Since we set off on our 50 state road trip at the start of 2018, Shae and I have eaten a lot of BBQ. So much so that at one point Shae didn’t want to eat it for several weeks or months (I’ve never had any such qualms).
In case you’re interested, here’s some of the BBQ we’ve eaten around the country so far, although we’ve had far more than that which we didn’t write about.
Something else we’ve done a lot on the road trip is watch the Food Network. Two of our favorite shows on that channel are Guy’s Grocery Games and Chopped, with our other favorite being Beat Bobby Flay.
While staying in Richmond VA, we were therefore excited to discover that a BBQ joint – Buz and Ned’s – beat Bobby Flay on a TV show. The show was Throwdown With Bobby Flay rather than Beat Bobby Flay, but who cares – they still beat Bobby Flay!
Shae’s Dad and cousin came up to visit us in Richmond and, seeing as they love all the meat too, we all went to Buz and Ned’s for dinner.
I’d taken a quick look at their menu online, but still wasn’t sure what to get when we arrived. There was a menu above the counter where you order your food, but they had regular menus to look at too.
The restaurant offers Happy Hour every day of the week, along with other specials from Monday to Friday and on Game Days. Shae and I could have quite happily spent our entire road trip budget eating all their BBQ and taking advantage of whiskey flights, tequila flights, etc.
In addition to those drink specials, Buz and Ned’s has a decent selection of draft beer. Each table in the restaurant also had a whole separate drinks menu that covered many pages. I didn’t take photos of the drinks menu, but there’s a good chance that if there’s something you want to drink, they’ll have it.
I was driving and still had work to do that day, so I stuck to water. Shae got an Ace Pineapple cider after getting to try a sample of it at the bar before ordering.
After ordering your food and drink, you can take a seat at any open table. I loved the giant ceiling fan they had that felt like it spanned the entire restaurant.
Picking what to have for dinner had been a tough decision. So many items on their menu sounded delicious, but when eating at BBQ restaurants I tend to get a plate with a variety of different meats on it so that I can try several.
Buz and Ned’s didn’t really have that option on their menu though, so I considered getting the next best thing – a large combination meal where you get to choose two sandwiches from pork, chicken and beef, along with two sides.
The thing is, I also really wanted to try the Meaty Spare Ribs meal which is the dish that beat Bobby Flay. Shae wanted to try that too, so in the end we decided to order both – one large combination meal and a Meaty Spare Ribs meal – and share the meals.
Both of our meals came with two different sides, so we ordered four different ones so that we could try a variety of them. On the large combination meal we got baked beans (which contains three types of beans and smoked hog jowls) and sour cream & red skinned potato salad.
Shae wasn’t a big fan of the potato salad whereas I liked it; this was a little unexpected as she likes sour cream and I don’t really care for it. The baked beans were good too.
As for the sandwiches, they were tasty. I was a little concerned about the beef at first as it almost looked like it was overcooked, but it was far more tender than it initially appeared.
We also helped ourselves to a generous helping of Buz and Ned’s BBQ sauce. This was incredibly flavorful and definitely one of the best BBQ sauces I’ve tried.
As for the spare ribs, those were really good. They sure were meaty and it was an enormous serving of ribs – the serving was much bigger than it looks in the photo below.
For that meal’s sides, we got cornbread and cajun fried corn. Seeing as Shae wasn’t a huge fan of the potato salad and I find cornbread a little boring (I’m British, what can I say), she had most of that. The corn didn’t taste as cajun-y as I was expecting, but it was good nonetheless. This meal also came with a side of grilled garlic bread which was also tasty.
Buz and Ned’s had a few dessert options that day in addition to the ones listed on the menu:
- Key lime pie
- Cookies n’ creme pie
- Pecan pie
- Lemon meringue pie
It seemed like those additional dessert options change by the day or week, so that selection might be different when you visit. We’d originally planned to have dessert there, but they were all out of both brownies and cookies that day, as we were going to order brownie sundaes and big gourmet cookies from the regular dessert menu. As a result, we ended up getting ice cream at Cold Stone Creamery instead.
Final Thoughts
Overall, Buz and Ned’s had great BBQ. It’s not my favorite that I’ve had – Swadley’s BBQ in Oklahoma City and Rodney Scott’s in Charleston, SC are still probably my top two – but if you’re in Richmond and like a lot of meat, Buz and Ned’s is definitely worth checking out.
Our Rating
Food = 4.2 / 5
Price = 4.0 / 5
Atmosphere = 4.0 / 5
Decor = 4.2 / 5
Service = 4.5 / 5
Total = 4.18 / 5
Address
Buz and Ned’s, 8205 W Broad St, Henrico, VA 23294
FYI, Buz and Ned’s was named 4th best bbq restaurant in USA by Food Network this year. Thanks for coming to Buz and Ned’s.
Congrats!