Empire Armadillo BBQ & Deli

Lucky Flower

The food was delicious, the service was also fast enev though it was pretty full for lunch. The brisket was juicy and flavorful without BBQ sauce and the ribs were tender. I can't wait to try their NY deli options next.

Gary Tang

Came here for their soft opening. Got a rib and tri tip plate with cajun fries and Caesar salad. Ribs and tri tip were tender and portion sizes were solid. Cajun fries were fried just right and a good amount of seasoning. Bbq and jalapeño sauces were solid condiments for added flavor. Definitely will return for more, glad this location has reopened in my neighborhood

George Chang

Same as previous Armadillo Willis. Menu, store setup, are the same. But this store now owned by ex-hardware engineer.

I used to eat at this BBQ place when it was Armadillo Willeys, and I can say that the food is 2 stars better. Atmosphere the same. Still have to pick up your food and self-serve drinks which is ok. I tried the pick 3 meal with Baby Back & St Louis ribs and the mixed brisket. Both ribs were moist and fall off the bones. The baby backs had a little more smokey flavor. The BBQ sauce tasted the same as before. The brisket was delicious and tender. My sides were pinto beans with bits of brisket and was really good. My only complaint is that I got the corn salad and it was way too spicy for me to eat. My only suggestion would be to rename it to spicy corn salad. Or make it without the jalapenos (or use way less and remove the seeds) and keep the name the same. I'd prefer it not be spicy so I could order it again. I don't mind a mild spice. I will be going back. Thank you!

I made my first order from Empire Armadillo BBQ (Sunnyvale) through DoorDash today. As a huge fan and loyal customer of Armadillo Willy’s, I was so sad when they closed most of their restaurants. However, the ribs I received today from Empire were the best I’ve EVER had. They were incredibly delicious and I’m already planning to visit this place frequently.

So glad to have this high quality BBQ available again in Sunnyvale! A new owner who was passionate about Armadillo Willy's leased the El Camino storefront, hired the head chef/pitmaster and other key employees from Suv'l and Santa Clara and opened Empire Armadillo with a larger, improved menu and I think the food is even better now! My go-to is a small boneless chicken plate with the chicken tortilla soup side and extra ribs to share. All absolutely delicious! They've switched to a Coke Freestyle fountain to provide a wider variety of soft drinks and I'm a fan of that, too.

I was a huge fan of Armadillo Willy’s from when they opened their first restaurant in Los Altos many years ago. I grew up in Texas so I certainly have a knowledge of what is good BBQ versus what some places sell as BBQ. Like many others I was very disappointed when Willys began closing locations leading to a the final shutdown of the flagship in Los Altos. Covid apparently changed a lot of peoples eating habits. And the huge run up in beef prices didn’t help what happened to their menu prices. So I was very pleased to hear a fan of Willys has revived the Sunnyvale location. I ate there today with a friend who has just like me been a long time Willys fan. And a fellow Texan who not only has indulged in BBQ his whole life growing up in Texas, he keeps current on today’s BBQ standards in Austin and Houston. I had the brisket. It was perfect with great texture and good smoke. The brisket itself was juicy and flavorful. My side was peanut Cole slaw- a faithful duplication of Willys recipe. Prices were as expected in today’s beef world- $18.95 for the brisket sandwich and one side. My friend had the pork ribs with potato salad. He said the ribs were good but would have liked them smoked a bit longer to make them separate from the bone. BBQ experts split on this issue- some want them to separate and some want them not to. While we were ordering a staff member came by with samples of their new banana pudding dessert. As a result of those tastes we both ordered full sized cups with our meals. It was excellent traditional banana pudding made with vanilla wafers. And a light layer of whipped crème on top. You order at Empire Armadillo at the front counter. They give you your drink cups and a pager. When your order is ready they buzz you and you pick it up at the counter on a tray. Extra amounts of two styles of BBQ sauce are available at that same counter. Seating is comfortable with a pretty large dining room. Of course take out is available too. If you liked Armadillo Willy’s in its prime you will certainly like Empire Armadillo BBQ. If you didn’t know Willys here’s your chance to find out why it was so popular for so long. I’m happy it has been reincarnated as Empire Armadillo!

Portion-huge Lean brisket sandwich - heaping full of great lean brisket Kiddie serving of sandwich easily fills up an average size adult. Onion ring - KILLER! wide strip. Light and crispy. Will come in just for this side. Sauce - too sweet for our taste. Suggestion for staff. Offer another "mild" option for the sauce. Less sweet, tart and a touch less smoke. Ordered via app - pick up experience was great. No wait needed. Very friendly. Simply old school BBQ. Highly recommend.

In the 1st day of soft opening, we went in to pickup carryout. Great counter and payment setup with 2 taking orders. Took about 20 minutes to get our food. They did a careful review with us to confirm 100% order success. Excellent food. Brisket and pulled pork excellent. Garlic fries incredible and huge. Sweet corn salad was heavy Jalapeno (option to omit Jalapeno would have been perfect)!!

How Can We Help

I used to eat at this BBQ place when it was Armadillo Willeys, and I can say that the food is 2 stars better. Atmosphere the same. Still have to pick up your food and self-serve drinks which is ok. I tried the pick 3 meal with Baby Back & St Louis ribs and the mixed brisket. Both ribs were moist and fall off the bones. The baby backs had a little more smokey flavor. The BBQ sauce tasted the same as before. The brisket was delicious and tender. My sides were pinto beans with bits of brisket and was really good. My only complaint is that I got the corn salad and it was way too spicy for me to eat. My only suggestion would be to rename it to spicy corn salad. Or make it without the jalapenos (or use way less and remove the seeds) and keep the name the same. I'd prefer it not be spicy so I could order it again. I don't mind a mild spice. I will be going back. Thank you!

Bill Rehbock

So glad to have this high quality BBQ available again in Sunnyvale! A new owner who was passionate about Armadillo Willy's leased the El Camino storefront, hired the head chef/pitmaster and other key employees from Suv'l and Santa Clara and opened Empire Armadillo with a larger, improved menu and I think the food is even better now! My go-to is a small boneless chicken plate with the chicken tortilla soup side and extra ribs to share. All absolutely delicious! They've switched to a Coke Freestyle fountain to provide a wider variety of soft drinks and I'm a fan of that, too.

Jerry Morrison

This is a git fork of Armadillo Willy's, already with an improved menu featuring NY deli items. We're *SO* glad to have it back in the area! We didn't try the deli dishes yet since we're too jazzed over the BBQ chicken, Cajun salmon burger, and the rest. We'll be back soon. The formerly-Willy's decor could use a little spiffing up but it's fine -- early Silicon Valley grunge style. The display case is amusing. What became of the historical artifacts like the Varian microwave vacuum tube at the Sunnyvale Fry's Electronics store?

Mike Humphries

I was a huge fan of Armadillo Willy’s from when they opened their first restaurant in Los Altos many years ago. I grew up in Texas so I certainly have a knowledge of what is good BBQ versus what some places sell as BBQ. Like many others I was very disappointed when Willys began closing locations leading to a the final shutdown of the flagship in Los Altos. Covid apparently changed a lot of peoples eating habits. And the huge run up in beef prices didn’t help what happened to their menu prices. So I was very pleased to hear a fan of Willys has revived the Sunnyvale location. I ate there today with a friend who has just like me been a long time Willys fan. And a fellow Texan who not only has indulged in BBQ his whole life growing up in Texas, he keeps current on today’s BBQ standards in Austin and Houston. I had the brisket. It was perfect with great texture and good smoke. The brisket itself was juicy and flavorful. My side was peanut Cole slaw- a faithful duplication of Willys recipe. Prices were as expected in today’s beef world- $18.95 for the brisket sandwich and one side. My friend had the pork ribs with potato salad. He said the ribs were good but would have liked them smoked a bit longer to make them separate from the bone. BBQ experts split on this issue- some want them to separate and some want them not to. While we were ordering a staff member came by with samples of their new banana pudding dessert. As a result of those tastes we both ordered full sized cups with our meals. It was excellent traditional banana pudding made with vanilla wafers. And a light layer of whipped crème on top. You order at Empire Armadillo at the front counter. They give you your drink cups and a pager. When your order is ready they buzz you and you pick it up at the counter on a tray. Extra amounts of two styles of BBQ sauce are available at that same counter. Seating is comfortable with a pretty large dining room. Of course take out is available too. If you liked Armadillo Willy’s in its prime you will certainly like Empire Armadillo BBQ. If you didn’t know Willys here’s your chance to find out why it was so popular for so long. I’m happy it has been reincarnated as Empire Armadillo!

Doan Nguyen

Portion-huge Lean brisket sandwich - heaping full of great lean brisket Kiddie serving of sandwich easily fills up an average size adult. Onion ring - KILLER! wide strip. Light and crispy. Will come in just for this side. Sauce - too sweet for our taste. Suggestion for staff. Offer another "mild" option for the sauce. Less sweet, tart and a touch less smoke. Ordered via app - pick up experience was great. No wait needed. Very friendly. Simply old school BBQ. Highly recommend.

Cesar Moyoli

I ordered the St. Louis ribs. Yummy! Good portion and plenty of food for the price. I’m so glad there is another barbecue joint to replace what was there. They gave us a free sample of the banana pudding and that was also super tasty! I highly recommend this place.

Robert Swedroe

So glad we got great BBQ back. Wife and I shared a full rack of Baby Back Ribs. They were plentiful and delicious. We got two corn breads as our two included side dishes. Perfect combination with the ribs We also got to taste their fresh house made banana pudding.. Delicious as well.

T Kim Parnell

In the 1st day of soft opening, we went in to pickup carryout. Great counter and payment setup with 2 taking orders. Took about 20 minutes to get our food. They did a careful review with us to confirm 100% order success. Excellent food. Brisket and pulled pork excellent. Garlic fries incredible and huge. Sweet corn salad was heavy Jalapeno (option to omit Jalapeno would have been perfect)!!

Jewel Savadelis

We went for dinner at the soft opening. It was very organized for being the first day in business. Cheerful cashier who took the order and made us feel welcome. We had the Texas brisket, pastrami sandwich and 2 sides - Cole slaw and original fries (perfectly crispy) The food was excellent and we were stuffed when we.left. Definitely worth a visit.

So to be blunt they might of had a bad batch of tri tip, it was overly chewy and just was a bit off. Rest of the meats were fine, brisket was good. The fries and hashbrowns are about what you'd expect as well. All in all not bad besides the tri tip and pricing is pretty in line as well so would recommend.

Reuben sandwich was nicely toasted. Pastrami was thick cut and tender. Restaurants was nice and clean. Only complaint is the ice machine will over fill your cup.

Dan Kim

So to be blunt they might of had a bad batch of tri tip, it was overly chewy and just was a bit off. Rest of the meats were fine, brisket was good. The fries and hashbrowns are about what you'd expect as well. All in all not bad besides the tri tip and pricing is pretty in line as well so would recommend.

This place just doesn’t hit the same. The building as a whole is outdated, especially the bathroom. It does give that Texas feeling tho. I was in a big group, and was able to try everything. The meat is cold, and the portions are small. It is quite expensive. I did enjoy the pinto beans, the brisket, and the ribs. The service is good tho, I complained that one of my sides were cold, and they gave me another bowl, which was great. This place is just an average bbq place. Nothing special.

Menu prices, the interior, and the original BBQ offerings are the same as before, but the food quality was mediocre. My pulled pork sandwich started falling apart after taking the first bite, the Texas Toast was burnt, and I feel like the BBQ sauce has changed. Bonus points for the fully restored Commodore PET on display at the front counter though! Very cool addition by the new owner IMO.

Patrick R

Menu prices, the interior, and the original BBQ offerings are the same as before, but the food quality was mediocre. My pulled pork sandwich started falling apart after taking the first bite, the Texas Toast was burnt, and I feel like the BBQ sauce has changed. Bonus points for the fully restored Commodore PET on display at the front counter though! Very cool addition by the new owner IMO.

I got the tri tip sandwich and my buddy got the pulled pork. We both thought the meat was really tough. We both loved armadillo Willy's. This place? Not so much. We will be passing on this version. Their desserts were delicious though!

Enrique Cendejas

I got the tri tip sandwich and my buddy got the pulled pork. We both thought the meat was really tough. We both loved armadillo Willy's. This place? Not so much. We will be passing on this version. Their desserts were delicious though!

Ordered delivery for ribs+brisket with high hopes. However both were cold and dry. Ribs were like beef jerky and I had to rip each bone off the rack and chew down the meat with great effort. Brisket was supppsed to be half&half but I couldn't tell which was supposed to be the juicy portion. Coleslaw was bland, more or less just cabbage, and the tots were the best part because they were typical tots. I doubt a dine-in would present a much better experience that is worth the rating.

I had heard through the grapevine that the Armadillo Willy location in SV was returning since I grew up on Armadillo Willys in Los Altos, Sunnyvale, and Cupertino . I was super excited to see an open sign. My mom wanted to try it out, so we went to celebrate her birthday. I had high hopes, but it quickly turned into food disappointment and anger. My mom ordered the small brisket plate (19.99) and her side was a salad. It was more like a salad with a side of brisket. I took it back to the counter to ask how many ounces. They said 5 oz., but I call suspect. Weigh that stuff in front of customers and charge them by the pound like the legit Texas Bbq joints, if we are playing that game. I am paying for meat, not salad. My mom ordered half and half brisket -meaning some lean and some fatty). She did not get that either. Have your ppl learn the basics of BBQ and the difference between fatty and lean. Then we get to my pastrami sandwich (18.99) because I wanted, to try the deli part. Horrible. Right away I could tell it was subpar store bought pastrami on subpar rye and subquality Swiss. It was greasy, overcooked, and gross tasting.Since my mom didn't believe me ( about the store bought part), she had to go ask to verify. At least they admitted it was bought. With a 5 figure smoker ( at minimum), why wouldn't you make your own scratch pastrami? You did state deli on the door. At least tell your guests it is store bought when they are ordering and give them an informed choice. Then there was my tater tots. Crunchy over cooked sad potatoes. I always like to try the BBQ sauces, and they had a dispenser. I dispensed some sharty looking liquid. No thank you! I tasted some BBQ sauce from my mom's plate and it was nothing to write home about. I thought the owner bought Willy's, at least that is what it said online. No Willy's BBQ sauce either. Do y'all buy your bbq sauce too? The owner was in the building and chose to stay behind the counter instead of talk to guests. If the owner doesn't care enough to want to talk to guests about their experience I don't care enough either to talk to the owner about their gross product. Let customers decide. If I was a fan of an establishment and wanted to recreate and honor a place, this would not be the answer. I would be embarrassed. Let it be a fond memory instead of this sad disappointment. You insult the produce and animals that sacrificed their souls to make it on a plate. Have some respect for the product. And have some respect for your guests. Do better, because if Armadillo Willys couldn't make it, this place doesn't deserve to. Some advice, please take any mention of Armadillo Willy's off of your website as to not confuse your guests what to expect. Needless to say, I owe my mother another birthday lunch, because this was not the day to take her here. If you want Armadillo Willys, invest in driving to San Mateo. Don't invest your time, money, calories or fond memories on cosplay Armadillo BBQ and deli, because the NYC/ jewish deli part isn't that good either.

Sungjun Choi

Ordered delivery for ribs+brisket with high hopes. However both were cold and dry. Ribs were like beef jerky and I had to rip each bone off the rack and chew down the meat with great effort. Brisket was supppsed to be half&half but I couldn't tell which was supposed to be the juicy portion. Coleslaw was bland, more or less just cabbage, and the tots were the best part because they were typical tots. I doubt a dine-in would present a much better experience that is worth the rating.

Jflo

I had heard through the grapevine that the Armadillo Willy location in SV was returning since I grew up on Armadillo Willys in Los Altos, Sunnyvale, and Cupertino . I was super excited to see an open sign. My mom wanted to try it out, so we went to celebrate her birthday. I had high hopes, but it quickly turned into food disappointment and anger. My mom ordered the small brisket plate (19.99) and her side was a salad. It was more like a salad with a side of brisket. I took it back to the counter to ask how many ounces. They said 5 oz., but I call suspect. Weigh that stuff in front of customers and charge them by the pound like the legit Texas Bbq joints, if we are playing that game. I am paying for meat, not salad. My mom ordered half and half brisket -meaning some lean and some fatty). She did not get that either. Have your ppl learn the basics of BBQ and the difference between fatty and lean. Then we get to my pastrami sandwich (18.99) because I wanted, to try the deli part. Horrible. Right away I could tell it was subpar store bought pastrami on subpar rye and subquality Swiss. It was greasy, overcooked, and gross tasting.Since my mom didn't believe me ( about the store bought part), she had to go ask to verify. At least they admitted it was bought. With a 5 figure smoker ( at minimum), why wouldn't you make your own scratch pastrami? You did state deli on the door. At least tell your guests it is store bought when they are ordering and give them an informed choice. Then there was my tater tots. Crunchy over cooked sad potatoes. I always like to try the BBQ sauces, and they had a dispenser. I dispensed some sharty looking liquid. No thank you! I tasted some BBQ sauce from my mom's plate and it was nothing to write home about. I thought the owner bought Willy's, at least that is what it said online. No Willy's BBQ sauce either. Do y'all buy your bbq sauce too? The owner was in the building and chose to stay behind the counter instead of talk to guests. If the owner doesn't care enough to want to talk to guests about their experience I don't care enough either to talk to the owner about their gross product. Let customers decide. If I was a fan of an establishment and wanted to recreate and honor a place, this would not be the answer. I would be embarrassed. Let it be a fond memory instead of this sad disappointment. You insult the produce and animals that sacrificed their souls to make it on a plate. Have some respect for the product. And have some respect for your guests. Do better, because if Armadillo Willys couldn't make it, this place doesn't deserve to. Some advice, please take any mention of Armadillo Willy's off of your website as to not confuse your guests what to expect. Needless to say, I owe my mother another birthday lunch, because this was not the day to take her here. If you want Armadillo Willys, invest in driving to San Mateo. Don't invest your time, money, calories or fond memories on cosplay Armadillo BBQ and deli, because the NYC/ jewish deli part isn't that good either.