MOO’S CRAFT BARBECUE
ADDRESS: 2118 N Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90031
WEBSITE: https://www.mooscraftbbq.com/
Moo’s Craft Barbecue made it onto my Google Maps listing of places to check out after I saw that it had made it onto the Michelin Bib Gourmand listing back in 2022 (a distinction which continued into 2023 as well). Finding good barbecue in LA can be pretty tough, so I was excited to have the chance to give this place a try when my friend Yuji and I decided to take a visit there last month.
Located in the Lincoln Heights neighborhood near Dodgers Stadium, this restaurant does not have any parking lot of its own, so you’ll need to test your luck either on the streets or in some nearby public parking lots. We were able to snag a spot at a lot right around the corner, so we ended up getting lucky that way. I had heard of stories of people waiting 30 minutes or more to be ordering this barbecue, so I was already mentally preparing for what that would be like.
To our surprise, the restaurant was actually pretty quiet when we first arrived. Granted, we intentionally got there early (ended up being around 4:30PM) to try to avoid the lines, and it definitely paid off. It also gave us more time to stare down the menu to help us decide just what we wanted in the array of all the options.
The biggest portions of the menu were divided up into three primary sections: meats, sides, and sandos. We knew for sure that we wanted to construct our own meat tray sampler, so that took any of the sandos out of the question. It ended up taking us maybe a little over five minutes to talk through what we wanted, but in the end, it was certainly a good array of different meats (between pork and beef) and some sides as well: brisket, pulled pork, two types of sausages, Korean glazed pork belly ends, baked beans, and fries.
Inside the main interior dining area, there were a number of high-top tables to sit at, along with a large bar that took up a good portion of the left wall of the restaurant. On the right, there was a door that led to an outdoor seating area, which looked like it was covered by an awning. Overall, plenty of space to house people wanting to enjoy some good barbecue. For us, we decided to take a seat inside at one of the high-tops while we waited for our barbecue to be ready.
Fortunately for us, with not that many people at the restaurant, it didn’t take long at all before our entire order was ready to take over to the table. Let me tell you, that tray of meat looked absolutely amazing, not to mention the smells coming off of it. Credit to the staff for making the barbecue meats have great visual appeal on the tray as well, with the way they arranged everything. The other tray that we got housed our sides along with the complimentary bread they provide as well.
It was difficult to think about where to begin first, with all of the delicious-looking food that was set out in front of us. We ended up going with the pulled pork first, pairing that with two of the barbecue sauces they had on the table. One was more of a tangy sauce, and the other seemed like it was mustard-based, which had a really interesting flavor profile. The pulled pork had a lot of moisture to it, but I will say that most of the flavor did come primarily from the added sauces.
Next up were the slices of brisket, which were nice, fatty pieces that also had a good amount of bark on the outside as well. Juicy, tender, and filled with savory and umami flavor, the brisket was certainly one of my highlights for the entire meal. I usually judge a barbecue restaurant from their brisket, and Moo’s definitely did a great job with theirs. I can appreciate a brisket where you don’t need any sauce to help give it flavor and it’s good all on its own.
For the two house-made sausages, they were definitely a pleasant surprise, and I’d say that the Texas hot gut ended up being my #2 favorite thing of all the barbecue meats. You definitely got that punch of heat that would just grow as you ate more of the sausage, and there was definitely a bold, peppery flavor that came from the sausage as well. With the jalapeño cheddar sausage, that one is always a classic, with the slight spiciness and smoothness from the cheddar cheese really enveloping in each bite.
On the meats, the last one to try was the Korean glazed pork belly, which was sitting in its sauce in the corner of the tray. The portions were large 1″ by 1″ cubes, while sitting in the sticky glaze was probably helping for more of the sweet and savory flavors to soak into the pork belly. The outsides had a nice, crispy edge to them, while the middles of the cubes were still on the soft side. But the savory flavor, mixed in with the sweetness, was definitely pretty rich, and I ended up using some of the bread to mellow it out at times.
As for the two sides that we got, the baked beans and the fries, those ended up being pretty solid complements to all of the meats that we received. The baked beans had bits of brisket mixed into it when cooking, and was served with a generous helping of cotija cheese on top, along with some sliced serrano peppers. The beans definitely had a deep flavor that were just enhanced by the addition of the brisket inside as well. Fries are always a crowd-pleaser, so no additional comments really needed for that. They were cooked crisp on the outside, but still soft on the inside. The one slight surprise was the slices of brioche that they served with the tray, where I’m typically more used to the white bread. The pillowy softness of the brioche was great to pair with the richness from the barbecue meats.
What started as a relatively empty indoor dining area turned into a bustling, filled-up space by the time that we ended up leaving a little over an hour later. But it was definitely easy to see why Moo’s Craft not only got so popular but also has its accolades — the quality of the barbecue meats were the key. Everything was amazingly flavorful and the diversity of options to choose from also makes it great for return visits to sample new items. If you’re looking for a high chance of getting the meat sweats while also making your stomach very happy in the process, absolutely stop by Moo’s Craft Barbecue.
Let’s now take a look at the Moo’s Craft Barbecue Dish Spotlight. Asterisks (*) below mark my recommended dishes.
** Korean Glazed Pork Belly Ends (pictured top left) **
Barbecued pork belly cubes covered in a Korean sweet soy glaze, garnished with scallions and sesame seeds. 1/2 lb. serving pictured.
** Texas Hot Gut Sausage (pictured top upper middle) **
** Jalapeño Cheddar Sausage (pictured top lower middle) **
** Beef Brisket (pictured bottom right) **
Lean and fatty brisket slices provided. 1/2 lb. serving pictured.
** Pulled Pork (pictured bottom left) **
1/2 lb. serving pictured.
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** Fries (pictured left) **
** Baked Beans (pictured middle) **
Cooked with beef brisket bits, topped with cotija cheese and sliced serranos.
** Brioche Slices (pictured right) **
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And finally, here are my rankings for Moo’s Craft Barbecue:
Food: 5 / 5
The options to choose from for the beef, pork, or turkey all sounded really appealing, and the quality in the food was certainly there to back it up. The meat was really tender and packed full of flavor in every bite. The barbecue sauces were available to complement the flavors already there with the meat, which could fully stand on its own.
Atmosphere: 4.25 / 5
The combination of the full bar, high-top, and regular tables, along with the outdoor seating area really provided quite a few options of where to enjoy your barbecue. I did like the wood elements that were prominently featured in a lot of the décor within the place.
Service: 4.25 / 5
Even though there weren’t a lot of people seated at the time that we were ordering our food, the kitchen still did a great job to carve our meats and serve it out to us in a pretty speedy time. One of the staff members cleaning the tables did also stop by to ask us about our food and if we needed anything else for our meal.
Price: 5 / 5
In total, we had 1.5 lbs. of meat, two sausages, and two sides, all of which ran us about $37 / person. While that might seem a bit on the more expensive side, I think that for the quality of the meats alone, it was absolutely worth it and something that I’d pay again without hesitation.
Overall:
18.5 / 20
(93%)
Categories: California, Restaurants
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