Lucille's runs promotions locally and they change, but the durable value at this chain is not a special at all — it is four specific menu items that are mispriced relative to everything around them. Rib tips at $13.99. The half chicken platter at $23.99. Seven beef ribs at $31.99. Learn those and you will beat most coupons this restaurant has ever printed.
Lucille's Smokehouse Bar-B-Que prices at a glance
The prices referenced on this page, collected up front. They vary by location and change without notice.
| Order | Price | The comparison |
|---|---|---|
| BBQ Rib Tip Appetizer | $13.99 | Same meat and smoke as $23.99 St. Louis ribs |
| BBQ Half Chicken & Two Meats | $23.99 | Three proteins; the two-meat combo is $29.99 |
| BBQ Beef Ribs, 7 bones | $31.99 | $4.57 a bone vs $8.33 on the 3-bone order |
| Texas Style Beef Brisket, 10 oz | $21.99 | $2.20/oz vs $2.71 on the 7 oz |
The four standing value orders
Read the second row twice. The BBQ Half Chicken & Two Meats at $23.99 gives you three proteins for six dollars less than the BBQ Two Meat Combo at $29.99, and eight less than the Back Porch at $31.99. That is not a promotion — it is a permanent quirk of the menu, and it is the closest thing Lucille's has to a standing deal.
Why combos are not the deal here
At most barbecue chains the second meat is the cheapest food on the menu. Not at Lucille's. The two-meat combo at $29.99 costs more than two sandwiches ordered separately and nearly double the $15.99 Pick 2 at Sonny's. Combos here exist so you can eat more, not spend less. The same holds for the feasts: the Backyard Family Feast ($124.99, feeds 5–6) and Lucille's Super Feast ($244.99, feeds 10–12) both land around $21 a head, which the shared-platter math on the Lucille's catering page beats by roughly forty percent.
Timing is the other discount
Lucille's opens at 11:00 every day, closing at 21:00 Sunday through Thursday and 22:00 on Friday and Saturday. Those hours create a predictable rhythm:
| Window | What to expect |
|---|---|
| 11:00–14:00 weekdays | Quietest of the week. Full menu, no wait, best time for ribs. |
| 14:00–17:00 | Dead zone — some locations run a limited menu in this window. |
| 17:00–19:00 | Busiest. Book ahead at weekends or expect a wait. |
| After 20:00 | Quiet again, but specials and limited items may be sold out. |
One thing that does not vary: because Lucille's cooks to order from held supply rather than piling a counter at open, meat quality is far more consistent across the day than it is at counter-service chains like City BBQ. You are timing your visit for the crowd, not the food.
Happy hour and the bar
Lucille's is one of very few barbecue chains with a full bar — cocktails, a bourbon selection and beer on tap. That is where local promotions cluster, because it is the part of the business with the most margin to give away. Bar-area happy hour offers exist at many locations in the afternoon dead zone, and they are set locally, so the only reliable way to know is to call the restaurant. Do not assume a chain-wide time or price.
Cheap ways into an expensive menu
If the goal is to eat at Lucille's without spending $30 a head, the sandwich board and the appetizer list do the job:
- Hot Link Sandwich ($10.99) — the cheapest sandwich on the menu.
- Grilled Portobello Sandwich ($11.99) or Garden Burger ($10.99) — the two vegetarian mains, and the two cheapest ways to sit down with a group here.
- Smoked Chicken Pasta ($14.99) — the cheapest of the Southern Specialties, a section that otherwise runs to a $29.99 Angus New York steak.
- BBQ Potato Chips ($5.99) and Southern Fried Dill Pickles ($6.99) — bar snacks at bar prices.
- Refillable sodas and iced tea ($2.99) — the refill is what makes them worth ordering over the $3.99 fresh lemonade.
And two things that are always free: the made-from-scratch biscuits with apple butter that open every table-service meal, and the sauce caddy. Neither is a special, and both are better than most of what chains put on promotion. For everything else, the current price list lives on the Lucille's Smokehouse BBQ menu.