Hambone's BBQ and Po'Boy Sandwiches

Hambone's BBQ and Po'Boy Sandwiches
9342 Alondra Blvd
Bellflower
562-920-1090

After watching the BBQ episode of Top Chef Texas, I wanted some BBQ. I recently found out about a new BBQ restaurant in Bellflower, called Hambone's, so I called a friend and we got ourselves some BBQ. Opened for about a year, Hambone's has been serving BBQ, po boy sandwiches and soul food. The restaurant has a small indoor dining area with a couple tables and counter space, and a good sized covered patio with about 6-8 tables.

I got the 3 baby back ribs with mac and cheese, $5.98, #18 on their menu. As readers of The New Diner know, I'm not a fan of baby back ribs. I got the baby backs because they do not offer spare ribs. Many place make the mistake of too much smoke on baby backs. Hambone's does a very good job of smoke their ribs. The baby backs were very good, with lots of meat and good smoke flavor. Baby back ribs are pretty tender to start with, so not much smoking is needed. I really like the quality of the ribs, good flavor, meaty. They use good quality ribs.

The mac and cheese was fantastic!! Perfectly cooked macaroni, covered with a gooey cheese sauce that was well seasoned and flavorful. They use a good roux that coats all the macaroni with that cheesey goodness.

Service was very good. They are friendly and helpful, which was good to see because they were a bit abrupt.

It's been awhile since I've had good BBQ and I'm glad I've tried Hambones. But, if I have one complaint it would be the high prices of their dinners and plates; half ($21.99) and full rack ($24.99) of baby backs with two sides. They did have a five baby back ribs for $11.50, which is a good price, but I'm not willing to spend a lot of money anymore for bad BBQ, so I got the 3 baby back ribs combo. Luckily Hambone's serves up very good BBQ. I will be back get that and try a po boy sandwich, $11.99.

The Hollywood Way-Closed

The Hollywood Way
1333 N Hollywood Way
Burbank
818-845-4400

I have been to two very mediocre BBQ restaurants in Burbank, Handy Market and Ribs USA. About a year ago, The Hollywood Way, part BBQ, mostly a sports bar opened up. So, I finally got a chance to give The Hollywood Way a try.

I went on a Tuesday night, when it's trivia night. The place wasn't crowded but it was pretty loud with the trivia game host, asking questions. The Hollywood Way is set up as part sports bars-there are a ton of TV's all over and part BBQ restaurant.

The BBQ at The Hollywood Way is smoked over a combination of oak and apple woods, the finished on a grill where they add their sauce. I'm not a fan of any BBQ being finished on a grill. I want that full smoke flavor! I'm also not a fan of baby back ribs. They don't take as much skill or talent to BBQ, as spare ribs.

I got the K.C. RIB TEASER- four of our baby back ribs, smoked, grilled and glazed with our honey BBQ sauce. Served on a bed of onion straws. $9.95. I was going to get half slab with two sides, $17.99, but I wasn't really that hungry and I would have much preferred spare ribs.

The ribs are coated with a tangy/spicy honey BBQ sauce, which is a tomato based sauce with a good helping of chili power. I liked this sauce, though a bit too sweet.

The ribs had some char on them, since they are finished on the grill. There was a good smoke flavor and the classic smoke rib. But, these are baby backs, so they are already tender. But, they were just slightly too done, the meat was a bit too mushy, that falling off the bone BS, that does NOT make good BBQ. The meat should have some give, not fall off the bone. But, overall I did like the ribs much better than the other BBQ restaurants that I have tried in Burbank. Though Burbank is hardly a good BBQ city.

Service was OK. The biggest problem is you don't know if The Hollywood Way is a sports bar or restaurant. There isn't a host station. I walked in and I actually had to ask one of the servers, if I just pick a table or if I needed to be seated. The server I had was nice and friendly, but a bit slow at refilling drinks and just being around. While it was trivia night and fairly busy, it wasn't packed and there were three other servers working. Not sure why I didn't see my server that much.

I wouldn't make a special trip back to The Hollywood Way, but I wouldn't be against going back if I was in the area.

Smoke City Market-Closed

Smoke City Market
5424 Van Nuys Blvd
Sherman Oaks
818-855-1280

Smoke City Market was suppose to open, at least according to an LA Eater story, back in September. That didn't happen.

Then according to their Facebook page, they were going to have a soft opening on October 28th. That didn't happen.

But, finally Smoke City opened on November 4th. A friend who lives nearby told me about the opening, and a group of us dropped in.

This is billed as a Texas style BBQ, mean brisket and beef are king. But the Texas BBQ I like, is smoked with mesquite. Smoke City meats are smoked with oak.

All meats are sold by the pound and are very pricey. $18/lb for beef ribs, $8.25/lb for brisket, and $8.50/lb for baby back ribs.




I'm all about pork ribs, I prefer spare ribs but baby backs are fine. This half rack of baby back ribs was dry, salty, and just overpowered with smoke. Smoke should enhance the flavor of the meat, not overwhelm it. There was very little to no rub, but the salt and pepper seasoning was too heavy on the salt. The ribs, actually all the meats, were dry because they had been sitting in a warmer for too long.

This was not worth the $8.50/lb price.




The beef ribs at $18/lb, must be the most overpriced BBQ meat I have ever had. The ribs were huge, I'll give them that. But otherwise, it was dry, fatty, and lacked flavor. I rib I got was slightly over a pound and not worth the roughly $20 price tag.



The brisket is the best meat, I had at Smoke City. They have three selections of brisket. Lean, moist, and cutter's choice. The cutter's choice is a mixture of the lean and moist brisket. The brisket was a bit fatty. Look, I know brisket has a lot of fat. But when the right pitmaster works on the a cut of meat, he can turn that fat into flavor. The moist brisket was more fatty, than the lean, but still too much fat. The lean brisket was dry, and while it didn't have as much fat, it was too dry.

But, for three people our bill came to $100!!! This was not worth $100, not even half that amount. Ok, I'll grant you, we didn't have to order the beef ribs at $18/lb. But even at that price, we got about 3lbs, that's still $40 for a lb of brisket and half rack of baby back ribs and a few sides, which I didn't touch. The last time I went to Dr. Hogly Wogly, I was able to get a brisket and beef rib combo, with two sides for about $20 and their brisket and beef ribs are much better than Smoke City.

Service was very good at the restaurant. The people are nice and friendly and they really want you to enjoy your dining experience. But, while their use of
Facebook is a good thing, what good is it, if you give the wrong information. They were suppose to have a soft opening on Oct. 28th, this is their post:

"Smoke City Market Hey Fans!!! We are ready!!! After all this time, effort, and research we will be opening our doors for a soft launch on Thursday, October 28th! Thank you all for your support and we can not wait to serve you!
October 24 at 9:51pm"

But that soft launch didn't happen. The food trucks are using Twitter and Facebook to get the word out. If the trucks tweeted they were going to be at a location at 7pm and didn't show, they wouldn't have many customers anymore. Thus it's important to have accurate information!! Look, I know it's a pain to get permits and other things. But at least inform the people by updating the Facebook page.

I wish Smoke City Market, success. I hope they do well. They are nice people in person. But the high prices, poor quality of BBQ, and not giving accurate information on social websites, are three strikes against them. I won't go back here and to be honest, I would be shocked if Smoke City is still open next November 4th.

Ranch House BBQ and Grill

Ranch House BBQ and Grill
6157 Van Nuys Blvd
Van Nuys
(818) 908-8399

This is your typical everyday, suburban BBQ, cooked in an oven. For what it is, oven BBQ, Ranch House does a pretty good job. Ribs cooked in an oven isn't something I go seek and if it was up to me, I would ban the use of the phrase BBQ, if the meat is cooked at temps above 250 degrees.




I got an order of baby back ribs with mashed potatoes, $9.50, but $8.99 on the outdated menu. The baby backs had a sauce just like Chris and Pitts, a bit sweet but tangy, tomato based sauce. The meat was tender, since it was baby backs, and pretty flavorful with the sauce. But there is no smoked flavor. The meat was white throughout. A true sign of smoke is the smoke ring.

Service was good, the owner is nice and friendly. But they do need to update the menu prices. But the biggest thing was the smell in the restaurant. They need to throw away the rugs or get them dry cleaned. Just a terrible musty smell in the restaurant. So bad that I couldn't eat there. I actually drove from Ranch House to Cupid's Hot Dogs, which is still great, to eat the ribs.

I wouldn't go back to Ranch House, because when I want ribs, I don't want oven cooked ribs. If you like oven cooked ribs, these ribs are better than the ribs you get from Chili's or Uncle Andre's.

Willy's Smokehouse BBQ & Grill-Closed

Willy's Smokehouse BBQ & Grill
28434 Roadside Dr
Agoura Hills
818-991-7227

Willy's is right next to the 101 freeway, you can see cars speeding by while you park. Honestly I didn't have high hopes for Willy's, I figured a Chili's type experience. But I was surprised, all the white people in Agoura Hills have a great BBQ restaurant.




I got a whole rack of baby back ribs, $17. I thought these baby backs were one of the best baby back ribs I've had!!! Nice smoke flavor, well cooked, a light sweet sauce, no fat, and a ton of meat. These ribs are smoked over real charcoal and smoked a long time. The use a good quality ribs.

I didn't care for their four bbq sauce. The regular BBQ sauce was too thick and had a sour taste. The sweet BBQ sauce was too sweet, not enough kick. The spicy and the real spicy BBQ sauces were just the regular sauce with a ton of chili mixed in.

Service was very good. The server, who had the entire restaurant was very friendly, attentive, and worked her butt off. I went to the restroom and they were out of handsoap. I told the server and they quickly refilled the handsoap and even checked to make sure there were enough paper towels! I know some idiots would rip a restaurant for not having hand soap, but what is the big deal about informing the restaurant? Should a restaurant check the restroom to make sure it is well stocked? Yes. But so what if they missed something. I have no issues if somebody ripped a restaurant, after telling the restaurant something was missing, and they still didn't take care of the issue.

I would go back to Willy's anytime.

Swingin Door Texas BBQ

Swingin Door
11018 Van Owen St
North Hollywood
818-763-8996

If this looks familiar, it should; this used to be Swinging Door BBQ. Swinging Door closed down in the summer of 2008 and reopened as Swingin Door, in 2009. It is the same location and smoker, the differences are; the lack of G at the end, a new owner, and sadly the BBQ isn't up to Swinging Door.




A good addition to their menu is, spare ribs. Spare ribs can be so much better than baby back ribs. I go the regular plate combo, 1 meat, spare ribs and one side, mac and cheese. The spare ribs are St. Louis style ribs, not rib tips, but they lacked flavor and taste. While the bones were big, there wasn't much meat on them either. What meat was on the ribs were too mushy. Either they were oversmoked or the quality of the meats isn't up to par. There was a hint of smoke flavor but this lacked a bark and seasoning. The BBQ sauce was bland too.

The mac and cheese was also bland. Somebody at the table said "The mac and cheese is all butter." and it really was. This was creamy but didn't have much of a cheesy flavor.




I wanted to try their championship ribs, so I got half a rack, $13.99. Championship ribs need to be ordered a day in advance. The championship ribs are "wet" baby back ribs. They are basted in a pretty bland sauce. Again this had a hint of smoke flavor but they lacked a real bark and any seasoning. So bland. There was more meat on the ribs and since they are baby backs, very tender. But overall very average.

Service was very good. They are nice people and very helpful.

I was sad to find out that Swinging Door had closed. I was happy to find that Swingin Door had opened but disappointed in the quality of the BBQ. I wouldn't go back.

The Smokin Joint BBQ-Closed

The Smokin Joint BBQ
8486 W. 3rd St
Los Angeles
323-655-7427

September 11, 2009. I can never forget what happened on September 11, 2001. Everything I did that day is still perfectly clear, today eight years later. The anger I felt that day is still there. I try and make it a point to be more friendly to others, but most times the anger I still feel comes out. That is wrong but can you blame me? I stood there in shock at the site of that black smoke rising against that blue sky. I saw neighbors going through a living hell. I saw heroes who died just doing what they do. I saw 40 heroes on a flight that fight back.

I saw heroes like Pablo Ortiz, who led many people to stairwells but never once taking the stairs himself.

I saw heroes like air traffic controllers, who landed every plane in North America airspace in three hours. Thus preventing any further attacks.

Today, I hate the stupid conspiracy assholes. Hey stupid, if a missile hit the Pentagon, where the hell did the passengers on Flight 77 go? They just disappear, dumb ass? I also hate the pussy countries like france and canada, who didn't support the US in the war in terror. Gutless bastards.

But I wasn't having a good day in part because two things were the same as eight years ago. The Seattle Mariners were playing the Angels in Anaheim on Septemeber 10 and there was going to be news for Micheal Wanna Bet Jordan; in 2001 The bettor was coming out of retirement and playing for Washington, in 2009 the bettor was going into the basketball Hall of Fame. Since I was having a bad day, I wasn't going to put up with bad service or bad food. Luckily I only experienced great service and great BBQ. A friend emailed me about The Smokin Joint BBQ and I wasn't making a huge effort to go because of they only served baby back ribs and they are near the pretentious West Hollywood/Beverly Hills area. I mean an area filled with white people who think BBQ is oven cooked ribs drowned in BBQ sauce. But I decided to go for BBQ on September 11th.

I got the half order of baby back ribs, $17, with mac and cheese and cole slaw. I would later realized I made a mistake and should have ordered a full rack!! Ok a bit pricey when compared to other BBQ places but considering the area, the price is right. As readers of The New Diner know I hate baby back ribs and any ribs cooked in an oven or finished on a grill. When I got the ribs and I saw those grill marks, I wasn't expecting much at all. But as I lifted my first rib, a wonderful smoke smell hit my nose. Then my first bite was filled with a wonderful smoke flavor and tender meaty ribs!!! WOW, what a surprise, not what I was expecting. A very good example of BBQ ribs. There was a sweet bark on the ribs. There were tons of great tasty meat on the ribs and almost no fat. Since they are baby backs they were tender. But what a wonderful smoke flavor, I think hickory with apple and pecan woods. I didn't use any of the sauce because of the wonderful smoke flavor. In the area, this is the best BBQ place. Don't waste your money at a terrible BBQ, that started in Venice and opened about 2-3 miles from The Smokin Joint. Trust me, The Smokin Joint just kicks ass over that terrible place.

The mac and cheese was damn good; very creamy and had a bit of heat, I'm guessing he used a pepper jack cheese. I didn't care for the cole slaw, which wasn't drowned in mayo, which I like, but a bit sour for my taste. But I don't care about the sides when the ribs are so good.

Service was great too. A very nice lady, who is part owner, saw me taking pictures of the outside and welcomed me inside. I sat at the counter and was treated to friendly and attentive service. She told me The Smokin Joint had been open for about two weeks. She was really pushing how great the beef ribs were, so next time I go I may get the combination of baby backs and beef ribs. I was never lacking for anything.

Ok, for a BBQ purist, it is too fancy for me. I mean real silverware and plate? Of course I'm not going to mark down any place because it is too fancy but I know for the pretentious, asshole people of the West Hollywood/Beverly Hills, they need to have that.

But they serve great ribs and service is super. If I could stand being around the pretentious, asshole people that make up West Hollywood/Beverly Hills, I would come to The Smokin Joint BBQ much more often.

Update Nov 2, 2009





I went back to The Smokin Joint and ordered the BBQ ribs combo, $27, with double mac and cheese. Out came three huge pieces of beef ribs and half rack of baby back ribs.

The beef ribs were very meaty and tasty. They were good quality beef ribs, not must gristle or fat. But a bit on the dry side.

The baby backs were great as usual. Nice flavor, very meaty, and a nice texture.

Service again was very good.

If you're in the mood for BBQ, The Smokin Joint is the best BBQ place in the area.

Beachwood BBQ

Beachwood BBQ
131 1/2 Main St
Seal Beach
562-493-4500

Quite frankly almost all BBQ places in Orange County suck. They cater to the pretentious, jerk white people that litter OC. So I wasn't thrill nor did I make an effort to go to Beachwood BBQ in Seal Beach, two to three years ago, when Beachwood BBQ first opened.

But I went tonight to have dinner with a good friend, who I haven't seen in a long time. Damn did she look hot!!!

As you might figure, this being white, Orange County, they do not have spare ribs, but the only baby backs. I got the half slab of baby backs, $16, with creamed corn and corn on the cob. After a few minutes I got a rack of ribs with some noticable fat, you can see the fat in the second picture above, not a good way to present ribs. And of course the thing you always look for a BBQ place is the smoke ring. As the third picture clearly shows, there wasn't any smoke ring.

But I cut the fat off and dug into the ribs. Beachwood "smokes" their meats with oak, apple and pecan. But the ribs were hot to the touch but they lacked any grill marks. So I'm guessing they are "smoked" in an oven. So they did have a nice smoke flavor. The ribs weren't that meaty but the meat was tender. Duh it is baby backs.

The creamed corn was bad. Instead of being sweet, it had more of a country gravy flavor. Not good. The corn on the corn was OK, not that sweet but cooked right.

Service was good. We got to sit in the table by the front window. So we saw everybody walking and waiting for a table. Our server was nice and friendly and even though we were kind of out of the way, she came by often and we didn't lack for anything.

I wouldn't call this a true BBQ, that smokes their meats. But Beachwood BBQ is pretty good. I would consider going back, if I'm in the area.

Hutch's BBQ-Closed

Hutch's BBQ
390 E Walnut St
Pasadena
626-449-8095

Pasadena not the first place I would think of for good BBQ. You have Robin's and Gus's. Now I found Hutch's, which has been in Pasadena since 1947. They also serve Jamacian food. But the name is Hutch's BBQ, so I tried the BBQ.

I got the baby back ribs, $13 with fries and cole slaw. I wasn't expecting much and Hutch's met up to my low expectations. The ribs were cooked in an oven and was heavily seasoned with pepper. The ribs were fairly meaty and didn't have much fat but they are baby backs.

I got my order to go and the server was ok. But the manager or maybe the owner was very nice. Giving me a quick history of the house that became Hutch's.

I wouldn't go back to Hutch's but if you like oven cooked ribs, this is the place for you.

Pinkie's BBQ-Closed

Pinkie's BBQ
502 Pacific Coast Hwy
Hermosa Beach
310-379-0616

Oh the Westside/Southbay area of LA. Full of pretentious, jerk people. Their idea of BBQ is meat drowned in BBQ sauce. So it must be a huge shock for these people to come to a BBQ place like Pinkie's. Pinkie's is real BBQ, cooked low and slow with hickory wood. But Pinkie's does cater to it's customer because they only serve baby back ribs.

I got the rib basket, $7.50 with mac and cheese as the side. Three baby back ribs come with the basket. The ribs are well smoked, see the smoke ring, and had a nice bark. A good example of real BBQ meat. But the ribs were not that meaty and since they are baby backs they have little fat. I didn't think the portion size was worth the price. Maybe they could add another rib or at least give you ribs with more meat on the bone.

One thing I didn't like is how they were presented. The last picture is exactly how the ribs came to my table. I think ribs should come to the table with the bark end up, like the second picture. It just looks so much better. Or even with the smoke ring showing. Though I do understand that some people when they see pink, they think the meat isn't fully cooked.

I tried a little of the BBQ sauce and it had an overpowering vinegar taste. I am not a fan of any vinegar based sauce.


The mac and cheese was very good, though a tad salty for me taste, with the cheese and macaroni well mixed together. This portion could be bigger too.

Service was slow. The server was friendly and she was overwhelmed. She had to take care of about 12 people in the dining area, the 4-5 people ordering to go, and the 2-3 people at the counter. She was slow to get my ice tea, she was slow to get refills, the food took a bit longer than usual. But she was friendly and hard working. It wasn't as though she was sitting around doing nothing. While I didn't like it, I can understand why the service was slow.

I wouldn't rush back or I wouldn't make an special trip to Pinkie's. But this is one of the very few real BBQ places in the area. I understand Pinkie's used to be the second location of Skooby's one of my favorite hot dog places.

Handy Market BBQ

June 6, 2009. 65 years ago today Allied Forces, under the leadership of Dwight Eisenhower, stormed the beaches of Normandy. This invasion was officially named, Operation Overload and is more commonly known as D Day.

The mission of D Day? To liberate Europe from the scumbag nazi. American forces stormed Omaha Beach. Other Allied countries stormed, Utah, Juno, Sword, and Gold Beach. Within a few hours Allied Forces had captured all those beaches and started their way into liberating France. Soon Allied forces liberated France and then onto Germany and getting rid of the nazi scum.

Too many brave men died on the beaches of Normandy. They didn't burn their draft notices, dodge the draft, protest the draft, act like cowards and run away to Canada, they all answered the call of duty for their country. Too many paid the ultimate sacrifice and never came back home.

Today we need to take a moment to honor them. The saying at the end of the movie; Ike Countdown to D Day is so true, "We may never see their like again."

25 years ago, Ronald Reagan made one of his best speeches on the 40th Anniversary of D Day.









Handy Market
2514 W Magnolia Blvd
Burbank
818-848-2500

To honor those brave men who made the ultimate sacrifice on D Day, I went to BBQ. Every Saturday, Handy Market has a BBQ, it is actually a grill but it is well known and as you can see from the line, it is popular.

Baby back ribs, beef ribs, chicken, and tri tip are sold by the pound. Sausauge and corn are also sold.

I got half a rack of baby backs, $7.49/lb and three beef ribs, $3.99/lb. Most half rack of baby back ribs are going to be about a pound.

The ribs are smoked in a smoker with mesquite charcoal. But the ribs are cooked at a very high temp, so they aren't really true BBQ. The ribs are oversmoked, they need to control the flow of the smoker better. The ribs since they are baby backs were fairly tender but that chemical flavor of lighter fluid just ruins the taste for me.

The beef ribs were pretty bad. Lots and lots of gristle and tough meat to go along with the chemical smell. Not a good combination.

This isn't real BBQ. What this is GRILLING-cooking meats at high temps. Most people in line with me thought this was great and love the meat drowned in BBQ sauce.

Service is OK, the people are nice and helpful but slow. I waited in line for about 30 minutes. Then I had to go to pay for the meat inside the market. At least it doesn't take that long to pay.

Also when calling for directions, they aren't too helpful. I called and asked what exit to get off at going north of the 5 freeway. They told me Buena Vista. Well Buena Vista is only off the 134 freeway. If you are on the 134 get off at Olive and go south to Buena Vista.

I would not go back to Handy Market's BBQ. It is not real BBQ and I can do a better job grilling ribs.

Bondi BBQ-Closed

Bondi BBQ
46 Windward Ave
Venice, CA
310-392-3809

After the diaster at Glencrest BBQ, I walked down to Bondi BBQ, which bills itself as Austrailian BBQ. This isn't true, real BBQ. They do not smoke their meats but to their credit they do not bill themselves as a real BBQ place. Their menu even says their meats come right off the grill.

I got the Double Trouble, $13.95, with 2 beef ribs, 3 baby back ribs and cole slaw.
Right away I could tell this wasn't going to be good either. The ribs were drowned in a BBQ sauce that was so sweet, I thought I was eating syrup. The baby backs were pretty tender but then again they are babybacks. There was no smoke flavor at all so the sweet BBQ sauce made up for it.

The beef ribs were kind of fatty with a lot of gristle and very little meat. They again were drowned in BBQ sauce. I wasn't impressed at all.

A wasted day of trying BBQ places I haven't been to. To make matters worse it was spent in Venice, which is filled with pretentious asshole people.