Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill

The smell of smoking mesquite has often called to me long before the restaurant sign is visible from the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills.

I decided to start off the 7in7 with what was, to me, an unknown — a stranger among friends. Not a complete stranger, but one that I've seen around SoCal many times. There are several locations scattered around Los Angeles, Ventura, and Orange counties. Although I've often wanted to, I had never stopped in. Today, I'm pleased to say that the silence has been broken. Today is the day I was formally introduced to Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill. The humble exterior of this restaurant did not match the interior, which was refined and expansive.

The restaurant was surprisingly popular for a Sunday afternoon. Not necessarily packed, but popular. I tried to pick a time when taking a couple of photos wouldn't be conspicuous or intrusive to other diners. Oh well — luckily it was dark. Not so lucky from a photography point of view. Let's just say the photos came out moody.

On to the food. No appetizers were ordered, since we were going with the combos and they both came with two sides. They also offered up some complimentary garlic rolls, which were hot and very garlicky. My wife beat me to the punch and ordered the tri tip roast and baby back rib combo. Drat. I was a little disappointed they didn't offer BBQ spare ribs — I'll get over it. I wanted to mix it up, so I ordered the BBQ chicken and western beef rib combo. We decided to order four different side dishes so we could sample the variety and offer a fair evaluation.

The tri tip was pretty damn good — I understand why it's their signature item. Very tender, smoky, and scrumptious. They say in their menu it's slow-roasted overnight. The baby back ribs were tasty, meaty, and delightful. Their BBQ sauce paired well with the baby backs. The beef ribs were nice and tender. Although beef ribs aren't my favorite BBQ item, these were quite agreeable. The Wood Ranch BBQ chicken was pretty moist and for the most part good, though it did lack a little seasoning. Nothing a little salt and BBQ sauce couldn't handle.

We were very pleased with the quality of the side dishes — skillet-baked beans, smashed sweet potatoes, peanut coleslaw, and mesquite-grilled corn. The coleslaw was a perfect complement to the BBQ, as were the smashed sweet potatoes, which straddled the fence between sweet and savory. They were my wife's favorite. The baked beans were tasty, as was the grilled corn.

Overall we enjoyed our meal at Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill and will probably visit again soon. I can't say I agree with the reviews that state this restaurant offers the "best" BBQ in Southern California — that is TBD. But Wood Ranch does have good BBQ. Aside from dine-in and a full bar, they offer a take-out menu with 10-minute take-out parking right in front.

**Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill**
Multiple locations across Los Angeles, Ventura, and Orange counties
woodranch.com