Lucille's B-b-ew!

Okay, that does sound harsh, but I don't regret going, and it was pretty tasty.

The lo-down:

Lucille's Barbeque
Del Amo Fashion Center
21420 Hawthorne Blvd.
Torrance, CA 90503
310-370-RIBS (7427)

Rating: 3 out of 4 stars, but it's really a borderline deal--where I really would have put 2 and 7/8th stars out of four, but the 2 might throw people off and then no one would come here. But it's not that bad.

We (Saabir + I) were pretty excited to come here since the website and menu looked pretty darn amazing--and upon getting there around 8pm on a Saturday night--after being told we had to wait about 50 minutes (we actually ended up waiting 1hr13minutes)--and seeing GAZILLIONS of very very overweight African-Americans--we thought we hit the jackpot in terms of bbq.

To (tell the) truth, the bbq chicken and any other chicken there--is goddamn amazing! I've never had such soft, tender, and juicy! chicken--EVER. Especially as chicken strips--which tend to be dry and/or not real chicken tasting. If you come here, order the chicken.

The slightly lower rating that I'm giving is mainly due to the immense disappointment in the baby back ribs. It is what Lucille's is supposedly famous for--as well as their 3 different original bbq sauces! But after taking one bite into a sauced rib, I knew I would not be eating any of the others--the meat was dry and not particulary special, and the sauce made me feel sick. Is bbq suace supposed to do that? I mean, I'm not fan of bbq (and sauce) but I know how to enjoy good food. These ribs? Ain't so cool.

We ordered and shared: the $17.99 appetizer platter which came w/ 3 sauces (honey mustard, ranch and some egg roll dipping thing)--and--wait for it:

-fried green tomatoes
-southern chicken w/ corn eggrolls
-chicken strips (AMAZING!!! I will dream about them)
-stuffed jalapenos (I hate jalapenos but I still ate them--the taste was gorgeous. Yes, I can say that)
-two STUFFED quesadillas with caramelized onions, corn salsa, tri tip beef, and loads of cheese
-ONION STRAWS. enough said. (red onions, too!!!)
-buffalo wings!!! mmm. The sauce on them was tasty. What happened, RIBS?

For the main course, we decided to share the dish where you got to choose two different bbq-ed meats and we chose the baby back ribs and the bbq chicken (!!!). We also got garlic mashed potatoes and braised greens as sides. Don't get the braised greens. Not a good idea. All you get are mushy green leafs of some vegetable I have yet to place. I wish we had selected the corn on the cob because everyone else in the restaurant got that and it looked perfect.

Considering we really only just shared a (huge honkin') appetizer and one main dish--there was WAYYY too much food. You also get homemade buttermilk biscuits with apple butter complimentary right before your food comes. And the food came FAST. Like in 5-8 minutes after we ordered it. But that could be due to the crowdedness of the restaurant, and the mad cooks just making loads of everything.

I was really happy with all the food we got, but like I said--Lucille, what happened to your Ribs?!

Oh--and the service--never have I been so ATTENDED to. Literally. I wanted to tell our (2!) servers to STOP interrupting our meal (about 5-6 times) with the same question: "Are you guys doing okay? How's the food?"

It's really unnecessary, but I'll let it slide because it's better to be attended to than not at all.

I recommend this place--because I liked it, and would give it the benefit of the doubt--maybe we just got some bad ribs--something that doesn't usually happen. The decor, music, and little things won me over. Here's why:

-instead of mints, you get tootsie pops! as many as you want! (I really didn't take any, but that's not the point--I saw some obese persons grab handfuls and waddle their way out)
-they give boxes of fancy toothpicks. but i was really hoping for matches instead.
-each drink is HUGE!!! and comes in JARS without the lid, of course. it's so quaint and southernly homey, that it's cute. ALSO! you can take your drink out with you in a huge plastic cup (like almost 64 oz.) with you. I've never heard of that.
-you really get a lot of food (but the prices run a little high, but it's worth it if you love bbq).
-buttermilk biscuits. worth mentioning twice. APPLE BUTTER!!!


So, in finishing my lo-down,

sauces: Original BBQ, Hot & spicy BBQ, and some other reddish one that I didn't catch the name of. If addition to this, they had their own special HOT SAUCE. Saabir loved that all the sauces sat in HUGE container/bottles at the table. You could buy them at the cashier too for your own bbqs.
service: extremely attentive, almost to the point where I want to kill them. I hope this isn't the epitome of Southern Hospitality.
food: pretty damn good, but I'm not in love.
prices: around Cheesecake Factory prices--about $8-9 for appetizers, and for the specialty bbq meats (the main reason you go here)--around $20 (give or take some bucks)
atmosphere: homey, and friendly in a country way. If you have fear of 1) large crowds of African-Americans or 2) REALLY REALLY FAT FAT FAT persons or 3) meat, this place is not for you.


And for those who care, Lucille's did receive the A grade.

I still cannot get over the cute oversized mason jars for glasses. CUTE!