Where to get barbecue in Lakeland: Florida Avenue, U.S. 98, downtown

Last checked Oct. 10, 2026. Refreshed every three months.

Lakeland’s barbecue restaurants sit in pairs: two on South Florida Avenue in south Lakeland, two on U.S. Highway 98 North by Lakeland Square Mall, plus one in Lakeside Village and a craft barbecue counter in The Joinery food hall downtown. Several barbecue places with Lakeland mailing addresses are outside the city limits and are not on this list.

How we made this list. We started with OpenStreetMap records inside Lakeland’s city limits, the same data behind our local directory, and added barbecue restaurants from the state’s restaurant inspection records and from the chains’ own store pages, keeping only addresses inside the limits. We checked each place against its own website on Oct. 10, 2026. Two places whose websites we could not find or load are here because the state inspected them in September and October 2026. We dropped one candidate whose inspection record now puts it outside the city. The list is alphabetical. It is not a ranking or a recommendation, and nobody paid to be on it. Run one of these places? Write to us to add or correct your entry.

The list

The places

4 Rivers Smokehouse on South Florida Avenue is the Lakeland restaurant of a Florida barbecue chain. Its location page takes online and catering orders, and it now opens on Sundays.

Blue Dog Craft Barbecue is the barbecue counter in The Joinery, the food hall on the banks of Lake Mirror, which lists it as craft barbecue and sides. Orders go through the food hall’s site.

Gaskins Barbecue & Lobster in Lakeside Village pairs barbecue with lobster, as its name says. Its website did not load when we checked. The state’s restaurant inspection records list it at this address, last inspected in October 2026.

Mission BBQ on South Florida Avenue is a barbecue chain with online ordering and a catering menu. It closes on eight major holidays and closes early six days a year, its page says.

Perry’s BBQ in Lakeland Square Mall has no website we could find. The state’s restaurant inspection records list it at the mall, last inspected in September 2026.

Sonny’s BBQ Lakeland North on U.S. Highway 98 North lists delivery, takeout, curbside pickup and catering, a kids menu and vegetarian options among its amenities. The chain’s Lakeland South restaurant, on South Florida Avenue, is outside the city limits.

Related lists: wings, pizza, Mexican and Tex-Mex, breakfast and coffee, burgers, sushi and Asian, ice cream and desserts, bakeries, patios and outdoor dining and every list by category. Also: brunch, date night, the business directory and restaurant inspections.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I get barbecue in Lakeland?

Six barbecue restaurants are inside the city limits: 4 Rivers Smokehouse and Mission BBQ on South Florida Avenue, Sonny’s BBQ and Perry’s BBQ on U.S. Highway 98 North, Gaskins Barbecue & Lobster in Lakeside Village and Blue Dog Craft Barbecue in The Joinery downtown.

Which Lakeland barbecue places are open on Sunday?

4 Rivers Smokehouse lists 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday, Mission BBQ lists 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., Sonny’s BBQ on U.S. 98 North lists 10:45 a.m. to 9:35 p.m., and The Joinery food hall, home of Blue Dog, is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.

Where can I get barbecue in downtown Lakeland?

Blue Dog Craft Barbecue is one of the vendors in The Joinery food hall at 640 E. Main St. on Lake Mirror.

Which Lakeland barbecue restaurants cater?

4 Rivers Smokehouse, Mission BBQ and Sonny’s BBQ all take catering orders through their own sites.