Woody's BBQ Santa Barbara.com

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Woody's BBQ 5112 Hollister Ave, Goleta Phone: (805) 967-3775 Category: BBQ Hours: Summer:Mon-Thu 11am-10pm, Fri-Sat 11am-11pm, Sun 11am-10pm, Winter: all the same except Mon-Thu close at 9pm Price: $10 - $20 Serving: Lunch & Dinner Map Web Site Menu Write a review of this location!

Reviews by the General Public

Needs Improvement , 9/7/2014
Reviewer: Martin from Goleta, CA
Needs improvement. A member of my party had their chicken all bloody and hardly cooked, the last time I was there, and on top of everything the employees refused to remake the chicken. For Health it's really concerning.

Greed
Reviewer: Mike from Santa Barbara, CA
Went to woodys last night with my family to have the ribs and chicken advertised special. The cashier informed me that they had ran out of the special. I asked you mean to tell me you ran out of chicken and ribs? She replied yes. I noticed that there where a couple of out of town soccer teams being served the higher priced chicken and rib meals. They had stopped selling the lower priced advertised special so they could sell the higher priced meal. If yo can not Honor your advertised special you shouldn't advertise! Thats simply greed! Will not eat there again! Also last year an organazation I am of member of had a banquet at Woodys and we spent close to $3000.00 on the banquet. Dont expect us back Again!

still bad
Reviewer: Peter from Santa Barbara, CA
I have tried the food here off and on becuase it is close to my house. The only safe meal where the food is actually edible is the big chuck burger. I tried again today 2-4-2012 for lunch and I ordered the pulled pork it was awful. Tasted like last weeks pulled pork that old. I am never going back after today regardless of how convenient it is. Everything I have tried that is supposed to be barbecued does not taste fresh. It taste like they cook their meat once a week for the whole week.

Couldn't figure out why it took so long
Reviewer: James from Santa Barbara, CA
My girlfriend and I went there for lunch ONCE. Our order took forever and they where not that busy. we ran out of time and both of us had to get back to work. After watching the guy behind the counter finish with being rude to a customer, I told him that we could not wait any longer and would he please refund our money so we could leave. He repeatedly kept putting me off with " your order will up soon". After about 10 minuets of that, I gave up. When our food finely came we got it to go. The food was NOT worth the wait. We haven't been back sense, nor do we intend to.

good food good service stop on by and eat
Reviewer: Curtis Maybin from Mission Viejo CA
The menu was put together nicely and easy to figure out what your wanted. I prefer a BBQ joint to be a little less stylish and down home but cant knock them for that. I love a place that smells like my home when i use my kamado primo grill nothing like that scent. so stop on by and enjoy http://www.primosmokers.com

They just don't seem to care
Reviewer: Ryan from Santa Barbara, CA
My wife and I dined here on 10/30/2010. I had the brisket sandwich and she had the pulled pork sandwich. As someone who loves BBQ in all its forms, I cannot overstate how disappointing this experience was. I really don't understand how this place continues to be voted Best BBQ in Santa Barbara. It was obvious (by taste and appearance) that most of the food was made many hours, if not days, beforehand and reheated before service. I know that some restaurants are able to do this while retaining flavor. Woody's does not manage to accomplish this feat. The meat itself did not have much taste to it and the sauce was mediocre at best. The buns were not toasted, not steamed, just straight out of the plastic and onto the plate. The fries that came as sides were cool to the touch and soggy. The atmosphere? Combine a TGI Friday's starter kit with years of neglect. I came away with the overall impression that the owners/staff do not care much how the food tastes or how the restaurant looks. Everything wrong with this place could be changed by someone who took some pride in their business.

Just Plain Nasty Food and Rude Service
Reviewer: James from Santa Barbara, CA
I ate here recently, and I can't tell you how unpleasant it was. I went here on the recommendation of a friend and ordered the 1/2 rack of beef ribs. The sides were ok but not awful, but what was truly unpalatable was the ribs themselves. The ribs were clearly cooked quite badly. When I got them, they were half-burnt/half undone. Parts were so tough you couldn't even bite into them, and other parts were so uncooked as to be almost raw. When I went to complain, the girl behind the counter said, "that's just the way they come" and refused to return my money (since you pay in advance). I then asked for the manager, and she replied he wasn't there, so I just left. Let me say that I've had good bbq before, and this was unpleasant with extremely rude service. Just avoid it.

Disappointed
Reviewer: Rami from Santa Barbara, CA
I was expecting "the best bbq" and tried the lunch special bbq beef sandwich today... so disappointed. I was hungry (and in a hurry) so I took it on the go. I ate about half until I started to actually taste the bbq, very bland without the spicy, smokey, or flavorful taste Woody's claims it has. I would've given the sandwich by itself an average rating if it weren't for the terrible fries they gave me. I wish I saved my money and went to a fast food place instead - at least then I'd get fries that are not brown, wilty and lukewarm.

you call this REAL BBQ??
Reviewer: Mike from Santa Barbara, CA
Woody's in my eyes was great during my childhood but as your tastebuds get better with age you realize it's not the same as 15+ years ago. How is this overpriced, poor serviced, taste lacking place still in business? Santa Barbara needs a REAL BBQ joint. The Tri Tip was very dry, the ribs had very little meat, and the chicken was dry and tastless. When asking the employees for something fresher all I got was attitude like I didn't know what flavor was. I will give them credit on their BBQ sauce but like others have said it should compliment the food, not dip everything in it just to give it flavor. I hope Woody's will improve this and soon

Very Disappointed
Reviewer: Rick from Los Angeles, CA
I travel a lot and because BBQ is one of my favorites I often search out different BBQ restaurants. I just had a two meat combo at Woody's BBQ which I chose their St.Louis ribs and their sliced tri-tip. I was EXTREMELY disappointed with a few things such as their portions served which were 4 or 5 small ribs, 3 small slices of tri-tip, a baked potatoe and a small cup of beans for a whopping $20. I was also disappointed with the fact that it was obviously old reheated food. The ribs and tri-tip taste as if they had been microwaved... and the bbq sauce I'm assuming has a ketchup base. The service wasn't horrible as long as you're cool with straight faces and very few smiles. The atmosphere was actually nice, so maybe going there for a beer and just hanging out would be nice, but NOT THE FOOD!

Good lunch specials but the place needs cleaning up
Reviewer: PJ from Santa Barbara, CA
Come on, lose the sawdust on floor, paint the benches and fix the broken tables. Also, the stack of dirty dishes on the trash cans is not pleasant. Some of the clutter has been cleared out in recent months. It might make the food taste better. The lunch menu is good. I wouldn't make a special trip but decent food. The servers at the counter could be a littel more friendly.

24 years of award winning BBQ? Doesn't set the bar too high.
Reviewer: Jesse from Santa Barbara, CA
So another trip to the Carpinteria area for work. The entire trip is expense so we try to make the most of our meals. We did a quick internet search and see this place recommended so we decided to try it out. Got there and the place had no hint of smoke in the air, not a good sign. We get inside, see they are trying the typical BBQ theme, sawdust (just a small amount), signs everywhere, old wood. Walked up the counter and ordered St Louis style ribs, tri tip, spare ribs and the 22 oz smoked prime rib, we were planning on trying a bit of everything. The ribs were dry and tough, could barely tell they were smoked, very dissapointed. The tri tip was dry, flavorless, and tough. The prime rib was tender but tasteless, no hint of smoke, not even a smoke ring, it tasted like they didn't even season it, not even with salt or pepper. We saw the sign stating 24 years of awarding winning BBQ, well, our assumptions are that no one knows what real BBQ tastes like in Santa Barbara. This has been the third place over several years that we've tried in this area. Well long story short, we have decided never to do dinner at another BBQ place in the sorrounding area. All I can say is "thank you" Woody's for your lackluster performance and how the heck can you get an award for the food?

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