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Cheap Eats: Mamma Pig's

Barbecue comes in several regional styles: Texas, Kansas City, Carolina—North and South. The new Mamma Pig’s makes a case for the next school of ’cue: wine country. The restaurant got off to a rocky start that included a snafu-filled opening day, a snag that forced a name change from “Momma” to “Mamma,” and the departure of the original owners, but the barbecue goes on. The restaurant, set in a country-cute old house—after ordering at the counter, you can grab your drinks and sit inside or at a picnic table in the open-air front courtyard—serves big plates of barbecue with a distinct Sonoma County flavor. Chicken and beef are sourced from a county farm. The Sonoma-style “wet” ribs are lacquered with a zinfandel-based sauce and smoked over hardwood, including staves from oak wine barrels. To drink there are local wines and Moonlight Brewery beers on tap. Skip the dry chicken and burgers and head for those ribs or the brisket. Bacon lovers can choose “pig on a stick” (skewered pork belly) and even bacon-draped apple pie. Best is the “pig stye,” brisket burnt ends and bacon served on a soft bun.

275 Windsor River Rd. (at Honsa Ave.)
$ W ★½


Average price of an entrée:
$ = $10 or less
$$ = $11–17
$$$ = $18–24
$$$$ = $25 or more

D = Dinner only
R = Reservation required/recommended
C = Cash only
V = Valet parking
W = Wheelchair accessible

★★★★ = superlative
★★★ = excellent
★★ = very good
★ = good
✩ = below average