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Home > Restaurants > Dinosaur Bar-B-Que

All Reader Reviews of...

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que

646 W. 131st St., New York, NY, 10027
at Twelfth Ave.
212-694-1777

7.5 "Recommended"
Average Reader Rating
on a Scale of 10		 Write Your Own Review
72% Would you go back?
72% Would you take a date?
81% Would you take kids?
36% Would you go on business?
54% Would you go on a special occasion?
Food: 7.0
Service: 8.4
Décor: 8.1
Value: 7.7
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  • Showing reviews 1 through 10 of 11

If you like to drink and eat good BBQ this is the place for you!

ErinbhNYC from 11238 | Posted on 8/26/09

Overall Rating: 8 (Recommended)
Would you go back? Yes
Would you take a date? Yes
Would you take kids? Yes
Would you go on business? No
Would you go on a special occasion? Yes
Food: 9
Service: 7
Décor: 7
Value: 7

This is my husband's favorite place! Dino is fun and the food is reliable and tasty -- if you like to drink and eat good BBQ this is the place for you. It's just a hike to get to. We need another one downtown!

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4 out of 7 people found this review helpful.

It's a Joke

foodjunky from 11216 | Posted on 7/11/09

Overall Rating: 1 (Not Recommended)
Would you go back? No
Would you take a date? No
Would you take kids? No
Would you go on business? No
Would you go on a special occasion? No
Food: 1
Service: 5
Décor: 5
Value: 1

The food was good and nasty, cold and small portions. I had the pile high pulled pork., and i must say that i should have gone to Mc Donalds and order a Big mac and super size the fryes instead. The glass of water had a long black hair in it, i let that go. But the food taste like it came from a box, the ribs were burned. the corn bread tasted like it had pellets in it. If you can cook i wouldn't recommend this place to you.

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3 out of 9 people found this review helpful.

Better BBQ in the Big Apple

TM27 from 11377 | Posted on 6/15/09

Overall Rating: 6 (Mixed Reviews)
Would you go back? No
Would you take a date? Yes
Would you take kids? Yes
Would you go on business? No
Would you go on a special occasion? No
Food: 4
Service: 9
Décor: 8
Value: 7

My job takes me to many BBQ-centric cities and I've eaten my share of ribs, pulled pork and brisket. I was excited to try Dinosaur as I've eaten at other NY BBQ joints and been fairly impressed. Unfortunately I can't say the same here. I had the Tres Hombres which gives you a sample of ribs, pork and brisket. The ribs had a very good flavor but were a bit small and stringy. The pulled pork was DRY like it had been cooked and then set under a heat lamp for a while. The brisket had a good smokey flavor but the meat was tough. The sides, thank goodness, were pretty good. With so many other good BBQ spots in the city I would not put this one on my list.

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1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

yuummy

cygnerose from 10032 | Posted on 6/11/09

Overall Rating: 8 (Recommended)
Would you go back? Yes
Would you take a date? Yes
Would you take kids? Yes
Would you go on business? No
Would you go on a special occasion? No
Food: 9
Service: 7
Décor: 5
Value: 10

i totally recommend this place, however avoid the weekends it get extremely crowded and you must wait hours for a decent table, I think they accept reservations but i'm not sure. The food is well prepared. Their burgers and mac and cheese are yummy. ribs are good also, although i feel theirs not much of a variety to choose from when it comes to sides. The homestyle portions make up for their lack of sides and good wines. Great place to take your friends for some comfort grub.

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2 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

Stick with the Sides

macbrainiac from 07024 | Posted on 3/19/09

Overall Rating: 6 (Mixed Reviews)
Would you go back? Yes
Would you take a date? No
Would you take kids? Yes
Would you go on business? No
Would you go on a special occasion? No
Food: 5
Service: 9
Décor: 8
Value: 7

The mac and cheese were very good. Collard greens were even better--spicy, moist, memorable. Exactly four ounces of each side dish, along with a teensy slice of unremarkable cornbread. The ribs looked really good; they had a medium spice rub and basting glaze on them, which I prefer over the KC style sweet stuff. Unfortunately the pork was charred and stringy on top, chewy, fatty and grey below. Maybe this is what dinosaur meat is supposed to taste like! Still, it's an interesting place and location, might return to drink beer and hear music with friends.

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1 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Best BBQ in NYC

LegalFoot from 11210 | Posted on 10/17/08

Overall Rating: 10 (Highly Recommended)
Would you go back? Yes
Would you take a date? Yes
Would you take kids? Yes
Would you go on business? Yes
Would you go on a special occasion? Yes
Food: 10
Service: 10
Décor: 10
Value: 10

Great food with a wonderful selection of beers. Bring your appetite as you will get stuffed. This place is so much better than Blue Smoke, Virgil's, Dallas BBQ etc... The only thing this place does not have are the rib tips which you can find at Rub. For the reviewer who did not like this place I have to wonder if he is used to tv dinners.

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12 out of 16 people found this review helpful.

very dissapointed

iand from 06880 | Posted on 7/9/08

Overall Rating: (NA) (Not Rated)
Would you go back? No
Would you take a date? No
Would you take kids? No
Would you go on business? No
Would you go on a special occasion? No
Food: 3
Service: 8
Décor: 8
Value: 5

I liked everything about Dinosaur except for the food. The ribs were just plain bad. You needed a knife which they provided with the ribs which I guess was an ominous sign. I was expecting "fall off the bone" teder and what I got was tough, fatty, and stringy. The sauce was tasteless (so was the cornbread) and the beans were disgusting. After reading Adam Platt's where to eat in 08 and the reader reviews on here, I was totally shocked. The Mac and Cheese was the only saving grace. Sharp cheese with a nice crust, good texture, and a tasty spice rubbed topping. Very good. If anyone feels compelled to give Dinosaur a try, make sure to keep your expectatons low.

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9 out of 22 people found this review helpful.

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que

ma10040 from 10040 | Posted on 7/1/07

Overall Rating: 10 (Highly Recommended)
Would you go back? Yes
Would you take a date? Yes
Would you take kids? Yes
Would you go on business? Yes
Would you go on a special occasion? Yes
Food: 10
Service: 9
Décor: 9
Value: 10

good food, rapid atmosphere. Make sure you make a reservation otherwise you might wait 2 hrs. I'll see you there close to July 23rd - my birthday.

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146 out of 393 people found this review helpful.

one cool place

elsushi921 from 10022 | Posted on 1/17/07

Overall Rating: 9 (Highly Recommended)
Would you go back? Yes
Would you take a date? Yes
Would you take kids? Yes
Would you go on business? No
Would you go on a special occasion? Yes
Food: 10
Service: 10
Décor: 10
Value: 10

FOR A REAL FUN NITE GO TO THIS PLACE. THE FOOD IS GREAT AND THE MUSIC ADDS ALOT, EVERYONE IS DOWN HOME FRIENDLY AND HARLEM IS THE PLACE TO BE ACCORDING TO WWW.nycmove.com they always get me in the right direction to the newest places in town. JUST GO

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307 out of 632 people found this review helpful.

A Good NYC BBQ Experience

lreev01 from 10035 | Posted on 1/13/07

Overall Rating: 8 (Recommended)
Would you go back? Yes
Would you take a date? Yes
Would you take kids? Yes
Would you go on business? Yes
Would you go on a special occasion? Yes
Food: 8
Service: 8
Décor: 9
Value: 8

I'm originally from Kentucky, not far from Owensboro, which claims to be the BBQ Capital of the World. So, I'm tough on NYC BBQ. That said, Dinosaur BBQ is pretty darned good. Half of any good BBQ experience is the atmosphere and Dinosaur does atmosphere very well. The BBQ itself (specifically the ribs and the pulled pork) is pretty good - and that's coming from someone who won't touch most New York BBQ. Most people, therefore, will fall in love with this place. Worth the trip to northern Manhattan - give it a shot.

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286 out of 575 people found this review helpful.

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