616749 Sat May 02 17:57:43 -0700 2009 13 2 Los Angeles Area 0 4648958 Been seeing adds everywhere for next weekends LA BBQ Festival. Is it worth traveling to from the Valley? How is the "Q"? Who are the Rib Joints involved? I've been to the Big Apple BBQ Festival, Hill Country BBQ Fest in Texas and the Taste of Chicago, is this a similar event. I love BBQ so I gots to know. Sat May 02 17:57:43 -0700 2009 272552 PaulyD 1 4649057 Actually the one to Travel for is the Kansas City Barbecue Society's Que'n for Kids contest at the OC Fairgrounds. Some of the Best BBQ in Southern California Will Be there. More Info at: http://quenforkids.com/ Sat May 02 18:53:18 -0700 2009 4648958 12588 Mattapoisett in LA 1 4649059 We went to it last year and here's our opinion. Long, long lines at almost every booth. Biggest lines were at Baby Blues & LC's BBQ. Baby Blues food was OK but they were fast and in control. LC's was horrible. We waited in line for over an hour for tepid beans straight from the can and under cooked ribs. The ribs had no rub whatsoever, no flavor and also were served cool. This place is all hype and no good. BTW, the other local place that did well was Mr. Cecils. Cecils Beef Ribs were smoked right and if my memory serves me well, the tomato cucumber salad was fine too. The locals did better than the "legends" in quality and vibe. The only disappointment from the locals was Gus's BBQ in South Pasadena. The brick chicken served was as dry as the one they serve in the restaurant. It had more of an Alto-Shaam feel to it. Nice folks working there but pretty bad BBQ. We'll try it again this year but will opt for the VIP passes to avoid the lines. I heard that there will be more tables and a couple of new BBQ places from LA and Vegas. All in all it was worth the drive if you get there early and eat before the crowds take over. Sat May 02 18:53:52 -0700 2009 4648958 135769 Mr. Rizzo 2 4649534 A few neutral, objective comments and one question: 1. I've been to LC's in KC and wouldn't stand in a 5-minute line for their Q. 2. LC's is a fabulous, wonderful place compared to Baby Blues! ;-) 3. The Southside Market booth should be great if it's at all like their place in Elgin, TX. Hot links are the specialty -- I've never had any other meat there. 4. I forget when the Tops people took over Gus's. Last year, was it still under the old ownership or had it already changed hands? I'm just being curious. I wouldn't like the BBQ either way, but, as I reported recently, the Tops-pedigree burger and a few other things are more than decent. Sun May 03 02:27:07 -0700 2009 4649059 38373 Mel Gee 3 4650045 Southside Markets is going to be participating? Sun May 03 09:28:58 -0700 2009 4649534 11279 Burger Boy 4 4650846 The Web site flashes a photo of the Southside Market sign: http://www.labbqfest.com/ Sun May 03 16:15:03 -0700 2009 4650045 38373 Mel Gee 5 4650935 Yeah, Southside Market was there before as well. They were one of the ones who ran out of food when I went. They actually had to have staff stand at the end of the line and tell people to stop lining up behind them because they were out of food. The hot link was good, but you didn't get much for $10. Here's a blog entry about the festival I found with a picture of what you get for $10 at the Southside Market booth: http://www.diglounge.net/food/drink-eat-wait-repeat/ Sun May 03 16:52:15 -0700 2009 4650846 124045 huaqiao 1 4649072 I went to this last year(or whenever their first year was, I don't remember) and it was a complete disaster. EVERY SINGLE STAND selling BBQ had a 45 min to an hour wait. Drink stand was a madhouse. The only place that didn't have a long line was the Bristol Farms stand selling chicken kabobs. Not exactly what people were there looking for. And once you got through the line, you pay $10 for a dinky serving of BBQ. The absolute worst part is several stands ran out of food early. So say you braved the one hour line, your vendor of choice didn't run out of food, and you were able to overpay for your tiny portion of BBQ. Then you get to sit on the blacktop and eat it because there was no seating. Unless they've drastically improved the logistics of this event, I'd say stay away! Sat May 02 19:02:55 -0700 2009 4648958 124045 huaqiao 2 4649107 Who ran out of food early? According to the adds they've addressed some issues. Worst thing you can experience at a festival is long waits and no tables after you finally get your food. I'll probably check it out this year. Hopefully the promoters learned from last years experiences and will be on top of things. Sat May 02 19:22:08 -0700 2009 4649072 272552 PaulyD 1 4649206 if you go to a few different stands plus the 10 dollar admission and a beer or so, your're looking at least $60 per person. Sat May 02 20:20:08 -0700 2009 4649094 10866 kevin 2 4649264 I went last year and went early so the line for LC's BBQ wasn't too bad. I plan to buy from all the out of town stands and share it. There's no way I could eat $60 worth of que myself. LC's plans to have two lines this year, plus there will be plenty of excellent variety, as Markiew has posted. Go early or opt for the VIP pass. Funny though, the local bbq scene has improved tremendously since last year, with Bludsoes and especially BigMista's having come on. They belong in this festival, tho BigMista will be at the OC one. Sat May 02 21:05:18 -0700 2009 4649206 62188 Ogawak 1 4649376 The food is terrible, the long lines even worse. Don't go!! Save yourself!! Sat May 02 22:14:26 -0700 2009 4648958 283760 Lady Marmalade 1 4649518 Do yourself a favor, go to the Atwater Farmer's Market on Sunday, get there around 10:30 and get as much of Big Mistas BBQ as you can carry and do not forget the desserts, forget the pineapple coleslaw. Go home, open some beer, unwrap your Que and sit down and enjoy! Sun May 03 01:11:15 -0700 2009 4648958 11279 Burger Boy 2 4650586 i probably wouldn't be able to make it home without trying some cue. Sun May 03 14:06:10 -0700 2009 4649518 10866 kevin