Mike’s Four Star BBQ

This place was amazing. We visited this establishment in summer, came back in December to find it closed. Very sad, seeing as my family and I loved the food.

Best bbq around. Great menu choices, reasonably priced. The décor (old gas station) is awesome. The owners are fantastic folks, real hands on with customers, friendly. It’ll be too bad on December 13^th when they close. Hopefully, someone as dedicated to great bbq will reopen the place!

4 stars for mikes 4 star. Great Brisket. Definitely worth a trip out to Port Gamble.

Delicious!!! I am salivating just thinking about it. Fresh fries in the GF only fryer, fresh chips, BBQ, beans, and coleslaw. Amazing!!! This is the only restaurant in which I have to forcibly stop myself from binge eating… It is so unbelievably good. It is also a small business that is locally owned. Mike and Stephanie are the wonderful owners… Yes I am a nerd about this place to the point that I know the names of the owners. With a severe gluten intolerance I have to talk to every restaurant worker everywhere I go and even then the service is not as reliable as it is at Mike’s. I love it!

Very good food. A bit overpriced I’d say, but they have a good selection on the menu.

A bit expensive but I have enjoyed the food both times I have been here. Good BBQ. Helps if your order is correct…
Very clean in my experience, especially the bathrooms (which are just outside the dining room building to the west).

Came here off the ferry and on our way to the Olympics. We were waiting out bridge traffic and stopped here based on the Unilocal reviews. We ordered the smoked chicken quesadillas and actually found a bone in it! We didn’t mind because it was apparent that the meat was not prepackaged but fresh. The ribs were delicious. I did not like the slaw but the beans were tasty. The parking was sizeable enough for our RV. The ribs were cooked on site and the owner took the time to explain his business. We enjoyed the food and the conversation with the owner. No room for dessert!

Just the facts.. . The brisket is good. So here is the rest…
Hmmm — what should I tip, you have to decide when you order because that’s when you pay. The receipt has a place for a TIP. You order and pay at the counter, you get your own drinks, napkins, plastic silverware, and you leave your table when they call your name to go get your food, which is in cardboard baskets similar to other fast food.
6 oz brisket (we asked because we thought we might share) on bread $ 9.25, everything else is extra — regular fries $ 3.95, gluten free — add .75, extra sauce — I can’t remember how much, but it’s posted.
Total Bill with tax = $ 28.70 for 2 sandwiches with 2 orders of fries and water in little plastic cups– no charge for the cups.

Simply superb BBQ. The brisket is soooo good! And the home-​made potato chips, too. This is an excellent spot for great meat.

Went in starving, had the spare ribs plate and enjoyed the best ribs I’ve had for a long while. Delicious food, plenty of it, friendly service, not overpriced, good beer on tap! Say no more, this is a great place for dinner.

This is by far my favorite rib place of all time! I got the ½ rack spare rib meal, which came with 6 super large ribs, side of slaw and beans. I don’t even bother with sauce as the meat has a delicious bark and are juicy and tender. I do love the crunchiness of the slaw but to sweet. The beans are smokey, but maybe a tad over done. None of that takes away from why you came which is the ribs.

This is the food we went with for our wedding and everyone raved about how great it was. We got married at Kitsap Memorial State Park on September 2^nd 2014.
They had agreed to provide the food for our wedding not realizing it was a Tuesday which is a day they aren’t usually open but they are so nice that they provided food for our wedding anyway! Mike was a pleasure to talk to and communicate with through e-​mails. Him, his wife and their staff are all great!
Before we decided to go with them for our wedding we came by to try their food. It just so happened that it was also the weekend of the Renaissance fair. It was completely packed and the line took like 20 to 30 minutes to get to the counter to order. We got our food and all of it was delicious. We knew if they could handle having food this amazing when it was this busy then they must definitely know their stuff.
For our wedding we got quite a few 5 Way Platter Party Packs. My absolute favorite is their housemade smoked sausage! SO GOOD! Salty, garlicky, oh so smoky, meaty goodness! I really loved all it even the coleslaw and the baked beans. The baked beans were so good that even my mother-​in-​law who hates beans enjoyed them.
Our wedding food ended up costing half as much as it would have cost if we had hired a caterer and I can guarantee that the food was just as good. All it took was my father spending 15 — 20 minutes to drive back and forth to get the food after the ceremony while we were taking the just bride and groom wedding photos.
Fewer guests showed up than was planned so the week before we left for our honeymoon we didn’t cook dinner often and we mostly ate leftover BBQ which put a bit of stress off our shoulders. That week I was in smoked meat marital bliss!
I definitely recommend Mike’s Four Star BBQ!

Can’t say enough how good the food is at Mike’s. The quality of the preparation is apparent from the first bite. We had a combination of pork, brisket, chicken and ribs and every piece was delicious. Loved both of their sauces.

We had the smoked chicken quesadilla, green salad, and the onion rings. The quesadilla and onion rings or outstanding! The quesadilla had several kinds of cheese and pulled smoke chicken. It was a meal in self! The onion rings or light and flavors. The breading was very light and not greasy at all. The green salad had a little bit of bacon bits, Romain greens and green leaf lettuce. It also had tomatoes and croutons
The staff are great, giving recommendations and very welcoming.

Delish! Clean, friendly welcoming owners, good solid meat. Flavorful, prepared well, juicy. We went all out and got a huge sampler plate (the 3way) and weren’t let down. Ordered a side of potato skins and they were my favorite thing! Cheesy, filling and topped with your choice of meat. Nothing too creative or out of the ordinary but if your gluten free (my eating partner was) they go out of their way to accommodate and if you dig bbq meat then you’ll love it! But seriously get the potato skin, to die for.

Holy cow! The barbeque here is phenomenal. Finger lickin good! I cant wait to go back again. The staff is super friendly and the décor is fitting.

How I heard of this place: At the beginning of June, I made my way to the small town where our wedding would be celebrated. While in Port Gamble, after having toured the oneblock that makes up the the town itself, we made our way out and around to leave the village, when we came upon Mike’s. Parking in their lot, after ordering espresso beverages at the drive-​through shop just ahead of the BBQ joint, I made my way in to talk to Mike & Stephanie (the owners). It seemed the perfect place for our Rehearsal Dinner, where friends and family could enjoy a bite together before our Big Day. Right then and there, I booked it.
Type of cuisine: «Mike’s Four Star BBQ, located at 4719 NE State HWY 104, is the old service station in historic Port Gamble. The building is now a roadhouse that serves authentic Carolina Style Pit BBQ. Enjoy pulled pork, beef brisket, ribs, chicken, handmade sausage, burgers and more.» The more includes sweet potato fries, potato skins, crispy onion rings, coleslaw, smokey BBQ beans, pickle chips, wings, salad, giant cheeseburgers, a smoked chicken quesadilla and about as many platters as you can think up!
Ambiance: The light blue paint with white trim along the exterior easily emphasizes the red and white logo that is Mike’s Four Star BBQ. With only three, small windows along the street-​facing side of the establishment, even during daylight hours, a dim, true BBQ joint feel emanates from the inside. A casual dining area just outside includes round picnic tables and benches, set underneath large umbrellas to shade patrons from the intense heat and sunshine of an early Pacific Northwest August eve. The gravel flooring meets a paved, concrete sidewalk, leading into the large door of the restaurants interior. The expansive space feels even more grand with its high ceilings and one room, opening out from the kitchen area, blocked only by a counter for the cash register and ample space to pick up orders and select your beverage from the soda fountain. A chalkboard overhead spells out the details of the menu, which seems small, but leaves no room for going home hungry. The dark interior, with waxed concrete floor, rustic, heavy-​duty picnic tables inside for parties of four to twenty mark the perfect way to introduce and unite two families.
What I ordered: I selected the Potato Skins ($ 8.50) with smoked chicken, topped with cheese, sour cream, green onions and Mike’s Four Star BBQ sauce. Chris went with the Full Rack of Ribs ($ 25), which included «bean and slaw». Others in our party selected everything from Mike’s Giant Cheeseburger ($ 10) with ½ pound Angus beef, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickles, onions and Mike’s house dressing, to French Fries ($ 3.95) with the skin on, seasoned Mike’s way, and beer battered Onion Rings ($ 4.50). We had the Smokey BBQ Beans ($ 3.95), slow smoked and seasoned with Mike’s secret spices, Caroline Cole Slaw ($ 3.95), sweet and tangy, without mayo! We saw other enjoying the Smoked Chicken Quesadilla ($ 7.95) with pulled chicken, jack cheese, sour cream, green onions and Mike’s Four Star BBQ sauce, Smoked ¼ Chicken ($ 6.50 a la carte; $ 8.50 plate), large smoked dark meat leg and thigh piece, skin on. Two people enjoyed the Cheeseburger Salad ($ 10.50 each) with ½ pound of Angus beef, American cheese, tomato, pickles, onions and Mike’s House Sauce served on Romaine lettuce, a couple of people also partaking of the Walker-​Ames House Salad ($ 8.95 each) with Romaine lettuce, bacon, tomato, green onions and croutons. Rib plates ($ 9.95 each), Pulled Pork and Pulled Chicken (dark meat) Sandwiches ($ 6.95 a la carte; $ 8.95 plate) with dry rubbed, slow smoked pork shoulder served between two, thick slices of yellow (potato?) bread. Unlimited soda refills helped to wash down the plethora of foods at our ten-​plus tables, with over thirty of our favorite family members and friends!
What I loved: The food was amazingly delicious, flavorful and juicy. The ribs tender and dry-​covered with BBQ sauce. The potato skins filling and tasty. The smoked chicken juicy and tender, falling off the bone as I went to take an offered sample from friend. The burger, one of the best, most pure, all-​American burgers I have had in a while. The beans full of smoky goodness and the coleslaw tangy and pungent.
Why I loved it: The staff, Mike, his wife, Stephanie and the young’uns who took our orders made for a perfect, at home-​meal feel in an unfamiliar town. Even while recounting the memories of her niece’s wedding at the Hood Canal Vista Pavilion just three weeks prior, Stephanie’s eyes began welling up as she held back tears thinking of the beautiful day Chris and I would share tomorrow.
Cost: Low to high ($ 6.50 — $ 38 for meals serving one to five people)

Food: 4 way– feeds 4 perfectly, giving good variety.
BBQ sauce– sweet and yummy.
Cole slaw– crisp and fresh, no mayo.
Sweet potato fries– good thin thickness, with yummy crack seasoning over it.
Good micro beers available in restaurants.
Value– great! Fair pricing.
Great location– 7.6 miles from Kingston ferry, right off the Main Street, easy to find. Across the street with benches and a large playground.
Customer service– great! family owned. Family is looking for good owner to transfer ownership. Offer plates and utensils for eating at the park.
Downside: took 15 – 20 min to get our food.

I love barbeque. I like grilled stuff, but barbeque is a little better.
Slowly cooked, falling off the bone, yet still juicy.
Mike’s scores.
They also have excellent barbeque sauce to go on. Makes for a great combination.
They make a vinegar-​based sauce that is spicy. Not liking spicy stuff, I’ll leave that review to others.
Cole slaw was excellent. The dressing is vinegar-​based (not creamy), but it doesn’t taste vinegary (is that a word?) (can you put three phrases in parentheses in a single sentence?).
Baked beans are excellent. My partner hates baked beans. I’m usually polite enough to eat his — starving children and all that stuff my mother used to tell me.
Didn’t get any beans. He had the nerve to eat them himself.
It is about an hour’s trip for us to get to Mikes.
We’ll be back!

Since I’m a stickler for fresh product and always complain when it seems like the beef has been sitting out in a warming tray too long, I guess I can’t complain that it was going to be another 4 hours until they had some beef ready to serve…
Having to deny my craving for brisket, I had the pulled pork sandwich. The pork was tasty if maybe a little dry. The sauces were certainly saucy — I preferred the spicy option over the other choice, I would say about an 8 out of 10 in terms of specialness.
My wife had loaded potato skins with BBQ chicken and my daughter had a bbq chicken quesadilla — both were things that were very tasty and not at all what you would expect at the run of the mill BBQ place — and this is no run of the mill bbq joint. I had the home made potato chips — they were ok and have a huge potential to be really good… The problem — bland. No salt or seasonings. I did try to add some salt once I got them, but potato chips must require salting/​seasoning prior to cooking because the salt just didn’t stick. It was a generous portion however and I was able to eat them all (with some help from my more than willing family).
The setting is really interesting — apparently a historic filling station. I liked the décor on the walls — not fancy but certainly cool to investigate.
The service was good — and basic — not unlike many bbq places — place your order at the counter and go pick it up when it’s ready.
I had a tough time between 3 and 4 stars — the food was probably only 3 stars but the choices made it seem like it is worth the benefit of the doubt. Remembering that they would turn away business instead of selling something less than prime quality sealed the deal — even if I didn’t get what I would have liked to have. The bread was pretty much bleh… but there was enough meat that I was eating it with a fork, open faced so I didn’t find it to much of a distraction.
The setting is worth checking out if you are interested in historic buildings — being able to go inside and look around was very cool. Sadly, the tables weren’t exactly clean — there was some film on them that was disappointing.
The prices — eh… a little high — but probably market — I’m just cheap and I know it.
I think they live up to their name and certainly have the potential to climb up to 5 stars, I’ll have to come back when they have some brisket and see how it turns out.
It’s a good stop, on the way to Kingston which is a fun place to walk around or catch a ferry.