Great BBQ. Excellent flavors, tender chicken, very friendly proprietor and parking easy to access.

This was a great hole in the wall for us to stop for lunch on a motorcycle ride. Food was amazing, well priced, and the owner operates the whole place himself. Smoked chicken was moist, the bbq sauce was sweet & Smokey, just how I like it! Slaw & Mac salad was on point too!

I have been in several times. The owner is really nice. The Tri Tip sandwich is very good. I have had Tri Tip at other places around the Auburn, New Castle, Loomis, and Rocklin areas, but this place has the best in my opinion. (delicious sides) Try it out some time when you are in Downtown Auburn. (not Old Town) Very small place; but seating outside too on a nice day. Maria R.

We've ordered this barbecue for several parties (graduation, birthdays etc.) The brisket is where it's at and we've never gone wrong with baked beans and coleslaw as sides. We've always gotten massive compliments from family and guests about how good the food is. When we do throw a party, we hit Grocery Outlet or Smart and Final for Hawaiian and Kaiser rolls so folks can make sandwiches (don't forget to serve sweet, sliced onion to go on the sandwich, trust me). The owner is so nice and accommodating. It's been a pleasure supporting this business! Yes, it's a little hole in the wall and nothing fancy as far as decor is concerned. But we're in Auburn, CA and that suits us just fine.

Well, I like to try new BBQ places wherever I travel and Auburn was no exception. The rough exterior of the place was a good sign to me. Don't want a fancy BBQ house. The smokers out in the parking area , also a good sign. Abundant side choices, good. I had the mashed potatoes and Cole slaw. Both good as an accompaniment to the generous portion of TriTip on my plate. The meat was tender with a little smoky flavor but that's about where it ended for me. The sauce was very bland and thin, almost watered down in consistency. Unlike any Texas sauce I have tried before. So that's the rub! Every thing good but the sauce is a non starter for me. Kick it up notch or two thicken it up to standard and I'll try it again when I'm in NoCAL. Value for money, Yes. Service was quick and friendly If you don't like spicy sauce it may be what you're looking for!

Are you interested in enjoying some of the best, authentic Texas-style barbecue in Placer County, and many the entire Gold Country? If Texas barbecue is your game, you owe it to yourself to head over to Smokey Pit BBQ, located in downtown Auburn, CA. As you enter the restaurant, you'll notice the small, compact dining room is very plain, and the decor is very modest. The restaurant operates on what I refer to as the "taqueria format" in that you make your selection from the menu, posted above the order counter, pay for it, if the restaurant is busy, you'll receive a receipt with a number, and when your order is ready, it will be brought to your table with a smile. Oh yes... the pit, which is fired by locally grown oak wood, is located in the parking lot, outside the restaurant. From the "Lunch" menu, I went with the "Three Way Combo," with chicken, ribs and tri tip as my protein. For sides, I hit "Barbecue Beans" and "Garlic Mashed Potatoes." The lunch normally includes a hot link rather than tri tip, but my gracious host Gurmail allowed me to substitute. All lunches include a hot, buttered roll. How do I even begin to describe such amazing barbecue. You read that right... AMAZING! Each piece of meat was moist, tender, mouth-watering delicious, kissed with smoke from the oak wood, but the smoke taste did not overpower the delicious meat. And the barbecue sauce... AMAZING! It was tangy, sweet, but too sweet, mild on the "heat" side of the fence, and simply delicious. Like the smoke, it enhanced the meat, added to the amazing taste, but didn't overpower any of the goodness I enjoyed on this late Monday morning at Smokey Pit BBQ. Alright... I'll start with the chicken. The slice of chicken breast was tender, juicy, flavorful and barbecued to absolute perfection. Like the tri tip and the ribs, it was basted, and coated with Gurmail's delicious, tangy barbecue sauce, which enhanced the tender chicken. The oak smoke added to the taste but didn't overpower the chicken. This piece of barbecue chicken is the best barbecue chicken that I can remember. The chef "enhanced" my plate for giving me an extra pork rib, which was a very welcome gift. These barbecue ribs were simply delicious, beyond belief, that I simply can't describe! Each rib was large, tender and expertly cooked in the pit. No dry ribs at Smokey Pit BBQ, as each rib was juicy, and simply was mouth-watering flavorful! The ribs had a lot of meat on all four sides, with very little bone, and simply rib goodness. Like the chicken, the ribs were liberally basted with delicious barbecue sauce, which made for some of the best ribs in the greater Sacramento area. The tri tip arrived on a separate plate, as the main plate was full with chicken, ribs and sides. The generous portion of tri tip was thinly sliced, and coated with barbecue sauce to-die-for. The tri tip had a beautiful smoke cap on the outside, but was tender, moist, flavorful and pink on the inside. It was cooked medium, which is my favorite, but I didn't ask, as the meat arrived cooked medium. Like with the chicken and the ribs, the tri tip was kissed by oak smoke and coated with barbecue sauce, which enhanced the taste of this amazing tri tip. Lunch included two sides, and I went for "Barbecue Beans," - a Texas favorite - along with "Garlic Mash Potatoes." Beans were standard pinto beans, cooked in a rich, chili-infused sauce, in the style of Texas. The generous helping of mashed potatoes were creamy, with just a hint of garlic and simply delicious. The beans and mashed potatoes made for great sides to this amazing lunch. The "Hot Buttered Bread" listed on the lunch menu was half of a hot dog bun, toasted and buttered, with just a hint of garlic. It made for great dipping and scooping up all of the meat juice and barbecue sauce. So... which meat was my favorite? Honestly... I can't it was simply all amazing, and each piece of meat added a distinct and different flavor to this delicious barbecue. Smokey Pit BBQ makes REAL, Texas barbecue, in a wood-fired pit, the "old school" barbecue is made in the Texas hill country. Most California barbecue restaurants cook what I label "industrial barbecue," which is cooked indoors, in a large barbecue oven, with smoke, but the smoke is vented outside. Not so at Smokey Pit BBQ, as the barbecue is cooked outside, in the parking lot, using native oak wood, and the pit is tended, by hand, by the talented chef. If you love authentic Texas barbecue, you know the difference. The love and care that chef Gurmail puts into his barbecue show, as his barbecue is the best in the business, and offers some of the best "old school" barbecue in the greater Sacramento area. Five stars... all of the way!

I was in Auburn to see a classic car show and the Auburn Country Fair which did not open until 4 pm. Had a little trouble finding it, in the back of a small strip mall. The owner Gurmail Singh was very welcoming. He is a one man operation. He buys the meat, cooks it and serves it. He has been doing this for 31 years and uses oak for his impressive smoker. As I was looking at his smoker, Gurmail pulled out a big piece of meat. The proteins are fresh. Purchased a 2 item dinner for $20, good portion, what a deal. Brisket This was shredded in a very nice sauce, loved it. Complex flavor. Pork Ribs Fall of the bone tender. Had a spice I could not identify but it worked. BBQ Beans and Fries Very nice. Ambiance Rustic hole in the wall place with a few tables inside, but sometimes they have the best food. So if you are fancy, may not be the place for you. This was featured in Sactown magazine a few years back here is the link. https://www.sactownmag.com/sactowns-best-bbq/ This place is a find. I am motivated to start up my smoker, thank you Gurmail.