Always love coming here because I love that even as a Steakhouse, they have veggie options I always gi for the burnt ends and they never disappoint, but even better os their dessert selection. They are always having new seasonal items and I had gotten their mojito cupcake. Not only did it look absolutely adorable (look at the little straw) but it tasted good too. have had their coconut bomb too and that is amazing.

I have had 4Rivers Barbecue in the past, but every time it has been at a catered buffet, so the experience has never really been true concerning the food and the location. This has now changed. I was at the restaurant for an event, so I got to experience the place first-hand instead of just experiencing the food carried around in buffet trays. 4Rivers has been in Gainesville for quite a while now, always at the same location in Butler Plaza at the opposite end of the strip mall containing Jo Ann's fabrics. Parking is easy for the restaurant, and there is plenty of space both in the main lot and a smaller lot towards Archer Road. Walking in, there was one large table setup outside with seats for patrons that wanted to eat out in the Florida weather. Inside, I was greeted by the air conditioning, which is always a welcome thing. Since this was a tasting menu gathering, there was no menu presented. However, I did look at the menu just to get a grasp on prices. They are a bit higher than other places for the same kind of food. Whether it is worth it is what I was about to experience. Sitting down, they already had cornbread, cheesy grits, and some cookies. The cornbread was good. I am not a fan of grits but I still gave them a try. Not something I would order, but they were at least edible for me for once. The cookies? Way too sweet and buttery. So, after some chit-chat with other attendees, the event starts, and after some brief introductions from our wonderful host, we are briefed on the story of 4Rivers Barbecue and its founding. Learning how John Rivers started out in Jacksonville, learning how to barbecue Texas style in order to get in the good graces of his soon-to-be Father-in-law, then the expansion of operations to produce good barbecue as a charity organization, followed by random pedestrians banging on the doors asking if they could buy a sandwich, up to the formation of the company in 2009 with their first brick-and-mortar restaurant. The story was good to hear whilst nibbling on various bits of barbecue that were introduced. We learned some things about the barbecuing processes that are used at 4Rivers, from the 18 hour smoke times of their brisket to the utilization of a single processing plant in Texas that makes all of their sausage. Now for the food: The first thing we were served was some brisket. We were shown the different parts of the brisket, where the brisket is on the animal, etc. and then sampled both pieces from the flat and the point. The flat is leaner than the point, and that was very obvious in our samples. Usually I like my brisket to come from the point, but in this case the flat was the tastier piece of meat for some reason. Just goes to show that proper cooking can produce some interesting results. Next we were served a vegan option of brisket burnt ends, which we learned was on the menu because John Rivers's wife is vegan and insisted on something being there that she could eat. Frankly this is the best piece of vegan substitute meat I have ever had, and in my book is the real reason why people should be going to 4Rivers. It was excellent, and looking at the pricing it is quite reasonable to purchase as well. Some of the sides we tried were the smoked jalapenos, which were alright, but I find that dishes like this tend to be kind of limp in terms of texture. Due to the baking process the jalapenos had lost their rigidity and came across kind of soggy and almost slimy. I would prefer a dish like this to be unbaked and have the stuffing cooked up and added so that you get the nice crunch of the jalapeno. Another side that we sampled was the smokehouse corn, which was fine but did not have a huge wow factor associated with it. The final side that was presented to us was the sweet potato casserole (4Rivers hit us with all of their premium sides). Not an item that I would order off the menu, but I found it to not be so cloyingly sweet like I usually experience, which is a good thing in my book. The final two main-style items we sampled were the Coop Chicken Tenders and the Texas Sausage. The tenders I was impressed with, as they are made with solid pieces of chicken as opposed to the usual processed filling, and had been fried up just right. The sausage was a bit disappointing in my opinion, as I have had a good amount of Texas sausage at various barbecue restaurants in Texas and this was only barely satisfactory. For a dessert, we got a sampling of the Crispy Cream Bread Pudding, which I found too sweet. It would have been better (in my opinion) if the donut glaze had been left off. Sadly, the typical American palate craves so much sugar (just look at our breads!) and that affects things that just don't need so much sweetness! All in all, it was an enjoyable experience to sample the wares of 4Rivers, and I will definitely be returning at a future date, if for no other reason than to get some more of those Vegan Burnt Ends!

4 Rivers never disappoints. They have excellent bbq. Pulled pork and burnt ends are my favorites. Baked beans are the best. Bread pudding is another good one. The bottled root beer is awesome, the one that says Maine. Service is friendly. Best BBQ in town.

It's really pretty good barbecue. I don't care too much for the ribs, but the messy pig pulled pork and everything else burnt in are really pretty good. We will make a trip from Trenton and Gainesville just to eat their barbecue for dinner. The sides are amazing and outstanding.

I've always had great food and service here! Frequently visit when in Gainesville! I'd highly recommend!

The food was fresh and was made to perfection. The I put the hot bbq sauce on the brisket and it was a perfect combination. The staff was attentive and ensured the order was correct. Some of the food took some time to come out and you were able to have a seat they bring the order to you. The place was quiet and you were able to have a conversation. We came closer to closing so they ran out of utensils and straws. We were able to ask at the front and they provided it.

We lived in Orlando years ago and used to eat at 4Rivers occasionally, so we were delighted to see one when we were in Gainesville. It is a little on the pricy side, but no one in our party left disappointed. The kids were excited to get a cookie with their meal, and the adults were all very happy with their platters. Nobody left hungry, that's for sure! It's counter service/cafeteria style so even if the line is long by the time you pay, you have your food. We found the staff to be very friendly. Lots of seating was available on a weeknight, but I can see it getting packed on weekends. It was nice and clean inside! They do have a window you can go to if you want to order ahead for pickup or order it to-go.

Happened to stop in T-mobile just across the street and thought...we're hungry. Where to go? Why travel across town for good, fast bbq when 4 Rivers Smoke house is right here and we can slide down the cafeteria-styled side dishes and bbq while looking up at the menu board to choose our entree!?? Parking is ample outside, funny thing was we watched another couple pull the door open and the woman looked at him like he was crazy because they have the roll-up garage style door open! (She and I just walked in lol) The people here are VERY helpful, give great suggestions and have great customer service skills. You actually take your tray of food to your own seating, so there's no tip necessary, which is kinda nice if you think about it. I had wanted put a tip on the bill, but too late! She'd already printed out the receipt..X-( While there is an awful lot of delicious looking things to drink and even fountain drinks in really awesome varieties...the only three things that were sugar-free were diet coke, diet Pepsi and water in a bottle. I chose the bottled water because who needs artifical colors on top of all that other terrible stuff in a diet coke/Pepsi? Not me, that's who! There's tons of different desserts that looked delicious as well, but once she said bananas foster bread pudding, I was sold...lol The tacos were freshly made to order, delicious and really filled me to the point I can't eat the b bananas foster bread pudding now!! Lol -- no worries, I'll take it home... My friend's brisket sandwich was nice and most, tender and delicious. He also loved the Mac 'n cheese and the fries weren't soggy or greasy, but freshly cooked and perfectly crispy. In all, it's a place I'd definitely come back to time and time again now that I've tried them. They are resonably priced and you can't beat good food at good prices these days! Their restaurant was spin 'n span clean. No trash ANYWHERE except in the garbage can, where it was supposed to be! I'm impressed!!

Gainsville is a college town. We had an early afternoon appointment and looking for a place to eat. They are on the main drag just off the freeway. We ordered "moist" brisket sandwich with sides. Meat was juicy and tasty. Side was collard green and corn. Pretty nice lunch. A few days later at the Orange county convention center food court. A pulled pork sandwich at 4 Rivers was rather dry. So I guess we came to the right place.