Hickory's Smokehouse in Cheshire West and Chester

Tried the pulled pork and chicken wings and they were delicious. Nice location too!

Still nice food but portions gone very small but price increases as is everywhere.

A great steak house always plenty of options with the sauces etc for the steaks for the price you get a lot on your plate and we'll worth the cost

Went for a birthday celebration, every staff member was so lovely and our server Sean was probably the best hospitality worker I have ever encountered. Lovely chap and top service all around

On Wednesday 21st of May, we got recommended this place by our business partner to eat here. We checked out the website, and we could book a table here. As we see that ever time slot was open, we didn't have the urge to book a table. As we arrived at the smokehouse, a young men (lightly bearded) with an tablet on his shoulder welcomed us. We asked for a table for two, and he answered to us that the place is fully booked for the rest of the night, including the outside terrace. We need to wait for 1 hour to be seated. After a small conversation we decided to check out somewhere else. As we were sitting outside to find a new place... we see that the terrace nor the seats inside were occupied.... So we decide to open the website again and booked a table via the reservation system. We managed to book a table for 2 for 15 min later. After the 15 min, we walked to the counter again, we got seated immediately.... Why was this person telling us the place is fully booked for the rest of the night and let us wait for 1 hour, while the whole place has plenty of tables.... very strange. The food was great as for the atmosphere. You should start a discussion with this person.. he cost the business profit and reviews.

Taste of American BBQ in Chester! Stopped in whilst visiting friends, great atmosphere BETTER food. Started easy with prawns on Tostadas - American version of a prawns cocktail. Prawns where fresh, smothered with sauce and seasoned perfectly, the tostadas gave a great crunch and added texture (better than soft bread of the English version)! After a long look at the mains I went with the Carnivore Skewer with a side of pit beans and corn ribs. The smoked chicken thighs were the star of the show - smoked well and still moist. The brisket was nice and the pork belly fell apart. The little picked salsa with jalapeños was an awsome treat. Corn ribs - yes please, a mouthful of pleasure. The pit beans where ok, the were well seasoned and tasted great, but in my opinion the sauce could have been thicker. Finished with a jam jar strawberry cheesecake (didn't really need it - all ready full!) Light and smooth and a nice sweet treat. Atmosphere and decor was great, service was excellent. Would recommend

FOOD AND SERVICE 🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩 HUGE WOW 🥰

Honestly the food was fantastic!!! The lady that served us was brilliant recommended dishes for both of us as we couldn't decide. Went to the kitchen to get a taster of the Brisket. Absolutely amazing place and staff I will be returning soon.

We had bbq blow out it was very nice and filling

Had a great meal out with family, food is delicious and came fast, nice drinks selection staff were friendly and helpful

Really good food, staff are really friendly

Stumbled in last Thursday hungover & one of the women serving me broke character & said she was too hahah, which was comforting knowing I wasn’t the only one uncomfortable ! She smashed the humility chapter in top service. I was well looked after, asked the bloke for a table outside after already being seated & ordered - it was no issue. Food was 10/10 as per. I’ll always find my way back to this particular Hick’s!!

Rudely turned me and my fiancée away on horse race day evening when we just wanted a meal whilst everyone else was drinking, yet they claimed they were at capacity. Plenty of seating was available inside. We were hungry and tired from walking the town for hours and didn’t know about the races but we desperately needed a meal.

Update. Hickorys reached out and have gone to the trouble of trying to make things right. So in the end a positive outcome and enjoyable experience. Thank you.

Fourth year running for eldest birthday food is always very tasty the selection is very good, very good selection of drinks. Very friendly staff who now enough about the food to advise you properly. It's also a very nice atmosphere. Parking can be hit and miss as you would expect near the river especially as it now has no separate parking. You wouldn't get wheelchair into the main building. We have a vegan in the family and there are limited options for them. For barbeque it is absolutely top notch and the variety of drinks is excellent. Some very nice ales and cocktails. It has become very expensive recently.

Me, my partner and our 6 year old went for an evening meal and by our surprise she decided to tell your employee Maria that it was her teddy rabbits birthday! Maria is an absolute credit to your establishment she left us speechless showing around our daughter the crocodile , cinema room , giving her lots of attention when no doubt other errands were calling and really making her feel extra special. I honestly can’t tell you how happy it made our daughter and in turn us, she was beaming all day. What a credit to Hickory’s Chester. Thank you so much Maria and team.

Monday lunch, yes please. Great experience all round, staff very welcoming and friendly, the menu had plenty of choice. The food when it came was superb, all fresh, hot and delicious. Maple ribs are a must. We've be back again soon.

I don't know how to start this (my first time) but I'm just going to upfront and be honset. All I can say was that I am utterly mortified and disappointed. Recently I was there with my friends, all booked and everything. One staff took us to private room because of our request for some reason to which they've accepted it. Sure, they can be friendly and all but this place need to improve was get their bloody notepad or something like every restaurants or cafe does but this one doesn't. Staff took our orders, we were in quiet room where there was no noise involved and we spoke as clearly as that person were, she took our orders, cheese chicken burgers with hot sauce in her head and left (Unless want to add another fillets which add price up. We all choose no double, my friends want cheese but no hot sauce and I don't want cheese and hot sauce). Moments later, she came back with our drinks which was beautifully taste. Then our foods came next... they got my friends orders right when I've the same order as them, the difference was that they had cheese and no hot sauce, I said for mine, no cheese and no hot sauce, right? Different staff who doesn't take orders, the new one who came with foods to give us, my friends got orders right, but me... no, they just gave me the exact what was said on the menu but that's not what my order was and I want the same as my friends except that I don't want cheese to be included along with hot sauce. So I knew in my gut that this could happen, not writing down or anything to put on and not in the mind where you could easily forget which obviously is a bad idea. But it wasn't just that I'm complaining about... so other staff who brought foods to us, I told him that I don't want cheese and hot sauce, he doesn't seem understand like... maybe not English or something, my friends were repeating same thing as I said to try to get it in his head, it took 10 mins long before he left us, me and my friends were literally in quiet room where there is no noise involved so he should able to hear us clearly but no... why? He took my food and left then the manager I think, came over and asked what was the problem so I had to repeated and he understood perfectly well and left so I had to wait for my right order to come, poor my friends had to wait for my food because they didn't want to eat without me. Next one, the first staff who took us to the table finally came over with my order... oh my goodness... I was modified... absolutely utterly shocking... the food in front of me was a double chicken burgers WITH cheese when I specified no cheese, hot sauce or double chicken fillets. I am quite skinny, I can't eat that massive meal and I was hoping that was free of charge for making a mistake or something but no, I still gotta pay that extra. I couldn't deal with asking them to change my order again when it wasn't even that hard to understand or maybe they did it on purpose I don't know but I was fuming so I had to leave one chicken fillet with cheese on it out of the way and eat the other one without cheese on it and oh my goodness... it was raw, barely but it was just there and I didn't even eat at all... completely waste of a money. I wouldn't recommend to go there ever again, even my friends refused to go as well because they have been here for years and it was my first time there, they were so shocked how change that place had been since the last time they were there and they were honestly so sorry for me to pay that extra cost and got TWO wrong orders on my first time visiting there. Absolutely FUMING. I wish I would give you some improvement to change but nah, I'm sorry but no, definitely not going there ever again and I wish there was zero star to click on.

Good food, good service, good atmosphere, good location. Very busy and very difficult to find parking.

Staff are fantastic and food is amazing and tasty, excellent restaurant for all special occasions

Rocked up here twice and got seated by very friendly staff. The menu is great and restaurant really busy constantly highly recommend you book a table…restaurant is on the banks of the River in Chester. Good value for money

Awful service, staff were very rude and couldn’t get a simple order right. Came over with the wrong food (which took 45 minutes) and then took yet another 30 to bring us the correct order. To top it off we were then charged for the wrong food aswell as our original order. Somehow they have a service charge on the bills which is honestly offensive for the service we received. Disappointing visit won’t be returning.

Staff were rude the whole time we were here, clearly didn’t want to be there and got both of our orders wrong. Waited nearly an hour for the wrong food to come that was already getting cold and then on top of that had to pay again for what we ordered in the first place and wait another half an hour for that. Definitely wont come again due to the rude and hostile staff.

Best food you can find in the uk. Amaizing service. Lovely restaurant. I've been there many times and there are many times ahead of me. Yum!

Brisket was very good but pricey and there wasn't much of it. Mandatory tip for service is not ok in my opinion.

Great food and service highly recommend

Whilst we didn't eat here, we watched the staff collect rubbish from over flowing bins outside the premises. Impressive dedication.

I recently visited Hickory’s Smokehouse and had what can only be described as a BBQ feast of epic proportions. The highlight for me? The brisket. Tender, juicy, rich with smoky flavor—honestly, it was like heaven on a plate. You could taste the hours of slow-cooking and expert seasoning in every bite. The full platter came loaded with all the southern classics—ribs, wings, sausage, burnt ends, sides like BBQ beans, fries, and slaw. Everything was done just right, packed with flavor and cooked to perfection. The atmosphere was warm, rustic, and lively, perfect for digging into such a satisfying meal. I genuinely wish we had food like this up in Aberdeen. Until then, I’ll be dreaming about that brisket. If you're anywhere near a Hickory’s, do yourself a favor and go—you won’t regret it.

Excellent food today, great staff and super polite service. Absolutely nailed it at every level today. Really looked after us and the children today. Thank you 😊

Spent an evening here with my two sons on a trip to Chester. We booked a table which was good as it was very busy. Staff were attentive and provided kids with popcorn and things to do (movie room). Really lovely food and would definitely go again.

Came here for my engagement after and the staff was amazing. Will be coming back for sure.

Always a fantastic experience. Staff are kind and attentive but not over bearing. Service with a genuine smile. The food is brilliant value for money both good quality and great portion sizes. Thank you for the great hospitality. Keep it up! Love a good shake too! They are propper 😊

Fantastic restaurant, the food, service and location was awesome. Assistant manager James and his staff went above and beyond to make our experience a memorable one.

Fantastic restaurant, the food, service and location was awesome. Assistant manager James and his staff went above and beyond to make our experience a memorable last night in the UK. Us with Assistant manager James.

Hard to get a spot just for a drink

First time I went to hickorys today, went for a birthday meal. Staff were helpful and food was lovely. Cant wait to go back.

I’ve been to hickory’s a couple of times before, Phoebe, who I understand is training is an absolute delight. So friendly, with a smile constantly on her face, nothing was too much trouble. The food was just what the dr ordered and service impeccable. 5 stars all round

Phoebe was an amazing server and the food was fantastic

Good rats good time don't know if I played though

Very busy place and good atmosphere. Food was expensive and didn't live up to expectations. The onion rings were greasy, and the portion size v cost doesn't match up. Staff are friendly. I wouldn't go again, but it's always good to try new places.

Over hyped and over rated. Just a glorified McDonald's.

Great food and location. Definitely go back.

Overrated food was ok sevice was very hence the three

We only stopped for a drink but it's a friendly place with great atmosphere. Going back for food 1 day for sure at one of the restaurants .

Food always tasty there amazing meat friendly staff

Food and drinks were incredible. The portions are large! Loved the popcorn to start, each dish was delicious, well cooked and presented.

We visited Tuesday 15th of April. The food was truly amazing, the young lady who was looking after us was absolutely brilliant considering she was just learning. Would highly recommend this place, very highly.

Lovely river side American Diner

Food is so amazing if you like that sort of thing but last time we waited 30 mins to have our order taken and they forgot it twice, and gave us the wrong bill, most of the time was spent waiting around for ages. Waitress was great but looks like management was being stupid, calling them for "team meetings" at 5:30pm on a Friday, a bit odd. Regardless the food and drinks here and great just looks like the staff were fed up

Absolutely brilliant. Will definitely return if ever back in Chester.

We have been here about 10 times! I valled to book a table asap as we were in Chester, the girl on the phone told us to get there asap abd she woukd find us a table. We walked a fair distance to get there, to be shown a shelf by the window with high stools, my wife is barely 5 foot tall, her feet would be dangling! Thats not very comfortable! The girl said that it was the only thing she had, i said i was willing to wait, it was 7pm now, she said ok, you can wait until 9pm!! The attitude she had was horrible, she couldnt give a damn!! No customer skills at all, her attitude was take it or leave it! I initially asked for a table, clearly this wasnt!! I will never ever step foot in the establishment again!!!

My first time there.. Food was brilliant, service was on point.

Amazing as always brilliant food and brilliant staff

Excellent food and drink at reasonable prices. Warm, friendly staff and great atmosphere. Enjoy Ratty and Mole, messing about in boats on the river!

You can't go wrong with The Smokehouse. You can definitely taste the smoke within the food and believe me, it's good food. Luckily, you can't taste it within the cheesecake. I had the chicken and beef burger, and it was soo good. To say it was a busy Saturday night, the service was efficient, and we were never waiting long. Can not complain at all, except the parking. Very scenic location but not great for parking.

Great good and super view of the river. Excellent service but be aware food is pricey.

Popped in for a drink as we were walking past on a recent visit to Chester, We did not eat so can not really comment about the food however it looked great. Enjoyed the view looking across the river in the sun. Would definitely go back and perhaps try some food next time.

We went here to celebrate a successful interview! We never asked for any special conditions or left any notes to follow just mentioned it when asked about our day. The server/restaurant went out of their way to wish me luck in the absolute cutest way imaginable. It was such a kind gesture that absolutely made my day that much more special! I wish I remembered her name to commend such a lovely act. The food at this establishment is outstanding! By far the best restaurant i've ever been! But I must commend the service as it is truly on another level! Every single time I have been they surprise me on how good they are, but after yesterday they've left me speechless. Many thanks to the server and the team for such a lovely experience!

The food was amazing 👏 The service is fabulous 👌

This is a great restaurant. We turned up an hour early with an extra person than originally booked for. They said no problem give us 10mins get a table ready. Staff and service was great. Drinks menu was good also.

Excellent American food! Great friendly service and atmosphere, good value for money. I would highly recommend!

Good food. Nice staff. No blue light discount and a bit pricey.

Expensive and portion sizes gone down, but lovely food

Amazing food and great with my husbands gluten intolerance

I prefer the one in Wrexham but this one is still pleasant.

Great food and drink, friendly staff. Music and people a tad on tje loud side, we were in a boorh so wasnt too bad. There is also a cinema in the resturant. Mens toilets are clean and not cramped, cant comment on female toilets. I had the platter for one and there was plenty of meat, all cooked beautifully. Partner had the steak and was cooked to their liking perfectly. The cloudy lemonade was good, the mojito was more of an rum tasting one rather than a mint/lime tasting but was still nice.

Me and wife were very excited to try out Hickory’s as it’s always looked great when we've walked past. Arrived for our booking on time and were promptly sat down at our table outside, ordered within 10 mins and then we were forgotten. It was impossible to get any staff members attention from our table, 50 mins go by and I get up to find someone for an update on our drinks, I find the waitress who took our order only to be unapologetically told she had never even sent our food or drink order through but would send it now, we ended up just leaving feeling very disappointed.

We’re regular customers here, and the staff is always great, but today, Courtney absolutely exceeded our expectations! Her attention to detail, friendliness, and outstanding customer service made our visit exceptional. Huge thanks again, Courtney – you’re a star

Ethan was absolutely brilliant he went above and beyond for us.

Came here last night with my wife and 3 year old daughter. The staff were first class. All of them were so polite and on the ball. The food was absolutely excellent and plentiful. I enjoyed a look round the smokers and chilli sauce. They even brought out a cake and firework candle when they realised it was my girls birthday the next day. Thanks for a great night

Absolutely amazing! I cannot thank the staff enough, we were waiting a while for our table to be ready. The manager came over to apologise and offered free desserts. My son was also extremely exhausted after a full day as Chester Zoo and didnt eat anything at all. They removed his food off the bill. The manager was absolutely excellent and always made sure we were ok, the food was incredible, quick service and tasted great! Thank you for a great meal and excellent service!

Stunning food and worth every penny..just love it every time.... The long cooked pulled Pork is like mmmmmmm.. Irresistibly finger locking good.

Beef brisket has changed since green king took over. Not the same quality as a few years ago. Had it a few times, it's definitely different.

The steak was the smallest steak I’ve ever seen. They promised free coffees but they took too long so we left.

Here we are again me and my Cheeky Chick checking in to the Hickory for an evening by the river, turns out we made another good choice on our break. All out fun night after being greeted and served by James & Meg with our booking a really good little setup here with friendly staff. Upon being seated James brought over popcorn for us to munch on whilst picking our drinks and food which was pretty cool. The cocktails are worth looking at, Meg made sure mine was done right from start to finish lighting the dollar bill  "Show me the Money" & "Passion Fruit" Are the way to go. As for the for the food with the vibe we thoroughly enjoyed the night very well looked after and a good choice for dessert "Table topped camp fire toasted marshmallows" that was a lot of fun, we will be back even if you don't remember our names James 🤣. thanks James & Meg.

Only stopped in for a drink today as we had already eaten but staff very accommodating and friendly. Sat outside in the spring sunshine where there was blankets available which was a lovely touch. Lovely Aperol and Budweiser. Great outdoor space overlooking the river.

Called here on 13th March while staying in Chester. Looked at several options before taking the short walk from our hotel to the Smokehouse. Although we hadn't booked and the place was very busy the hosting staff quickly found us a table. I ordered the signature brisket and my wife a brisket wrap. Absolutely delicious food served hot and after only a very short wait. The staff were excellent to the point that despite there being a service charge on the bill I also left a cash tip. Great food and great service.

Came here on the 26/03/25 and the service was top tier, the manager James was so friendly and nice along with our server I thinkkk her name was Lola? She was very busy but was very attentive to all her tables , every staff member there is so hardworking and possess amazing customer service skills ! Couldn’t recommend more 😊

Fantastic breakfast... Deffinaly reccomend

First time here and won't be my last.

Great place, great food, great atmosphere

excellent BBQ food, especially the short rib. Try and go late because at 6:30 there was an amazing amount of loud kids 🤷‍♀️

Loved it weve been there before this was our 2nd time and there will be 3rd. I wont be pointing out one by one here everything for us was bang on! Coffee was amazing too!

Nice Location right by the river! Fast service friendly staff would highly recommend a visit! :)

Had a great meal with my boyfriend today. The staff is very friendly and the restaurant has a great atmosphere. I absolutely love the food it is very well seasoned, and the brisket has to be one of my favourites. Highly recommend.

I have to say this place was amazing, booking I would say is essential if you do not want to be disappointed, lovely warm welcome, great location on the Dee in Chester, bag of popcorn while you wait for your meal and they bring over a large bottle of ice cold water for the table, lots of choice and best of all lots of GLUTEN FREE choices aswell, I can 100% recommend the Frickes, and if you don't know what they are you need to get to know they are amazing, the bacon bites where also devine and so where the tatties, they where just appetiser although you could just order a few of these and have them as you main, as I'm not a big eater this is defo what I will do next time, lots of choice for mains hubby had the brisket which he said was delicious melt in the mouth, I had ribs which for me where slightly dry but everything else was spot on, all in all I would say if a must try you won't be disappointed

The pictures say it all brilliant rack of ribs and desserts to die for just make sure you leave room for them .

I Love Everything Hickories! The Brisket, the burgers, the Mac n cheese.. Their own brand Ale, the atmosphere, in fact, there's nothing not to love!!

Very busy as always book a table to avoid queues attentive staff great food

Lovely food, great service and nice location near to the river. Rectified an error with our drinks order without fuss. Plenty of staff who were helpful and friendly without being overbearing.

What can I say guys.......fantastic food and gorgeous cocktails 🍸 😋 and coupled with excellent service 😀 👌 😄 a great dining experience 😀

Loved it here, the food was amazing and the staff were very attentive. We went on a Saturday and it was really busy I would suggest you book if you go here as they had to turn people away

Always a pleasure here. The food was great as usual and great service, especially with a birthday treat x

Came for lunch and I'm gluten free and James couldn't have been any better in explaining all the allergies and even showing me the allergy list on their iPad which is very rare for other restaurants to do. Food was great 😃

Wonderful service from James, food was a high standard and had a very pleasant time.

Went out of way for my brothers birthday. His fave is pecan pie and they bought it out on birthday board and knocked off the bill. Server was brilliant

Fantastic and friendly service, lovely see all staff happy. Gave my dog some brisket which he loved Food was vibrant and nice Free popcorn was nice

The ultimate BBQ. We visited on a Saturday evening and the place was packed. The staff, however, knew exactly what they should be doing, making the whole experience very enjoyable. We were a little early and were directed to the bar until our table was available. We enjoyed a drink while watching the England v Wales rugby on one of the many giant screens. Bang on our appointed time we were called to our table. The restaurant had recently been renovated, and we were seated in the new indoor/outdoor area. Apparently, the roof folds back in suitable weather. There is a large menu available, but as it was a first visit, there was only one possible choice to make, the platter. Why try one thing when you can taste them all? The platter is big and definitely a meat lovers' dream, meat, fries, bread, and more meat. It was all well cooked, literally falling off the bones, and so tender and juicy. The accompanying sauces and gravy were very much American style, overly sweet but absolutely delicious. For those of a lighter constitution, there are doggie boxes available for anything you are not able to eat. However, rather than a doggy box, we took option 'A' and ate the lot, and boy did my tummy let me know it was full. We decided to forgo desserts, I wonder why 🤣 I will definitely be visiting again, but I know I will never get to try a desert here as not having a platter is definitely not an option 😋

First time we’ve been & we had the sharing platter which was amazing , will definitely will be back and try something different next time , the service was brilliant and they couldn’t do enough for us , really welcoming with great atmosphere x

Very good six of us dined tonight for a birthday it was really good . Staff were helpful service great and the food lovely