The Dancing Pig

What awful service! I work at walgreens and i received this coupon! Thought i should try it but i called many times to order for pick because i only had 30mins. Break! I thought they were busy but the time i got there theres only few people ad they were not busy at all! Waited for hella long wasted half of my break nobody is assisting and approaching me! I even came up and ask that i would like to take an order! Awfull service the whos assiting on the table was rude & dont know how to do customer service

I’d love to know if some of these comments on the good service are actually motivated by the customers attraction to said server, because the service was NOT GOOD AT ALL!!! Get your minds out of your pants boys and comment on the actual service… LOL
So glad this place has decided to close down and rework the place. I really hope that they reopen with amazing food, I had such high hopes for this place and would be great to love the food here, it is such a good idea and SF needs a good BBQ place.

This place was alright. A group of us tried a few different items such as brisket, pulled pork and chicken — all was okay, not fantastic. The mac and cheese and beans were alright… the corn bread was the best item at our table and arrived as a huge portion.
The décor in this place is a bit weird since there’s no theme — just random art and leftover pieces from the previous restaurant (Nirvana).
While I wasn’t completely impressed with the food, the staff was amazingly friendly and attentive. We were taken care of very well by our server and it was a great experience.
Food: 2 stars
Service: 4 stars

I was with Jack who gave the one star review. It was the worst food i have been served in a long time. The fried chicken was literally the color of dark chocolate it was so burnt. I can’t believe they thought it was adequate to serve. And the servings were tiny. The burnt fried chicken was a tiny drumstick, and a small thigh, and a very small container of mashed potatoes.
The pulled pork in the nachos was dry and stringy, the cheese was awful.
I’ve been here a few times, and it has gotten worse and worse. I won’t go again.

First of all, I’m not a big fan of bbq, but I do love some of the things one typically finds on the menu at a bbq joint and my husband, being from Texas, is always down for bbq. So finally I decided to try this place for a takeout lunch.
There were only two other customers there, but my order still took twice as long as promised. Then the fried chicken special was fairly burnt and the brisket sandwich came on a cheap bun such as one might buy at Safeway.
However, the cole slaw, mashed potatoes, and garlic fries were all delicious and the service was friendly. I still intend to try the desserts sometime as they sound pretty tempting. But overall my first experience here lacked quality.

Afraid I can’t recommend this place. We ordered beef brisket, pulled pork, and pork ribs. The pork ribs were the best of the items ordered and would order again. The pulled pork was OK, but not worth a repeat visit. Might be better as a sandwich. The beef brisket was tough and a definite pass.
The atmosphere is cute (a hillbilly vibe with lots of pigs), but much of the seating is uncomfortable (high seats in the front area, many with no backs and odd swivel seats). The evening we were there was cold; the back seating area was too cold to enjoy dinner but looked more inviting for dinner. Of course, we missed the patio.
The wait staff was very friendly and is the best reason to recommend the place. With so many options in SF and a rather disappointing experience, I doubt we will return.

After trying this place after they first opened I was left feeling like it would not last longer than a few months in business. The food was brought out within 5 – 7 minutes of us ordering which only means the meat was already cooked and probably sitting in a heat drawer or warmer. They could not even take the time to add additional sauce to the ribs or chicken and throw it on the grill again. The side dishes were tasteless as was the food. I can BBQ anything and I was appalled as were all of my friends. We have not been back since. I heard from other people that it was getting better and things were coming along, but now I hear the same old thing that the food was dry, barely warm and tasteless. So Now I am giving them a 1. I and my friends from more recently are banning this place and we will be telling our friends not to even bother.
I wish you would take the back patio and actually BBQ your food back there since you are a BBQ place… I would rather sit inside and eat yummy BBQ, than sit outside and eat crummy food. Sorry to those of my friends who know the owner, but with all of the mediocre restaurants in the Castro, do we really need another?

Upping to 3 stars.
This was my third time here. For a change, the food was tasty and reasonably priced. Didn’t realize they had a patio, and it was a great dining experience there. Service was also decent and food came on time. Maybe the owners of this place are listening and making changes as they go. Hope the uptrend continues.

[I am giving this place 2 stars instead of 1 because the wait staff was friendly enough albeit a little on the slow side.]
Anyway, I know I probably have high standards when it comes to BBQ having been born and raised in the south (North Carolina to be specific). But, the way this pulled pork tasted, it’s apparent to me that the chefs here have never traveled to a region of the US that is famous for BBQ. I have tried BBQ in as many places as possible and I’ve never had pulled pork like this. It was overly sauced and fairly greasy. I get that it’s pork but you don’t normally see that much grease at the bottom of the plate. With so much sauce, I couldn’t taste pork flavor at all. If you’re making good BBQ, let the it shine on its own. You have sauces at the table I can load it up with if I choose, but if I order pulled pork, I wanna taste pork.
Side dishes: Maybe the 2 sides I ordered are not the restaurant’s specialties, but I didn’t think there was a way to screw up baked beans and garlic fries. Let’s start with the baked beans… what an odd flavor. They were kinda tomatoey and peppery. Maybe it’s something that’ll grow on me if that’s the way people make baked beans around here, but the fries are a different story. They were greasy and heavily loaded with garlic. I realize I ordered garlic fries but I didn’t expect to receive garlic with a side of fried potatoes. There’s definitely potential here but it needs some work.
And the tea/​lemonade situation. C’mon! Any BBQ place worth its salt will brew their own tea and make their own lemonade from scratch. I know this is San Francisco and sweet tea is a novelty, but if you’re going to import BBQ to the city, why not do it right? When I ordered an Arnold Palmer, it took longer than expected to reach my table. When the server finally produced it, he apologized and said the «lemonade machine had to be refilled». Come to find out, it’s Minute Maid lemonade; the tea is Nestea. Sigh.

The boyfriend got the $ 10 for $ 20 deal. «Thank you, Unilocal!»
We headed here after our day by the pier. His father and lady joined us so we had a pretty full ass table. There were a total of 5 of us and a baby. We had the area to ourselves up until the ending of our dinner. It felt like we had 2 servers because there were 2 that tended to us. my drinks were refilled and the food came out super fast.
A friendly and chill environment. A great deal and aside from that, the menu is pretty affordable however, taste was something that definitely lacked. Before I left the table to tend to little man, I asked my boyfriend to pick between the pulled pork and the brisket sandwich for me; he ordered the pulled pork however, the server messed up and gave me the brisket (whilst the brother got my pulled pork). The brisket was tender but the BBQ sauce in the squeeze bottle were all sweet, definitely not BBQ-​y at all, and most important, the brisket lacked natural flavor and wasn’t juicy. It tasted like nothing. whatever BBQ sauce I squeezed on top of the meat, that was what I tasted. The hot sauce was not hot and the others were simply too sweet, including the hot. In my eyes, BBQ sauce should be tangy, sweet, smoky. haha. I almost typed chocolatey but this was so not the case.
The fried pickles were good and crunchy. The pickle slices were not at all cut even, the dipping goodness that came w/​it complimented well w/​the tang and sourness from the pickles but it’s a tad overpriced for just 6 – 7 slices. The fries were way too crispy, almost inedible.
Happy hour selections cost as much as my diet soda. I should start drinking water only since I don’t do alcohol. Aside from the conversations and the family getting together, not to mention the service was pleasant, otherwise this is a pass for me.

On the menu they state they do BBQ as only it can be done in San Francisco and if by that they mean very poorly then they got that down to a science. Of course what they go on to say is «it organic and locally source meat and ingredients» and this place proves once again that no matter how good the ingredients are, bad food is bad and the food at The Dancing Pig is really bad.
How bad?
We didn’t finish a single thing we ordered. I had brisket ($ 15) that managed to be both too fatty and dry. I am not even sure how that happens. It was also was a small portion for the price but even with the small size I couldn’t finish it because it was so dry. The brussels sprouts tasted like kerosine and they were super bitter and undercooked (and I don’t like mushy sprouts). The mac and cheese was so horrible mess of overcooked pasta, super-​thin white sauce and bland cheese flakes. The collard greens were horrible, just horrible but that’s jot surprising for an SF BBQ place. The pork managed to be greasy and still unflavourful. They do at least serve the meat undressed but all three sauces tasted off.
While I have family roots in South Carolina and Florida, I deferred the final judgement to my dining companion a native of West Virginia who grew up in Tennessee who proclaimed it one of the worst BBQ in the Bay. Pretty much says it all.
The two stars are for the great server we had.

Another reviewer of this not-​so-​fine-​dine location speculated that «at least its hard to screw up fries…» Well this little piggy pig managed even that.
We ate there just after opening and I would have (If not for internal abject laziness) have given a great review. Lively, tasty, economical — that sort of guff. THANK GOODNESS my laziness spared you all such a premature and inaccurate review.
Most recent visit bordered on the ‘health-​violation’ side. Food inedible, plate, flatware, table — point of fact everything — dirty. Value for money — yeah, if you are used to going toTokyo for your weekly groceries.
The entire experience was like watching a bad amateur dramatic play about rape in a suburban Tehran theatre. Unpleasant, uncomfortable and always with the threat of something worse about to happen… (and it did — but I’ll spare you the toilet paper and TMI details)
Ever see the movie «The Road» — people turn to cannabalism — eating grey human gristle …
Be afraid, be very afraid!
Ate: (well tried to) half rack, fries and bbq beans — ugh, ugh and ok.
UPDATE: BRIAN FROM THE PIG’S CUSTOMER SERVICE JUST WROTE TO ME, TO TELL ME I WAS LYING, HOWS THAT FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE! Fail!

So, in we went with high hopes for good BBQ and a decent replacement for the prior restaurant that used to be in this spot. Service was fine; everyone was nice enough – so no problem there. The food, on the other hand: ugh. We ordered brisket, ribs, and chicken with sides of brussel sprouts, collards, and sweet potato fries.
The brisket was – well, just nasty. It had a huge section of nothing but fat, and most of the rest of the meat was so fatty tasting, it was nauseating. The ribs were dry and tough. Neither we, nor the diners next to us, could even get through them. (The manager said the chef «forgot to take the membrane off.» I have no idea what that means, but the result was truly inedible.) The chicken was «pulled” – a dry, tasteless mess. The sides were actually okay. The brussel sprouts and collards were nicely cooked and salvaged the dinner. I don’t think you can screw up fries, but they certainly didn’t stand out in any way.
All of this was served in the most unappetizing way possible on metal trays and containers – much like you might find in a maximum security prison. Whoever thought this was clever needs to go on one of those shows with Gordon Ramsey and get some guidance.
We made the manager aware of how unsatisfactory the dinner was and he was nice enough – but given the fact we had barely consumed ANY of the meat, a discount a little bigger than 35% would have been appropriate. Even more amusing was that we were given 2 «piggy cash» gift certificates «for a future visit» (and, yes, it was made VERY clear that these could not be applied to the current check!), but neither one of us could even contemplate coming back after the food we were served.
The bottom line: these are nice folks but clearly they don’t taste the food before it gets served to the customers. The party next to us was as displeased as we were (they said to us, «They (the management) didn’t even ask us how the meal was – we won’t be back.»), so I don’t think we were alone in our assessment of the place. We’re pretty forgiving diners, but I can honestly say I give this place another couple of months at best.

UPDATE! (8.19.12)
Came here again with my gf and her boy. Great place, and our waiter JD was the best.
This time I had ordered grilled chicken over mac’n’cheese and it is godly! This time the mac’n’cheese was slightly different from the previous times (must have used a different cheese this time). Everything was really moist and delicious. And the mimosa was the bomb.
My gf got the pulled pork this time with double mac’n’cheese and the waiter (different one) came with our orders and the first one was my girls. «pulled pork with a lot of mac’n’cheese». Haha it was hilarious.
Her boy had ordered the hung (like a) bull and his feedback was the beef was moist and had lots of flavor. The garlic fries had the right amount of garlic for the flavor. (tried a piece and it was cooked just right. Not over cooked not undercooked, but just right)
~~~~~~~~
Came here with my two friends and I love the food. I had ordered the pulled pork with sweet potato fries and Mac’n’cheese and man it was the s

1.5 stars.
I went here with a $ 40 Bloomspot coupon, our bill came up to $ 61 pre-​coupon.
We got The Piggy platter a dish that has 3 types of meat, 3 types of sides and the fried pickles plus 3 beers.
The Fried pickles were pretty good.
The piggy platter was highly disappointing. One bite of the pulled pork was enough for me-​eck! One bite of the ribs was enough for the hubby, they did not fall, or even rip off the bone– so hard and dry. He said «These are like eating a raw goat from Mongolia». Unfortunately I had to agree.
The brisket was the only somewhat edible thing. But basically all the meat was gray and tasteless. Like so so so bad. We left more than half the food on the platter.
The mac and cheese had a good texture and was creamy but also a bit tasteless.
The brussel sprouts were super spicy for no good reason, but at least they had some flavor.
The only real saving grace of our whole meal was the garlic fries. We actually ate most of those.
By the end of the meal I just wanted to go home and brush my teeth to get all the smooshy gray crap out.
The waiters were all very nice and attentive but as another reviewer said very uncoordinated.
One person asked us what we would like to drink
Another gentleman came over and asked if we had ordered our drinks yet
Then another waiter came bringing the drinks for another table «so who had the ice tea” — neither of us– oops belongs to another table.
It went on like this with different people asking if we liked the food, to someone else taking our orders ect. When you interact with 4 – 5 different waiters in one visit you start to feel a bit overwhelmed.
Definitely not returning.

I think people are ganging up on this restaurant. Came here the other day to pick up lunch while working from home (I live relatively close but haven’t stopped by because my boyfriend rarely eats meat).
I had the Castro sliders, which is a nice little concept. You get your brisket, BBQ pork, and chicken. They were pretty delicious! I wolfed them down. I also got sweet potato fries, but I think they could have been sliced so that there aren’t long tendrils that are charred.
Overall, I was satisfied. The sandwiches look enticing, so I’ll try one of those next.

What a beautiful Bay to Breakers day for food out on the hidden garden patio in the back. The entrée prices were more than my budget, but the sandwich meals were perfectly priced, decent, and more than I could finish. The folks waiting on us were just as friendly as the folks when the place used to be Nirvana’s when the food used to be Asian fusion. I picked the sweet potato fries to go with my pulled pork sandwich and was not disappointed.

I live in the Castro. Dancing Pig is now on my list to bring visiting friends, or for a meal before a show at the Castro Theater. It’s a block and a half from the Castro MUNI station. Luna’s, which used to be a couple of doors down, also had a nice garden patio, but they closed. I liked that Dancing Pig’s patio was pretty, relaxing, comfortable and quiet enough for easy enjoyable conversation.

Can somebody please tell me how barbeque can be lukewarm? Had brisket and pulled pork sliders and they were both tasteless and dry.
Service was impeccable and décor very nice. But food should be what matters the most.

Dance? The Dancing Pig made me want to CHOKE!
After seeing a slew of mixed reviews (5 stars vs. 1 star), I wanted to give The Dancing Pig a shot since it was on my way back home from work. As soon as I walked in, I was greeted by the energetic and friendly staff. While I waited for my order, I was asked three times by different employees if I wanted a glass of water to drink. Super nice. Everything seemed promising until I got home…
Trying to exercise portion control, I thought I would have enough food for dinner and for lunch the next day. When I opened the box, my heart sunk. Did I really just pay $ 17 (including tax) for this???
BEEF BRISKET w/​Collared Greens & Brussels Sprouts
Not even three full slices, the brisket was horribly cut. One was paper thin and the other was 3 – 4 times thicker. I’m no BBQ aficionado but I do know that properly cooked brisket should have a dark mohagony crust that helps seals in all the juices to produce a tender and juicy center.
Forget the fact that The Dancing Pig’s brisket had no crust, it was completely inedible. Slicing a piece with my steak knife was like sawing wood. I had to hold my plate down otherwise I would have flung the plate into the wall from all the pressure I had to use. *OPA* The one bite that I did take was like chewing on a rubberband marinated with liquid smoke.
The sides were a tad better because they were somewhat edible. The Brussels sprouts were nicely al-​dente but the collared greens were disgustingly sour as if they were cooked in vinegar.
Not wanting to waste my food, I ended up feeding my dog the brisket not before boiling it and then mincing it with a meat cleaver first. I love my dog too much to have him choke to death on the brisket.
This begs me to ask: Does Chef Michelle Agnew (DeYoung Museum and Burger Bar) even taste her own cooking?
Take a look at all the one star reviews and I think you’ll have your answer.
OTHER NOTES:
*Full bar with 2 flat screens
*Nice large communal table in front and about 30 additional seats in front and back dining area
*Orders taken by iPhones

I went here for the first time last night with some co-​workers. I love BBQ food, probably one of my favorite cuisines. From the moment we walked in, the staff was welcoming and friendly. The menu looked fantastic.
I got the pulled pork sandwich and it was top notch and for a reasonable price! I sampled some of the other food that my co-​workers ordered and thought it was excellent as well.
I think this place overall is great and I will definitely be coming back here. It’s about time there is a BBQ place in the Castro!