Blake's Place

This place is a hidden gem, located in the middle of a business center, that can be easily missed if you don't pay attention, as this place is not too big and located at the corner. No reservation is necessary. You order first and the food will deliver to you at your table when it's ready. Everything is cooked well, when it comes to sausages, ribs, chicken and tri-tips. It's savory and not dry. It's affordable and has generous portions, that can be easily shared or devoured all by yourself. Of course, there are other delicious items (like sandwiches) on the menu, and when it's your birthday , they will give you a free dessert too! They have excellent service, constantly popping in to see if everything is okay and never will you need to hunt them down. Parking is not an issue for us, there were plenty of parking spaces.

I'm not a firm believer in the customer is always right but...I was in the mood to spend $21 on a BBQ burger fries and drink today I didn't expect it to come with a free side of attitude!!!I'm sitting in the dining room after I placed my order on my phone sipping my Diet Coke. The server walks up and places a burger on my table. She then states cheeseburger no lettuce tomato or mayo. I responded with oh I ordered it with no mayo only and cut in half, can I get a knife and she walks off. As she walked away I lift the bun and to my surprise no bacon or bbq sauce. I then say excuse me this isn't mine. Then the magic starts. She begins telling me from the kitchen that she called a name of the order and I flagged her that it was mine. She then Kept going on that it was my fault. I was literally sitting there in my own world as she dropped it off. I know my name and I'll answer to it when called. I heard no name and didn't respond.Mind you this was the first time I've been back to Blakes since the last time I ordered the same thing and as I went to get my Diet Coke the fountain was out of CO2. I asked the lady behind the counter and she said oh ok I'll get it fixed. Time went by my food arrived and no fix to the soda fountain. I then said ok no problem can I just get a refund on the drink and a water cup. Nope!!! The lady then began explaining she could give one because she couldn't override it and couldn't give cash back instead because it was a card purchase. I ended taking the food to go and ate the cost of a $4 coke. The owner refunded me for the order of today. The food is good but not good enough to make up for the bad taste of poor quality servers.

I came down with a massive craving for BBQ while I was hanging out at Concourse Bowling and I yelped for an emergency prescription of BBQ ribs. The closest place was Blake's Place and I immediately phoned in my order and drove way over the speed limit to get here. I know I was in a rush to satiate my craving, because I didn't even take a picture of the food! It did hit the spot and I think I ordered a full rack which meant I had BBQ for the next 5 meals. The ribs were not fall off the bone and were a little tough, but I was coming at an off peak time. I will give them another try when I'm back up in this area. The BBQ was tangy. They also have seating with a typical down home BBQ-esque ambiance. Parking is shared with an industrial/flex strip center and it looks like Blake also operates a catering business out of the adjacent business.

Good spot in a barbecue desert.I've passed by this place for years. A million years ago, a friend of mine told me Blake's was garbage, and since he's a chef, I never popped in. I went once a long time ago and vaguely remember that it was passable barbecue, but nothing to write home about. I'm not a barbecue connoisseur, but I don't pay for barbecue unless it's good. Years passed and I ended up moving pretty close to Blake's, so I decided to try it again. My renewed opinion is that it's a solid barbecue place and somewhat affordable- don't expect the best BBQ of your existence and you won't be disappointed. I'm not going to lie, there is another place that I prefer, but it's more expensive and has bad parking, so most of the time, I'd rather hit Blake's. Easy and reliable.After coming here a bunch of times, our order is:Southwest salad with tri tip instead of chicken and a piece of garlic bread - this salad is my favorite. I do wish they served the meat on the salad warm, but I understand many restaurants don't do that to avoid wilting.Brisket sandwichPeach cobbler - it's not the best but still good! Warm it up and add ice cream if you have it at home One time, we shelled out a bit to taste all of their barbecue options, and the ribs, burnt ends, and brisket did not disappoint! We don't often order the straight barbecue because it's more expensive than getting an entree, but I definitely recommend you get it if you can.I ordered the lil beast sandwich once and that was also good, although I didn't expect for it to be all shredded meat. I'd prefer straight smoked meat or the brisket sandwich.Their bbq sauces are also very good. The spicy one is my favorite.Would recommend if you need a quick fix!

Ok! So Gene reached out to me directly after my last visit/review and let me know they were having a chefs meeting etc. To be clear, it wasn't bad before...just wasn't great. This time when I came in everything was awesome. The brisket tacos were something different that I wasn't expecting to get but they were good. The ribs and brisket to-go was all cooked great as well. I'll be back when I'm in town. The restaurant does have a nice bbq joint vibe to it as well. Good times

We came here on a Monday evening and it wasn't crowded. Which is good because I was starving. I glance at everything on the menu and it sounded good. Not reading properly I ordered the lil beast. It's a sandwiched,I thought it was a sample plate, but it's under the sandwich items. Still delicious, I'll order it again. My man got a slab of pork ribs, they were good and Mac and cheese. The ambiance was good, the staff friendly and they enjoyed working there. Which made us feel good eating here. We will come back again. Tip: when starving read the menu twice.

Plenty of parking and seating in a business center area. You order up front at the register and they bring the food to you. When my group went, there was a lot of seating, but when ordering a lot of items on the menu had wait times or are out (early lunch hour). I suppose there were a lot of to-go orders or catering service since I saw a lot of trays ready for pickup. Service is amazing and friendly. Make sure to check-in on Yelp to get a wonderful cookie of your choice. I ordered the Tasha's trio to get a sample of some of their meats that my group did not order. My dish is enough for three meals. Baby back ribs are a little on the dry side if you do not add sauce. Their sauce is flavorful!Cool decor of baseball things and some pictures of whom I assume is the owner. Large televisions for viewing sports.

BBQ and side items are delicious! Sandwiches are filled with meat so no skimping here. Spicy BBQ sauce is well-balanced so you can still enjoy the flavor. I go there often despite the long drive from Costa Mesa.

If my friend hadn't told me about this place, I never would've found it--it's definitely one of those hidden gems. I've been coming here regularly for the past two years, and now that I'm writing reviews, it's about time I give this place the recognition it deserves.Let me tell you about the Li'l Beast--what a sandwich! Slow Smoked Pulled Pork, Pulled BBQ Chicken, Chopped Beef Brisket, Cole Slaw, Pickle, Sliced Red Onion, and Blake's BBQ sauce, all served on a fresh-baked bun. This thing is a feast, and every bite is heaven.The meat is perfectly tender, juicy, and flavorful, and the coleslaw and pickles add the perfect crunch and tang. But what truly takes it over the top is their homemade BBQ sauce--it's rich, smoky, and downright addictive. I can't get enough of it!I'm definitely a creature of habit, but next time, I'm thinking of breaking tradition and trying something new. I don't know what that'll be yet, but I'll be back soon to figure it out!

We have been coming here for 14 years. The food and service are always great. We came in tonight to celebrate her birthday and the owner son was amazing. He went above and beyond to make our experience great we had the barbecue sampler which was a ton of food we split between three of us and the slider trio which was amazing. What a great experience a good celebration and will be back many times in the future thanks Blake's place you guys rock.