Smokey Joe's Island Grill

We tried to eat here 2 nights ago but did not like their seating requirements. We were told that it would be a couple of minutes....no problem. 5 seconds later a party of 4 walked up and were seated immediately? The manager came up to us a few moments later and asked if he could help us. I responded I didn't know, that we couldn't get a table but the party of 4 behind us got one 5 seconds later. He explained that he couldn't seat a party of 2 at a table that seats 4. Which prompted me to ask what would happen if 7 more parties of 4 came up? He responded that they would also get seated before us. THAT'S RIDICOULOUS! We took our business elsewhere since they are not the only restaurant on the island and the other ones don't discriminate against a party of 2. Apparently they show preference to a larger party where they feel they will make more money. And here is the best part. As we walked off there were empty tables AVAILABLE! They have now lost our 2 weekly annual visits for good because of their greed.

This review comes from a former big fan of Smokey Joe's and I write it with great sorrow. As we do on ever visit to Aruba, we visited Smokey Joe's during the 3rd Week of September 2017 and were immediately caught off guard that the menu had been changed from what had been on their website with fan favorites like the "Ultimate Combo for Two" for $39.95 gone and prices seemingly increased about 20% across the board. When the All You Can Eat Ribs is a buck difference then the normal rack of ribs, you know you are in trouble. Soft drinks are now $3 for about 12 oz with no refills. You get the idea of bleeding the loyal customer.

After having to order from the new overpriced and limited menu, we did not like the taste or portion size of the food. Both the so-called "Barbecue" Ribs and Chicken had been overboiled in the food prep process with it then just having barbecue sauce smeared on it then warmed up. The side of "Corn on the Cob" is a 1/3 piece of the cob and worth about 3 bites.

The only "Take Home" that we took from Smokey Joe's was gas from the food.

It was almost like a new owner took over a favorite restaurant and then was going to bleed all the loyal customers until they run the place into the ground.

Wanted a good burger for dinner tonite so decided to try Smokey Joes. Rumor has it that our first choice, Five Burgers, was closed? We\'ll check and confirm later....
Surprisingly, it was not busy during peak dinnertime on a Saturday nite (no waiting for a table!). SJs only serves 2 types of angus beef burgers...regular with choice of cheese, bacon, fries and coleslaw for $12.95 and a Jumbo topped with pulled pork and coleslaw for a few dollars more. I had the Paradise (regular) and Amy had the Pulled Pork sandwich for $14.95 which also came with fries and coleslaw. Both were very good and the fries were just crispy enough. We both cleaned our plates! BTW, menu prices have not changed since last year.

Consistently good Barbecue at decent prices. good service and good food. went there twice this trip and was not disappointed at all. both times, everyone in our party was pleased with the food, drinks and service. if you like ribs, try them at Smokey Joe's.

I would just like to pass this to Smokey Joe's restaurant. My wife & I were there on tuesday night Feb 16. The meal was not bad except they put my salad on the main course dish. I did not like this and never saw it before. I have gone to this restauarant many times before & like it....This last time was not a good experience my wife and I got food poisoning. During tuesday night we both became terribly sick. It lasted all night tuesday the next day wednesday we stayed in bed missed a full day on the beach. I just would like to let the ownership know from Smokey Joe's what happened. If they want to contact me my email is attached. If anything the restaurant should know they have a problem to avoid other people from having the same experience.

We went to Smokey Joe's with a large party and had very high hopes given the reviews we had seen.

The service was the absolute worst I have ever witnessed. Our waiter ignored us for most of the visit. We waiting a 1/2 hour for our drinks, 1 hour for our appetizers and 1 1/2 for our food. We had 8 hungry children which made matters worse.

The waiter actually walked out of his way simply to avoid us since he knew the food was taking so long. He also did not ever ask us if we wanted anything....drinks, silverware....and it was difficult to order anything since he was avoiding us.

The food was decent but it was hard to enjoy anything when you do not receive any service.

The Managers refused to do anything for our party to make amends based on the awful service and actually added a 17% service charge for our trouble!

It was a ruined night for us and truly an awful experience from start to finish.

Coming to Aruba for 13 Years and try their ribs the last 2 years.
These are NOT ribs to rave about. They have a large style of barbeque sauce, but the ribs are mediocre,seems like they been cooking for days, stuck to the bone and the only taste you tast is the burt sauce. Very commercial, generous portion, but. Not my cup of tea, you get what you pay.

Good ribs, but not as lean as before. Prepare for a fast meal once seated. This place gets very crowded, very quickly which is fine, but don't expect to be there long to enjoy your meal or take in the sights.

we always have a meal at least once here when on aruba. everybody in our party of six had the ayce ribs and all agreed they were very good. you can't go wrong for $24.99 as long as you can go for another serving of ribs. but be warned...they charge for refills on ice tea!! it's not stated on the menu or posted anywhere in the restaurant. when we complained to the hostess all she did was smiled & apologized. it left a bad taste in our mouths...who charges for ice tea refills??!! when we went back a few days later, we all had ice water & noticed alot of other diners did too!!

ribs were stuck on the bone.. i ordered a full slab of ribs
1/2 barbaque 1/2 hot... they came on top of each other. everything was hot....food came out fast but wasn't great.
won't be back ......everyone was pushed together.