Apricot Wood California Bbq - Patterson

First time dining at this restaurant upon recommendations from several local residents. Considering I was from out of town , I took the advice and went to the restaurant. Upon entering the restaurant, the hostess saddest at our table window view everything was fine. The menu has lots of options. Now let's talk about the service. Our server was named Alma V. Alma took our order with no issue. Alma delivered the food with no issue. Once our food was delivered, that was it? She disappeared never to be seen until. We have to ask for our bill and boxes to put hour leftovers in. Not once did Alma ask how our dinner was. Did not check to see if we wanted any more beverages. When I bought this to her attention. She looked at me as if she were a deer in the headlights. She literally said she did not see anything wrong with her. Not asking us if we needed anything else. She literally said she thought everything was OK. I asked Alma how could you think everything was going to be okay if you did not ask if everything was okay? The bottom line is for the first time in a long time. I did not tip a server. I did not regret it because she did not deserve a tip from us.

For all I know it could be the best-tasting barbecue in California, but I'll never find out. I came in on a break from a road trip, stopped in the bathroom, and waited around 10 minutes, but somehow no one in the basically-empty restaurant could be bothered to take my order. I was a little hangry and eager to make good time, so I decided I would just as soon hit the road and get back into Berkeley in time for dinner. I'll give them another chance the next time I'm on the 5, but the first impression was not good.

Stopped for BBQ as we were traveling through California based upon positive reviews. We were hungry and everything sounded so good. We ordered Crazy Fries, a 2 meat combo plate (Brisket and St Louis Ribs) and an California Orchard Salad. The Crazy Fries came out fairly quickly and was substantial in size. The Crazy Fries are spiral cut potato wedges topped with bacon, pulled pork, cheese sauce, grilled jalapeño, cilantro crema, and salsa. Absolutely delicious. It was filling and we could have eaten it as our meal. Next to arrive was the California Orchard Salad. The Salad is a combination of green apples, grapes, oranges, strawberry, celery, almonds, cranberries, avocado slices, mixed greens and blue cheese crumbles. Because we were sharing the Salad and my husband doesn't like blue cheese, we had the cheese on the side. We were give several salad dressings to try. Honey mustard is our favorite but they had an avocado dressing plus a few others. To ensure we both will enjoy the Salad, we asked for honey mustard and avocado dressing on the side. Boy, were we glad. The avocado dressing was definitely not our preference. The honey mustard dressing complimented the fruit in our salad nicely. When the BBQ combo plate came out, we received a generous serving of Brisket and 3 sizable ribs along with Corn Bread and Garlic Bread. We couldn't decide which bread to try so we paid a little extra to get both. The bread came out grilled with a side of butter. The garlic bread was okay but the corn bread was very tasty, especially with it being caramelized on the grill. We tried several different BBQ sauce from the caddy but we like the Apricot Chipotle and the Smokey BBQ the best even though neither meats needed the sauce. Very Yummy! Finally, we chose roasted Brussel sprouts as our Market Side. It was a great choice. It was crispy, light and tasty. Very glad that we stopped for an early dinner. And, we brought leftovers with us for lunch tomorrow!

I was not planning on having lunch at Apricot Wood California BBQ. I was not even planning on stopping in Patterson. Ironically to avoid the wildfire smoke, I was heading to Monterey, but decided to skip after checking the traffic. Apricot Wood is just off Interstate 5 at the Patterson Exit behind the gas stations and fast food joints. Parking is limited in front, but ample in the area. The layout of the restaurant is a little different with two stories and an outdoor patio. There are the requisite number of silly signs on the wall and a modern looking interior, but the star is the food. Service can be a little slow, but you can order to go to speed things up. Speaking of the food, this barbecue is very good. They smoke with apricot wood along with other woods. The menu is rather extensive with a lot of meats, fancy sandwiches, and many great sides. I chose the brisket with smoked corn and garlic bread. It also came with pickles and six bbq sauces. The meat was really good. My brisket has a nice smoke ring with a robust rub and a good fat layer. It paired well with the sauces, but was excellent baked as well. The sides were amazing. The corn was fresh with garlic butter and a great roasted flavor. The garlic bread used a thin artisan bread similar to ciabatta and helps sop up sauce. Is Apricot Wood worth the drive? Probably. Many people zoom by on their way across California, but the locals and other weary travelers have found a nice option. Prices aren't that much more than the fast food options, but you will need to sit a spell to enjoy the barbecue and prepare for the meat coma!

A welcome change to our usual stop of fast food while en route between LA and SF. At first we were reluctant to stop because it was a bit of a rainy drive, but we were pleasantly surprised that they had ample indoor seating. We greeted and seated quickly when we arrived. The smell of smoked meat that welcomes you lets you know its going to be a great meal. We ordered the sliders off the appetizer menu so we could give the different smoked meats a try, and the two protein option with brisket, ribs, corn bread, and Brussels sprouts. And we rounded it off with a half order of onion rings. The sliders were a great choice because it let us sample a little of two different meats, the onion rings were the perfect amount of crispy I was hoping for a bit more onion but given the long car ride ahead of us im sure my husband appreciated the amount they used. The brisket was Smokey and melt in your mouth. The ribs were tender, well seasoned, and fall off the bone. We both enjoyed the roasted Brussels sprouts (and for a side, we thought it was a very good portion . They also have a caddy full of sauces, so if you're a sauce boss and like lots of choices this is definitely a good stop for you. My winner for the mea was the corn bread it looks like they bake it in a loaf, cut off a slice, then warm the slice before serving by throwing it on the grill the grill that they likely cook meat on because it has a wonderful slight taste of bbq (maybe even bacon . The only thing better than the great offerings was the fast and friendly service we encountered. Everyone was pleasant and when we were leaving our server even noticed how much we were enjoying sampling all the bbq sauces so she packed (and labeled some for us to go with our leftovers (oh yes, there will be leftovers giant portions!