University. Also I hope that when they get the menu fleshed out that it would be a little more accessible and easy to see for people that are coming off the street
Summary
Overall the restaurant is fairly new and the staff is figuring things out. Great potential for the place and hope they survive long enough to figure out what it will take to make it on University because they fulfill a niche that Tucson needs filled especially on University. I would come back but I do wish that there would be more options to customize combos and that the pricing would come down for the combos a little bit to match the portions.

We just happened upon this new little gem. great atmosphere, Comfy bar stools and a great selection of brew. we sampled the pulled pork and the brisket… both items my husband has perfected at home so we tend to be quite critical. hands down the most moist brisket with a great smoke flavor and ring. pulled pork was tasty but a bit dry. we highly recommend you give this place a visit!

The food here is good. I came and just ordered the veggie stack, but it was really too small. It came with onions as a decorative bowl but it’s not that edible and there was a lot of onion. Then there were 3 slices of zucchini and 2 small cuts of sweet potato and that was $ 7.00 im really disappointed because the description said it came with all kinds of veggie greatness and it really wasn’t that great. I’m still really hungry and I’m going across the street to chipotle to get some more food. I literally just paid $ 7.00 to eat 2 small pieces of sweet potato and 3 slices of zucchini.

Red’s is located in prime real estate alley along University Boulevard, just a few large skips away from the University of Arizona’s front door.
This is college country, and Wildcats get mighty hungry.
The concept is very typical of many of these new American spots that you find popping up along Fourth Avenue in downtown. I understand the proprietor of Pasco, just down the block, opened this restaurant. The décor is slightly similar. It is sleek with unfinished and exposed architectural and design features. My favorite here are the hints of red throughout.
First thing to know is that the restaurant opened in January with a fairly condensed menu. We had a question about a number of items we would’ve expected to see their menu, and our server let us know that the menu would be updated sometime in February.
Why isn’t that sort of information gleefully announced from the beginning? It’s good to know, especially as people are making their first impressions, that the menu is in something of a test phase. So stay tuned.
Now to the food.
My immediate impression is that slabs of meat are offered without accompaniments. This is mostly true.
You order your main and then your sides, which include macaroni salad, corn on the cob, poppers and tamales from the Tucson Tamale Company, (odd, but a great addition and a show of support for other local businesses). They also sell ribs, wings, sausage, chicken, pulled pork — and they even run special off menu items.
I went with the 10-​hour smoked beef brisket, all the while excitedly eyeballing the bright red Myron Mixon smoker. I was practically salivating you could smell the distinctive smell barbecue throughout the restaurant.
Since the brisket was basically a load of meat, I asked if it could be offered as a sandwich. Score!
For my side, I went with the macaroni salad. It included roasted corn, sour cream and chili. I was actually quite fond of the side. But the price point was way too high.
The brisket was good, although there was way too much fat in the cuts. And it tasted like it could’ve been infused with far more smoke. Or a heavier sampling of seasoning. For the offering, the price is way too high.
My lunch mate ordered the pork basket, which came with the vinegar slaw and cornbread. For $ 10, it wasn’t worth it. The food was served in a container about the same size as one you would receive at a carnival with a corndog in it. And on top of it, she said the cornbread was dry.
Having enjoyed BBQ in the south, I’m trying to place this restaurant on the BBQ scale.
The meat is not slathered in syrupy sweet sauce, and it doesn’t seem to have intense flavors from rubs. Some of the menus items do take cues from the region, though. For example, cilantro, agave, jalapeños and cotijo cheese.
Another important point: This place is built for beer drinkers.
Entering the dining room, what immediately draws attention are the coolers full of dozens of different types of beers, including local favorites, and the beautiful bar — granite top, love — with its numerous taps drawn to attention.
You can mix-​and-​match your beers. And they even have carriers on site. Again, they also have locally brewed beers. Yes, I’d like to again point out that this spot supports Tucson’s own.
But, really, the food quality and prices are concerning. After dropping $ 15 on an average lunch — and that didn’t even include a drink — I’ll be anxious to see how this spot makes improvements as it settles in.

Had lunch there. Ribs were outstanding and the chicken wings were huge and delicious. Good beers also. Have a great staff. I want one of those smokers.

A previous review of Reds really hit the nail on the head… clean, casual, but not all that great.
We liked the bar, with it’s large tv’s and nice draft selection. We also liked that there is outdoor seating, and one of the walls is actually a roll up, which will be great when the weather is nicer. Service was also quick and friendly.
However, the food was overpriced, and just so-​so. Our brisket plate was over $ 9, and consisted of one slice of overly fatty meat. It tasted ok, but that’s about it. The sausage was a littler over $ 5, and I liked it much better. The beans were bland, the wings were ok, but a little fatty, and the cornbread is just strange. It looks like gingerbread, but didn’t have much of a taste.
We may go back (my husband liked it marginally more than I did), but perhaps only for the beer, and if they add some happy hour specials.

A-​MAZE-​ING!!! From top to bottom this place gets it right! The brisket is a religious experience. This is clearly run by people who have a passion for food. Get here soon, the line will be long!

I really liked the chicken and the price was good. The sides could’ve included mac-​n-​cheese or cheaper side like chips. But I thought the Mac salad was good. The chicken fell off the bone and the side of sauce was excellent (just needed a little more sauce). All in all it was good for UA area BBQ for the price. If you want real BBQ then go elsewhere, but if you need BBQ in the UA area and has a decent area to hangout then here you go. Oh! No Happy Hour listings yet. I’ll update if anything pops up. Plus, limited menu right now so they’ll keep their 3 stars for now.

We’ve tried this place twice now and it’s definitely a clean, cool casual bar and laid-​back hang out with very friendly but slow service.
However for the actual «Smokehouse» that’s a whole other another story.
They seem to be striving for a somewhat more ‘fancy’ BBQ experience. Everything comes out with several garnishes such as roasted jalapeños, onions & lemons, as well as cilantro & thin scallions. Though nice to look at, all of them were quite bland and could have certainly used a little seasoning and perhaps a bit more smokey flavor.
The chicken was very moist but unfortunately lacking of any nice crusty BBQ skin and very little smoke flavor. Costco’s rotisserie chickens are actually better.
The pulled pork was at the same time dry and wet, also lacking in any discernible smoke flavor and rather bland.
The brisket was really quite terrible and literally 50% fat. How do they have the nerve to serve that stuff? Also absolutely **zero** bark, no smoke smoke ring, little to no perceptible smoke flavor and just plain bland.
The sausage actually looked decent at first and had a surprisingly good «snap» to the casing but it was all down hill after that. Very greasy, mushy interior and also pretty bland tasting.
They serve a thin and sweet vinegar concoction that they call BBQ sauce. Regardless of what it’s designed for I stand my ground that any very good and self-​respecting BBQ requires absolutely ***NO*** sauce of any kind. Unfortunately the ‘Q here is hardly of the Texas or Kansas City quality.
So even though it’s a very welcome addition to the local scene it’s just not a true BBQ «Smokehouse», rather more of a hip restaurant /​bar concept. But then for those who don’t know what real BBQ is then this place will do fine for the UofA crowd.
Otherwise it’s basically a dressed up for the town & beautifully presented Dickie’s quality food at literally double the prices.
Will absolutely not be back, sorry.

Reds Smokehouse & Taproom has hit the ground running serving up some of the best BBQ and sides in Tucson. Literally everything my husband and I tried was delicious. The pulled pork and brisket each had lovely, fully-​developed bark and were served with a vinegar-​style BBQ sauce on the side, reminiscent of how BBQ is done in the Carolinas. We only ordered one chicken wing just to try it and it was fall-​off-​the-​bone tasty and seasoned to perfection. My husband wanted to eat quite a few more of these.
The side dishes are also incredibly good. Since the menu is currently a la carte during their soft opening, we had to order each separately. The corn bread is memorable, sweet and pairs well with the meats & sides. The red potato salad and BBQ beef beans were excellent with the only minor misstep of the meal being the incredibly spicy macaroni salad. However, it was so tasty my husband continued to eat it anyway.
With plenty of TVs, great ambiance, friendly & attentive staff, a hearty beer list featuring local brews (wine also available), and amazing food at affordable prices, Reds Smokehouse & Taproom is positioned to be a fun game day eatery or everyday BBQ haven in an ideal location on University Blvd.

Reds food is very tasty. I had the pulled pork and vinegar cole slaw. Both were very good. The one disappointing thing is that at 3pm they were out of both the wings and corn on the cob. They also have a very limited menu, the alcohol list is bigger.