Rub-N-Wood BBQ

We stopped here while visiting for a gymnastics meet. Great food and an overall experience. Friendly service with good attitude. Parking lot looked full, but there was plenty of room in the restaurant. Excellent brisket and ribs. We will be back next time we’re in town.

Almost every time I would to drive by Rub-​N-​Wood I’d have a little laugh — I never expected that I’d actually be a fan of their BBQ but I sure am! On a whim one day looking for a place for dinner, BBQ sounded great and I decided to Unilocal this place and see what people had to say. The favorable reviews convinced me to give it a shot and we loved it! It’s a little place with a tiny parking lot, the staff is always very nice and the food is so good and very affordable. I had a plate with basically a half a chicken and two sides for $ 12, not bad! The menu is small but they have brisket, ribs, chicken, links, pork and lots of great sides — what more could you want? I’ve stopped in several times and I’ll be there several more.

Thought I’d go get some BBQ! Headed up to rub n wood. Guess they went out of business because it’s closed, not even smoke coming out of the stacks. Oh well, I will find some BBQ somewhere else.

The only thing this place has going for them is their sauce! I tried to have a open mind, however the food was aweful. Well not necessarily horrid however being a «bbq» restraunt I’d expect smokey, seasoned meat. The only good part about the meat is it was tender. Super bland. Had passes by numerous times but never stopped til this weekend. We went in at around 5, needless to say I had not had one ounce/​bite if food all day and the food still lacked! Good option of sides, however the potatoe salad was AWEFUL! We ordered for 4 separately. All of us got psalad, none of us finished it! Not to mention for us 4, we payed a total if 62.00! Man, we were pissed. For the money we spent we all were kicking ourselves in the asses for not juss bbq ourselves. Would have been muuuah more flavorful and would have gotten our money’s worth…
Trust me this place is not BARBECUE!!!
Side note: the corn was GREAT!!! Sad when the corn is the highlight when you order bbq brisket and ribs!

I remember eating at this place when I was a kid, 15 or more years back. Of course, it was different owners, a different place but still BBQ. I miss the décor that used to be in there, the quaint little booths that gave you a bit more privacy. I also miss the prices. I still don’t understand why BBQ has gotten so expensive in the past 10 or so years, mainly out west (it’s still reasonably priced down south).
That being said, the BBQ here is very good. Very flavorful and if you’re going to spend the money on good BBQ in my opinion this place is leaps and bounds better than Rudy’s. This will definitely be my go-​to BBQ place in the ABQ area.

To the people of Rio Rancho and the great State of New Mexico. There is a new Sheriff in town and his name is Roger A. Bell at RubnWood BBQ. We had our Anniversary Party there last night and let me tell you that he and his lovely wife Alesia Bernasconi-​Bell went above and beyond when it came to taking care of us. Even though they are a little short staffed at this time due to unforeseen changes in personnel you would not have known it. They did not miss a lick. The food was fabulous and well laid out for our guests and with some special twist to his normal menu «Roger» Rang the «Bell». I highly recommend speaking to them in regard to booking your next event and keep in mind the fact that he Caters the best BBQ around. Winner of this years Mayors Choice award at the Pork and Brew. Keep it Local and Buy Rio Rancho — Grow your Community while enjoying some great food.

Really solid barbecue place. Having been born and raised in NC, I hold all bbq to impossible standards — that being said, the pulled pork and brisket here were extremely moist, and the sauce was great (though it was definitely NOT NC bbq, haha). I LOVED that there was fried okra on the menu though I found it a tad bland. The potato salad was mustardy which is not my cup of tea. Speaking of tea, you can get sweet tea but it’s not authentic fresh brewed (it’s golden peak brand). The moistness and perfect smokiness of the brisket and pulled pork though was what merited this 4 star review. We will have to return and try some more — apparently they have catfish on Fridays and LAWD do I love myself some catfish. This may be simple minded of me, but if you’re gonna sell yourself as a down home country bbq place you should commit fully — brew your own dang sweet tea, for heavens sake. As much as I feel this place comes close to being the real deal, it’s just not there yet. Brew your own sweet tea and offer hushpuppies as a side dish and then I’ll be sold on the authenticity here. But it’s at least a decent try, and I’d rather come here than Rudy’s or Whole Hog, so there’s that.

Side dishes are not the best: he macaroni n cheese has a sour taste and the coleslaw has no flavor (no vinegar, salt or sugar). The bread is cold and tough. The turkey is over seasoned and the brisket is under seasoned, but they both are moist and tender. They know how to smoke meat but miss the mark on how to season properly.

Hit brisket and okra today. The brisket was a little fatty and not as tender as normal and it seemed like a smaller than normal portion. I called it in and picked it up. It was ready when I got there. The guys who work there are always really nice!

Been here a few times, meat is dry /​tough. Side dishes tasteless. Decent customer service — plenty of seating — clean parking lot.

I LOVE this BBQ! It is the best in town! The meat is all delicious. The ½ chicken plate is to die for! My favorite sides are the mashed potatoes and gravy and the grilled corn. The ribs are popular so get there early and the pulled pork is my favorite!

Really wanted some ribs, heard they are great, but they were out; same with the chicken. Brisket was tender but without the sauce, which was good, didn’t have a lot of flavor. Friendly staff and relaxed environment but on this visit everything was just ok.

Sorry to say that the last few visits have not gone as well as my first review from 2013.
The meat has been consistently dry and the side dishes disappointing.
I’m at two stars hoping they will bounce back.

Love this place!!!
Fantastic BBQ and very friendly service!!!
Every Wednesday evening a group of fiddlers, guitarists and banjo players gather for a jam session — AWESOME MUSIC!
Sausage good, Mac and Cheese, French fries great! Brisket great — needs to be trimmed a bit… Coming back next week to try hot links and ribs!

I am not sure why this place was given good reviews. I ordered the popular plate with brisket and pulled pork. I could not tell the difference between the two. Both were like you tossed some meat in a crock pot until you had some indiscernible meat product left. No BBQ taste, a lot of fat.
I had the beans, and potato salad and the wife had French fries. The potato salad was decent, the beans were just beans mixed with some green chile and onions probably good but didn’t go with BBQ. The wife’s fries were double dipped in the oil to warm them up which is just nasty.
The people (owner and one staff?) were friendly. I was really hoping this place would be good because driving to the cube or whole hog is a hike from rio rancho but both are several times better than rub n wood.
Not Texas BBQ, not southern BBQ– not really sure what to call it.

The best bbq I’ve had since arriving in NM three years ago. I had hot links, brisket, slaw, and mashed with gravy. My wife went with the pulled pork. Was excellent!
Before we left we ended up getting a full rack of ribs which we sampled before taking then home… again excellent!

I’ve been largely disappointed by the BBQ in New Mexico since I moved here from Virginia in 2012. Mostly the meat I’ve have is overcooked and not flavorfully seasoned. Based on several reviews from Unilocal I decided to give this place a try.
I took my wife here for our 10 year first date anniversary and she got a ½ lb of sausage while I tried the ¼ lb petite plate with brisket, and mashed potatoes and gravy. We each got a roll and drinks. I requested the BBQ on my brisket while my wife got hers on the side.
The ratings:
Tenderness: 5 out of 5
The brisket was fall apart tender and the sausage was likewise perfectly tender with a slight crunch from the outside casing like a great German frankfurter.
Moistness: 5 out of 5
The juiciness of both meats was amazing. The brisket had plenty of its own juice and I was served some of the fat from the cut which I appreciated. Some folks that only want the lean section should ask for that, I have no doubt the server would accommodate that. I like brisket fat to mix in with the lean sections and enjoy it together.
The sausage was outstandingly juicy too. The casing of the sausage kept in the juices and even when the sausage was cut to smaller pieces each piece was able to retain its moisture.
Flavor: 5 out of 5
I think Rub and Wood has the best seasoned and flavored BBQ in the area. When opening the door to get in to the plain eating area I noticed the wood smoke which greeted me like mom with a warm blanket after a hour spent in the snow during the holidays.
The brisket was clearly dry rubbed with some season and then the BBQ sauce added at the end was the perfect mix. The BBQ was sweet and not spicy. It’s a good Kansas City style BBQ not the vinegar based Carolina style.
I’ll be back to try out some of the other meats as soon as I can!

I think I may have found my favorite BBQ in Akbuquerque/​Rio Rancho!
I LOVED this place. I can’t wait to go back and try the hot links or chicken. I had the pulled pork while my hub had the ½ rack of ribs. Both were absolutely tender and delicious. And the sauce… oh the sauce. Wow… it was great! The staff was knowledgeable about the menu and very nice as well as helpful to us newcomers. The potato salad was good. But I really liked the chili beans made with green chile. Yummo!
Next…the cobbler. I had a serving of the cherry cobbler (a la mode of course) and my hub had the peach. The cherry was everything I was imagining and more. Absolutely awesome. I just wish this place was closer to my home :).

people working her were extremely nice…(even had guitarist playing, woot)
can only comment on ribs as that was all i had…
a la carte ribs $ 10.99, ouch, good but pricey…
sauce on the side added some extra spice…
had to get half to go and patron was nice enough to give me a sheet of aluminum foil…
on bike could not carry normal to go container…
will go back and try something else, keep up the good work …

Passion. If Unilocal limited the reviews to one word ‘passion’ would be the one for this review. The owners of Rub ‘N Wood have a calling for smoking and barbecuing meat. They love it. Sausage, ribs, chicken, and turkey. I can’t wait to try it all.
The ribs and hospitality are the focus of my five star review. I can’t speak for the other meats. Although, the young lady at the counter said that she loved the sausage and she doesn’t even like sausage. Damn, guess what I’m ordering next time! Anyway, the the half slab of ribs with no sides fed my daughter and I. BTW, my daughter told me she wasn’t hungry and adamantly opposed barbecue because she wanted Ichiban (I think I even saw a tear percolate). So I’m speechless eating every piece of pork off the ribs when I see the ‘I want some’ look on her face that any daddy would know… she loved them, even asked for more sauce.
I love Rub N’ Wood. I can’t wait to go back. I am proud to have them in Rio Rancho. Update to come after I try the chicken and sausage.
–Update– September 2, 2013
This is an update to my previous review.
As mentioned my daughter and I only had the ribs. This time around we loaded up on the chicken, ribs, potato salad, and baked beans… it was all delicious. The chicken practically fell off the bone and the ribs were as juicy as ever. If you are a baked beans fan you will not be disappointed in the unique flavor.
I totally understand why these guys win awards at the annual Rio Rancho Pork and Brew. The owners also travel around the Country entering other barbecue competitions.