Willie's Taste of Soul BBQ

It is good BBQ and that is really all it needs to be. The guy behind the counter, Willie, I assume, was fantastic. I give the place and extra star just becaue of the area outside where there are some authentic BBQs cooking your meal. Pretty cool stuff. more

Went to Willie's on the Saturday afternoon of Seafair. The place was not busy when we arrived, but service was incredibly slow, rude and seemed inconvenienced to have us there. My husband is from Louisiana and we just returned from a family reunion down south- we expected the food to be reminicient of the food we had while on vacation. The food, however, was worse than the service. The barbeque sauce was drenched over the skimpy portions of unflavorful meat. The greens, macaroni and cheese and potato salad were awful. I could easily make better at home for less money. The best thing on the menu was the pepsi that we ordered. We were also over charged. Don't waste time with Living Social or Groupon - save your money. Cedar River Barbeque in Renton is 10 times better and you get more for your money. This was awful and a very bad experience. more

Man at counter was hostile and hasseled me about using my Living Social coupon. I have comments on other rating sites that speak of the same problem with coupons. Then they got my order wrong! Then they overcharged me about $7.00. An order of baby backs dinner, $4.00 of BBQ sauce and a large potato salad does not come to a $25.00 coupon and an additional $6.37 in cash!! This place is also expensive; for the baby back dinner you get 5 ribs, some white bread, a spoon full of beans and a scoop of potato salad for $15.95. Give me a break! The prices stated on their web site are out dated. The food was very mediocre. The sauce had no oomph at all. Some of the ribs tasted very salty. Who needs the headache? more

Went for lunch to check them out for a catering gig. Ordered the BBQ Pork Sandwich with slaw on the side. Sandwich consisted of 2 pieces plain white bread with a medium portion of sliced BBQ pork between the sheets.\r \r I miss Rhodie's! Pros: Good sauce Cons: Poor try at BBQ sandwich more

You can tell the food was reheated for days, not freshly prepared for the day . The amount of food was ridiculous considering the price. An the sauce wasn't that great. Hands down, no hesitation I'd choose Famous Dave's in a heart beat over Willies Taste of Soul. Cons: The food wasn't of quality! more

I went on a mid Sunday afternoon to Willies on Beacon. What looks to be a bit unatractive on the outside opened up to a nice and warm eatery on the inside. The place had only 3 tables filled.\r \r I was too late for lunch, so I decided to have the 2 way dinner, choosing beef brisket and pork ribs. I was in mood for Ice Tea, but decided to stick with water when Rasberry ice tea was the only option. For a soul/bbq place, one would think even Sweet Tea would be an option.\r \r I was served in a reasonable time, with maybe a slight bit on the tardy side, considering the few customers. The smell was very good, but there was a major eyesore when looking at my presented place. There was maybee 4 thin slices of brisket and two medium sized ribs. My choice for cornbread with honey and butter was presented as a small cornbread muffin (without honey and butter). My two sides choices was cole slaw and potato salad. I was presented a small sized dish with a reasonable portion of slaw, that was creamy towards the side of runny. It was well spiced with peper and overall decent interpretation of cole slaw (I like a lot of various cole slaws, not just one specific way). The potato salad was good, but was about the size of a coffee spoon portion, which I thought was very stingy.\r \r While I'm not a major fan of brisket, they did a nice job with the flavor, smoke and fork tenderness. The ribs were also very nicely done. I ordered medium spicy BBQ sauce and they put a lot over both the ribs and briskey. It was a nice sauce. \r \r When I have BBQ, I like to leave full and I was far from it. What I saw in portions was what would be expected at maybe an upscale eatery. With tax and tip (and water for drink) it was an $18.00 meal. I could have ordered desert, but was afraid of the sweet potato pie being served in ultra rich cheesecake portions.\r \r Great food, but if portions were doubled, it would be a better value and worth of repeat business. Pros: Good tasting food Cons: Very small portions, slow service, limited beverages more

We went in one evening and had the best bbq I've had since growing up in the South. The portions were perfect - in fact, we had to take some of it home with us and it was as good the next day as it was that evening. My six year old didn't want to leave and left precious little on her plate - not the norm. The secret is in the real wood smoking that the meat goes through. You won't find that in too many restaurants these days.\r \r Great customer service and a really clean, family-friendly environment. I'd recommend this place in a heartbeat and am glad I spotted it and made a bad u-turn on Rainier to go back to it! more

I was expecting better. The portions were really small & they didn't have honey for the cornbread. Also, I was hoping for sweet tea, all they had was bad raspberry tea. The BBQ sauce was good, but with so little meat ( I had the lunch combo) I was still hungry when I left Pros: good sauce, clean atmosphere, tv, Cons: small portions, no honey, no sweet tea more

I'm from Kansas City, Kansas. BBQ & Smoke House full. And Willie's is as close to being in KansasCity? With out being there! This is a true smoke house? No pellets uesd here. Wood And Hours, At Willie's you get what you pay for! Down rite good food & smoked meat to perfection! Quality Pros: Good Food more

I've been to 'Willie's Taste of Soul BBQ' in Beacon Hill and 'Willie's BBQ' in Lake City and they both have two things in common: they are extremely STINGY with their portions. I have to admit, the food isn't bad, but it is definitely not worth the money. I've been to both places several times, hoping that they would be more generous with their servings, but left unsatisfied. The last straw was when I ordered a half pound of pork ribs and got two small ribs for $9!!! Like I mentioned earlier, food is ok but not great - not even close to the best BBQ I've had. Definitely do not recommend! Pros: Decent food Cons: Stingy with portions, expensive, food may be days old sometimes - especially side orders more

This is the best brisket bar none. Willie works the register as well as the smoker. If you love BBQ, you must try Willie's brisket. Pros: Great brisket and personal service. Cons: Not for groups. more

Wow, what a HUGE disappointment--and that was the only huge thing here! The ""ribs"" in the combo lunch platter was a ""rib"". I have never seen a skimpier serving in all my eating days. The few bites I had left me believing that this could be a good spot, but only if they change their serving size by about four-fold. Recommend eating before you go here. more

Pork shoulder...man alive that's good. There isn't a bad dish in the kitchen. This Louisiana-style Q is as good as you're going to get in the 206... Pros: Oh that meat, good sauce, sides! more

Seattle BBQ always seems to be about sauce. BBQ isn't sauce: it's meat. Willie knows how to do meat (and his sauce ain't bad neither). Take it from a man who can't drive by a BBQ stand: this is the best BBQ this area has to offer. Pros: Meat, Sauce, Willie Cons: Heartburn, A little pricey more

Oh, my! I love Willie's sweet potato pie. And the ribs were very good. Pros: Good ribs, Great pie more