SmokeTree BBQ Bar & Grill

Awesome food the best garlic fries I have ever had. The man next to us ordered the Mac n cheese with crumbled bacon looked amazing. Tried all the sauces they set out. All great but loved the Carolina mustard sauce on my po boy brisket!

Ok so I had the brisket sandwich it was tough pieces of meat cut into cubes and buried in BBQ sauce that was way heavy on the chili powder it actually tasted more like chili than BBQ sauce. The brisket was not fresh or tender like smoked brisket should be. It was not terrible but not good either I wouldn’t go back. The garlic fries were flaccid and greasy. It’s hard to mess up BBQ but they managed to mess it up. Go to babes BBQ in the river shopping center down the street at least you’ll enjoy your food. Smoke tree gets a

HOLY FLIES. Food was boring and in my opinion I could have had the burger I ordered anywhere. What killed me was the crazy amount of flies. They were everywhere. On our food. On the bbq sauce. On the table. On the window. On us. It was freaking disgusting. Disgusting. And the waitresses were pretty sub par. One took our order then completely ignored us while she counted her tips. Then promptly came over to tell us she was leaving and the other lady would take over. She at least got us refills. Too bad we were basically done with our meal. Luckily the flies helped us so we were done quickly. Won’t be back.

We were at the park nearby and were craving a burger and some bbq. This place came up on Unilocal and looked good so we checked it out.
We ordered the brisket burger, pulled pork nachos and the kids meal which came with 2 rib bones a slider and a side.
The brisket burger was perfect. Meat smoked, seasoned and cooked perfectly. The nacho chips tasted homemade and the pulled pork was smoked to perfection.
My daughters meal was just as great.
The food was good and the service was even better. There were only a few people there and we all were served right away.
I am definitely checking this place out again.

We are from Connecticut and staying here in palm desert. One of us was dying for bbq so we found this place and saw it had pretty good reviews so we tried it. We were super impressed! The burnt ends were like nothing we ever had they were amazing… the ribs the chicken thigh the potato salad! All perfect… the sauces they use are on point and they do have a small variety and are willing to tell you about each one… we would def go back!

Finger lick’n fabulous! The Baby-​back Ribs are fall-​off-​the-​bone fabulous! I smother them with the Kicked Up BBQ sauce… No need to worry, every table has its own roll of paper towels! We’ve been many times and they never disappoint! We will be back… Soon.

Good bbq!!! It’s good to have something different there smoked wings were delicious and burnt ends were perfect service was also on point l, must get the Mac and cheese was delicious, had a good experience keep up the good work guys will be back!!!

I REALLY wanted to like SmokeTree BBQ, but they let me down and they let me down hard.
Since moving to the valley from an area known for its BBQ I have searched for something to quench my appetite for pork and beef goodness. After reading the reviews on Unilocal I looked forward to visiting SmokeTree and relishing my experience.
My wife and I visited the restaurant on a Saturday for lunch. We were seated by a very nice young lady who was our server. I asked for a sweet tea (I know, maybe I expected too much from this blues playing barbeque joint that made me a bit homesick) but settled on normal unsweet iced tea. The two of us ordered the three meat platter as recommended by our waitress to include brisket, pulled pork, ribs, slaw and beans. We enjoyed the slaw and beans but the rest was a disappointment. The pork was moist yet mushy. The ribs were passable, but nothing special. My biggest issue was with the brisket. I was expecting a freshly sliced piece of brisket with a beautiful smoke ring and delicious bark. Instead we received a dingy piece of dry meat with no smoke ring and little to no bark. The meat looked like it had been sliced the day before, frankly, I almost wonder if it was leftover from the previous day. The price for this platter of dried out, mushy, unappetizing meat? $ 28… I won’t even get to the small portions.
The sauces were pretty good, yet difference. The Carolina mustard was likely the best out of the bunch. The «Texas» style was tasty but was really a mix between a true Texas and North Carolina style sauce.
I can’t tell you how sad I am about my visit to the this joint, I so very much want to support them and help spread the word about what I hoped was going to be great Q experience, but I cannot do so in good conscience, therefore I give SmokeTree BBQ 2 Stars.

Five stars for two reasons tonight… Danielle and Sam! What impressive young women who just get it on so many levels! The food was spectacular, the beer and wine selection surprising, but our two servers tonight made the real difference! We WILL go back!

This was my first visit to this location. Had been to Palm Springs once before in the last 6 months.
Palm Springs Experience:
I remember the service was horrible but the food was okay. The 1 waitress was hanging around talking and no urgency to greet us or ask us what we wanted to drink.
So when they opened one closer to my home, I thought we should give it another try. Again… No one in the place except us and the 1 waitress was hanging around talking and taking her time to serve our drinks. It seemed that her conversation was more important. I asked for lemon and sweetener and she was so not paying attention that she forgot both.
Then she gave us the wrong price twice and then told us the price was more than listed after we ordered and she walked Away with the menus. So we couldn’t choice anything else.
Food came– the ribs were like jerky! Mind you we are the only ones here and we get burnt jerky ribs.
The waitress never retuned to get us refills or ask how it was? Then when she finally stopped by, she forgot the lemon again for my tea.
Chicken was good. Cornbread not fresh. Beans were good. Man Cheese was un flavorful.
We finally understood why it was empty on a Friday evening… Service and food is not UP TO STANDARD.

The price is better than Babe’s. The quality is the same. The ambiance, the craft beer, and music is way better than Babe’s.

My husband and I tried the palm desert location. The brisket was good the pulled pork was yummy, but the mac and cheese had no flavor and the service SUCKED. I felt like the two girls looked at us like why are you here. I saw two customers get up and help themselves to water. The girl asked the table next to us like 5 times if they needed anything but we had to flag her down for a refill on drinks.
Will not be returning.

Ate here after an impromptu trip to Palm Springs. Wanted to try something new and I usually look to Unilocal to help me out, it rarely fails. This place was close by and hubby was craving some BBQ so basically it was a win, win.
We started our with the Basket of House Fried Potato Chips, seasoning on them was really good but many of the chips weren’t crispy enough for me. They batch could of been fried a little longer and then they would of been perfect.
I ordered the Smoked Half Chicken with potato salad and macaroni and cheese for my sides. Chicken was nicely smoked, had good flavor and was moist. Mac’ N Cheese and Potato salad were both nice and creamy which I prefer and had good flavor.
Hubby ordered a two meat plate with brisket and baby back ribs. He said the ribs were a little dry but had good flavor and the brisket was good.
Overall we had a pleasant experience and if we’re ever out this way and want BBQ we’ll stop here again.

Decent — Not Great — Overpriced — Weird Location
Came here over the long weekend, could have shot a cannon through the restaurant and nobody would have heard it, very dead — which is always a red flag. Pulled pork OK — pretty skimpy portion for over $ 10, however. Servers were OK — nothing to write home about. Have had better…

The burnt ends tasted like they we’re made in a crockpot. The smoker did not any smoke marks on it. I doubt they even used the smoker. And it was in a strange location. Don’t even try the
Carolina pulled pork. The service is slow and the place is uncomfortable. Finally, it tasted like Homer Simpson had made the okra. It was over breaded and slimy. And don’t ask me why there were so many people there. Maybe the Unilocal reviews tricked them…

Wow…
That’s all I gotta say. Wow.
Crew’s grandpa really knows how to do it.
Had the triple meat platter: brisket, baby backs, pulled pork. All fall off the bone unreal.
Great BBQ sauces to accompany the meat.
Sides: grilled veggies, creamed corn and sweet potato fries. All fantastic. Creamed corn was the BEST I’ve ever had and that’s saying a lot.
Atmosphere is chill. Great bluesy music. Good staff. Nice beer and wine selection. You can’t go wrong.
To finish it all off some watermelon for the boy.
Great space inside too.
I’ll be back!

Food was delicious! Brisket, pulled pork and BBQ chicken with BBQ beans and real Mac and cheese. I recommend. The hubby and I shared and was plenty .
Takes us back to Texas.

I have been to many BBQ locations so I will provide my feedback and allow you to finalize your own conclusion. I have attached a photo depicting a $ 15 meal at this location.
This meal included pulled pork, 4 ribs, fried okra, sweet potatoe fries, a piece of corn bread and ranch and melted cheese.
The best part of the meal for me was the pulled pork. Although somewhat moist the seasoning was subtle. Looking at the picture the ribs are on the top right hand corner. Put two pieces of okra side by side and they would be bigger than the rib.
These are probably the smallest baby backs I have ever had. The ribs were dry but they had 4 styles of BBQ sauce to moisten them (alright).
Corn bread was dry. Don’t try to whistle after biting into this.
Overall rating is based on this one meal which was OK at best.

For those of you that know me, you know I’m a carnivore. More than that, I am a BBQ fan, and have even been known to cook up some myself from time to time. So needless to say, my review is going to have more weight to it than say the trendy hipster you know.
Now that my credentials are out of the way, let’s take a bite out of Smoke Tree.
We started off with an order of burnt ends, the smokey, beefy, fatty brisket ends that are flavor magnets of fumes and rub. These are not for amateurs. Noobs, beware. They are intense, and they do go quick.
Next, I ordered the baby back rib plate with a half rack of the aforementioned ribs, and I ordered my two sides of potato salad and stick to your rib mac and cheese. But that’s not all dear reader. It also comes with onions and pickles (which are particularly good) and cornbread (which stood up better than any corn bread I’ve ever seen, very firm). The potato salad was good, not great, and the mac was exactly how I like it; safety cone orange. That’s not even sarcasm, I genuinely enjoy that.
But what of the ribs? Let me tell you. T-​E-​N-​D-​E-​R.
THAT’S how you spell success. They’re given to you sans sauce, which I like. Because they offer four different types of house sauces (including a ghost pepper BBQ sauce which failed to live up to its name). My favorite? The Kentucky version. Sweet and spicy and a perfect pork patina for my ribs. It’s so good I wanted to roll around it in naked then slap my mamma and eat some more.
So what did we learn here today? Look, the place is good, ok? Is it the best ever? No. But it’s a far cry from the drudge we’ve had in the past.

The last time I had barbecue that was this good, I was physically in Texas. I walked in to this new BBQ place, sitting at the far end of a strip mall between Portola and San Louis Rey on 111 in Palm Desert with very low expectations. I then perused the menu and saw no lunch specials — Everything was priced for dinner. I thought about leaving, but I figured it was at least worth a try.
I ordered a two meat combo with baby back ribs a hot link, with coleslaw and potato salad and lemonade to drink.
I was promptly blown away by what I received.
It began with the lemonade not being the usual ‘Minute Maid’ stuff, but a truly tasty homemade lemonade. Then the platter arrived and I might as well have been in Texas. I can’t adequately express how happy I was with the food. The ribs were delicious, not needing any of the four sauces that had at the table. Tender, falling off the bone, and smoked but without the overly aggressive smoke flavor that so many places have. The coleslaw, the potato salad, all exactly what I love. And they give you real honey with your cornbread. And pickles and onions. And a slice of watermelon.
I asked the manager before I left, and he said that the one issue I had, the lack of a lower priced lunch menu, is going to be addressed pretty soon as well. (Unrelated to the food, but I am fairly confident that several of the things in here, like the napkin roll holders and the long table near the window, we’re taken from the now defunct Tooties BBQ?)
Needless to say, I’ll be back.