The Hog Shack

Hello southern style BBQ!!!

this meal sure made Jordan happy!

I love Groupon, despite some inconvenience they have caused me due to their outdated computer systems....

anyways, I have picked up a groupon deal for the Hot Shack, and it is $10 for $20 at the Hog Shack.  I love barbequed meats, so I couldn't find a reason why I should pass on this deal!

John's Jurassic platter ($50, for 2 ppl) - choice of 4 sides with st. louis side ribs, dino bites, chicken quarters and pulled pork - with 4 sides - side ribs 3.5/5, dino bites 2.5/5, chicken quarters 2.5/5, pulled pork 3/5

Jordan and I were really excited about an authentic southern bbq cuisine!!  But as we were served, we got more and more disappointed.

First of all, our food was only lukewarm at best.  The chicken thigh (2.5/5) was cold and hard in the middle. And by the time I get to the beef ribs (2.5/5) the fat has already solidified and turned into a huge blob (which made it easy for me to pick out but at the same time hardened the whole protein).   The beef rib was not properly cut in the middle so Jordan and I struggled to split the two bones with the butter knife.  It was not very pretty!  I liked their BBQ sauce being tangy and really smokey and that the meats all had a really nice charring on the outside.  But being cold was a huge let down as fatty meats like these really don't taste good and it really negatively affected our dining experience (hence the 2.5 / 5 rating)

The side ribs (3.5/5) were really nicely done.  It is not the par-boiled type you get in places like Montanas so don't expect the woozing juice but it is still relatively juicy and fall of the bone tender.  Again, because it was a bit cold ours was a bit dry but I could tell that there are nice layers of fat and I can only assume that if it was eaten hot, it would have been a lot juicier and more tender!  I especially enjoyed the charred exterior.  Huge flavours!

The sauteed veggies were pretty good with tons of butter flavour and the yam fries were really good being crispy.  The corn breads were also quite cold by the time I get to mine and it was quite dry but when eaten with whipped butter it was quite delicious.

Baked beans was a bit too sweet and too salty for me although it had a nice smoky flavour.  I guess if I used it as side BBQ sauce it would have worked well.

 

Over all our experience at Hog Shack was merely a satisfactory (2.5 - 3/5) but we showed up around 5 when the dinner service just started (at 4:30pm) and they did not even have their servers yet.  The steveston village area was pretty quiet and it is understandable that they are unprepared for their first set of customers. 

We will make sure that we call for reservations next time and yes, we will be back and hope that we will be served hot!

Food - 2.5/5

Service - 3/5 - We were served by the manager, he tried his best but he still forgot to give us a bucket for bones

Ambiance 3/5 - typical diner looking decor with many TV screens on the walls