Save yourself from barbecue boredom at Holy Hog

Review

On our first visit to Holy Hog, the friendly guy behind the counter - everyone is friendly and courteous at Holy Hog - told us, "You're about to eat some barbecue made by Cuban guys. We're still working on it, but it's pretty good."

Turns out, "pretty good" was an understatement.

Started in a West Tampa neighborhood that lacked a good barbecue joint and run by the same family that owns Pipo's, Holy Hog has quickly earned a reputation as a great place for lunch. The restaurant recently began operating during dinner hours, too.

Though Tampa isn't thought of as a barbecue town, there are plenty of outstanding choices. Even with that competition, Holy Hog manages to offer something different (in addition to its interesting name).

Holy Hog is a converted Pipo's at the corner of Armenia Avenue and Abdella Street. The interior is bright and cheerful, with sturdy, well-varnished picnic tables in the two rooms set up for dining. There's also an outdoor eating area.

Patrons order at the counter, where there's a big sangria machine. Every visit and with every encounter, service was about as friendly as we've seen in Tampa. This place obviously takes pride in serving people.

Holy Hog seems willing to try anything. The first Friday of every month the restaurant offers a special fried chicken and waffles dish. On the day we visited, the special was barbecue nachos. We ordered it topped with pulled pork and received a dish that was much better than expected. These guys take their nachos seriously - the plate is piled high with freshly fried tortilla chips, topped with pulled pork, diced mild peppers, black beans, cheese and a sprinkling of fresh cilantro. All of the ingredients tasted fresh, and the chips stayed crunchy despite all the toppings.

On our visits we tried all the standards - pulled pork, ribs, chicken and sausage - and found none of them disappointing. For every dish, the meat is served dry with sauce on the side. They have two sauces: one is a mustard-based sauce that carries a bit of a tang and marries well with the pork and chicken, while the other is spicier and can probably best be compared to tomato-based St. Louis-style sauce.

The brisket was just slightly dry on our visits, but it's not fatty - a far worse crime against barbecue - and the sauce made up for any dryness. Even better was the pork sausage, which arrived spicy and well rendered.

The chicken was moist, with a nice smoky flavor throughout. This was also true of the pulled pork. But best of all were the ribs. Served St. Louis-style with the rib tips removed and with a generous rub, the ribs were fall-off-the-bone tender.

Dinners come with Texas Toast and two sides. Many barbecue places treat side dishes as an afterthought, but Holy Hog excels with them.

The cheese grits were a nice consistency, dotted with smoky bacon. The cowboy baked beans were slightly sweet and chock full of meat. The roasted corn arrived with beautiful grill marks and painted with butter, while the fresh cut fries were crisp to perfection. Only the macaroni and cheese required additional black pepper for personal flavoring.

For dessert we enjoyed the homemade apple crisp. The firm apples held up nicely to the flavorful thick syrup and crunchy topping.

Beyond barbecue, Holy Hog offers a BBQ Cobb salad with chicken or pork, a Holy Huge Cheeseburger that's 12 ounces of ground sirloin and a BBQ Quesadilla served with chicken or pork and loaded with black bean salsa, cheddar jack cheese, jalapenos, and sour cream.

Also, every Friday they offer different specials. In addition to fried chicken and waffles, there's a fish fry with puppies, chicken-fried steak and shrimp and grits. Like many things about Holy Hog, it's unusual and very good.