Rocklands Barbeque and Grilling Company

Came here after the Air & Space Museum in DC for an early dinner. The macaroni was a standard Velveta mixture. If you love this style Mac, you’ll have no issues with the rest of the menu (we prefer a more complex baked Mac) This may be some of the best bbq you’ll find in the area. We are from North Carolina and have a bit different take, but can see why the locals enjoy this spot.

Ordered the 3 meat platter and doubled down on the brisket + pulled pork to go. While sitting waiting for my name to be called, i noticed the dine in group that had ordered after me was already being served, so I got up and stood by the counter and waited more than a few minutes to be noticed and asked about my food. It, apparently, had been sitting waiting for me for more than a few minutes.... no name called at all... anyway. So, i went ahead and sat at the table to finish my beer and try a sample of the food i had received. Crimes have been committed. To my great shock and surprise, I found very thinly sliced, (overly!) sauced brisket with HEAVY grill marks. To the point as to where what should have been deliciously moist brisket, had been turned into leather Jerky. I had hoped this was just an oversight, but when brought to the managers Attention I was told the brisket is cooked earlier and then just heated up on the grill and that this edible crafting material was acceptable and up to their standards. Who on earth, grills cooked brisket. It's sociopathic. The pulled pork was average. Also of note, decent sides and Only 1 BBQ sauce, branded hot sauce is also provided.

Do you know how difficult it is to find a place that has beef ribs? Very! Rocklands met my requirements and whenever that craving hits, we make the drive just to grab some beef ribs, delicious dill potato salad, cheesy Mac n' cheese and of course their jalapeño corn bread! You will be sated and will waddle out of the restaurant a happy customer!

Forgot our sauce that we had to pay extra for because the platter doesn't come with sauce? Didn't provide silverware or napkins like requested. I'm at a hotel and had to eat mashed potatoes and macaroni with my fingers 🙄 food was okay not much flavor, needed more sauce... Brisket was super thinly sliced and just wet? Chicken was a bit burnt. Not sure how it has so many good reviews. Was expecting so much better 😢

Have never been here before. Smells good, tastes mediocre. The brisket was thinly sliced, overly sauced, and too fatty. More like beef bacon. The potato salad had a big chunk of salt right in the middle. The baked beans were marginally better than canned beans. The pork ribs were undercooked. The pecan pie was mostly filling with a few pecans sprinkled on top. On the plus side, the beef ribs and fried okra were fantastic, the cornbread was decent, and the hot pickles were great! For the price, I can't really recommend this unless you are very careful with what you order. It's very hit or miss.

One of the few consistently solid BBQ places in NW DC. Rocklands has been around for decades because the BBQ is great, very good selection of sides and if you want beer they have that too. Plus a large selection of sauces from sweet to mild to way too hot. I also love the Rocklands original BBQ sauce. Vinegar based but with onions and little tomato base. Not sweet at all. I buy a bottle to take home couple times a year. Wish it was sold at Giant or Safeway. Not a fancy place but perfect for BBQ. Staff always helpful and service prompt.

Chill atmosphere to enjoy some great BBQ!! Excellent thin sliced bbq beef brisket!! The pulled bbq chicken was good, a little dry but add some bbq and good to go! Great baby back ribs! The mac & cheese, mashed potatoes and fried yucca great sides! The service was excellent and very helpful!

Amazing!!!! Was looking for bbq and decided to try this place out because it was pretty close and did I get lucky! Wow!!! The brisket was amazing! The employees were great, I'll totally be back to try out something else soon and cannot wait!

3.5 rounded up to 4. Over the years have been to all their locations including Nationals Park and also had their food truck experience. Food: their meats are excellent. Really good smoke on them and juicy. Tasty enough without an sauce. Their approach to brisket is different. They slice it very thin which brings out the smoke flavor even more in my opinion. However, I find their sides to be lacking. They are just there so to speak. Nothing impressive. Service has always been good. Prices are competitive.

I tried the three meat combo with pulled pork, pulled chicken, and brisket. Their version of brisket is different than what most people would expect. The sauce was quite good. The sides I tried (cucumber salad, Mac and cheese, fries, cheese grits, hush puppies, and cornbread) were mostly good but the portions are small for the price.

If you love barbeque, you gotta check this place out. It is pretty tiny, consisting of two communal tables inside and a few tables outdoors. I think a lot of their business is pickup or delivery. So the place is nothing fancy, and there is little service outside of the front counter. The main attraction here is the food. My favorite is the pulled pork - they call it chopped. They have tons of hot sauces available as well as their barbecue sauce (it's a little sweet for my taste, but I mix it with the hot sauce, and it comes out just right). They grill the meat right there and don't use any seed oil which is huge for us (and should be for anyone who wants to be healthy - in other words, everyone).

Great BBQ, I absolutely love the flavor of the Ribs, they have a nice smokey taste, nice sauce, chicken was a winner as well, can't go wrong. the Mac and cheese and greens are definitely my go do, Amazing! Walking in this place, gives you a bbq back yard feel pretty much, great customer service, I love the fact that you can see the cook on the grill, that's a plus, but makes it hard to decide what to eat, because everything looks great when it's on the grill. Great Ambiance at Rocklands BBQ, love the restaurant.

I've walked past Rocklands a thousand times. The smells are always tempting, and this time they tempted me right in the door. We were greeted as soon as we walked in the door by cheerful and friendly staff. The inside is about what you would expect from a bbq place. I was disappointed not to see brisket in the menu, but was more than happy with the baby back ribs I ended up with. Their macaroni and cheese, potato salad and lemonade are also great picks! My bestie, a DC resident says that Rocklands has her favorite hot dog in the city!

Walked past this store and was drawn to the shop by the fragrance of barbecued meat. We made impromptu plans to dine here and were not disappointed!

Only one star shy because of the price. Great BBQ with hearty sides and healthy portions. Best onion rings I've had in DC.

We ordered door dash from here yesterday and were a bit disappointed. Their bbq sauce is too vinegary for me. The Spare Ribs were juicy and tender but seasoning lacking. The Grilled Wings were tiny but at least not dry. The Texas Corn Pudding was a miss. It lacked seasoning and was just mushy. I couldn't get pass the consistency. The Macaroni & Cheese was creamy but lacked seasoning too. The only dishes we really enjoyed were the Barbeque Baked Beans and the Collard Greens.

If you love bbq don't order from here. Nothing we ordered was good. We both ordered the chicken. All I tasted was smoke no seasoning. The baked beans tasted like beans in ketchup and the Mac n cheese was flavorless. I would have taken some pics but it was in the trash before I could do it. Very disappointed!

Okay, I'll admit it. I'm a Yelp snob. In D.C., I usually don't dine at places with a 3.5 star review or below. Walking into Rocklands for lunch with a new friend, I was skeptical. After a lunch of a meat and two sides, I'm a convert. Rocklands is worth going to! Here's why: 1) Food: The menu is so large it can be overwhelming- all types of meats, sandwiches and a long list of sides. Helpfully, there are pictures of all the sides. For lunch, I got the pulled pork sandwich and two sides- baked beans and mac and cheese. The sandwich came pilled with a big mound of meat with sweet BBW sauce on top. It was good, but the mac and cheese- wow! It could make a "best mac and cheese in D.C." list. 2) Drinks: They sell beer and other drinks. I was impressed to see a sour on the menu. It paired well with my pulled pork sandwich. 3) Space: It looks like a BBQ spot you'd find in the middle of Virginia on the way to the Shenandoah. There's seating in the main room, in an additional room and an outdoor patio along the street.

Ok this is a regular trip for me! My husband and I come to Rocklands on Wisconsin Ave quite a bit, but today it was extra good! The food was delicious! The ribs were so tender... Chef's kiss! The ambience is always just right. A little bit of TV, a little bit of music and a whole lot of eating. Don't forget about the great crew. They always doing a fantastic job. All I have to say is...if you haven't been to Rocklands located on Wisconsin?? What are you waiting for!

This time I went out of my normal comfort zone and got a cuban sandwich, but usually I get the ribs. But trust me - the sandwich was a great option. In fact I've never had 'average' BBQ here. Everything has always been well made. I especially like the huge tubs of jalapeno mac and cheese they offer; I usually get those for house parties. Great beer options too!

Great casual spot for a quick bite! Food: yum!!! Food was great. Mint salad was refreshing. The meat was very tasty and fries were delicious. Would definitely come again. Though I did split this with another party and wished the serving portion of meat was just a weeee bit larger, but that's alright :) The homemade bbq and pickled jalapeños + pickles that are SELF SERVE are a must - great touch Service: Was very pleasantly surprised with how much the employees knew about their gluten-free offerings. They knew what was cross contaminated in their fryers and shared that with me, which was very thoughtful, thank you! Ambiance: Rocklands gets the job done -- wouldn't say the ambiance blew me out of the water but I also don't think that's what they are going for. it's a perfect easy casual spot for a bite

I came here with my Dad last week, who is a huge barbecue fan but has recently had to take on a healthier diet. He got the salmon sandwich and still hasn't shut up about how much he loved it. The set up is order at the counter and take to your table, with grab and go condiments/silverware near the counter and napkins on each table. inside is clean and spacious, with some outdoor seating on a patio. Our service was on the slower side, as they seemed to be overwhelmed with a few larger to-go orders, but made sure to keep me updated on the status of our order as they prepared it. I got the brisket sandwich and sweet potato fries. The fries were on the sweeter side for sweet potato fries and the brisket sandwich had wonderful flavor but a little less meat than some other DC barbecue places. Overall, I would definitely bring my dad back here exclusively with how much he loved it and the proximity to my house, but I think it would be added in to the rotation of options for myself.

Ordered food for delivery. Decent BBQ to get via delivery service. Can't say I was exactly wowed, but it wasn't bad. I definitely paid an up charge in having the food delivered. Cannot say that I would feel any different as far as the quality, taste, or portion size of the food if I had paid in store prices. The food was OK, but not anything that I feel I will order again or visit the restaurant.

Not sure which location the food truck come from, but overall this was not a great food experience. The folks at the truck are cool but the food not so great. I'm assuming it's prepared at one of their locations and then just put in warmers on the food truck. I arrived at the truck around 11:30, 30 mins after they arrive. I got the brisket with a side of mac and cheese and collard greens. The meat was cold. The sides were warm but the taste was not great. I don't recommend the mac, it's bland. The greens weren't too bad, I like a more vinegary green. The brisket was cold and chewy but the sauce on top was good. That made eating the brisket somewhat bearable. The honey jalapeño cornbread was good. It's sweet and not spicy. Wish it were warm. The food for me was just bland overall. This doesn't taste like that down home bbq for sure. Although, I don't recommend, try them for yourself... Everyone's taste buds are different!

Food is good. I visit roughly once per month. I'd come more, if the owner wasn't so cheap.... I mean bring back the darn peanuts.....or only free if you spend "x" Makes the place even more fun

Amazing!!!! Was looking for bbq and decided to try this place out because it was pretty close and did I get lucky! Wow!!! The brisket was amazing! The employees were great, I'll totally be back to try out something else soon and cannot wait!

We LOVE Rockland's!! This was the first place my family and I ate at when I first moved to DC, and my parents request we come back every time they visit!! We are southerners, so we know good barbecue and Rocklands IS good barbecue! Service is nice, knowledgeable, and food comes out fairly quick after ordering! You can literally smell the barbecue smoke from down the street! Their barbecue pulled chicken, Mac and cheese, burgers, and potato salad are SO good!! We always order a bunch of different things and share with each other. They also have homemade pickled sides inside- pickles, onions, and jalapeños, as well as an extensive selection of hot and barbecue sauces to add to your food! The only thing I don't recommend are their fries, very thin and unseasoned- but why order fries when you could have their delicious potato salad anyway??? They also have big outdoor tables, and if you try to go in the late afternoon so it's not direct sunlight- it's perfect! Big fan of Rocklands and will be a recurring visitor as long as I live here!

i gave it a one star ust to get review to publish... have been a customer of Rocklands for years and have even had parties using their products....but lately I have noticed a huge drop off in food quality....last night I ordered from Uber eats a bar b Q sandwich and a pit beef sandwich....the pit beef sandwich was the worse example of a pit beef sandwich I have ever seen ....little thin slices of overcooked something that looked like shoe leather with a smoked taste....it was in one word....AWFUL....the bar b Q sandwich which was requested with sauce on the side came with zero sauce.....the onion rings were a soggy mess.....a waste of money....a huge disappointment...last time as there are too many alternatives....

Excellent service and love the bbq atmosphere. I had the fish sandwich which was a selection of catfish or salmon. I had salmon which was very good. Other members of my party had brisket which they liked. I did enjoy ordering fish at a bbq restaurant.

When ever I'm in dc I have to stop by rocklands at least once, their bbq is some of the best I've ever had!!! I highly recommend you stopping in here if you live in or around dc or just visiting!!

Perfect service and delivery! I used the $10 off coupon from theSkimm for DoorDash combined with free delivery for the first time using DoorDash. It was very easy to place the order in the app, and fully customizable for extras (like fried onions), sauce on the side, etc. Really cool! It was dropped off exactly on time. Amazing! We tried the Brisket, Chopped Pork, Baby back ribs (whole rack), Baked Beans, Mac & Cheese, Coleslaw, and Honey jalapeno cornbread. As I selected sauce on the side for everything, they kindly included a big container of their nice sauce - very appreciated! The food was overall very good, not the best barbecue I've ever had (hard to beat some we had in Nashville!), but totally met my barbecue wishes, and I would be happy to eat there in person someday. Thank you!

It's not just the BBQ. It is the fact that they are probably the ONLY restaurant that offers a 4 oz. hamburger/cheeseburger. I don't want 6 or 8 ounces! Thanks John and your crew for this option. Oh, and did I say it is always cooked to perfection?!

We happened upon this pretty much by accident. We saw a burger place right next to it, and after parking the car, we noticed "barbecue." I had never heard of it prior to eating here, but the food is pretty good. My granddaughter had a mixed rib platter (beef and pork). She also had the "killer onion rings" (as did I). The onion rings were pretty good, with a solid crunch to them. I had the beef brisket sandwich with grilled onions. The brisket was good, but it wasn't as tender as I expected. My wife also had a brisket sandwich and she felt the same way that I did as far as it not being as tender as some other places we have dined at. There is outside seating along Wisconsin Avenue. They offer free refills on fountain drinks, and they do have a small selection of beers and some stronger spirits. I would recommend trying this place out. I do look forward to coming back and trying some other items on their menu.

We ordered carry out which was ready promptly and hot! We chose a little of everything via a couple of the Feast packages - ribs, chicken, pork and brisket. All were good, the chicken in particular had a great smoky flavor. Sides were solid, the broccoli bacon salad got a lot of positive comments from our group.

Super cute little spot with both take out and dine in options. Big menu with fairly priced options. Everything was quick, hot, and super delicious. They have beer and wine too which is a nice touch.

Get yourself some delicious comfort food. @rocklandsbbq is the place to do it! The pulled pork sandwich was incredible, the Mac and cheese was creamy and delicious, and the crunch of those onion rings were insane. Highly recommend for some awesome bbq in the city. 9.5/10. Comment where I should go next!

Staff was attentive. Food was good. The collards and fried okra.....can't even speak on that....awesome! This was lunch with my family. Weekend trip originally

I had such high hopes for this place. I ordered the ribs, jalapeño cornbread (tastes like regular cornbread), and broccoli bacon coleslaw. I love ribs and have been looking for a place that was tasty and not in SE. Needless to say, we'll continue to trek across the district to Johnny Boys. The ribs were not seasoned and really tasted like nothing. The bbq sauce was runny and extra vinegar-y but to each their own. Only giving this place 2 stars because the the coleslaw was great although they were stingy with the bacon bits. Disappointing

Food was fantastic. Barbecue was smoky with wonderful mouth watering sauce. We ordered the Belly Mix. The okra was terrific as well as the onion rings.

While exploring our new neighborhood in search of lunch places, we saw outdoor sitting on Wisconsin and found this place. Ordered half a rack of baby back ribs, sweet potato fries, black beans salad , and coleslaw. Both, my husband and I, voted 5 stars. Baby back ribs were delicious- tender, moist, flavorful. Sweet potato fries were too burnt to my taste but my husband loved it ( and he usually doesn't like sweet potatoes). Black beans salad and coleslaw were freshly made, with just the right combination of seasoning. We will definitely be back and definitely recommend this place for when you crave for bbq

Ordered take out. Ordered beef rib, brisket and pork belly. All very dry and pork belly was burnt. There are many better bbq places in the DMV. Go elsewhere. The collard greens were pretty good though

No frills. Just great BBQ. It was a small place with friendly staff, amazing food, and a long list of beers. I was on my way to another brunch place and as I walked by, I couldn't resist the amazing smell of BBQ. I had the three meats combo and I applauded my decision down to every bite. The utensils provided were plastic and the meat was so tender that plastic knife easily cut through the meat. Loved the ribs but I loved the beef ribs even more. Each table comes with two sauces and I tried both. I couldn't decide which one I liked better so I just traded off each bite. The additional accoutrements were off on the side of the restaurant next to a sink where your can wash your hands and a self serving soda machine. Pork belly sandwich was tender, the sauces are tangy and yet just sweet enough. Washed it down with a cold beer. The best pork belly sandwich I've had in a long time. Everything in this place, including the food was inviting. I'm definitely coming back to try other combos and sandwiches.

I ordered pickup and even though the expected wait time was 30 mins, when I arrived within that time frame the food was cold by the time I got to my home. (I live about 10 mins away). The bbq sauce is vinegar based and had too much of it - almost tasted sour with very little sweet to offset it. The beef rib was the best meat on the menu and tasted great. Don't sleep on the coleslaw either, perhaps the best I've had.

We picked up food. Nothing really wowed us, and it was pricey. Baby back ribs and pork ribs were okay. Not a huge fan of the sauce. Pork belly was not as tender as it should've been. Same with brisket. I didn't care for the chicken. Skin was tough and meat wasn't tender at all. Potato salad and Cole slaw were good and collards were very good. Fried okra was average. W we'll try a different place next time.

I've been going to Rocklands for years when they were located in Rockville. I was excited to learn that they were in DC. .I ordered a beef whole rack, potato salad, fried okra, caesar salad and mac and cheese. Unfortunately,the beef rack wasn't the same quality I once experienced. There was a huge fat cap that left less meat on 2.5 of 4 ribs. Basically more than half of the rib was PURE FAT-- absolutely not worth the price when more than half of the rib gets trashed because of how much pure fat is on there. Le sigh Mac and cheese is just okay, I ended up addingt shredded cheese and other spices to make it taste a little better. ( would not recommend if you like baked mac and cheese) Fired okra was good. Potato salad was alright Caesar salad had one random piece of chicken ( totally threw me off) The service was alright,but ordered online Overall a little disappointed,espeically given the price

Just yummy!! I don't care for their BBQ sauce, but the BBQ chicken snd ribs are perfect, I just use different sauce.

One of the best things about living in DC is Rocklands!

Absolutely a mess of service, quality and value for what was paid. For what used to me a local staple I enjoyed supporting will no longer be so. Sad.

Good barbecue spot. I got a takeout brisket sandwich for lunch and it hit the spot. I wish there was a bigger bun (as you can see in the pic it was quite small), but there was a good amount of brisket and the sauce was quite good.

I really wanted to like this place - because Rocklands offers the whole package. The staff are always incredibly friendly, the wide arrangement of sides are some of the largest for a BBQ place, and the joint itself has so many offerings from the peanuts, a wide variety of hot and BBQ sauces, and even a sink to wash your hands outside the bathroom! But my couple experiences with the meats here have been too hit or miss, which is the heart and soul of any BBQ joint. Like the weekday pit beef special or the sausages, solid meat that gets the job done. I can even live with some tough brisket. But my ribs just didn't go right: a little tough to rip apart, plus the flavor had a weird funk that's like the weird cousin of super gamey or old meat where I couldn't do more than a couple bites. Was hoping I just had an off experience with the Belly Buster so I ordered it half a year later, and that's probably how I'd still describe the ribs, funky. Maybe it's just my better cuts were full of fat or sauce, but even ribs should have enough of that so I don't know where it's clashing for me. If you don't have that problem the menu has great value with plenty of range. But as is I don't think it's for me.

Sadly I don't have pictures so please forgive me. We have ordered from this place a few times. We always do take out via grubhub. We order the same items, the coleslaw and the beans. Love the beans and coleslaw. We also get a beef ribs whole rack, sooo good!!! It is cooked to perfection, it falls off the bone so easily and effortlessly. My only complaints are the rolls were hamburger rolls you can get at the supermarket, so skip that and the cornbread, it's so small for the price. You can basically make cornbread at home for a cheaper price. Otherwise, if you are two people, getting a pint of coleslaw and a pint of beans with a whole beef rack is more than enough. I usually never finish in first sitting and end up having it the next day with eggs.

I had a pretty bad experience here just yesterday. For starters, the cashier was extremely unfriendly and not welcoming at all. We literally watched her greet "certain" customers but not all customers. We initially ordered to go but later decided to dine in because barbecue can be really messy. While dining in on the overpriced, not so tasty, lukewarm barbecue, we observed this same cashier's interactions with other customers as they entered and exited the restaurant. She continued to say "goodbye" to "certain" patrons and nothing at all to other customers. I thought that this "selective greeting" was just my imagination so I made a wager with my family as to whether or not we'd receive a farewell address or "come again" but needless to say, we received nothing. In addition to the poor customer service and not so great barbecue, the side order portions were ridiculously small! Less than 4oz for each side order at 2.99 each!! WTH!! I know we are in Georgetown but come on!! We wanted to complete an in store survey card but later decided to do this review on Yelp instead. I also plan to send a formal complaint directly to Rocklands management. What a waste.

Had been going there for years. Used to be good. Not cheap anymore. Food was meh. Feces smell from bathroom dominated the whole dining room, which totally ruined my lunch. After this, going back to Rocklands will be a difficult call. Sad after all these years, but yes, things change.

I was in Grover Park today and came across Rocklands Barbeque and Grilling Company and decided to pop in and enjoy one of their Pork sandwiches - which are always terrific - but going down the menu the Italian Sausage Sandwich with roaster peppers and onions jumped out at me so I decided to give it a go and I'm glad I did. Delicious sausage cooked perfectly, as were the peppers and onions with a great sauce to top it off. I'm definitely going back for more. You simply can't beat this place for really good food at very reasonable prices.

A gem of a BBQ joint! I did a search for DC barbecue, and came upon this terrific place just south of where I worked for 5 years. We never crossed the bridge to Massachusets Ave, I don't know why. Anyway, the atmosphere and aromas matched the Nashville joints I frequented when in town for a conference. AND they have hard cider on tap! I had "The Rocklands Pearl)", a bowl with layers of mac n cheese (shells!), baked beans, chopped pork and thier own wonderful sauce (vinegary and not too sweet, a nice Carolina variation I think). Total Heaven.

Great place for barbecue and sides. The eat in section is nice and clean. The sales staff are professional and accommodating. Great place for takeout too.

The food was amazingly yummy. I will definitely go back for another visit. Don't know why I need to say more

You smell the smoke from blocks away. I stayed at the Kimpton Glover Park hotel, and walked past this plAce. My boyfriend loves bbq so we decided to try this place before we head back and we are not disappointed. They have multiple options to choose from. I had the blue plate special, and he had the chicken and ribs. My sides were cornbread and onion rings. He had Mac salad and sweet potato fries. We are very satisfied. Highly recommend.