LBPOST.com: Johnny Rebs' � A Long Beach BBQ Favorite For Good Reason!

Thursday, March 11, 2010 | Home

Johnny Rebs' � A Long Beach BBQ Favorite For Good Reason!

by Mark Taylor | Eating Out | 02.05.10 |

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Johnny Rebs' has been a part of my life for a long time. I have kissed more pigs � and looked on with glee as various family members have done the same � than I can remember. (Other regulars will know that birthday guests are invited to kiss a brass pig for good luck at Johnny Rebs'.)

And there is one reason we keep going back: consistently good food, served with care in a fun and stylish environment. For those of you who follow this column, you know I have a bias against chain restaurants. Johnny Rebs' is the exception to that point.

Most chains have no soul � they are bland food mills that strive for mass appeal by aiming for the lowest common denominator.

Johnny Rebs' is a well-run, family restaurant that just happens to have multiple locations. And this has not taken anything away from the quality of their food � or the sense of style and place they create. I have eaten in three locations: Long Beach, Bellflower and Victorville, and had the same excellent quality of food and service in each. This is quite a remarkable achievement.

Now � about the food. They call their cuisine Southern Roadhouse. They serve a wide array of fired and slow-roasted barbeque selections including ribs, brisket, tri-tip, and chicken. They also have all of the

traditional side dishes you�d expect including hush puppies, corn bread, collard greens (the best around, in my opinion), mac n� cheese, and sweet potato fries, just to name just a few.

All of these are very good � the catfish is lightly breaded in cornmeal and always cooked just right. The ribs and tri-tip are the perfect balance of smoke and sauce. The hot links are also a favorite if I want to sweat a little.

But for me, the decision almost always comes down to what kind of sauce to put on my pulled pork sandwich. Do I want their traditional �que sauce which is sweet and tart, or do I want the Carolina style spicy-vinegar variety which, when put atop cold slaw, seems to go to another level all together�

Throw in the sweet potato fries, and you too will know why this is a regular pleasure for my family and me.

Johnny Rebs's
johnnyrebs.com
4663 Long Beach Boulevard
Long Beach, CA 90805 - (562) 423-7327

Comments

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I love Tontinos
Dude, the Cajun sausage sandwich is damn good!

Julie Whaley
Thanks Mark for the story...never been there, but I'll check it out this weekend.

Ryan P
I go to the Bellflower location because it is much bigger and the waits aren't usually quite as long. Still, great food and huge portions. I haven't been in several years, but it has never let me down!

Bill Orton
Aw, dang! It's twenty to twelve and I work less than a minute's walk from Johnny Reb's... and I don't have the cash even for mac 'n cheese! Dang you, Mark Taylor!

NLBr
The chicken fried steak is enough for two hearty appetites and Oh So Yummy.

NA
Looks GOOD!! Wish there would be more food posts I look forward to them

Carina
This is a local's favorite! What a gem of a place in our Uptown area too!

Sally Wally
I am from Texas and I love JReb's for their fried okra and hushpuppies, both of which are scarce in SoCal. I also like the feel of the place. It does resemble a roadhouse in one of the little Texas towns we used to go through on road trips. Think it's time for a visit. Thanks for the reminder, Mark. By the way, do you have a favorite Cambodian restaurant? If so, please do a review. Thanks!

DLB Joe
I'll give the place a try, but to me BBQ is all about the smoke. In the south, sauce is for dipping. The meat should stand on it's own merits. As for Cambodian, try Sophy's near Redondo and PCH. A Thai influence, always good, moved from Anaheim Ave. Often packed.

Mark T.
All - thanks for the feedback. I will write more often... Found a great new sandwich place for my next post. DLB Joe - not to worry - this que is dry rubbed and smoked. The sauce is great, but it's on the side.

Bob
Mark, thanks for the reminder. Johnny Rebs' is indeed a fine BBQ place, and it has been too long since I tasted their tri-tip. Like way back when they reopened after the fire. I suppose we will have to go there tonight, just to make my mouth quit salavating.

Miz Mary
Elvis would have loved this place! Especially the Elvis Pancakes (banana pancakes with peanut butter syrup) - so good y'll slap yo momma!

Mat K
I've always wanted to go. Now I know I have to. Thanks, Mark!

CHARLIE
Say what you want, BUT, Sam's Seafood on PCH just past Seal Beach has the best fare and Happy Hour Buckets, that will make you think you've died and gone to Heaven! :>)

Gil
I grew up in So. Carolina, spent a year in Texas, and loooove bbq. I have not found ANY place in So Cal to match JRebs. get there and fall in love.

Brian
Hey Mark, thanks for the great piece, I love this place. By the way, I am curious to know, are there any other chains that you happen go like? I agree with you for the most part about chains, but I think Houstons and the Cheese Factory does a pretty good job of getting it right.

Team Powell
Our family loves Jonny Rebs! We love whimsy of LB location, but love the space of the Bellflower location...keep making them pulled pork sandwiches and sweet potato fries!!!!

to Charlie
Sam's Seafood is gone..has been for at least a couple of years.

lbjack
Hate to be a party-pooper, but I haven't been back since I got two bad ones in a row, once in Bellflower and the other in the LB. At Bellflower I was greeted by one of the nastiest individuals I've ever encountered, the host, a dark-haired pony-tailed guy who may be a relative or he'd have been fired long ago (maybe he has by now). He was consistently rude on multiple occasions, though I didn't take it personally, because he also browbeat the staff. Then I got an almost inedible pound of chopped -- actually diced -- beef -- tough and tasteless. The LB location was better for attitude -- the staff were uniformly friendly. Unfortunately, the pound of beef was fatty and the pork ribs tough. I've had good BBQ at Rebs' going back before the fire, but if consistency is important to you, be warned that you may not get it here, though maybe it's improved since my last visit.

Eating Out

If you can eat it or drink it near Long Beach, and Mark Taylor really likes it, he�ll tell you about it here!

Mark was born and raised in So Cal. He learned to love �good� food from his family (especially his Uncle Cliff and Grandma Vera) and started cooking very young. He worked his way through school cooking professionally before spending most of the rest of his life working in an equally glamorous profession�politics. Mark, his wife Melissa, and his sons live in Long Beach.