BARBEQUE WHERE SMOKE IS NOT LEGAL

BARBEQUE WHERE SMOKE IS NOT LEGAL

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien

This includes a re-review of DR HOGLY WOGLY’S TYLER TEXAS BBQ.

DR HOGLY WOGLY’S TYLER TEXAS BBQ

8136 Sepulveda Boulevard

Van Nuys, CA 91402

818-782-2480

http://www.hoglywogly.com

Sharon and I went to Dr. Hogly Wogly’s for our regular Friday lunch last week.  (She has to get out of the office once a week.)  I had been intending to re-review Dr. Hogly Wogly’s anyway since my last review was in 2012 and the last couple of times we went there for lunch were disappointing.  (More about that later.)  

As I was paying the check for this visit, I looked up and saw the SCAQMD (South Coast Air Quality Management District) permit displayed on the wall behind the register with all the other required business licenses and permits.  I wondered, aloud, that there must be stiff requirements for that permit.  Our server replied that this was the reason that they were stuck in this small location.  They can’t get a permit to build another barbeque pit in another location.

I went home and Googled the AQMD rules to see what they were up against.  As with most regulatory agencies the rules were rather labyrinthine but I found the rules for wood burning devices and found that while there are rules that would prohibit me from using my barbeques at home on “no burn days” there seems to be exemptions to these rules for restaurants.

(1)    The provisions of this rule shall not apply to wood-fired cooking devices designed and used for commercial purposes.

This would seem to apply to the rule stating that no one can install a new wood burning device in any new construction permitted after 2009.  So, her remark was puzzling.  I checked the county and city requirements for barbeque restaurants and could not find any air pollution rules that applied to wood burning barbeque pits and stoves that would keep this restaurant from moving to a new location.  One reason is that, apparently, there are no practicable engineering solutions to reducing emissions from a wood fired barbeque.  A bit more research revealed another reason for the exemptions. 

Back in the 1990s the AQMD tried to enact rules that would have required barbecue restaurants to install expensive exhaust scrubber equipment or change to using gas fired grills or pressure cookers and liquid smoke.  Barbeque restaurant operators were faced with citations from the AQMD and some installed expensive equipment that broke down and caused more fines from the AQMD.  It seemed that the temperature and grease from wood fired barbeque pits were more than conventional restaurant charbroiler filter systems could handle.  The AQMD attitude was that there was one rule for restaurants and since these are restaurants they will be covered by it.  When the AQMD put out figures that the 50, or so, barbeque restaurants produced as much pollution as thousands of cars the barbeque restaurant owners called them on it. The AQMD had to admit that they really had not quantified how much the barbeque restaurants contributed to the air pollution in the area.

Then it got really political.  Many of the barbeque restaurants are operated by African-Americans.  The discussion became about discrimination against ethnic cuisine.  Is barbeque an ethnic cultural cuisine, regional cuisine, or American cultural cuisine?  Is it barbeque if it isn’t smoked?  The AQMD drew protests from African-American politicians.  The debate raged, back and forth, between environmental controls, race relations, and what constitutes barbeque.  Finally, a state assembly person, Gwen Moore (D-Los Angeles), sensibly said, “It is crazy that they're even going to all this trouble, for 50 little companies. Just think of how much money and how much time is going into doing this. It's regulation for regulation's sake, with no real impact."  That seems to be where it ended.  Which still begs the question, why did the server say they were stuck at that location because they could not build a new pit barbeque anywhere else?  I’m going to call the SCAQMD and inquire myself.

DR. HOGLY WOGLY’S  BBQ --- Again!

I did say that the last few times we went to Dr. Hogly Wogly’s were disappointing.  The disappointment was that lunch time portions seemed to be smaller than they had been. This time the portions were what we expected.  Sharon ordered a Two Beef Ribs lunch and I ordered a Pulled Pork Sandwich.

Beef Ribs

One rib was all that Sharon could finish.  The rib was tender, tasty, very meaty, and not the least bit stringy, just as we had experienced in 2012.  The other rib and some of the steak fries that were with it came home as leftovers.  Sharon was still full after work so I had the other one for dinner.  I microwaved it along with the steak fries and it was great.

Pulled Pork

It occurred to me that I had never ordered Pulled Pork at Dr. Hogly Wogly’s.  The sandwich arrived on one of their fluffy buns with coleslaw on it.  The portion was more than enough.  In fact, it overflowed the sides of the bun.  And, it was so wet that I could not pick it up and eat it as a sandwich!  When I pointed it out to the server that what I had was a knife and fork pulled pork sandwich she told me that they put a big splash of the cooking juice on it before they put it on the sandwich.  She said that many people order the bun on the side and assemble the sandwich themselves.  Really?!!  The other thing was that the pork was not as flavorful as I expected.  Don’t get me wrong, it was good, but not what I expected compared to the other meats here.  I have had better pulled pork. 

What happened here?  My guess is a change of generations, a new generation of servers and a new generation in the kitchen. Dr. Hogly Wogly’s is still destination barbeque, but considering the pulled pork we are going to have to down grade them from a 10 to a 9. 

Sharon and I are getting back into the barbeque groove.  There are at least three places we intend to visit and review (or re-review) in the next couple of months.

THEY'RE GONE!

They’re Gone!

Unfortunately, (or fortunately, as the case may be) not all of the barbeque places we have visited have survived.  It’s sometimes a shock to be visiting an area where we have enjoyed good “que” and find that the place we had enjoyed is gone.  Other times we were not surprised at all.

THE BARBECUE COMPANY

3807 Santa Claus Lane

Carpentaria, CA 93013

This is an unfortunate loss.  Our conclusions on the experience here was:

“Is this the world’s best barbecue?  Well, no, but it is a contender, and not at all what you would expect to find in what is essentially a beachside strip mall.  It stands with much more expensive and much more famous barbecue restaurants and definitely comes under the heading of a destination barbecue restaurant.  We give it between an eight and a half and a nine.”

We think we know what happened here…location, Location, LOCATION!  It was visible from the 101 freeway, in the daytime, just after you passed it!  You had to really be determined to go there to come back around and find the Padaro Lane off ramp in the daylight let alone at night.  Too bad, the que was great.

CENTRAL TEXAN BBQ

10500 Merritt Street

Castroville, CA 95012

Our feelings on this one were mixed.  They had good “que” but the whole experience was not that great.  We concluded:

“The experience is authentic and kind of fun, so it’s a bit hard to be critical, but considering that there are lots of barbeque places that are fun and have authentic que, that don’t look like they are standing because the termites are holding hands, we are.  Taken as a whole, the experience doesn’t rate over seven and a half.”

Upon further reflection that conclusion was a bit over generous.  The meat was very good but the rest of the experience was acceptable only because of the company we had.  Guess the termites stopped holding hands.

BABY BLUES BBQ – WEST HOLLYWOOD

7953 Santa Monica Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90046

This was a complete shock!  We did not see this one coming at all.  Our original conclusion was:

“Baby Blues is a small chain.  They have another location in Santa Monica.  It will be interesting to see if the owners can keep up the exceptional quality of food and atmosphere if the expand it further.  Make no mistake, it is exceptional.  They seem to take pride in using what they feel is the best method of preparation for each style of meat regardless of the barbecue style.  You can’t pigeonhole it.  This is a barbecue destination.  Taking it all in, I gave it a nine, Sharon a nine point five".

The other location is still open and we will visit it for a post.  One of the local restaurant reviewers wrote that it could not compete with more trendy restaurants in the area.  Really!!!  What do they want?

SMOKE CITY MARKET

5242 Van Nuys Boulevard

Sherman Oaks, CA 91401

No surprise here, we did not enjoy this one.  Our original conclusion was:

“I suppose the problems we had with the Smoke City Market were that we had expectations.  With great reviews, recommendations from acquaintances, and experience with Texas barbecue, we were probably set up for a fall.  Regardless of our expectations, we would have been disappointed anyway.  We would really have to find a good reason to give it another try.  This one gets a five."

The marketplace (barbeque lovers) has spoken.

MY BROTHER’S BAR-B-Q

21150 Woodland Hills, CA 91364-2103

818-348-2020

This is another one we don’t really miss.  This was strictly coffee shop barbeque which was unfortunate since they were really nice people.  Our conclusion was:

“There is a definite nostalgia value to My Brother’s Bar-B-Q.  When I was a kid, this was barbecue.  It does not come from the barbecue tradition but from the restaurant management tradition. There are barbecue places in this area that are nearly as venerable as My Brother’s that come from the regional barbecue tradition, and they have continued to refine their product in the contemporary barbecue mode.  This is what we have come to look for in barbecue.  A couple of steak houses in the San Fernando Valley live on their 1950’s nostalgia.  It works with a steakhouse, but not for a barbecue restaurant.  I really hate to have to say this because all the people there are so nice, but we give it a five.”

I don’t really know what happened.  Perhaps the older patrons that had the habit of coming here moved or died off, or maybe they just moved on to other places and there was nothing to attract new customers.  Or, as will often happen in the restaurant business a principal retired or died and no one wanted to or was able to continue the business.  Whatever it was it’s gone.

WILLY’S BBQ & GRILL SMOKEHOUSE

(Soon to change its name to TAVERN 101 BAR AND GRILL)

24834 Roadside Drive

Agoura Hills, CA 91301

Well it did, and as Tavern 101 seems to have somewhat of a different vibe.  This requires a visit for a new review.  We will sneak in the next time we drive out of the west end of the Valley.

JOHNNY REBS' TRUE SOUTH - LONG BEACH

“We all eat, and it would be a sad waste of opportunity to eat badly.”

 -Anna Thomas

JOHNNY REBS’ TRUE SOUTH  -  LONG BEACH

4663 Long Beach Blvd

Long Beach, CA 90805

(562) 423-7327

https://johnnyrebs.com/

Sunday – Thursday  7:00 AM to 9:00 PM

Friday – Saturday     7:00 AM to 10:00 PM

We really weren’t going there today.  A friend was celebrating her birthday at a belly dance showcase held in a coffee house in Long Beach.  Well, we weren’t (I wasn’t) going to miss that so we planned to go to Long Beach along with another friend.  I looked up the barbeque joints in Long Beach that we had not reviewed (actually, most of them) and I made a list of four that would be on our way to the coffee house

.

The closest one was Robert Earl’s BBQ, which is a an apparently extremely popular hole in the wall, abysmally short of parking, on the northern edge of Long Beach.  I managed to shoe horn my Subaru into a space on a side street that was about a foot longer than it was and we went inside.  Before we could order we found that, at 5:30 on a Saturday night they were already out of mac and cheese, coleslaw, greens, and yams so we decided to go to the next place on the list.  Some of the people waiting for their orders were vocally surprised that we left just because the place was out of some sides, but since we write this blog (something we didn’t tell them) we decided to come back another time when we can get the full experience.

The next place was Johnny Rebs’ True South.  Physically, this place looks the part.  They have done their best to reproduce a southern roadhouse.  The parking lot is dirt and along with the cars you typically find in Southern California there was an assortment of old pickup trucks and motorcycles all of which actually belonged to customers.  The interior is all knotty pine, tongue and groove planking with old license plates and period advertising on the walls along with what appear to be photos of their more notable customers.  Most of the seating is wooden booths with a few tables in the back where the space widens out behind the kitchen. There are buckets of peanuts on the tables and you throw the shells on the floor.  This is definitely a casual place.

At a few minutes before 6:00 there were only three booths and a table open and a few minutes after we were seated in one of the booths the place was packed solid. The hostess and servers were cheerful, prompt and attentive which seemed to bode well.  Although the menu serves for all of their locations (There are two others.) this location only has a beer and wine license which Sharon found disappointing since she really wanted a margarita.  She and the friend with us ordered wine.  They are the designated drinkers so I ordered iced tea and in true Southern fashion the server asked, “Sweetened or unsweetened”. The drinks came promptly and the iced tea was served in a Mason jar.

This is not strictly a barbeque place with some of the menu selections what you could call Southern comfort food.  Besides the ‘que’ they have the appetizers, salads, sandwiches, and dinner selections you would expect to find in the south with a few concessions to California like flat bread pizzas (although with some truly Southern toppings).  They also serve breakfast which is why they open at 7:00 AM.

We have a ‘thing’ for fried dill pickles so we got a half order for an appetizer.  Our friend ordered a Brisket Sandwich with Mac and Cheese as a side.  Sharon ordered a Baby Back Rib Dinner with Mac and Cheese and Baked Beans for sides.  I ordered a Carolina Combo with Sliced Brisket and Pulled Pork with Greens and Fried Okra sides.  The food arrived without an excessive wait so between the three of us we hardly made a dent in the bucket of peanuts.   To finish our dinner we split an order of Bread Pudding between the three of us.

Fried Pickles

The Pickles arrived hot from the fryer with a side of ranch dressing for dipping.  Believe it or not, this is something that can be done badly.  Here, they are done right!  The breading was crisp, not too heavy, and the pickles were not overly salty.  This is one of those great Southern appetizers, and one of Sharon’s and my favorites.   Fried Green Tomatoes are also on the menu, another one of my favorites, Sharon not so much.

Brisket

Well, it looked good on the plate.  What appeared to be a smoke ring was a bit anemic but it was moist and not too fatty.  That is about all you can say for it.  Oh it was cooked and certainly safe to eat but not very pleasurable.  Brisket should have a definite flavor that says SMOKED BEEF.  This was tasteless.  It could have used a couple of more hours in the smoker to develop a flavor.  In fact, its blandness even called into question if they had a smoker.  I’ve had coffee shop barbeque, slow roasted in an Alto Shaam® oven with smoke flavor added and slathered with barbeque sauce that tasted better.  (Please note:  As I have said before this is not meant as a disparagement of Alto Shaam®  products.  They make excellent kitchen equipment and they do make commercial indoor smokers.  It just didn’t seem as if this place bothered to use any kind of smoker.)  Our friend, who ordered a Brisket Sandwich, which was served open faced, noted that the tastiest thing on the plate was the bun.  She did say it was a fabulous bun.

Pulled Pork

If the Brisket did not say BEEF, the Pulled Pork absolutely did not say PORK.  After a taste I thought it fortunate that the portion on my plate was a bit small.  The taste reminded me of a conversation I had with the Middle Eastern proprietor of a barbeque restaurant who said, “You don’t need a smoker.  Slow roast the meat with smoke flavor and put barbeque sauce on it and no one can tell the difference.”  Yes, you can!

Baby Back Ribs

At least the Baby Back Ribs had some flavor…not a lot but some.  They were certainly falling off the bone tender.  In fact, a piece of meat fell off of one onto Sharon’s lap.  It’s hard to eat barbeque without taking some piece of clothing to the cleaner.  She ate about half of the half rack and I took the rest home for leftovers.  I had it for lunch a couple of days later and it still disappointed.

Mac and Cheese

This is peculiarly interesting Mac and Cheese.  When it arrived on Sharon’s plate it was cold.  A taste made it seem that the cheese sauce had too much flour in it for thickening.  The portion on our friend’s plate was cold also.  We pointed this out to our server who promptly returned with hot Mac and Cheese side orders.  Hot, it was a different story.  There was a flavorful combination of cheeses and it came off as one of the better Mac and Cheese sides we have tried.  However, I took one portion home as a leftover, and noticed that cold, it again tasted too floury.  Microwaved, it again tasted very good…puzzling.

Greens

This is a very conventional preparation of greens, but it had way too much vinegar.  This would not change the mind of anyone who does not like greens.  Best conventional greens are still found at Mom’s (See previous post on Mom's.) 

Beans

This is a simple bean in sauce preparation.  The sauce has a little bite to it, not something that I would say is hot, but on the edge for Sharon.  It is an adequate side dish but could use some meat in it for more richness. 

Fried Okra

It’s good!  The okra was pleasantly dry and had crisp, thin breading.  It was served with a side of ranch dressing for dipping.  I have one small complaint, it was sliced too short.  Most fried okra is cut short but here I felt like I was eating okra pellets.

Bread Pudding

We all enjoyed the bread pudding.  It was creamy, not dry, and very flavorful.  I suppose it could have used a more traditional bourbon sauce, but in this case, that’s nitpicking.

It is rather hard to write this review because the place is cute and the people are so darn nice.  And, to be perfectly fair, we did not try the entire experience, the other items on the menu and breakfast.  But, what we review is the “que” and that fell far short of average.  I’m afraid we have to give Johnny Rebs’ a four.