whole hog cafe

visiting in little rock and stopped by after hearing about this place. absolutely great bbq. had the pulled pork sandwich with sauce number 5 (sweet, heavy, molasses i believe) and it was delectible. the pork was tender and cooked to perfection. every bite was a delicious slice of bbq heaven. didn't try the volcano sauce, but sampled all the othersaucesand they were all impressive. if only i could transplant this place to cleveland.

excellent, excellent, excellent!! we went out of the way to stop here while driving though little rock. gassed up at a nearby gas station, and headed straight to the unassuming strip mall location. super friendly staff, great menu, clean bathrooms. without asking, my husband was recognized as a veteran (he had “the look”, the cashier said) and was given a 40% discount - wow! it was so unexpected and thoughtful!

the bbq was smoky, tender, moist and delicious! thesauceswere sweet, spicy and, tangy! i love how you can automatically get your slaw on the sandwich! overall, will definitely stop here again!

great tasting meat. some of thesaucesare ok. hot sauce adds a strong kick without being too spicy. cole slaw and mac and cheese were great side choices

several recommendations from the locals resulted in my visit at whole hog. being from the south, i'm very critical about bbq, and the ribs/pulled chicken here didn't disappoint. with 6 tablesaucesto choose from, i preferred #3 tangy & spicy. the baked beans and salad were just ok, nothing extravagant. i'd love to return and indulge in more of their meats.

being greeted by a wall of trophies upon entering a bbq restaurant is a good sign.. that's exactly what you get at the whole hog cafe. this is a family owned establishment with multiple generations working there, also a good sign. then there was the crowning glory, a 5ft tall memphis in may grand champion trophy. so, eating pork here is the exact right thing to do.

there is an order counter and menu board. the procedure is pay and retrieve your meal when your number is called. the ribs came highly recommended and i ordered a platter for myself as did my dinner companions.

there was good reason behind the rib recommendation.

the ribs were the second best i've ever eaten in my life. that's saying something because i live in the ark-la-tex where bbq is king. whole hog's glaze is the best i've ever had. there was a smoke ring almost a half inch thick on a rack of ribs, i've never seen that in my life. the bite, chew. and flavor are award winning, literally. easily the best bbq i've eaten in a restaurant.

the sides i chose were potato salad and cole slaw. the slaw was a little sweet and plenty crunchy, i really liked it. the potato salad was different, made mostly with sour cream. this suited me just fine, my dinner companions did not agree however. i tasted my companion's baked beans which were rich with delicious flavor, layered in while slow cooked.

there is a drink station offering a wide variety of thirst quenching options. there is a caddy tableside with a half dozen specialtysaucesmade by whole hog, and a flavor description of each.

to tell the truth, i didn't need any sauce on my ribs. the glaze was such a beautiful symphony of flavor that nothing extra was needed.

we returned for lunch the next day and i immensely enjoyed the pulled pork platter. i did sauce this pork with whole hog's sweet honey smoke sauce.

i can't rave about the food at whole hog enough. it isn't just eating bbq, this is a destination quality food experience. please go and enjoy award winning bbq at the whole hog cafe.

fantastic bbq joint in little rock that took first place at the “memphis-in-may world championship barbecue cooking contest”, that alone should be all that needs to be said. sevensaucesto choose from at each table...

overrated. heard that this was a hot bbq spot so we decided to give it a try. with all the hype one would expect that this place would be off the charts, but it wasn't. the serving size was considerably small for the price paid and thesauceswere anything but extraordinary. definitely not the best bbq in town.

world champion bbq. it’s no wonder whole hog café consistently wins awards every year. my favorite bbq tenfold. succulent pulled pork, tender beef brisket, smoked chicken, award winning ribs, all of the sides, specialties such as the loaded baked potato and the bbq nachos, whole hog salads, smoked sausage, and of course the 7 bbqsaucesto choose from. all mouth-watering, generous portions, reasonably priced. friendly staff, clean dining room, pleasant atmosphere. i love whole hog!!!

great bbq. the meats andsaucesare very good, and the potato salad and baked beans are outstanding. the cole slaw is so-so.

damn fine. hard review to write, as i am a texan and have eaten at all the renowned lone star spots. this place does not compete in ambiance, as it is a diner-like place in a strip mall. the bbq was as good as it gets. the brisket and pork needed no sauce, yet 6 uniquesaucessit on each table. fun to try them all. potato salad was best i have ever had, yummy,yummy. maybe best bbq experience i have ever had. (sorry to my texas boys) in little rock skip the pricey choices and eat here.

very good. the pulled pork sandwich is very good. i really like all of the differentsauceson the table and trying different one on my sandwich. i love the creamy potato salad!

not bad, but not the best.. we got a full slab of ribs, a bbq pulled pork nacho, and a beef brisket plate. first of all, the nachos suck. the pulled pork on them was great, but there was too much cheese. it was pretty gross. as for the ribs, there wasn't as much meat on them as i prefer. however, they were okay, but not fantastic. i preferred the glazed versus the dry. finally, the brisket wasn't bad either. it was very tender. as for the sides, the coleslaw and beans were really good. also, thesaucesthat they have at the table are pretty cool. you can try 6 different flavors until you decide which lucky sauce gets to be on your meat!

best bbq ever!. i am an ex employee of the original whole hog cafe on cantrell road. i do not have an axe to grind,although i was fired for b.s. reasons a few years ago,and i have moved on with my life....so i'm no longer full of resentment.

they have the best ribs, pork,beef and chicken ever. whenever i want bbq......that is where i go. whenever we have out if town visitors, either family or friends, i always take them to whole hog cafe and they have never been disappointed. i have even shipped the ribs out of state fed ex overnight to family craving the real bbq deal.

i will let you know in on a couple little secrets though.....all of their smoked meats are seasoned to perfection and cooked on site. even though their sauces' are delicious, all theirsaucesare another known brand name that you yourself can find at some of your local grocers and all i will say is that brand starts with the letter "c".#1 sauce is regular mild/molasses,traditional, #2 sauce is hot and spicy,#5 is heavy sweet molasses style sauce.the other sauces....#3 is hot and spicy with an added ingredient, #4 sauce is a blend of two different brands of bbq sauces, plus another ingredient, #6 sauce is gold sauce, some sweet and sour sauce and another ingredient, and last, but not least, volcano sauce, which is a hot and spicy sauce, with an added certain hot sauce . i can't let the cat completely out of the bag, so some of the ingredients are secret and some of which i will not say.

as far as their side items go, they only make their beans and coleslaw. the potato salad, which is actually one of my favorites, is a pre-made loaded baked potato style potato salad from a known food restaurant distribution warehouse.

my point is, that i don't continue to patronize them for their side items or even sauces. i continue to go there because they are the king of all smoked meats. everything at whole hog cafe is delicious...bottom line...the ribs are my personal favorite. they taste so good...just like candy in my mouth. if you want to try the best, go to whole hog cafe...you will not be disappointed.

whole lotta hog. whole lotta flavor.. whole hog cafe serves up the best pulled pork i've ever eaten. period. i've never had better in memphis, texas, lr, or anywhere else. can't comment on the ribs, because i've never had them. reviewers seem to be divided on the quality of the ribs here, but who needs ribs when their pulled pork is so heavenly?

i am not a big fan of standing in lines to order, and really wish that whole hog would hire a waitstaff. i also wish that whole hog were open later, as the restaurant closes at 8 pm daily. those are my two main gripes. whole hog has won many first place trophies at bbq competitions around the country, and they are displayed proudly at the riverdale location. pictures of bill clinton dining at whole hog hang on the wall, and i think it's cool that a former us president has eaten here.

some reviewers insist that whole hog fails to provide the best pulled pork in town, but i must respectfully disagree. the first time i had this amazing bbq, i realized it was special. this bbq melts in your mouth. theirsaucesare tantalizing, especially the volcano, but as one reviewer stated, you only need a dollop. this barbecue does not require masking agents. this bbq is like a fine steak; the flavor does not need to be augmented with sauce. the meat does just fine on its own, and excessive sauce detracts you from enjoying it properly. the pulled pork is truly phenomenal, and i strongly encourage you to try it.

wow - the best??? i don't think so. i am always confused about how much people love this place. the pulled pork sandwich is decent. the six differentsaucesare pretty good. but they don't warrant anything special in my opinion. i generally come here because it's close and it scratches my bbq itch, when i get one.

i've ordered the ribs and they were awful. they were tough and lacked any trace of smoky flavor. drowning it in sauce didn't really help matters much.

i can't stand the potato salad. it's made with waxy potatoes so it has an odd texture but what makes it truly awful is the ranch dressing that it's mixed with.

there are much better places in little rock to go for barbecue. whole hog just ain't one of those places.