Pig Pen BBQ — Restaurant in Dripping Springs

First visit and won’t be the last!

Stopped in on our way home from a baseball tournament for an early lunch. Son ordered brisket and pork ribs with jalapeño Mac-n-cheese, Hubs ordered a sliced brisket sandwich and the warm baked potato salad while I tried the brisket and pork loin with a side of street corn.

First to get the sides review out of the way…best bbq sides we’ve had in a long time! Buttery, loaded baked potato flavor in cubed form put the C in Comfort food. Street corn was delicious, as was the jalapeño Mac-n-cheese which used penne pasta, creamy, thick cheese sauce, bacon (or maybe brisket) accents and freshly diced jalapeños. Not too spicy at all, just that fresh, green crunch of peppers to brighten the richness.

Now to the stars of this experience, the MEAT! OMG! I have lived here most of my life and BBQ is what we cut our teeth on. This has got to be my new favorite! I will mention that we all liked the homemade sauce with it’s smokiness, however, you truly do not need and should not use the sauce because you have got to taste the woody smoke of their pits. The brisket and pork ribs were soooo tender and delicious but the smoke flavor is what I savored until there was no more meat left..

It was so good, I just had to ask the owner what wood they used and to compliment him on my new found favorite BBQ joint. He was happy to share (no secrets here) that they use mesquite and pecan. I gushed about how much we enjoyed it while my son asked if they brushed on any sugar on the pork ribs to which he replied, yes, a brown sugar kiss at the end of their smoking. He then asked if we had the regular pork ribs or the baby back. After telling him we had the regular ribs and enjoyed them immensely, he insisted we try the baby back ribs and had his butcher cut us off a hefty sampling to send home with us basted in the most wonderful, sweet glaze. If reheated, day old baby back ribs taste as good as they did tonight, I can only imagine that they are off the charts when served fresh from the pit.

We are looking forward to our next day trip to Drippin’ to try more of their meat selections like Chicken, Turkey, Sausage, Pulled Pork and more, or other homemade sides like their mustard potato salad, vinegar based slaw and more. They open early and also serve breakfast tacos of the usual sort but also offer up Pastor, Piccadillo, Carnitas, Barbacoa and Birria. They load their amazing smoked meats over baked potatoes and nachos and offer several sandwiches on the menu as well.

Definitely worth braving the Oak Hill traffic to visit this amazing Hill Country BBQ joint. You won’t be...

Yesterday, my family was searching for a, "new to us", place in town to try for dinner. We had been debating Pig Pen for a while, but had never tried it. We thought it would be nice to grab a beer at a local brewery in town and have the food delivered to us. I visited their website and noticed that they sponsor DoorDash as their delivery service. I ordered online, and we ordered several items: a chopped brisket sandwich, beans, mac and cheese, kids' chicken quesadilla, French fries, and a 1/3 lb brisket.

When the food was delivered, we quickly realized that the brisket was missing. We thought, "No biggie, they forgot to put it in the bag, one of us will drive over real quick and grab it." I called the restaurant to explain what happened. I spoke with a woman who initially made me feel as if I was lying about not receiving the brisket. She stated that her manager was busy, but had personally seen the brisket get put in the bag. I explained that "I promise it is not in there." She went on to imply that the delivery guy had taken it and that I should leave him a bad review. Not once did this business attempt to rectify the situation or make it better; instead, they immediately told me I was wrong and that it was someone else's fault. We understand customer service; we own several short-term rentals in the area. It would have taken nothing for this business to replace the 1/3 lb brisket and completely change our view of this establishment.

Instead, my wife had to go and buy a hot dog (which was great!) from the local brewery. The food we received was incorrect. We ended up with a cheese quesadilla (no chicken), tepid French fries, and my chopped brisket sandwich was a small cup of meat with two pieces of white bread. The website depicts a sandwich with a bun. We did not receive any silverware, condiments, or napkins. The mac and cheese was good.

Overall, it was a very disappointing experience, and we were super disappointed about the customer service from a local restaurant that we had hoped to start supporting. I have heard great things about the owners and their support of the community and First Responders. We are a family of...

I'm from out of state, trying Texas bbq for the first time. I was super excited. I decided to try this place, as it was the closest one to me and the reviews were good.

I'll try to be as fair as possible in my personal experience.

Staff was nice, no complaints. The first thing I noticed when walking into the restaurant was a very clean environment, but a feint unpleasant smell. No idea what it was, but It wasn't that bad, just something I noticed. Its not something that would shoo me away. I was determined to try the the food!

I got half lb brisket, and half lb jalapeño cheese sausage with a side of Cole slaw and potato salad for $37. I'll be honest, I mainly came here to try the brisket. My first impression of the first bite of brisket was good and flavorful, but a bit dry and not what I expected. I was expecting a juicier bite, and smokier flavor. The brisket tasted more like it was oven baked rather than smoked. As I got down to my last couple pieces of brisket I was getting tired of chewing and my jaws started feeling really tight. It was just that dry and chewy (at least compared to other brisket I've had before). I don't know if it's because It was sitting out for a while or it was over cooked. (7/10 for flavor, 3/10 for texture and 3/10 for smoke flavor)

Jalapeño cheese sausage was delicious.

Coleslaw tasted decent, no complaints.

Potato salad tasted decent, no complaints

Last thing I noticed while in the restaurant was that the hot water in men's bathroom wasn't turning on at all. I work in the restaurant industry, and that's not a good thing. Hopefully they can get it fixed soon. I understand sometimes these things can't be controlled.

I was a tad bit dissapointed, as Texas BBQ is highly talked about.

Overall, I would try them again. Clean restaurant, friendly staff. Hopefully next time ill get a juicier and smokier...