Firefly's BBQ

[mandy_g]

Anyone ever been there???? My co worker goes there and loves the ribs, she says there are oh so smoky and the homeade sauces are delicious. Let me know!!!! I am moving from somerville to marlborough and will miss redbones.

[pondrat]

Ribs are so-so. Pulled pork is too sweet. None of the sauces have an opinion. Salad bar is weird.

Either eat the brisket the second it arrives at the table or bring a chain saw if you wait a minute longer. I've had more tender beef jerky.

I'll take Tennessee's BBQ down the street in Framingham any time.

[dixiechicken]

pondrat: You say that the salad bar is weird... that's because it's not a salad bar! Our server told us it was condiment or fixin's bar (and it says it on the funky bucket lambs above the buffet) I guess that's why there is not lettuce or dressings etc... Just wanted to clear your confusion!
I've been here a bunch of times and I always have a good meal. Best service I've had in a long time! I like the St Louis Ribs (meatier) over the Baby Backs. Sweet potato side is awesome, and save room for the chocolate waffle. I think they have music (open mic?) Wednesday nights. Maybe next time I'll catch it.

[dotfoodie]

I would never return!

[chowciao]

I prefer Tennesee BBQ in Braintree any day over Firefly's. Not only were the ribs much tastier, but it's so much more laid back - the folks w/the headsets at Firefly's just seemed a bit odd to me, too.

[beb31]

I really like the Tennessee's in Braintree...very efficient. Hopefully, it's holding up well against Famous Dave's (which is less than 1/4 mile away).

[taterjane]

I've been to the Firefly's in Framingham a few times and it's okay. Nothing outstanding, and I too have suffered from the dry ribs as well. It's a good place to bring people who aren't interested in being experimental or who only eat out at the 99 or Applebee's or someplace like that.

I will say, though, that the chocolate waffle with vanilla ice cream and bananas is the one dish I would recommend there. I'm always full after a meal there, but not really in an enjoyable way -- just in a "Oh, man, my stomach might explode" way. So now I just eat less for the main meal and save room for the waffle.

[pesto]

The food here was awful! Where's the smoke...wouldn't waste my time. Sauces had an off taste. Servers instruct you on how to eat at the restaurant.(I know ..it's not their fault.) Will not return.

[mwk]

As mentioned, it's far from outstanding. However, some of the items are MUCH better than others, so it pays to be careful. I found that the brisket is awful; dry, tasteless and just not worth eating. The mac and cheese side tastes like Kraft.

However, the ribs are decent, the St. Louis ones are best for meatiness and taste. Their chicken dishes (both the BBQ and the Fried) are excellent, and the sweet potato side is very tasty. The best thing on the menu is the pulled pork, which is flavorful and fairly lean. As far as the sauces, the Memphis and the North Carolina ones are my favorites. I didn't notice any peculiar "sheen" or odd flavor with them.

Desserts are also hit and miss. The red velvet cake is forgettable, but the coca cola cake is very tasty.

Overall, I'd say it's a decent place to go and for Quincy, certainly a welcome improvement from the places that preceeded it. Stick with the chicken, pulled pork or the ribs and the sweet potato side and you should enjoy it.

[jjbourgeois]

Place is mediocre at best. Tried the one in Quincy several times, the food was pretty bad. Sauces had a weird corn syrup shine to them. Won't be heading back anytime soon.

[hiddenboston]

I agree with jjbourgeois. my GF and I had a horrid meal at Firefly's in Quincy a few months ago. Some of the food was completely inedible--the brisket, for instance, was basically globs of fat with very little meat. And the sauces, as jjbourgeois says, tasted a bit odd, like they had some kind of corn syrup or a similar sweetener.

I did have a pulled pork sandwich from Firefly's at the PG Food Festival recently. It was pretty good, but nothing that really bowled me over.

[Dax]

Lots of places tend to trim too much fat off their brisket prior to smoking these days. Very lean brisket is nobody's friend.

[hiddenboston]

But there was almost no meat at all on the ones I had. About 90% fat, 10% meat. I felt like Seinfeld eating the mutton; I was tempted to put it all in my napkin or pocket or something, just so I wouldn't have to eat it.

[Dax]

Fair enough, but that totally lean no-fat brisket that some places serve is like bad jerky.

[hiddenboston]

Ugh, I know what you're talking about. Definitely need to meet in the middle on this one.

I don't know....maybe I'll give Firefly's another shot, but it was such a negative dining experience. Between the disappointing food and the rather corporate feel of the unsmiling people running around with headsets, I'm in no rush to head back there. I'm pretty happy with the tasty food and the slightly offbeat, goofy feel of Blue Ribbon and Tennessee's, as well as Lester's BBQ.

[jjbourgeois]

I wouldn't bother. They just don't have the quality to justify the price. Maybe that location is cursed. At least 4 or 5 places have been in that spot since i've lived in the area.

[hargau]

Prices are basically the same as Blue ribbon within $1-2 and significantly cheaper then Redbones. So price is no problem.

I think just the idea they advertise on the phantom gourmet is enough to make some hate them. Just like Kowloon.

I dont care if the servers wear headsets or hats or whatever they want to wear. If it helps my food come out faster, im all for it.

Tennessee's Was started by the same people but is no longer affiliated

[hiddenboston]

RE: The headset thing...I guess I was expecting a loose, quirky atmosphere when I went to Firefly's, since most of the other BBQ places I've been to seem to be this way. But the headsets and the yelling of orders into them and the unsmiling faces as they rushed by was a bit of a buzzkill for me. It just seemed too corporate to me. If the food had been better, I could have overlooked it, but it was just the whole experience that turned me off.

I agree with you about the PG. I do know some people who assume a restaurant isn't worth going to if it's advertised on the show. (I'm not one of them.) Like I said before, there seems to be a love/hate relationshop when it comes to the PG...

[hargau]

I have mostly been to the marlborough location, Went to the Framingham location 2-3 times. Never to Quincy. Always found the servers to be friendly in marlborough. Guess it depends on the servers/location.

[mwk]

I've also been to the Quincy location 3 times since it opened, and always had very friendly and efficient service. Maybe it was just an off night?

[kobuta]

When I ate in the Quincy location, the service was a bit slow, but this was very close to when they first opened, so I chalked it up to still adjusting. Otherwise, they were at least friendly. I didn't find it overly loud, but maybe because we were seated in the back, separate from the main dining room.

[Bradydog]

I've been to the one in quincy and it seemed decent...nothing to write home about, but still edible. When I want BBQ, Firefly's wouldnt be the first place that jumps to mind.

[kobuta]

I went to the one in Quincy. I think it's decent, and appreciate the variety it brings to the local area rather than the typical chinese/italian/new american.

[hargau]

The ribs are ok but you have to ask for a middle pc. I have been given end sections that were dry and brittle. They have decent fried chicken and many of the apps and sides are good. They do an all you can eat sunday brunch buffet that has most of the sides and bbq main dishes so thats a good way to try alot of items. They make a nice big ice cream cookie sundae too for desert. Im not a fan of the red cake they make. I think Blue Ribbon bbq is much better. Redbones i have never been a big fan of.

[tamerlanenj]

It's generally well regarded. I don't think it would turn any heads in Memphis, but you could do a lot worse for 'Cue around here.