I really wanted to like Porky's. I swear, I really did. But, I found that what I ordered was mostly.....meh. Let's start with the brown butter corn bread. I love brown butter anything; the nuttiness, the richness. However, I found too many things not appealing about this cornbread, first off, the size to price ratio. The cornbread is the size of a min-muffin for $2.50, which, IMHO is far too pricey. But, most importantly the taste -- there's not so much a hint of brown butter as there is an overwhelming flavor of old pan grease; totally unappealing. I was going to re-heat it in the microwave, but after two quick bites, I just gave up. Pass on the cornbread.
Next, the braised collard greens, which are probably in the top 2 of all sides that go with BBQ. Now, truth be told, I did see that they are braised with green apples, which should've been a red flag for me. And red flag it was -- far too sweet, without a hint of pork or other savoriness. The apple cider vinegar barely came through, and that should've saved these poor guys from the bin. I had a bite, then pitched it in the bin along with the corn bread. Pass on the collards.
Now onto the meat - I got a order of ribs and an order of rib tips. First, the ribs -- smoky, meaty, with the chew of a St. Louis style spare rib; these are not baby-back ribs, and if what you're looking for is "fall off the bone tender", these are not it. The smoke really came through, and overall it was nicely done. Note - what is pictured on the web site and what you'll get are two completely different looking things; caveat emptor. 6 out of 10 I would order again, perhaps earlier in the day when they're first out of the smoker. Second, the rib tips -- also smoky, mostly meaty, with quite a bit of fat. Good flavor, but, the prominent fat that was hidden throughout was a bit of a turn off. If you're expecting rib tips like they serve at Lem's or Honey 1 or any of the South Side aquarium smokers, these will disappoint. Much better sauced up and heated, but, I doubt that I'll order these again.
The star of this meal were the sauces. Porky's sauces are really very good. I especially like the Spicy BBQ Sauce, but that Carolina Gold is a very close runner up. I'd buy just the sauce - it's a good quality, high flavor value, and it's house-made, which gives it that edge.
Overall, 3 out of 5 stars for the reasons I've stated above. I'm sorry Porky's, I really, really wanted to like you, as supporting the local restaurants is a passion project for me. I did try you once. But, unfortunately, probably not again. I may be in for a bottle of sauce, though.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Dinner
Price per person
$30–50
Food: 3
Service: 5
Recommended dishes
BBQ Sauce
There is a spice in the rub that was a bit overwhelming. Fries were good as well as the brown butter biscuit.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Dinner
Price per person
$30–50
Food: 3
Service: 5
Recommended dishes
Ribs
