01/10/09

Best BBQ in LA ... So Far.

by mollypsca

I love BBQ. I love sauce. I love RIBS USA. I have been to most of the BBQ places in LA, looking, seeking, trying to find the best of the best. Thus far RIBS USA has the lead. The food is great, the menu is good old BBQ, the ambiance is ideal for a chillaxin BBQ joint. I would say make your way to Burbank for this place, it is worth the drive from anywhere in LA to get the taste of real-deal BBQ.

• Pros: Great food, Good Service

03/21/08

Pretty good BBQ but EXPENSIVE!

by culinaryman

I used to be a regular for a few years in the late 80's into the early 90's. Basically stopped going because they seemed to go through a period of inconsistancy and the prices started escalating. We had a urge recently for some BBQ and this being the only local BBQ in town (worth eating at, Smokin' Jacks isn't) we went and ordered food to go. The food was actually very good but! Their prices are plain ridiculous. We ordered one combo dinner that my wife and I shared and one other rib dinner for my son, a couple of extra side orders for our combo and the bill was almost $70, WOW! Guess we will only dine there on rare occaision, will probably make the drive to Glendale to Tony Romas.

11/16/07

Ribs U.S. eh

by porkjello

You can't put the word "Ribs" in your business name and have mediocre ribs but some how Ribs USA has pulled it off. Not only that, their brisket is just plain bad. I'd skip this place if you are craving ribs and bbq.

11/02/07

Average BBQ food at best!

by alhjr55

Being a BBQ fanatic, I have eaten here many times, including all the way back when it originally opened as "Robbie's Rib Cage". (It has never been as good as Robbie's was). Robbie's sold out to Ribs USA and then went through a couple of changes of ownership as well as varying food quality as Ribs USA. The food used to be better and more reasonable with former management but, for some reason along their journey to today, their quality control has varied to the point that the consistancy of the food served varies from visit to visit. Sometimes tender, sometimes tough, sometimes too much fat. They used to have wing night on Tuesdays some time ago with all the wings you could eat for a single price and that was good eatin' and a fun atmosphere. I'm sure that they made up for the amount of wings that were eaten with all the beer they sold those nights because it was always busy and there was a lot of beer being served. But, somewhere along the line, they discontinued the wing night, jacked up their prices and let their consistancy slide. I would never say "don't eat there" because the food is still more than edible but because of the inconsistancy of the food from visit to visit, whichever day you go, it could be a good day or a bad day for the food, and they have become way to pricey for what you get. There are other BBQ restaurants in the valley that serve up food that is at least as good ,if not better for much more reasonable prices for generous portions. Give it a try and judge for you self, you just might get lucky and eat there on a good night, good luck.

• Pros: Semi-rustic atmosphere, decent service, free baskets of peanuts in the shell
• Cons: Food consistancy suffers, high prices relative to portions and quality, parking

09/09/07

Bad enough to make a barbecue fan cry.

by cjporkchop

If you've ever had GOOD barbecue, this place will sorely disappoint.

For the uninitiated: Barbecue should be slowly smoked for a long time, so that collagen/gelatin is rendered out into the meat, making it tender and juicy with unctuous goodness. The meat should have a distinct smoke flavor, perhaps even a visible pink smoke ring below the surface of the meat, on cross-section. The brisket and beef ribs I was served may as well have been boiled rubber bands with gelatin granules embedded. There was NO detectable smoke flavor in the meat, and it was obvious that the connective tissues hadn't been adequately rendered. The sauce was acceptable, but sloshing that over terribly prepared meat does not make it barbecue.

Also, the greens were downright bizarre. I think they may have been seasoned with ketchup and *pickling spices* of all things, as the potliquor (aka greens cooking liquid) had a tomato-red tint and the whole dish had a flavor reminiscent of over-seasoned, over-sweetened pickled beets. If that was just a regional recipe I'm not familiar with, it was highly disappointing. But if that was supposed to be a bowl of authentic Southern-style greens, then it was an abomination.

The diner might be warned of the bad things to come by the fact that one entire wall in the lobby is covered by faded, yellowed head shots of people who were never famous to begin with in the '80s. (The "crane game" machine was blocking some photos from view. I hope the people whose pictures are hidden never come in and see that.) Maybe the food here was better a couple of decades ago, but anyone who would endorse this place's food with an autographed photo nowadays deserves my pity, for they have never in their lives tasted the real thing.

• Pros: Service OK
• Cons: Abysmal barbecue

06/30/07

Great customer service

by smokinhot38

After reading all the hype on ribs usa I thought I would give it a try.I went last night, strarted with the hot wings. I ordered the hottest one "runny nose". From being a spicy lover of food ,I thought this would be spicy . Not at all ,it was more vinegary taste than anything,but for other other people maybe this would be hot. A little let down .Okay So I was really hungry the waiter told me to order the full order of beef ribs. When I got them they it was 7 bigs ribs on a plate . I took a couple of bites it was pretty tasty but I have to say there seemed to be more fat than beef on the rib.I was pretty dissapointed. Great customer service.Never had a chancve to try the side dishes. I f I go back I will try the brisket. So only three strars for now. Maybe next visit will be better.

11/15/06

THE BEST RIBS EVER

by hempist

Delicious ribs with the meat literally falling off the bone. Great BBQ sauce too. I also really like the rib tips, give those a try if you feel like using a fork! The macaroni & cheese is a little different, it's not super creamy and it has green peppers in it but I still like it. The atmosphere is super casual, they have free peanuts and you throw the shells on the floor. Great friendly and quick service. Highly recommended for food & service.

• Pros: Delicious tender ribs and great sauce
• Cons: the BBQ sauce gets under my nails

04/10/06

User review by tabemono

by tabemono

Plus - Fast! We were promptly seated and given two paper cups to fill our own drinks at the dispenser along with our own cornbread and butter. Next to the soda machine is a sink with paper towels and soap to wash your hands before and after you eat. The waiter was attentive and friendly and fast without being pushy and our food was served immediately.

Minus - Parking spaces in the back are scarce (street parking is available). There wasn't enough sauce on the ribs and the meat was not as tender as thought it should be. The macaroni & cheese tasted and looked like mac & scrambled eggs. A bit on the pricey side.

• Pros: fast, friendly
• Cons: parking, macaroni & cheese

01/22/06

Outstanding

by supergrump

This is truly one of the best BBQ joints I have experienced. We come here about 6 times a year and have enjoyed the service as much as the food each and every visit. The cooks certainly know what they are doing and the servers could not be more helpful and polite. A couple of them are actually pretty funny. Scores a 10 in my book.

• Pros: fast service, friendly wait staff, excellent food
• Cons: parking

01/10/06

If I wanted a McRib, I'd go to McDonald's!

by autonutt

I had heard great things about this place, so I invited a friend along to order tri-tip sandwiches for take-out. The wait was VERY long, service was indifferent at best, and when we got the sandwiches home -- they were TINY (the bun dimensions were literally 2"x5", like a McRib and smaller than 1/2 of a Subway sandwich), and each had a maximum of four thin slices of tri-tip in them. They tasted fine, but not outstanding... and definitely not worth the $25 bill.

• Cons: small portions, slow service