Wood Ranch BBQ

I wrote my thoughts on Wood Ranch last August, but the pictures I had for that post were of poor quality. The other day I went to lunch with my mom at Wood Ranch and I was able to take better quality photos, so I thought I would post them. My main reason for wanting to visit Wood Ranch was that I had received a coupon in the mail for a free appetizer. Their appetizers - barbecue chicken potato skins, onion strings, grilled balsamic shrimp, etc. - are my favorite items on the menu so this was a great deal... except I lost the coupon.
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I ate one of their garlic rolls while I was waiting for my food. In the past I have never been a big fan; it always seems like you could squeeze a shot glass worth of butter from each roll if you are so inclined. But these were far less greasy than any I have ever had here.
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My mom and I both ordered the exact same thing: "America's Best BBQ Tri Tip Sandwich" with fries. Now, once upon a time, I would have at least entertained the argument that this is one of the best barbecue tri tip sandwiches in America. But, as I wrote last August, the quality of the sandwich has gone down considerably as the years have gone by and the restaurant chain has expanded.

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The first time I ever had this sandwich, just over a decade ago, it was one of the best things I have ever eaten. And the meat was so abundant that I never ate more than half the sandwich, always taking the other half home with me for the next day. The last few times I have ordered the sandwich I have finished the whole thing with no problem. (And trust me, I ate way more when I was 20 than I do now.)
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The other thing that I have noticed about this sandwich over the last two or three years is that at least half the times I order it, the meat is riddled with fat. This sandwich was the best (or, perhaps I should say, worst) example of this trend. At least every other bite yielded a giant piece of fat, some as large as a quarter. This is unacceptable. A properly cut piece of tri tip should have very little fat on it. I have cooked well over 100 tri tips in my life, both grilled and barbecued, and never once have I had a tri tip with as much fat on it as this sandwich. It was also completely drenched in sauce. I suppose that was their attempt to hide the fact that the meat was so nasty.

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This may well have been the last trip to Wood Ranch for me. It's not cheap and the quality is just no longer worth it.