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Willie's Taste of Soul Bar-B-Que
Categories: Restaurants Barbeque Restaurants Soul Food Barbeque, Soul Food [Edit]
3427 Rainier Ave S(between Estelle St & Walden St)
Seattle, WA 98144
(206) 722-3229
- Hours:
Mon-Thu 11 am - 8 pm
Fri-Sat 11 am - 9 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
91 reviews for Willie's Taste of Soul Bar-B-Que
Review Highlights
-
"Whoohooo comfort mac n' cheese." In 15 reviews -
"Get some peach cobbler if there's any." In 5 reviews -
"The peach cobbler is good, the sweet potato pie even better." In 3 reviews
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91 reviews in English
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Review from Amanda T.
Seattle, WA
1/21/2012
This is really as good as it gets in Seattle. My fiance and I picked up some food from here one night on our way home from work. It's quite a bit out of our way, but we'd heard pretty great things so thought it was worth a shot. It definitely was. The pork ribs were so deliciously, fall-off-the-bone good I couldn't believe my taste buds. The sauce was perfect, the chicken was great (I would have even gone for a little more BBQ sauce for the chicken), and the mac n cheese was awesome. The cornbread was a little lacking but hey, it's just a little side and it certainly didn't draw away from the overall meal.
In the end, I will definitely go out of my way again to get more of this awesome food. Thanks Willie!! -
Review from Charles F.
Seattle, WA
5/3/2012
I have heard great things about this place so went there for lunch one day when I had the chance.
I was not impressed. I asked for a sliced pork sandwich. What I got was a bunch of chopped up ribs. If I had wanted the rib sandwich I would have ordered it. It really sucked they did not have sliced pork as an entree as well because I would have gotten that instead.
Ultimately, the taste of the food is what rules. The bbq was drenched in a sea of bbq sauce. I could not taste the actual meat because of the amount of sauce. I am from the south and have worked in bbq restaurants. If you are putting that much sauce on the meat, you are trying to cover up the taste. If a person wants to drown their food in sauce, leave a bottle of sauce on the table and let them do it. Give me the option of tasting what your meat is all about, which is what someone who is looking for real bbq, is wanting to taste.
The baked beans were decent.
The sauce was nothing to write home about either.
Sorry, but did not live up to the hype and I will not be back. -
Review from David T.
Bothell, WA
1/28/2012
Decent food, decent atmosphere. I've never had bad BBQ, so this is maybe the worst I've had.
But as another coupon holder, I got screwed directly by Willie himself. He told me the total, didn't show me a receipt. I tipped him the requisite 18% ON TOP of the already added 18%... I ended up tipping almost 40%... That's just dishonest.
Got in the car, was thinking about it, realized the math couldn't be right. Looked at the bill... well, guess I couldn't recommend them even if the food was excellent. -
Review from Skeezix S.
Seattle, WA
5/19/2012
This was really disappointing! As we waited for our to-go order we tried chatting with the older man there and he was very stiff, then we spoke with the chef, who I believe is his son, and he just said how tired he was and how he didn't want to be there. The kitchen didn't seem busy at all, and was curiously devoid of any evidence of cooking. the place smelled good, but the ribs and chicken were both very so-so, hum-drum flavors. I can make better BBQ ribs on my Weber any day of the week!
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Review from Joshua L.
Snohomish, WA
4/7/2012
I thought it was better than the other reviews are letting on. I had the brisket, and my wife had the pork ends. Our sides were the mac and cheese, coleslaw, potato salad, and greens - a pretty good representation of the expected sides - and they were all good. My brisket was tender and delicious, and the sauce was very good (albeit spicy for medium, but I was fairly warned).
After eating, we bought some pecan pie to take home for dessert. Spoke with Willie himself, who seemed like a very nice guy.
We'll try to come back. I agree that there was not much business for a Friday night, but I thought the place was good.
We used our Living Social deal, and had no issues with redemption. -
Review from Ben W.
University District, Seattle, WA
4/3/2012
got there at 1pm the sign said closed but hours said open, a guy opened the door and waived me in. Couldn't taste the bbq, it was more of a stew due to all the sauce. Good music on the radio but I was there for the food. Dont bother, there are other bbq places in the area.
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Review from Adrienne R.
Mercer Island, WA
We'd seen Willie's Taste of Soul as we drove by on South Rainier several times. A certificate came up on http://restaurants.com, so we made the effort to go eat there. We'd actually wanted to go a few times, but the hours were limited and not at a time we were able to go.
However, one Friday night, all the stars were in alignment, so we went.
The interior is nice. I was expecting a dive, but it is not a dive inside. We were a little confused by what appeared to be 3 different menus. Seriously, there's a menu on the wall, a to-go one you can grab, and a menu you are given if you sit down to eat. Comparison of the 3 menus showed different options.
We were the only people present, though over the course of being there, single people would come in and order or pick up a to-go order. Service to take our order was fast. The food did not arrive quickly, but it was still a reasonable time til served.
My cornbread no good, and by no good I mean inedible. The BBQ sauce may be a little spicy for some palates. The buns were nothing special. From the sides, the bean and the mac n'cheese were good. The prices seemed reasonable, at least for Seattle.
We really wanted to like it, we really did. But it was a big disappointment. We noted it was showing all the signs of a failing restaurant. -
Review from Marc M.
8/6/2011 1 Check-in Here
We all know that Seattle is lacking for really good BBQ and I was hoping that Willie's would be able to raise the bar and add a little respectability to an otherwise flailing category. Unfortunately, I must add this place to the list of so-so BBQ restaurants as nothing I had here was much more than bland on the flavor scale. Being a Yelper, one of my first thoughts when any meal is brought out to my table is to take a picture to be posted along with my review and a very telling sign with this meal was that I didn't even think of doing that until just now.
The meats we chose for our two dinners was beef brisket and pork ribs and both were heavily coated in a sauce that really didn't have much going for it. Less sauce would have been a better way to go as the meats themselves were smoked to a really good tenderness. For side items we were able to try the cole slaw which had a really pepper good flavor to it, but the beans were again bland and not memorable at all, and the potato salad was just not to our liking at all.
The restaurant seems very well maintained as the inside looks very clean and organized with plenty of tables that comfortably fit in to a fairly small space. During our visit, there was only one person on the job which slowed things down quite a bit. Our food came out at a very reasonable time, but there was no follow up to see how things were going or to offer drink refills of any type.
Maybe I will give this place another try at some point, but it will definitely be low on the priority list. I was just looking at the web site for this business while writing my review to see if there might be any specials or some other reason to draw me back in and was happy to see a coupon for $5.00 off an order of $20.00 or more, but then all hope was lost when I saw "Expires Jan. 30, 2008" at the bottom. Ah well.Listed in: BBQ
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Review from Lorraine H.
Seattle, WA
1/18/2012 1 Check-in Here
The service and space were clean and friendly, however the food was not good and the portions small. Everything tasted off for all of us. Even the cornbread had a weird, not fresh, taste and the meats were full of small bones. So disappointed.
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Review from Stefanie C.
Seattle, WA
7/28/2011
What happened to this place?! I visited Willie's 2 years ago (before the "renovation") and it was delicious. I went back a few weeks ago with a Living Social voucher, and all I can say is -- I can see why they are desperate for business (I've seen multiple coupons for Willie's from various discount companies recently).
Walked in there with mouth-watering memories of the past, and all we got were two kid's sized plates of food (the food on the plate did not touch -- in fact, the plates were so unnecessarily gigantic for the mini portions, which made the plate look sadder than it had to), a depressing television show playing in the background competing with the faint drone of the 90's soft rock station on the speakers. The food is expensive for the portion and taste. Our cornbread (which used to be amazing) came wrapped tightly in saran wrap and was no larger than the size of a rubber stamp and tasted just like one. It was so dehydrated and crumbly, which was disappointing. Did I mention, no butter or honey? The BBQ consisted of a little meat featuring large bones drowning in their 'house-made' sauce.
The service was sub par (I was fiending for water) -- they even accidentally charged us an extra $3, which I had to get discounted at check-out. The only kind-of good thing there was the pecan pie at the very end (which I'm pretty sure is bought in). The cole-slaw was okay. I would definitely like to see Willie's make some changes because they used to be amazing a couple years ago (the head chef even came out to greet us at the table and served us our food back then!). For food that's supposed to feed your soul, we sure left there feeling pretty empty. :( -
Review from Listentome G.
Seattle, WA
1/8/2012
35 mins fm order to food's arrival,jerk chicken was aok,little dry,bbq chicken was less dry,beans and greens sides were fine,Overwhelmed lone server was just that,and kitchen appeared staffed by one lone cook,Willie himself?,All in all,an ok meal,we liked the free music that began after our arrival,a lome keyboardist/singer,he was r&b mellow and good,.... We had an almost expiring Groupon to use up,so we drove fm Alki,but now,we have no mo G'pons,thus,we are out of good enuf reasons to revisit ole Willie's.........
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Review from Yvonne D.
1/14/2012
I went here because I bought a groupon earlier and it was gonna expired the next day...So we went there at around 6pm, there was only one guy working...so we waited a while to order. You're suppose to go to the counter, order, and then go back to your seat and wait for the food. It seemed as though there was only one guy working...we bought something for about $26 and we still owe him $3 after a $30 groupon... we got charge about 20% "tax"which I was afraid to ask him why. The food was ok, the taste was not bad. But I would not come back here...for a lot of reasons.... :(
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Review from LJ P.
Seattle, WA
1/24/2012
I came here with a Tippr deal that was to expire the next day. I think it was my first social deal and before I learned to YELP the places before I bought deals.
Nothing is different from reviews already posted. Nice enough looking place, though FREEZING! (guy said the heat was out). Only one other customer, a take out order.
There was one person working, he was did the job but was not very interested in noticing me. I was not real hungry so he helped me pick out the "perfect" lunch... until he saw I had a deal, then menu options changed. Prices were higher than on computer, and there is an extra $3 charge I can't figure out.
I had a chicken sandwich for lunch. It was two slices of Wonder Bread with chicken chunks soaking in a pool of sauce... seriously, sauce was over the lower slice of bread. The chicken was ok, not dry, but since I did not like the sauce's taste, it was not even worth taking home the leftovers. Had baked beans for the side which were the best part of the meal, but served in the size bowl usually used for ketchup!
I also took home a half pound of pork ribs (after my first choice was "sold out"). It came in a clam shell and a plastic bag. By the time I crossed the street and got on the bus, there was BBQ sauce leaked out onto my jeans, backpack, jacket and pooled in the (leaking) plastic bag. When I got home I opened this to find 3 small ribs... and MORE sauce! I guess the weight was mostly sauce.
Either the owner does not read, or does not care, about reviews... because (aside from the random 5 STAR REVIEW!!!!) it seems this place is the same. But it does offer lots of deals! -
Review from Gloria H.
5/14/2011
Good smokey flavor! I like the how spicy do you want it option, I went for medium and should have gone for hot. Had the #1 combo for 2 with the hubby. Chicken was moist and flavorful, Ribs where the same. Meats where smoked to a perfect moistness. Bean side dish was supper tasty! Potato salad was awesome, not too heavy on the crunchy veggies which I like. They where out of cornbread.... but there's always a next time.
Fair warning everything contains bones, so when they say half a chicken you really are getting a pile o chicken parts. But the smokey flavor really stands out and shows you how much love went in to your food.
Service was fast and friendly. -
Review from Amanda D.
Seattle, WA
6/1/2011
The Pros: The waitress, she is very new, she was good....
The Cons: The food was HORRIBLE. The cornbread why drier then dry, the meat has no flavor basically, the sauce is so bland, the coleslaw was too salty and the vinager taste was BOLD, The meat is drowned in BBQ sauce, yes I love to have my meat lathered in BBQ sauce, but I want to see what I am eating, so cut back on the drowning of the meat and put some sauce on the side.... The beans taste fresh out of a can, I can't taste any personal touches done to it, same with the potatoe salad, taste fresh out of a container, I got to say I have had better potatoe salad out of Safeway deli.
Bad food, Willy is a dry person, doesn't talk, just looks at you.... Kinda creepy..
If you want to change anything on a order it cost extra, I mean why is the sides posted all the same price and when you order a meal you are not informed the mac and cheese is extra until you pay or after you order it? Why is there no notes on the menu about this? If you charge one price for all the sides why is it more when you have the side in your meal?
This place knda reminds me of a hooker, always upselling.........
I bought a coupon deal on http://restaurant.com, which was a $25 coupon and I had to spend $35 or more, so that we did, they tack on a 18% gratuatiy fee on top of everything at the end, I mean ain't this suppose to trying to bring new people to your restaurant? I paid the same amount, ok, well a dollar less then I would of if I wouldn't of had the coupon due to the graduaty charge, What's the point?
To top it alll since my coupon said DINE IN ONLY, we dined in, ok, well, I have a kid that didn't eat barely anything as he didn't like the taste, I was told I could not take his food with me because the coupon said DINE IN ONLY. I DID dine in, we just had extra, why am I going to pay for the meal and not be able to take the leftovers for later? I can see if it said DINE IN ONLY and I wanted to do it all as take out, but it was some damn leftovers my kid didn't eat.
I do NOT recommend this place to anyone..... -
Review from Amanda N.
Bellevue, WA
7/3/2011
Will not be back! I had a $25 gift certificate from http://Restaurant.com. Was told I could not order alcohol and that there will be an automatic 18% tip added to bill. The food was not that great. Meat was dry. Sauce was nasty. The server was trying to pull one over on us by charging .75 cents for cornbread after I asked earlier when we ordered if it came with the meal. She tried to pull it off saying it was only added in the system not to our total...really? cause when I add it up that .75 cents doesn't go away! When I added up the total and added the 18% is only came out to $6 and some change well they thought they must of deserved $7 cause they round it up...
Don't waste your time and gas for this place! Even if you have a groupon, coupon or gift certificate!!! -
Review from Tim D.
12/27/2011 3 Check-ins Here
This place is a conundrum to me. The cue is all fairly good. I like it better than the pecos pit, for instance. That being said, it could use some heat. The sides were okay, but didn't floor me. The prices were decent. The desserts looked really good, but I avoided them as I was full. Overall a decent bbq joint.
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Review from Miranda H.
Seattle, WA
3/7/2011
I was excited to try Willie's Taste of Soul because it's in my neighborhood and I had a half-price deal. The experience started off fine, but went down hill from there. The server seemed to forget about us, so I had to repeatedly ask for a water refill, and by the end when it was time to pay the bill, the server was simply walking past our table.
Another thing: dinner entrees come with 2 sides and your choice of bread. However, we were charged extra for mac and cheese and cornbread (no where on the menu does it say that these choices have an additional cost).
The food was ok, but nothing to write home about. The cornbread tasted like it was 2 days old and had been reheated. I will find better BBQ elsewhere in south Seattle. -
Review from H K.
Seatac, WA
5/23/2011
I really wanted to like this place.
I brought a living social deal in here. Ordered the baby back and a jamaican chicken dinner. Both with potato salad and mac and cheese. Take out.
The baby backs were pretty tough (3.5 sticks) and jerk chicken (a good portion) is nothing special with lots of rub (too much) on it. Okay, maybe it was because I came at 6:30 when they were closing at 7, so they weren't that "fresh". The salad and mac were decent. The bread is just regular sliced bread you buy at safeway, you get two slices per dinner. None of the food were what you'd consider Southern BBQ that you'd see on Man vs. Food.
Anyhow, I later look at the receipt and there's two "Extra Items" added on. one for $2, another for $2.87. What were they for? I have no idea. The dinners came with 2 sides and that's what I got. If one of the sides warranted an extra charge, then wouldn't the charges be the same? And would I have gotten the mac if I knew it would have cost $3 more? I don't even like Mac. Which items were really "included" with the dinner? Who knows.
Either way, Willie has no idea how to work a Living Social/ Groupon deal. They are used to bring in customers so that you can showcase your restaurant, and NOT showing how deceptive you are or how mediocre your food is... and these bad experiences get written up on sites like Yelp.
NOT coming back. Hello Famous Dave's.
PS, online menu prices are outdated. Each dinner was a dollar more on the sign at the restaurant. -
Review from Yumiko K.
1/30/2011
I rarely eat meat, so when I do, it's supposed to be a treat. Today, I truly felt like I just wasted my meat allowance on a mediocre BBQ just because I had one of those special deal vouchers ($11 for $25 worth of food).
This place was DEAD when my boyfriend and I got there. However, the owner (Willie) himself was the only one working at the time helping another couple. The service was EXTREMELY and PAINFULLY slow (we had to get a menu from the other couple!), which didn't bother me until we were ready to order.
Based on my own dining experience at other BBQ joints, I thought ordering 1 dinner entrée (with 2 sides and a cornbread) should feed us both. We were going to get a 3-way combo and maybe a dessert. Then, the owner told us jerk chicken was not included in the combo deal. OK, fine. We ended up with a 2-way combo (The owner was shaking his head disapprovingly!!!)
The food took forever to come out, and when it finally did, there wasn't much on the plate. We both liked the yam (one of the side dishes) and mac and cheese was alright (the cheese was pretty gritty though). The brisket and sliced pork (both sliced paper-thin) were nothing spectacular and smothered with BBQ sauce.
However, we were both hungry, so we ate the food anyway. Still being hungry, I had to go walk up to the counter to order more food. Apparently, the special deal voucher thing only applies to dinners and group meals ONLY. You cannot use it for dessert, lunches, or sandwiches. UGH! Nowhere on the coupon says that. The BBQ joint modified the terms of use, which I wouldn't have any problem with as long as there had been a HUGE sign on the menu or he had informed us when we were about to order (instead of shaking his head). I did see a sign at the cashier; I wouldn't have seen it otherwise (and nobody explained it to me clearly!!)
I usually don't mind slow service or a gruff and disgruntled owner, but eating at this joint was extremely unpleasant (super cold too!) and disappointing. -
Review from Carrie D.
Seattle, WA
6/21/2011
I'd like to say I'm really disappointed, but I think that really all the recent reviews are basically spot on... this place has passed it's prime. I went on a weeknight, only one person working the kitchen and front - I'm guessing that going on a weekend evening when (I assume they are better staffed) will likely yield a better experience. But, here's what we encountered our first time here:
My husband ordered the hot links dinner with coleslaw and mac n cheese (and you pay more for the mac n cheese) , we got hot links and mac n cheese. I ordered the pork ribs with coleslaw and mac n cheese.
I was excited for the mac n cheese based on all the previous reviews, I've never met a mac n cheese I didn't like and it seemed to be the only thing everyone could agree was good...but I think ours was made (I'll give them the benefit of the doubt) yesterday(?). Noodles were way too soggy, cheese sauce had separated into a greasy, clumpy mess. Wish I could say it at least had good flavor, but I can't - it was bland.
My husband's hot links, I didn't try them, were "disgusting". I've never seen him not clean his plate (and others!) when meat stuffed in a casing is around, however I don't think he even ate half of it. He said the half he did eat was simply because he was really hungry.
The coleslaw was inedible, I had to spit it out. It was literally some coleslaw with my ground black pepper.
On the positive side, my husband and I did like the pork ribs. They were tender and had a great smokey flavor. The sauce is pretty mild, I order the medium based on the other reviews opinion that the sources weren't terribly spicy. The medium is not spicy at all but it goes well with the smokiness of the ribs.
So, even though there was a silver lining with the ribs, I'm still giving it a 1 star, because I realize that they overcharged us by ~$3 as well (I see from some previous posts this isn't the first time), I think it was a "groupon tax" or something... who knows. Our meal should have been ~$26 + tax... that does not add up to $34.21, no matter how you slice it. That's an unacceptable business practice in my book. -
Review from Jennilee B.
Seattle, WA
2/25/2011
So after Randy and I accumulated literally a piles worth of groupons, we happen to dig one up and end up here on a Friday night. But instead of saying YAY, sadly it was a resounding N-A-Y. Although our server (great server btw) was very well versed in BBQ lingo and knew what the heck he was talking about when it came to ribs, smoked sausage, and baked beans- what was definitely lacking was the comfort-food-y feeling that you're suppose to receive from potato salad, macaroni and cheese, cornbread, and ribs. Hubby and I weren't impressed with the overall taste of our food OR the pricing. FYI- we will pay top dollar for excellent BBQ, but this wasn't top dollar quality BBQ.
Needless to say, groupon or not- don't think we'll be making another stop here anytime soon. -
Review from Dan W.
Renton, WA
5/14/2011
Walked in with my buddy and were the only customers left after a group of women left on a Friday night. They said they were only doing take out when they were clearly open for another hour. Then they changed their mind and said that we could eat there, like it was a privilege that we could eat there.
We ordered the meal for 2. She asked if we have a groupon coupon and we said yes. Then the meal came out and we couldn't believe how puny it was. Unbelievable that two grown men could finish this meal in less than 5 bites.
I've always wanted to try this place because of good things I heard but there is no way in the world I would ever go back.
The food was good, not great. Overpriced and not enough to eat. We went to play pool afterwards and ordered some french fries cause we were still hungry. -
Review from Brian R.
10/10/2011
My wife and I stopped here for lunch. We shared a Combo #1 plate, a soda, and a side of coleslaw. Total with tax was about $38, a little on the high side. The combo consisted of a serving of chicken, pork ribs, cornbread muffins and sides of beans and potato salad. The meat was tasty, but I think the portion of ribs was a bit small for the amount of money. The potato salad and coleslaw were actually quite good, and the beans were decent. Unfortunately though, the cornbread muffins were just dry and flavorless. It might be a decent place to buy meat by the pound. But for the price and portion sizes, I can't recommend their meal options.
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Review from Crystal L.
Seattle, WA
8/12/2010
I really wanted to like this place. It's in my neighborhood. I'm from the South and I love BBQ, but this place does not make the cut. Service was friendly and quick, I've give it that.
Why 2 stars? We could hear the BBQ heated in a microwave, and it was served on white sandwich bread. Good BBQ is slow roasted and served on a bun to soak up the sauce. Flavor was mediocore. Potato and pasta salad tasted like they were from Safeway.
I guess I'll have to stick to Roy's for the time being... -
Review from Chelsy C.
2/24/2011 1 Check-in Here
A great place to get your BBQ fix on in Seattle!
Service is competent and unassuming, ambiance is bright and open, the food is well crafted with years of perfection.
Willies gives large portions and the meat is firm and the sauce, smokey, tangy and sugary.
Of the sides; I like the Mac + Cheese. Now this is a small side, but it hits the spot. Their chicken wings are generous sized and cooked perfectly with a zesty seasoning, but not a hot sauce. Their baked beans hit the spot and are perfect sized for a single meal.
Willies has the beer you'd expect in a hot clime: Heineken, Red Stripe, Bud + Bud Light and Corona.
A good place for a date; you can wipe the dab of BBQ sauce off the tip of her nose and she can get it off your eyebrows after you go in caveman style! -
Review from Timmmaahh W.
Seattle, WA
10/18/2011
Don't do it. sad, used to be good.
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Review from Michelle B.
Seattle, WA
12/30/2007
I am home, on a Saturday night, with a meat hangover.
Good BBQ in Seattle is hard to find so even though it wasn't my favorite BBQ ever, I scarfed down way too much of it.
We ordered:
Brisket
- Nice and tender, but mostly because it had been tenderized mechanically and not by the smoking. It was flavorful and soaked up the mild bbq sauce quite nicely.
Baby Back Ribs
- Dry rubbed, smoky flavor, and not too much fat on them. I ate three of them with my bare hands.
Sliced Pork
- Not good. Don't know what was wrong with it, but it wasn't good.
Chopped Pork Sandwich
- Luckily the meat was not the same as the sliced pork so it was pretty tasty.
Mac N' Cheese
- Whoohooo comfort mac n' cheese. It sure ain't going to win at any fancy food competition but these elbow noodles packed some cheesy flavor. Yum.
Collard Greens
- Not bitter at all, cooked with fantastic seasoning, actually a bit spicy.
Peach Cobbler
- All peach cobbler is good, but this was spiked with way too much nutmeg.
The new restaurant is pretty nice on the inside, very clean, and a good spot to be seen with a bbq sauce smile :)Listed in: Seattle's Smoked Meat Scene
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Review from J K.
Seattle, WA
I have no idea how to rate my experience here.
I'm driving and she's yelping on the iPhone -- typical Friday night. We drive by and see the "soul food" neon sign. I pull a u-turn and pull into the parking lot -- which is like threading a needle, with my car -- very tight parking lot.
We walk in. It looks like a little McDonalds on the inside: brightly lit, crappy tables, order at the cash register. But wait...
There's a band playing in the corner. Old African-American dudes. Playing Jimi covers!!!! They're playing Little Wing as we walk inside! Holy crap, I've died and gone to Jimi heaven. That's my favorite song.
We pay 5 each to see the band. We order some BBQ stuff. The menu is interesting. The food is 2.5 stars. Not great, but somewhat unique for Seattle. They slow cook all the meat outside in the back.
Most of the audience is youngish punkish white and asian people. They're loving the band and calling out, "Turn up the guitar!" and "Yee-haw, Hey Joe!"
It's always been a dream of mine to watch a Jimi cover band with some hipsters on Rainier while eating bad BBQ. Now I can cross that off my list.
We leave as the band is taking a break. We run into them in the parking lot. There's a cute and friendly dog sniffing my hand. The singer and the guitarist are smoking in between the cars with the white hipsters in the twilight. I tell the singer that I love Jimi. He points and says, "Every Friday night! Come back!" I say, "I will!"
Conclusion: Totally awesome. I recommend that the next UYE be here. I also recommend the brisket, but avoid the sandwiches -- the bread is literally wonderbread. -
Review from D.J. Y.
3/13/2008
While I never had the chance to check'em out in my old hood on Beacon Hill, I will say the new digs are SWEET!!! Oh, and get this, they have parking!!!! 3.5 stars.
The menu was extensive, we picked up a #4 Family pack, which states it serves 6 people, maybe six skinny people, in my opinion. Packed up and ready to go was: 1 lbs Pork Ribs, 1 Chicken, 1lb Beef Brisket, 1lb Hot Links 24 oz. beans & 24 oz. potato salad & Bread For $65.70 it seemed a bit much but figure @ $10.95 a person, that's not bad.
The counter severs were great, friendly and once I spied the book case of bottled hot sauces, they offered me a to-go container to check several of them out! Swaaaaeeeeeet!!
Pork ribs: I wasn't first in line at my cousin's house, so I only got 1 rib, and let me tell you, I'd cut you first before I'd share!! A bit tough, but again we were one of first people there, I think the smoking was a bit rushed.
Chicken: Mild smoke flavor again we were early, so I'd have to guess this was a bit rushed too in the smoking process, it had to be one of the whitest bbq'd chickens I ever saw! I will say it was moist and well seasoned.
Brisket: Cut too thin for my tastes, and I didn't see the blue hue of the "smoke ring" of course I did woof it down pretty fast, I could have missed it...
Links: Flavorful-ish but lacked HEAT!! Texture was a bit strange.
Beans: Decent, my Mother In Law makes better...
Sub Cole Slaw for Pot salad: Slaw was fresh and tasty, I really liked it.
White Bread: Of course! It soaked up my sauce just fine....drool....
For dessert we topped it off with Sweet Potato Pie @ $3.75 slice, they didn't have any "whole" pies for purchase, I was bummed.... But the pie itself was a little slice of Heaven on a plate...uuuurp!! Excuse me!!
Sauce was tasty, it didn't hide the meat, the smoker was going full steam out back, we had a few lung fulls on the way in from the parking lot.
Willie knows what he's doing that's for sure. I'll be back, this time with my own loaf of Wonder bread...Listed in: BBQ in the PNW!!
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Review from Lissa M.
Seattle, WA
7/24/2007
My husband is from Texas.
He went to Texas A&M.
If you told me 5 years ago I'd be typing those sentences, I'd have laughed in your face.
My husband's little Aggie friends all live in Bellevue and Kirkland and places like that. They all always complain that they can't get good barbecue in this town. But they've all only tried, like, mall BBQ in Issaquah. If you want to get the good stuff, I tell them, you've got to come to my neighborhood. Leave the rich little gated white subdivisions and come to south Seattle.
I like Willie's, even though it's a little on the pricey side. The meat's great, the sides are fine, I don't have to cook it. '
Willie's is good. My Texas husband says so.Listed in: How to survive on South Beacon…
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Review from Nancy B.
Slickpoo, ID
8/20/2007
Yeeeaaah...I love me some meat. But cake...cake above all else for me.
There are three kinds of cake available on a regular basis:
Red Velvet: Perfect. Not cream cheese frosting, but fluffy, obviously made with Crisco real goddamn frosting. Moist beyond what I thought was possible.
Coconut: North Hill Bakery no longer holds the number one position for me with this delicacy. The shit is so moist its a pile of cake rubble on your plate...pineapple infused, coconut rubble that I want to rub all over my face.
7-Up Cake: This white girl was unawares of the 7-Up Cake until Friday night. I am now Googling it to find the perfect recipe. Just go have some - I don't know what I can say about it.
Eat cake.Listed in: Columbia City Love, Food for the Soul
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Review from Marc D.
1/20/2010
* Disappointing on so many levels *
The story of my disappointment after ordering a mixed plate lunch special:
1) Was asked for level of preferred heat on the sauce. I said hot. I got something that had no heat at all. It was just like baked bean sauce, for lack of a better way to describe it.
2) Chicken was dried out.
3) Links were cold (I think they were microwaved and not fully).
4) Brisket was falling apart with no noticeable crust. It was more like stewed brisket - way past where it should be.
5) Rib was not tender - hard to get off of the bone.
6) Potato salad was overly mayoey.
7) Beans were bland.
8) The realization that I could even get better BBQ in Vancouver (not a place known for top notch BBQ)!
Humph......Listed in: South of the Border, Rewards Network Joy
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Review from Cherie M.
Seattle, WA
3/9/2011
A tasty take-out dinner last week. We had the rib dinner and had a choice of two sides each. I had the beans and mac and cheese. Beans seemed kinda like chili and had bell peppers in it (which I don't like). The mac and cheese was tasty, but not very warm. Ribs were yummy - I got the medium heat sauce and it had a nice kick, but not too spicy. Also had the peach cobbler - there was one flavor it it that tasted almost savory. Can't identify it but I would have liked it better if that flavor was not there.
Enjoyed the jazzy sax while we were waiting. -
Review from Cyndi C.
11/8/2010
Willies Taste of Soul is A-OK kids! This will satisfy your BBQ craving. Willie's has a smoker out back and serves up some excellent tender smoked meat and serves it extra saucy for the sause hounds! Yum!
Pros:
* New large location in Rainier Ave that serves beer/wine
* Sausy Ribs are so yummy!! BBQ Chix is a good choice it was also very well smoked and juicy. Do order the hot sause, it's really only med/hot anyways but it is very flavorful!
* Tasty lil sides! The Greens are spicy and yummy, the Mac is mild but ultra creamy & cheesy! Good job.
* Homemade desserts!
* Sweet service, nice staff.
Cons:
* Price, I think it's a lil high for the portions you recieve.
* Did not care for sliced pork, not smoky/ not very tasty. Order meat on bones is the way to go here!!
* Sides are so tiny but very tasty!
* Lunch deals are only held during the week, I wish there was a weekend deal as they have GREAT looking LUNCH specials but nothing for us working stiffs who can't get over here during the M-F week. I wish! :)
Tip: Willies has live music on Fridays! Currently at no cover in Nov. You can also just come in for drinks to see the live band as dinner purchase is not required to see the show. -
Review from Me H.
Seattle, WA
3/26/2008
You ever had a day where you crave 10 different things in the span of say two hours? I did recently, first I wanted sushi, than mac n cheese, than dim sum, than salt and pepper calamari, than steamers, than a chicken cheese steak sandwich, than out of no where I wanted BBQ. I never crave BBQ ever so I decided this must be what I have for dinner. I checked yelp, found Willie's and decided this would be my dining destination for the night and I was dragging my gay boyfriend #1 (GBF#1) along for the ride. I wish I stuck with my first craving, sushi.
We had questions so we asked the 'help' her reply was "well I'm new, I haven't worked here very long and have yet to try the food I don't know what's good. I've only been here a month, and it's always busy there's never any time to eat." We both look at each other and say, "Umm OK can you give us some time?" There was one other person in the place getting take out, I should have taken this as a sign to get up and leave but I didn't. I decided on a 2-way combo for me, my GBF#1 was hungry and went for the 3-way combo for him. I picked the ribs and hot links being assured the hot links were all pork, I had a side of mac n cheese, potato salad and went for the corn bread. GBF#1 had the ribs, hot links, brisket, mac n cheese, potato salad and corn bread too.
I think Willie himself delivered our food, by this time the place was getting busy it had 3 other tables filled and a few people waiting for to go orders. I tried the hot link, not a big fan of it, it was smoky tasting but smothered in a sweet BBQ sauce the combination of the two did not please my mouth. The ribs were the same way but better than the hot link. I like when my meat is smoked but apparently not when it's smoked and sweet I think I would have enjoyed a spicy and vinegary based BBQ vs. the super sweet sauce Willie serves. The mac n cheese left a lot to be desired, this Queen of mac n cheese was not a fan. The potato salad was meh, it could have been colder it was served a little too room temperature for me. Oh the cornbread was dry, so dry when you took a bite it made you couch no bueno.
I ate as much as I could stomach than had to go to the ladies room to wash my hands, eating BBQ is messy you know, and I walk into the ladies room only to find a big tall man peeing in there! It's one of those one room ladies room, not stalls just a lock on the door. First off he used the ladies room and the men's room was free, second he didn't lock the door when he went to use it, third he didn't wash his hands and fourth he didn't put the seat down once he was done in there. I'm so not a fan of any of this.
Lesson learned always go for the first thing you're craving or you'll end up disappointed like me.Listed in: I've got a meeting in the…
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Review from Marc S.
Seattle, WA
3/31/2011
It isn't Pecos, or Jones, but it is a good place if you are near. Please, people we do not care what part of the country you are from. Comment on the food and leave your personal history to someone who cares about it.
This was good BBQ. -
Review from Angela M.
Seattle, WA
10/2/2011
This place has great barbeque. The ribs, hotlinks and sliced pork is great. The macaroni cheese is awesome too. However when we went there to try and use our Groupons they said we can't use it on holidays, which was Easter. The Groupon never had that on there. The guy at the restaurant did give us extra barbeque though. Also they are open on Sundays. Yelp says their not.
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Review from Geoff K.
Seattle, WA
8/1/2007
Willie - you rocked my ass of last night. Your beef brisket was so tasty I didn't care that you were out of the ribs I had really wanted; I'll get those suckers next time. The sauce was good, even if a little too sweet for my tastes. The cornbread was out of this world, and we had to order extra to satisfy us. We don't even care that it was $12 for a dinner plate (with 2 sides) and $7 for a sandwich(with 1 side). Well worth every penny.
There is nothing flashy about your place, but it reminds me of how a real BBQ joint should be - no frills, just plates full of damned good smoked meat. I can't wait to try everything else (You can bet I will).
We were thrilled to find you not too far from our new place in Beacon Hill. You made us feel welcome in your small place, and you can bet we'll be back pretty regularly. I just hope we don't get lost in the Volvo graveyard next door; that place freaked me out. -
Review from Val R.
Kirkland, WA
4/30/2007
Pros: Good smoked meat. Awesome name!
Cons: A little pricey, but labor intensive preparation justifies costs. Limited choices.
Willie's Taste of Soul is located between Graham and Beacon Hill. According to my amiga Therese, this place has been around forever (15 plus years). The interior is rather small, with emphasis being placed on to go orders. The decor is rather spartan, but welcoming, and the aromas of the smoked meat just say hi, even from outside. The portions are not that large, but they are just right. My only complaint is that the sauce just didn't have enough kick to it. The sauce needed some more vinegar and pepper to complement the smokiness of the meat. The collard greens were really good, and were prepared in a nice rich pork broth. Overall nothing fantastic to write home about, but if you are looking for a decent bbq meal, don't hesitate to go to Willies.
