678-845-1565
http://www.jimnnicks.com/
I'm not big on chain BBQ restaurants. They get a bad rap...and usually for good reason. I'd like to make an exception to this rule, and that would be Jim 'N Nick's BBQ in Cumming. We decided to give them a shot last weekend on our way to Helen for Oktoberfest. It was the smartest decision I made that weekend.
It was around 11:20 when we pulled in to Jim 'N Nick's. There weren't many people there, but I know we were pretty early. You could smell the smoke from the smokers as soon as you pulled in. We walked in, were greeted, and then promptly seated. If you've never been to a Jim 'N Nick's before then you're in for a treat while you wait for your food. They have some of the best complimentary corn muffins available. I recommend asking for honey butter as well (if you're into that sort of thing). I'm not sure where honey butter topped corn muffins fall in the scope of BBQ, but I'm not making any formal complaints. The only warning I'd give is that you need to be careful because I could easily fill up on these things alone. After a couple baskets of corn muffins (I wish I was exaggerating), we placed our orders. Jamie and I would split the three meat combo which came with pulled pork, brisket, pork back ribs, and beef sausage. Our sides included baked beans and mac 'n cheese. I more often than not ask for my sauce on the side. I like to really be able to taste the BBQ sans sauce first. Many times the sauce can complement the meat, but I prefer to be the judge of that and not some line cook.
When our food came out the first thing I noticed was that it was drenched in sauce...perfect. Don't get me wrong, Jim 'N Nick's has great BBQ sauces. I just would've preferred it on the side. I kindly notified the waitress who in return unkindly gave us some attitude to go along with the overly sauced meat. We were in a hurry so I opted not to make a big deal out of it, and we tried to enjoy our meal. All meats had evidence of quality smoke. The pulled pork was better than average, but not the best I've ever had. The ribs were also just "pretty good." On the other hand, the brisket and sausage were fantastic here. They home make their sausage at Jim 'N Nick's which definitely surprised me. The sausage had nice flavor, texture, snap, and smoke. The brisket wasn't too dry where it crumbled, but wasn't too tough either. We thoroughly enjoyed both beef products. The sides were both good, but also forgettable.
When we left we decided to speak with the manager to let him know how our experience went. I'm never one to make a scene or embarrass anyone at a restaurant, but we just wanted to make sure they knew how their customers are treated. This is where Jim 'N Nick's really impressed us. A gentlemen by the name of Chad Reynolds came out and expressed to us how much he regretted what happened. He was very sincere and did everything he could to make sure we would hopefully return to Jim 'N Nick's. Chad had no idea that I review BBQ, but he still treated us like we were their most important customers. We appreciated it and will definitely return if ever in the area.
The Jim 'N Nick's in Cumming has above average BBQ and above average management. It's a solid option at any location we've tried so far.
Twenty residents from my subdivision at the restaurant on Old Peachtree Rd. last week. Our waitresses were Denni and Aishe. I'm commenting because I want to give kudos to these two gals who took such good care of us. They had great personalities, were very professional, and did an excellent job attending to twenty people! Thank you, Jim 'N Nick's for hiring such quality staff; by the way, the food was wonderful!
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