Famous Dave's already runs the most expensive menu in national chain barbecue. A Texas Beef Brisket Sandwich is $18.89. A Big Slab of St. Louis spareribs is $36.69. Put that menu behind a delivery app, where prices are marked up before any fee appears, and the arithmetic gets genuinely uncomfortable. Here is what delivery costs, what carries it, and what actually arrives worth eating.
Famous Dave's prices at a glance
The prices referenced on this page, collected up front. They vary by location and change without notice.
| Line | In restaurant | Via a delivery app |
|---|---|---|
| Texas Beef Brisket Sandwich | $18.89 | ~$22.65 |
| Southside Rib Tips Platter | $16.99 | ~$20.40 |
| Wilbur Beans | $3.29 | ~$3.95 |
| Creamy Coleslaw | $3.29 | ~$3.95 |
| Two fountain beverages | $5.58 | ~$6.70 |
| Subtotal | $48.04 | ~$57.65 |
| Delivery fee | — | ~$3.99 |
| Service fee | — | ~$8.65 |
| Tip (18%) | — | ~$10.38 |
| Total | $48.04 | ~$80.67 |
Which platforms carry it
Most of the roughly 130 Famous Dave's restaurants are listed on DoorDash, Uber Eats and Grubhub, and the chain also accepts delivery orders through its own site and app, where a courier partner usually handles the drive. Coverage is decided restaurant by restaurant, not nationally — a franchised location in a smaller market may be on one platform only, and a handful are pickup-only. Check your own address rather than assuming.
What the apps add to an already expensive menu
Third-party platforms typically raise menu prices 15 to 25 percent before a single fee is charged, then stack delivery, service and tip on top of the inflated subtotal. On a cheap menu that stings. On this one it compounds badly.
That is roughly 68 percent more for identical food, and it is a dinner for two, not a party order. Fees move with market and promotion, but the direction never reverses. Ordering direct and collecting is always meaningfully cheaper, and the Famous Dave's online ordering options are set up for exactly that.
What survives the trip and what does not
| Travels well | Does not travel |
|---|---|
| Georgia Chopped Pork — holds its moisture | Famous Fries — soft inside fifteen minutes |
| Southside Rib Tips — fatty enough to forgive a slow driver | Onion Strings — the worst offender on the menu |
| Burnt Ends — rendered fat is insulation | Shack Shrimp, and anything else fried |
| Wilbur Beans and cheesy mac, in their own containers | Sliced Texas beef brisket, which dries in transit |
| Corn bread muffins, wrapped | Side Caesar under a hot lid |
Ribs are the awkward case. A Big Slab holds up for about half an hour and then the bark goes tacky. If ribs are the whole point of the order, collect them yourself.
The delivery order that actually makes sense
Stop thinking in platters. Meats by the pound are $16.69, pint sides for sharing are $6.69 against $4.49 for a single à la carte side, and an order of corn bread muffins is $7.79. Buying a pound of chopped pork, a pound of rib tips, two pint sides and muffins gives four people more food than four platters, arrives in sealed containers rather than assembled on plates, and lets you sauce it at the table from your own bottle.
Two habits worth keeping: ask for sauce on the side every time, because Rich & Sassy sitting on meat for twenty-five minutes turns the surface soft, and skip anything fried entirely. Our guide to the five Famous Dave's sauces covers which bottle belongs on which meat once the food is home.
Reheating what arrives lukewarm
- Ribs: foil at 250°F for 20 minutes, then two minutes uncovered under a hot broiler to bring the bark back.
- Chopped pork: covered pan, splash of apple juice, 275°F, 15 minutes.
- Brisket: wrapped in foil with a little stock at 250°F. Never microwave it.
- Cheesy mac and Wilbur Beans: microwave is fine, stir halfway.
For a group, do not use an app at all
Markup scales with order size, which is where it hurts most. The All-American BBQ Feast at $99.89 is the best value on the menu at roughly $14 a head for six to eight people — run it through a platform and the same food lands nearer $150 once markup, fees and tip compound, which erases the entire reason to order it. For anything above about six people, collect it or use the Famous Dave's catering side of the business instead. Compare every delivery quote against the full Famous Dave's menu with prices before you commit.