Mr. G's BBQ-Closed

Mr. G's BBQ
8022 Limonite Ave
Riverside
951-681-1993

When I first read about Mr.G BBQ, I had some high hopes for finding some good BBQ pork spare ribs. But after doing some search, I got the feeling this was going to be an oven cooked ribs. I would classify Mr. G as a soul food restaurant, more than a BBQ restaurant.

I got the lunch pork spare ribs, $8.95, with mac and cheese and smothered potatoes and the 15 piece hot wings, $8.95. The owner was very kind to give me a free fried chicken wing.

The pork spare ribs were oven cooked, thin, and drowned in a sweet BBQ sauce. Not my kind of BBQ. But for those people who think BBQ is what is served at Chili's or Tony Roma's, then you'll love these ribs. Now don't get me, the ribs were good. There is nothing "wrong" with ribs being cooked in an oven. But I'm looking for REAL BBQ. Real BBQ is smoked at low temps and for long periods of times. Oven cooked ribs take a couple hours.

The hot wings were OK. They were crunchy but had little meat inside, even though they look big in the picture. There were some pieces that were too well done, not burnt just fried a bit too long.

The fried chicken wing was huge!! It had a nice crunch and great seasonings!! The meat inside was moist and tender. If the hot wings tasted like the fried wings, things would be great.

Service was great. The owners were nice and friendly. They brought your food to your table and refilled your drinks.

I would not go back to Mr.G's for the BBQ. But I would like to try some of the other soul food items.

Smokey Canyon BBQ

Smokey Canyon BBQ
5225 Canyon Crest Dr
Ste 9
Riverside
951-782-8808

Smokey Canyon is near Romano's the Chicago Pizza Place I reviewed back in 2007.

I got the 1/3 rack of St. Louis spare ribs, $14.55, with beer battered onion rings and cheesy potatoes. I'll talk more about the price later.

The ribs were dry but had a nice smoked flavor and was pretty meaty. There wasn't much fat or grizzle. So these ribs have potential to be very good. The BBQ sauce was way too sweet. Not a fan.

But I was a fan of both of the sides, beer battered onions rings were awesome. A very nice thick batter gives this a great crunch. Wonderful stuff. The cheesy potatoes were also very good. Diced potatoes with cheddar cheese, sour cream, and onions. The potatoes were cooked perfectly, were soft and coated with cheese. A great side.

One thing that wasn't great, was the fact they didn't tell me the onion rings were a $1 extra. It does say that on the menu but the girl taking my order never mentioned that. They need to mention that, when they are telling what sides they have.

Now the girl was nice and friendly. Service was good. But I didn't like the fact the onion rings cost a $1 extra. I will say it was well worth it. If the onion rings were fresh out of the fryer, I would have asked for new ones. But they were fresh and awesome.

Again I think Smokey Canyon has good potential for a BBQ place. I will give them another try because the ribs have a great smoked flavor but a bit dry. Maybe another time they will be just right. Smokey Canyon is much better than Gram's.

Gram's Mission Barbeque Palace

Gram's Mission Barbeque Palace
3527 Main St
Riverside
951-782-8219

In keeping with the dining in the Inland Empire theme, I went on a BBQ taste test in Riverside. I found Gram's Mission Barbeque Palace through Yelp and decided to give it a try.

I went got the daily special rib, $5.99 with mac and cheese and a soda. I got two ribs and a couple rib tips. The ribs were just ok. Not much smoke flavor though. The BBQ sauce had a weird sour taste to it. The ribs were a bit small. The rib tips were fatty and not bad. Not sure why they would ruin ribs with those rib tips.

The mac and cheese had too much pepper on them. They did have a nice coating of cheese.

Service is OK. The owner is pretty nice but just very slow to take my order.

I wouldn't come back here again, even if I was in the area. Head over to
Smokey Canyon BBQ, it's much better.

Romano's Chicago Pizzeria

Romano's Chicago Pizzeria
5225 Canyon Crest Dr #60
Riverside
951-781-0773

In my quest for Chicago style pizza, I found Romano's in Riverside. I wanted to see how Romano's matched up, to my standard for Chicago style pizza is Tony's Little Italy in Placentia.

Pictured is the medium, My Other Sister's Favorite stuffed pizza, pepperoni and black olives, for $16.95. The pizza was very tasty but a bit on the dry side, they didn't put as much sauce or cheese as Tony's. There was a decent amount of pepperoni and they just overloaded the black olives. But something was missing. Maybe not enough spices or toppings or sauce. But this just wasn't as good as Tony's. The picture shows a lot of sauce on top but I'm used to sauce being inside the pizza.

Service was good. Our server was attentive and friendly. Since Chicago style pizza takes a 30-40 minutes to cook, she came by to refill drinks during our wait.

Romano's is pretty good but it wasn't worth the drive out to Riverside. If I was in the area, I would go back but I would not make a special trip out there. But I do think the prices are a bit high for what you get. Basically I found the prices of medium prices at Romano's would get you a large at Tony's.

Donahoo's Golden Chicken-Riverside

Donahoo's Golden Chicken
5749 Mission Blvd,
Riverside, CA 92509
(951) 684-3545

The third location for Donahoo's Golden Chicken in Riveriside. I wasn't that impressed. The chicken didn't have the crunch of the Donahoo's in Pomona or Donahoo's in Ontario. The skin is very salty, the only saving thing about the chicken is that the inside is very moist and tender.

The day I went, Oct 1, the rating from the health department was a B. The kitchen didn't look all that clean and I was a little hesitant to buy any chicken. But since I was already there, I did buy two breast pieces for $4.30. I wouldn't go back even if I was in the area.

I still think the Donahoo's in Pomona is the best of the three locations.