I was invited out by my fiancee's parents to eat at Hogs and Hops and for once, I purposefully didn't look anything up on here or anywhere else so I could go into it with a fresh mind and I was a bit disappointed.
Their old fashioned on tap rootbeer was delicious but they served it in a glass with ice which should not be the case, especially if it's from the tap and it's cold already. You wouldn't put ice in your beer would you?
Our table ordered the hush puppies and onion rings as appetizers. The hush puppies were the best part of the meal, it was mixed with a little jalepeno and melted in my mouth. Before this I thought I didn't like hush puppies and now I stand corrected. The onion rings were either well under-cooked or the onions inside were just too thick. The batter was flavorless though covered in seasoning salt (which I enjoyed) and the thick, crunchy onion inside wasn't what I usually expect when it comes to a well-prepared onion ring. It was as if they were opposite onion rings with a crunchy center and soft outside.
My dinner was the slider trio with a side of baked beans. The sliders bun bottoms and tops were attached together with piles of meat on top. Isn't the point of a slider plate to be able to enjoy three separate sandwiches? It was difficult breaking them apart, keeping the meat on the sandwich and at the same time trying to separate the pork from the chicken and the chicken from the brisket. The baked beans tasted like they added kidney beans and a small amount of other spices to a can of Busch's and they were so hot (temperature) the entire meal that I could barely eat them.
Overall the meat was good but there are definitely better places to get BBQ in the valley (see my other reviews). I was also surprised to see nobody in the restaurant at 6:30 on a weekday. There were maybe 3 or 4 people at the bar and the other party in the seating area knew a few people associated with the restaurant.
The service was excellent, they were very friendly and well-attentive. I'm also wondering if their location is what's hurting the business. They used to be Notorious Burger (an item they still have on the menu) but The Shops at Gainey Ranch isn't really a culinary hotspot in Scottsdale.