Dr. Hogly Wogly8136 Sepulveda Blvd.
Van Nuys
818-782-2480
Dr. Hogly Wogly has been rated as the Top 9 BBQ places in LA by Nine on the Town. Nine on the Town needs to get out more. Dr. Hogly Wogly is not good at all.
Dr. Hogly Wogly bills itself as Tyler, Texas BBQ. Texas BBQ means beef but I hate beef ribs. So I ordered the half a rack of pork ribs al carte for $17 including tip. The menu price is $13.95 for the ribs, so I didn't order any drinks or sides.
The ribs came out just dripping with marinate/sauce. A lot different than what I'm used to. The ribs even with the sauce were very dry and tough. They were not smoked but grilled over hickory wood. So there is very little smoke flavor throughout the ribs. The ribs were a good sized but too many skinny ribs and not enough bigger ribs. If you're a beef eater, brisket or beef ribs, Dr. Hogly Wogly is for you. You won't go hungry and they know how to do beef. Pork should be left to the pit masters from Memphis.
Service was good but you get the feeling they are rushing you out of there. No time to sit and talk. But otherwise they take your order promptly, food is served quickly and they are attentive to your needs.
Dr. Hogly Wogly is very overpriced. For $17 I could get dessert and a drink, in addition to much better BBQ, at Phillips. I would not go back.
Update. Feb 28, 2009
Ok I made it back to Dr. Hogly Wogly. I have become more opened minded about BBQ. I will try other meats besides pork spare ribs. So I made it back to Dr. Hogly Wogly for their sliced beef sandwich, $8.45. The server told me it wasn't their brisket sandwich, it was tougher, more like roast beef.
Well the meat in the beef sandwich is from the brisket cut. I think it is just beef that was overcooked or had been in the warmers too long. I was tough but had decent flavor. The amount of beef was huge, just a ton of thick sliced beef. I did like the sandwich but I didn't think it was anything great.
Service again was good.
I still don't get the hype of Dr. Hogly Wogly. I know I didn't get their signature dish, brisket, but got a close comparison and I didn't feel it was the holy grail. I do not think I will be back anytime soon.
Update Oct 25, 2009
So I'm in the Valley for something and I don't want to fight the traffic going to see U2 at the Rose Bowl. It's 6pm and I'm hungry and haven't eaten since breakfast. About a week ago I went to a BBQ potluck and somebody brought beef ribs from Dr. Hogly Wogly and I have to admit they were great. Tender, meaty and very little fat or gristle. So I decided since I'm in the area I would go back to Dr. Hogly Wogly and try their beef ribs and brisket.
I got the beef ribs and brisket combo, $19.95 with cole slaw and mac salad. The cole slaw has a sweet taste, they must put some sugar in there. The mac salad has a lot of dill in there, tasty but a bit different.
Now for beef!! There were three beef ribs in the combo. They only had the marinate on them, no BBQ sauce and it was very good. Not as good as the ribs from the BBQ potluck but still good. The ribs were meaty, tender, and didn't have much fat. But some of the ribs, mostly on the ends, were burnt or well done. Otherwise these were good beef ribs.
Now for the brisket. I'm not a big brisket fan. I prefer my brisket to be brined and corned and turned into pastrami or corned beef. But the brisket at Dr. Hogly Wogly, is hands down the best brisket in LA. Ok, I haven't had that much brisket, but this was great. Tender, flavorful thick cuts of brisket. So tender a fork, even a plastic fork can cut it.
Service was slow to start. I sat down at my table and it took about five minutes before anybody greeted me or gave me a menu. But everything after that was very good. I wasn't hurting for anything. But at Dr. Hogly Wogly, during dinner time, all the servers wait on the tables. So one time I got two refills on my soda at the same time. You can't beat that!!
I have learned my lesson, don't mess around with other meats, just get the brisket and only the brisket at Dr. Hogly Wogly.
