I did a quick review a few weeks ago of Whole Hog BBQ and at the time wasn’t too impressed – but they had only been open 3 days so I vowed to return. I’ve now been back an additional 2 times and I’ve changed my initial opinion about Whole Hog.
On my second & third visits to Whole Hog I ordered the beef/pork combo plate ($8.99) and the Whole “Hawg” Platter ($11.99) which has beef, pork & 3 ribs. The combo plate comes with 2 sides while the Whole “Hawg” platter comes with 3 sides (slaw, beans & potato salad).
I thought the pulled pork was very good with a good smoky flavor, moist and tender. The ribs were very good as well – not quite eat-with-a-fork tender, but I didn’t have to fight to get the meat off the bone. They were very meaty and had a great smoked flavor. The brisket on my subsequent visits wasn’t dry and chewy like the first time I visited. However, the seasoning they use on the brisket is too heavy handed and ends up sort of pickling the brisket to a point that the beef flavor is lost. I don’t like the taste of the brisket here.
The beans are just ok – nothing terribly special about them. The slaw is also just ok, not really creamy and seasoned with a strong dose of celery seed. The potato salad was the best of the 3 sides I’ve tried. It is a white potato salad (no mustard or eggs) with bacon I think and just tastes very good. Each platter is served with a white bread roll of the type you get in the bread isle at the grocery store.
There are 7 different sauces to choose from. Six of them are located on the table while the “Volcano” sauce has to be gotten from the ordering counter. On my first visit, I didn’t care for any of the 6 sauces at the table. However, on my other visits, I found that sauce #2 (Traditional tomato, vinegar, slightly tangy) to be my favorite. I did try the Volcano sauce and found it to be quite hot but it overwhelmed the meat when used by itself.
Portion sizes are quite generous and I think the prices are better than the other BBQ places in town I frequent. The Whole Hawg Platter is an especially good value with 2 big piles of meat along with the 3 ribs and 3 sides all for $12 – you can easily get two meals out of that one (at least I did).
Another interesting thing about the menu is the addition of pulled chicken – not something you find often around here. I’ve heard from my friend Andrew that it is very good.
Whole Hog is an “order at the counter and pickup your own food” kind of place. The food comes out very quickly –it is usually ready to pickup by the time you have finished at the self-serve drink station. They are very quick here because they don’t have to cook anything to get a plate out. You will notice on the menu there are no fries, onion rings, fried okra or anything else cook to order.
The space the restaurant occupies is large with lots of tables. The dining room is split up into semi-private sections with 4 to 8 tables per section which makes it feel like you are dining in a smaller place.
I’ll be back to Whole Hog Café – but – I’ll be sticking to the pulled pork, ribs and maybe the chicken. I just don’t like the way they treat the beef. I like that they are fast with a big dining room and the prices are reasonable.
224 West Sunshine St. (Corner of Sunshine & Campbell) – (417) 868-0042
Whole Hog cafe was alright. I mixed sauces number 3 and number 5 after tasting them all and came out with something very close to what I make at home. 3 was a slightly spicy vinegar sauce and 5 was a very sweet molasses sauce. I ordered the burnt ends and although they tasted very good, I wasn’t happy with the portion size. I will go back and see if that is normal.
I was very unimpressed with whole hog. The portion size was small (but I didn’t order a meal for 2…unlike Bob, haha), the sauces were moderately good though.
Also, it was crazy fast. My food was served before I could finish filling my drink right next to the order counter/register.
I suppose that’s convenient…but…just something about that isn’t “right.”
It was better than Buckingham’s…but that’s not really saying anything.
I was not impressed at all with my meal. I too ordered the whole “hawg” platter, which I had to wipe off because of all the grease on the plate. The meat was cold and the potato salad tasted like cooked potatoes in french onion dip. I will be going other places for my bbq.
On my second visit to Whole Hog I ordered the ribs because they were so good on my first visit. This time the meat was tough as shoe leather. My wife raved about the pulled pork. I guess I’ll go back and try the puled pork or chicken. The potato salad was tasty but the slaw was just so so.
The wife and I had lunch at Whole Hog today. We both had the combo plate (brisket and pulled pork) with beans and potato salad.
I agree with Bob on the brisket, it had a funny taste that made it taste as if it had been pickled. The pulled pork was better. The beans were pretty average. Neither the wife nor I cared for the potato salad (a sour cream, chives, bacon bits potato salad).
I thought the portions were modest at best.
I doubt whether the meat is actually cooked in the restaurant, as it does not have a very fresh taste. Plus I smelled no smoke while I was in the restaurant.
Hard to believe this is Little Rock’s favorite BBQ restaurant. I don’t think I will be making a return visit to Whole Hog.
Went to Whole Hog again and got the jumbo pulled pork sandwich combo with beans and potato salad. I was a little disappointed in the pork because although it was nice and moist, it had very little smoke to it. I ended up using a lot of sauce 3 and that combined with the slaw on the sandwich helped save it. The coleslaw had a very fresh crunch and it’s red cabbage had a strong enough flavor to stand out above the sauce. The beans were alright, and as everyone else has said, nothing special. I personally like the potato salad though. It’s not traditional, but it tastes like a good baked potato, just all mashed up. Also, the portion size was much better than on my previous trips, and I hope that it stays that way.
As for whoever said they didnt think their food was actually “cooked in the restaurant” you are totally wrong! My boyfriend works at whole hog, and it is cooked fresh and for a very long time in their kitchens actually; 12 hours. Its not the best barbeque I’ve ever had — of course, its Arkansas (the only whole hog I have tried, there are a few others outside of arkansas I think). If you want amazing bbq/amazing food in general, I definitely wouldn’t waste my time critiquing restaurants in Arkansas — but I do enjoy the pretty good food for a decent price. Its a nice place that is decorated with numerous awards and trophies, such as memphis in may, and the service to everyone is always friendly and fast.
Personally, I suggest going to a Bone Daddy’s if you want “fabulous” bbq, but whole hog is still yummy!