Wagner's Ribs — Restaurant in Porter

Buckle up guys, it's story time! Let me tell ya about our trip to Wagner's Ribs tonight. I love Wagner's. Good food..... Great service..... Until tonight. . Let me preface this by saying I don't usually do this and call people out but it was just TERRIBLE tonight and for those that read reviews, you ought to know. . We get there at about 5:30 and we told it's a 45min-1hour wait. No biggie, it's prime time, holiday weekend. Get a beer or two and kill some time. It's totally worth it. . Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 . An HOUR AND A HALF later and still no table. I go in to ask (politely) how far we are down on the list. The hostess says we're next and I go back outside to wait. . Another half hour later and STILL NO TABLE. During this time we have made friends. Friends who have been waiting just as long as we have. We've decided that we'll bind together and take a 4 top if that's what it takes. I go in again to see what's going on. SEVERAL people who got here after us and have their name AFTER us have been seated. I ask our hostess if we're getting a table or not and inform her we have waited 2 hours. She snapped and says she was just getting ready to text us and has a table ready now. We sit and invite our friends to join us. They politely decline and leave. We sit and our table still has barbeque sauce residue on it. Yuck. . Our waitress comes a few minutes later and gives us ONE menu for TWO people. I'm trying to shake off that the wait was not her fault. Corona is not her fault and we have to share a menu. It's fine. She says she'll be back in a few. No drink order was taken. She comes back and asks us if we know what we want. We do, we order. . About ten minutes later food is up. We're missing Mac and cheese for both of us. Eventually one comes and she (a girl I haven't seen before until now) informs us they are out of Mac and cheese. My husband asks if we can have dessert instead. She says yes. We overhear her tell our waitress that the price difference is too large and they won't do it. No other alternative was offered but she comes about ten minutes later and says they've taken Mac and cheese off our bill. We're still missing a side. . We're done and ask for our check. No apologies. No kindness. You can tell the staff was under stress and i do get it. Clearly someone (buser, and maybe hostess by my guess) didn't show up to do their job and the people they had to replace it were insufficient. Other customers were stealing tables for those who had waited and had the hostess been on it or a better system in place, it would have helped. The point is, it will be a LONG time before we go back...

The Pride of Porter!!

What a great time I had at Wagners Ribs. Nestled on the outer reaches of Chesterton Indiana, in the town of Porter is a local hot spot known as Wagners Ribs. I had heard about Wagners from people I know from the area, and they had but great things to say about this award winning Rib joint. I checked into the Best Wester Indian Oaks and made the quick drive to Wagners. I luckily found a parking spot right outside the restaurant and went in.

The Restaurant was celebrating Halloween and Halloween decor was hung throughout the bar and restaurant area. I did go outside to check the patio, but the sun was going down and the patio only had a few patrons sitting there, so I ate inside instead. hey have two main sections inside, a bar and seating in that area and a main dining room. I was seated in the main dining room. Wagners serves American Style BBQ and Comfort food, and is known for their BBQ throughout the area.

Food and Drink for This Evenings Meal.

Starters and Sides

A Cup of their Homemade Chilli Haystack Onions - Lightly fried, seasoned and served with a Southwest sauce Mashed Potates and Gravy

Main Course

Ribs and Shrimp Combo with Jumbo Grilled Shrimp served with melted Butter

Beer

Yuengling Black and tan

The chili was amazing, full of meat and beans, and not too spicy. Those Haystack Onions alone are a worthy starter on their own and perfectly paired with that Southwest dip. Light with a touch of crispiness, you can easily over indulge of those onions.The ribs were smokey, sauced just right and of course fall off the bone tender. Wagners pumps out thousands of pounds of ribs every year, and they have their technique down to a science. The mashed potatoes were a worthy side, and probably the least appealing. Not that they weren't good it's just that I've been spoiled by many a holiday home cooked meal with mashed potatoes. The shrimp were juicy and plump and had a very slight seasoning on them. You could taste the fire and the shrimp without any overpowering added flavours.

Wagners is a popular spot for a reason. The food is a culmination of a great kitchen and a great technique. The bar area is lively and dining room is charming. The staff are very friendly and you can feel their smiles and positivity through their masks. There is reason why Wagners is so popular and if you're ever the Dunes/Chesterton/Porter area, you will have to stop in and check it out...

Wagner's has been a staple of northwest indiana for years and has always been known for their delicious ribs. We haven't been there for years and were planning a dinner date with 2 other couples for yesterday August 28 2021. So we decided on Wagner's because my wife and i wanted ribs and the other couples knew there was something for all on the menu. We were seated right away at 4 pm.our server was khristian and he was excellent. Right off the bat he was there getting us our drinks from the bar.Let me tell you the ribs DID NOT DISAPPOINT i had the full rack done TIM STYLE (slightly charred and extra sauce) simply terrific fall off bone and excellent taste of sauce and smoke. My wife had the same only half which usually she'll get a full so i have her leftovers. I wish she did yesterday. I also had the baked potato and salad for my 2 sides. My full rack was $25 but it didn't matter because the quality was GREAT. Everyone was happy with their food choices between us with ribs the others with steak perch and i believe meatloaf.I forgot about ordering the corn bread cakes so that will be next time. Even purchased a jar of their sauce on the way out. Definitely will be back sooner next time.the only problem was it was a little warm in the dining area but then again it was 92 outside yesterday. Definitely give Wagner's a try. Very easy to get...