The Stellar Hog — Restaurant in St. Louis

I'm going to try and timeline this as best as possible. We were in the area and wanted bbq. Me and my partner love to try new BBQ and have heard a few people tell us to try this place. Being as it was late afternoon we decided to call up there and see what meat is left because most bbq joints run out. We called multiple times with zero replies. Whatever no big deal maybe it's busy so we go anyway. Upon entering the place it wasn't very busy, a few sets of tables with 3-6 people at each which all were eating or drinking. We stood there waiting for maybe 20 seconds before being greeted and were prompted to sit wherever we want and order our food at the bar when ready. Different but that's cool. And as we thought they were out of a few things which is acceptable because it's late afternoon. But had they answered and told us what's available we would waited to come back at an earlier time on a different day. Since they have eliminated the waiter/waitress interaction and you gotta wait at the bar to order I'd have assumed the price was gunna be a little cheaper but not at all.not a big deal. It appeared there was a giant Gatorade jug which probably had water but there was no cups on the table or near the jug to get a water so I go to the bar and ask for some waters and go back to our table. After ordering I asked the only person interacting with customers who's also the bartender if they have a phone and asked why no one answered. " I was told to not answer the phone because we were so busy". To me that's a big oof. Maybe they aren't worried about losing customers assuming they are closed by that but ya not a good idea IMO. While standing there another customer who came in to pick their order up is told that they didn't have something he had ordered and asked if he would like something else. In what world do you think waiting until the customer is there to tell them they don't have what you ordered is good idea? As I turn to walk back to my spot in a bit of frustration after being told they don't have any typical non booze drinks particularly from excel who's known for awesome black cherry and dr pepper style sodas I look at the man who just been told about their outage he just says " yup". Food comes out extremely fast and was quite frankly impressive. The food looks wonderful. The chicken wings were amazing, even the generic fries were made great. We thought the pulled pork was definitely above average and the beans were very good . Now the Frankie sandwich which has smoked salami was god awful. The meat was barely warm and just kinda flavorless. The Mac n cheese that we even ordered a second side of for the kid which for some was also priced higher than the other items was like eating hospital cafeteria Mac n cheese. This place earlier in the day might have been a better experience but ya we wont be going...

I've eaten a lot of BBQ in all of the major cities known for BBQ, including Austin, KC, Memphis, and now St Louis.

This is some of the best BBQ I've ever had. Each meat was well prepared, perfectly cooked, and good flavor. Brisket is Texas style with nice thick meaty slices and good seasoning. Ribs are baby back and thick and perfectly tender. Beef ribs were outstanding.

But what truly sets this place apart are the sides. As we were driving into town on our way to the restaurant, my wife was reading the menu online. She started to get more and more excited, reading off every side they offered. I gave her a hard time because we're driving to a BBQ place, and she's more excited about the sides than the meats.

Almost all BBQ restaurants have the same boring predictable sides, and almost always aren't very good.

This place does not do boring or predictable. The owner is an actual chef from the fine dining world, and makes everything from scratch.

I wasn't sure if it was going to be a place with a long line, so we were relieved when there wasn't a line, and we were able to park right in front of the building on the street.

So we entered with pretty high hopes and expectations. And immediately we were greeted by two different people, asking what we wanted to drink. I was also happy to see they had a good selection of local beers on tap, so we chose two craft beers and went to a table.

It was too hard to decide, so we got 4 different meats to try, and 4 different sides. And my wife also really wanted to try the smoked beet salad, so she got that too. We tried the baby back ribs, brisket, beef rib, and corned beef. For sides: pit beans, creamed cabbage (absolutely delicious), sweet potatoes with walnuts (also outstanding), and brussel sprouts.

Every single thing was great. This is the best brisket I've had anywhere outside of Austin. Ribs were also among the best I've had anywhere, including KC. But the sides were the true star...

I never leave 5 star reviews, and if you read below, you'll understand why I gave the stellar hog an absolute 5!

For lunch this Sunday, I wanted meat. Coming from southern illinois, we are used to fabulous BBQ and grilled or cooked meat, so it's been difficult to find that in St.Louis. I've tried a few places, and most were ick, but I saw the reviews on this place and even though it's south of gravois, which I never go beyond, I decided to bare the heat and make the trip. I called ahead of time to ask if I could take food to go, and spoke with a very nice woman on the phone. That right there got my attention to make the trip. Once I went in, I met the same woman (LeeAnn) at the bar. She was extremely nice, and after saying I never come to that area and never get anything other than pulled pork because I don't bother being disappointed, she walked away, and came back with a very sweet man named Frank, who gave me huge samples of their corned beef brisket, beef brisket, and pork. I was absolutely floored at the wonderful and unexpected customer service. In a matter of minutes, I found myself ordering pulled pork, smoke turkey, a half rack of ribs (which I never eat) and sides. They had my food out to me literally within 5 minutes, and filled with their two special sauces, which were fantastic. I shook the man's hand and thanked him over and over, and he was equally thankful for my business. I left spending way more money than I had planned and was HAPPY to do so. I came home, and everything was packed neatly and clean and it was all was delicious! I'm so glad I went out of my usual places and areas and tried The Stellar Hog. The food options, the quality, and the absolutely wonderful customer service I received is exactly what restaurants in St.Louis should be, and we find so few of. I highly recommend trying it out! Two locations in Holly Hills and...