Vj's BBQ Sports Bar

We have gone to Vj's tons because of the food. While the staff is friendly we have only gone a small handful of times when the staff were good at their jobs. Friendly yes. Good service? Not at all! We go enough and talk to enough of the unhappy patrons sitting around us to get a pretty good view of the situation. There is obviously no effort put into training. The on going theme every time we're there in the afternoon is 3 people on the floor and no one tending the tables. People walking out after being told to sit and never getting to even make a drink order. The staff disappear and then when they are finally seen they avoid eye contact. The tables that did get food and have left, don't get cleared until there is nothing but an ocean of dirty table's and no clean available. The last time we were there the girl said she had only been there 4 days. She was very sweet but clearly did not have enough training to be the main server, bartender, and cashier. When we got our food after about 40 minutes, one of the orders was wrong. I'd ordered the BBQ chicken dinner. I got the sandwich. She said that the manager asked here which one I wanted and she didn't know so they settled on the sandwich. The manager should have told the new girl to go out and make sure which one I wanted. The others at our table got their food and I waited... Actually they had to wait too, because neither were given silverware and the person with a HUGE salad was given no dressing. We waited and waited to see someone who worked there show up on the floor from the back again. 15 minutes later we grabbed a girl who I think might have been the hostess. She brought 1 little side dressing. We waited another 20 minutes and my food arrived and we asked for more dressing and refills. Another 10 minutes passed and we got dressing... The wrong kind... And no refills. The family next to us who had not even gotten a waitress or drink order in 25 minutes finally left. We see this happening every single afternoon visit. BTW this is after the Covid reopening and we were all sat in booths right next to each other. I don't care for myself. But there is a criteria that is supposed to be followed and the other restaurants even in our town of Overton are adhering to it. So after we all ate our cold meals and warm salad. We waited another 15 minutes for a bill. Then another 10 minutes or more to get our card back. Keep in mind this wasn't a busy day. Most tables were not filled, many left and all the other tables had the same experience. This is a real shame because honestly, it's not enough anymore to eat here just because the food is good. I know the owner is capable of training a better staff as he owns several restaurants in town where the service is far better. I have no idea why at Vj's the poor staff is untrained and left to the wolves. They are nice people who are just not at all ready to be left alone without well trained hands on management. This is not a covid new thing... This is a constant issue plaguing this restaurant for a very long time. I want to be able to tell everyone to eat there. But I always have to tell them great food, terrible service so make sure you have a couple hours to spare if you plan on eating there. I really hope Vj's owner hears this review and all the similar ones and fixes things. One visit was when the car show was in town and it should have been full of patrons and staff. That visit was a runner up to this one. People walking out after waiting and new people walking out because every table was un bussed and only 3 tables had patrons. That was a lost opportunity at big profits right there! I beg of you to fix this. If not, I can't believe we will be the only regulars who will leave. Pics below are of 2nd worst service visit on the car show day! Unbused, not due to patron volume, just hours of neglect. People coming in were told to sit at bar because the tables were unbused. Those who didn't want to, left. Many stood and stared, looking for a place to sit, looking for a hostess to direct them and then just turned and left.

Good local restaurant. Friendly staff and food was good. The place is much to look at from the outside but the inside has a nice atmosphere. We had baby back ribs-no doggie bag required. The cornbread was a little too sweet and cake like for my taste but won't keep me from making return visits to explore their variety of choices. They were out of their housemade chips so I definitely need to go back to try those.

Original Post (Update Below) - If you're in search of a good meal while in Mesquite, you need to try this place. Have tried numerous items from the menu - potato nachos, burgers, pizza, pulled pork sandwiches, etc., & never once been disappointed. Very reasonably priced, & the serving size is definitely on the larger size. Only nit would be their soups (which are delicious) are served in a bread bowl, which makes them a bit costlier. While you can order in a standard soup bowl, you still will be charged the extra price (generally $9.00) for the bread bowl. . Update - Probably my last visit unless something changes. While the food is still a positive, it no longer is adequate to overlook the service which is generally non-existent. Most recent visit summary - A fairly quiet mid-afternoon. Sat at bar & waited 10 minutes before server stopped by. Since we knew what we wanted, order our food & beverage at same time. Our glasses had been empty for over 15 minutes when food arrived - we were never asked if we wanted a refill. As we still had no silverware, retrieved a set from an unoccupied table. Server continually disappeared for extended periods & only interacted with us three times in one hour - took our order after 10 minutes; brought our food after another 30 minutes & then dropped off the check at the end. Very disappointing as this level of service has become the norm.

Good option for food in mesquite! The portions are MASSIVE. I had a mushroom burger and it was delicious and easily was two meals. They have a bunch of fry options- all are delicious! The servers were friendly enough. The restaurant itself has no atmosphere though. If you're looking for a no frills place with a great burger you won't be disappointed coming here!