Elite Event: Tasting Dinner at Wood Ranch BBQ

Review #34
Location: 6797 Spring Mall Drive, Springfield, VA 22 150; in the Springfield Town Center. Wood Ranch is closest to Target, and next to LA Fitness. If driving, the nearest street to Spring Mall Drive is Loisdale Road.
Parking/​Transportation: There is a large mall parking lot in front of the restaurants off Loisdale Road, but it can get busy and crowded since people are parking here for the rest of the mall too. There is also mall parking garages on the other side of the mall. If you don’t want to drive, it’s near the Springfield/​Franconia Blue Line Metro Station. From this metro stop, you can take Bus #S80 and #S91. Here’s the bus schedule link:
Unilocal Event Specific Details: This was my first Elite Event, so I was extremely excited to attend this event, and oh so hungry and looking forward to trying their BBQ. It was a dark, rainy, and stormy night, and parking, even on a Tuesday night, was crazy. Once I got inside the restaurant I asked the hostess where the Unilocalers were, and she told me, «in the back.» I went to the back area and signed into the event.
Our lovely and super sweet NOVA Community Manager, Gretchen P., greeted me as she greets everyone who attends her events; with a big, beautiful smile, making everyone feel welcomed. I sat at a booth with two wonderful Unilocalers I already knew, and met two new Unilocalers, Karisa and Bob. It was nice seeing and talking to other Unilocalers I’ve met, and having the chance to meet and talk to ones I hadn’t. We all loved talking about the food and drinks. Some Unilocalers even wore their western attire with cowboy hat. This was a truly wonderful event, which is no surprise since Gretchen knows how to pull out all the stops at her events, so Unilocalers have a fun and delightful experience. We got gift bags upon leaving, and included in our goody bags, was a bottle of Wood Ranch’s own house made BBQ sauce, which is gluten-​free. What a way to end an already fun and delicious time. Thanks Gretchen for such a terrific event!
Unilocal Swag: Gretchen brought some cool Unilocal swag for us to pick out. The navy gloves with cut-​out finger tips and red letters of «Yelp Life» on the fingers, was the biggest hit of the night. This way you can use your Smart Phone and Unilocal until you drop. I was able to get a pair of those which I truly love and use quite a bit now that winter hit. I also got a red Unilocal glass tumbler with straw, chapstick, mints, and a wrist band.
Restaurant Specific Details: Their phone number is: 571−255−7455. They are open seven days a week, from 11am to 10pm, except on Fridays and Saturdays, they’re open until 11pm. They have a full bar and their happy hour is Monday through Friday, 3−6pm. They have carry-​out, catering, and online ordering available.
Food: The wait staff was taking such great care of us. I got to try their Raspberry Ranch Lemonade drink. It tasted sweet like southern lemonade with a raspberry kick. I almost chugged it because it was so refreshing; I felt like I was in an open field in the middle of summer, and totally forgot it was raining and windy outside. The staff brought the food out and put on a table, buffet style, so we could pick what we wanted to eat. I got the chicken salad (their salad dressings are gluten-​free), ribs, tri tip, beef brisket, and mashed sweet potatoes. All of it was incredible tasting to me.
Their BBQ sauce was tangy and delicious, and gluten-​free. My favorites were the mashed sweet potatoes, ribs (they fell off easily when you used a fork to eat them), chicken salad, and the beef brisket. Then, if that wasn’t enough yummy food in my belly, they brought out a tasting portion of pumpkin cheesecake with caramel drizzle, sweet candied pecans, and whipped cream to finish it off. It was very tasty, almost as good as Cheesecake Factory’s pumpkin cheesecake. The tasting portion left me wanting more, since I’m a big pumpkin-​anything fan. I had to opt to go back for seconds of mashed sweet potatoes since there was plenty left over and they told us to come and get it so it wouldn’t be wasted. This girl hates to let food go to waste!
Service: The manager of Wood Ranch came out and explained their history of starting out in CA and just opening this VA restaurant in June 2015. The restaurant staff worked very hard to bring out the food and drinks, and make sure everyone was taken care of. I’d like to thank the staff at Wood Ranch again for taking such good care of us.
Atmosphere/​Ambiance: It’s a down to earth, family oriented place, so the dress code is casual. The décor has a rustic, western, cowboy, ranch style set-​up, with earth tones of brown and tan, to give you the feel of being in a ranch.
Thanks again to Gretchen for her time in putting this event together for us. It was a big hit! Also a big thanks to the WR Staff for such a lovely dinner and the restaurant goodies in our take away bags!
(Posted on 1 Jan 2016)

This tasting dinner at the Wood Ranch was simply outstanding. The restaurant went all out to provide those attending with an outstanding dinning experience. In this case, the tasting dinner seemed to simply consist of tasting everything on the menu from appetizers, entrees, and sides to deserts.
We took our seats at the table and were served drinks and appetizers. The pomegranate martini was my favorite of the drinks. The appetizers included BBQ pork sliders, potato skins, chicken wings with several different coatings, and some fantastic garlic bread. The appetizers were all delicious; if I had to pick favorites I would choose the pork sliders and the chicken wings with habanero sauce.
The main meal was served buffet style. Although I had enough appetizers for a meal, I couldn’t hold back. The buffet had almost everything on their menu. The meats included BBQ ribs, brisket, tri tip, and chicken. Mac and cheese, crunchy cole slaw, and mashed sweet potatoes were the sides. All were excellent. Although fully stuffed, I could not turn down the pumpkin cheese cake desert. It too was delicious.
Prior to the buffet, the manager gave a short presentation about the restaurant. They have multiple locations in southern California; the Springfield location is the first outside of California.
The event was great fun. I am looking forward to the next event. Thanks to Gretchen for arranging the event.
Based on this experience, I would recommend Wood Ranch BBQ restaurant of those the like BBQ. I plan to return sometime soon.

I haven’t been to a Unilocal Elite Event I haven’t enjoyed. The tasting dinner at Wood Ranch BBQ was not the exception.
The drinks and food were fantastic. I can’t speak to the meat at the event but I really enjoyed the sides (particularly the mac and cheese). Although, the individual booths and sitting with strangers felt a little like a speed dating event; I really enjoyed getting to know my follower Unilocalers.
I loved the gift bags that were provided at the end of the event. The bottle of BBQ sauce was really generous. Although I appreciate Wood Ranch Grill gave attendees a gift card to use a later date, the gift card does not have an amount. I still planning on coming back with one of my meatarian friends but it would be nice to know what the gift card can be used towards.
In a nutshell, Wood Ranch BBQ did an excellent job welcoming the Unilocalers and I will spread the word about this establishment if you’re dining at the Springfield Mall.

Very excellent event that provided a full-​on awesome meal!
This was my second elite event and first time in the general shopping area. I came in expecting a lot of good food, but the set-​up was great for meeting new people! With fruity drinks and appetizers coming by every few minutes, the experience of chatting with some new people was very fun and enjoyable. There were freebies galore, like chapstick, stickers, and even some fingertip-​less (?) gloves which I grabbed.
The food was VERY good. Appetizers had classics like some bbq & hot wings, but also with some cool bits like potato skins and pulled pork sliders. I gotta hand it to the pulled pork sliders because they were great primers for the later meals. Plus all the apps just kept on coming so I just kept on eating! The cocktails which came out looked super colorful and I’m a sucker for fruity drinks, so I jumped at the opportunity. They tasted sweet but not overwhelming.
The main course was soooooo awesome. It was a MASSIVE plate of brisket, ribs, sweet potato mash, salad, and mac & cheese. Now I’m generally a pretty hungry guy who can put away a good amount of food, but I was blown away by how much Wood Ranch gave us, and the service was very on point. I knew that we would be getting a lot of food… but man, this was icing on the cake. Speaking of cake! The pumpkin cheesecake was scrumptious; perfect ending.
I gotta hand it to Gretchen, she’s killing it with the events! But many props to Wood Ranch for being so generous with their great food and service. The owners gave a brief talk and they seemed like really nice people who wanted to share their food. I don’t know how soon I can make it out to Springfield again given the distance, but I’ll be sure to put that bottle of wood ranch bbq sauce to good use!

Elite but not elitist.
This was my first Unilocal Elite event, and I didn’t know what to expect. The opportunity to hobnob with Unilocal’s best and brightest was, at once, invigorating and intimidating. What I found was a group of really nice people who understood food and how to have a good time.
Wood Ranch BBQ provided and excellent setting. The management and staff were accommodating, the setting was comfortable and inviting, and the food was outstanding.
The highlights:
— My Unilocal table-​mates. I walked in not knowing anybody and walked out with several new friends.
— Gretchen: Every party should have a Gretchen. Our Gretchen, who coincidently is named Gretchen, was the ideal host. She «made the rounds» multiple times without the slightest feeling that she was making the rounds. Even though I’ve only met her once before, she somehow remembered my name. (and no, I wasn’t wearing my «Hello My Name Is…» badge.)
— The Habanero Peach Sauce — It is just the right blend of hot and sweet. I had it with the Habanero Peach Wing appetizers, Beef tips, and ribs. It would be great on everything.
— The Pumpkin Cheese Cake sets the standard for cheesecakes everywhere. It was both yummy *and* delicious. Also, possibly an exception to my Habanero Peach Sauce rule.
— Unilocal Swag. There was lots of it! I’m not a swag person, but other people walked away with tons of branded merchandise. (would have like a pair of the gloves, though)
About the only downside for me was he Newport Lemonade cocktail. They looked great, and I heard from everyone who had them that they were. I kept ordering them and, perhaps thanks to karma, kept winding up with something else.
When I go back, and I *will* go back, this will be on my to-​do list.
Bottom line: Wood Ranch BBQ, outstanding! Unilocal Elite events, outstandinger!

This was my second elite event and it just keeps getting better and better. Also, my second time at Wood Ranch BBQ and I’m glad I got to expand my taste buds to the other menu items.
First, we started off with cocktails and apps! I almost never order cocktails, and I usually drink beer or whiskey, so my inner sex and the city gal was squealing at the Raspberry Pomegranate Martini. The cocktail was very pink and very sweet, I couldn’t taste the alcohol, so I tried my best to drink veryy slowlyyy. It was tough because it was so tasty.
I appreciated the spacing out of the food, because my belly needed a breather in between the rounds. The first hour of the event, I got to sample pulled pork sliders and barbecue chicken potato skins. My favorite part of the pork slider was the crunchy pickle. I’m so happy I got to try their delicious green speckly garlic bread again. I basically go to restaurants based on their complementary bread, and this place’s rolls are downright addicting.
Then came the main event, the buffet! I’m a meat lover, and red meat is my vice, so I was dying to try the brisket and ribs. Surprisingly, my favorite was the tri tip. It was the most tender out of all of them, and I enjoyed dipping it in the cherry chipotle sauce. I knew better than to try the peach habanero again. Half my taste buds are Korean, so I’d like to think I can handle spice, but I’m ashamed to say, this sauce is good, but so so spicy!
Now, I’m no barbecue aficionado, but when I eat BBQ… I’m most looking forward to the sides. This place didn’t disappoint. The mac and cheese was on point. My favorite was the mashed sweet potatoes though. Eating those rich, creamy potatoes, made me feel like Thanksgiving came early this year.
Last but not least, we had pumpkin cheesecake for dessert. Now I’ve had my fair amount of pumpkin cheesecake and this blew them all out of the water. The candied nuts really made this dessert special and I managed to eat the perfect-​sized piece, before I passed out from all the decadent food.
Thank you Gretchen and Wood Ranch for a wonderful night! I’ll definitely be back.

Fantastic event as usual!!! The food selection allowed guests to try a bunch of different dishes to give you a good sense of what the menu is like. The main meal was BBQ, mac and cheese, and slaw. You can’t possibly go wrong with that.

I was so happy to attend this event because I love an excuse to try all of these new spots at Springfield Town Center.
There was plenty of appetizers and cocktails brought out to each table. I thought that the Pulled Pork slider was the best app with the crisp coleslaw and toasted bun. I didn’t particularly enjoy the amount of sauce on the potato skins. My favorite drink was the Raspberry Pomegranate Martini. A martini made with rum, fruity, and not too sweet: a dangerously good combo! As a garlic fiend, I thought that those rolls were on point. I probably shouldn’t have eaten 2 of them but they were so buttery and garlicky.
The buffet dinner was delicious. I really appreciated the mayo-​free slaw. The mashed sweet potatoes were so good. The ribs were tasty and it’s like the lady knew me for who I really am because she gave me the end of the rack which is my favorite part. Usually I love a good brisket but Wood Ranch’s version was mediocre. The tri tip was okay. There was enough good stuff to make me want to come back and try other stuff on their menu (and get more garlic rolls).
I’m going to say something that may cause some backlash so here goes: I don’t really like pumpkin desserts. BUT I was surprised that I actually liked their pumpkin cheesecake… it was those pecans mmmm.
The service at Wood Ranch is what truly impressed me. They kept serving us food and drinks and made sure that everyone tried a little bit of everything. They let us try SO much of their food!
The tasting dinner at Wood Ranch BBQ was fantastic – thank you Gretchen!

The Tasting Dinner hosted by Unilocal and Wood Ranch BBQ was outstanding, albeit there were some shortfalls… It was still full of great food and a great atmosphere.
Shortfall: service was a little jumbled, disorganized and slow to start, and being at a marginal table in the corner, we tended to get passed over by servers and left out of some of the appetizers all together at first, with other tables getting served several times before we were approached at all. I will say servers we were able to flag down were very friendly and accommodating.
I was only given the chance to try one cocktail (the raspberry lemonade rum, which was VERY sweet, but tasty); they kept promising to bring more out, but when they’d come by it was always the same cocktail as before and they’d only offer 1 or 2 to a table of 5.
The appetizers I did get to try: the pork slider and potato skin.; Slider was good, and the pickle stole the show against a softly seasoned pulled pork. I appreciated that it wasn’t drowning in BBQ sauce. The bbq potato skins were great; perfectly crunchy and topped with delicious fresh ingredients! The rolls were delicious… disappointing at first because for a table of 5 we were given 4 rolls… but we were able to request more and they accommodated quickly.
The main buffet items were all delicious with some that stood out as stars of the plate: coleslaw (loved the tangy sauce and peanuts), ribs (perfect dry rub and great with the habanero sauce), tri tip, and mac n cheese.
The bbq chicken salad, sweet potatoes and brisket were OK as was the brisket.
The dessert of pumpkin cheesecake rounded out a very heavy and delicious meal… loved the candied pecans.
All in all it was great to meet the management and enjoy so many tasty components; I think WR BBQ really captured their identity with this tasting menu, and I look forward to coming back again.

This was such a fun and delicious event!
I am so grateful that I was able to participate in in this tasting dinner at Wood Ranch. I have never been to Wood Ranch before, but I have been wanting to try it. I was not disappointed!
This event was really different from many of the other Unilocal events I have been to. Usually there’s a bunch of people and lots of organized chaos (none of which is a bad thing). For this event, it was incredibly controlled and organized. It also felt intimate because all of us sat our tables and were able to get to know other Unilocalers. We were event excused to get dinner by tables! I really enjoyed this event because how organized, different, and intimate this event was.
Obviously, I need to talk about the food and Wood Ranch. Wood Ranch was incredibly accommodating of us Unilocalers! I saw many instances of pausing to allow for pictures of the food, quick follow up on requests, and incredibly polite staff. The Wood Ranch manager talked about the history and background of the restaurant. One of the things I really enjoy about these Unilocal events is getting to hear about the company/​business/​restaurant and to understand what they’re all about. Wood Ranch spent a few minutes doing that, which makes me more excited to try them again. The food was delicious! They started with drinks (several different cocktails) and appetizers (3 types of chicken wings, bbq chicken potato skins, garlic bread, and pull pork sliders). I ate so much that I basically spoiled my dinner. For dinner, we had peanut coleslaw, a salad topped with bbq chicken, sweet smashed potato, mac and cheese, pork ribs, tri tip, and brisket. For dessert, they had a pumpkin cheesecake. As you can tell, Wood Ranch went all out! I think my favorite thing of the night was the pork ribs. If I didn’t ruin my dinner with the appetizer, I would have eaten a lot more ribs!
Thanks again to Gretchen for organizing! I also enjoyed meeting her sister!

SO. MUCH. FOOD. It was so delicious, so I couldn’t stop myself from getting seconds, but it really was a lot. Of the meats we sampled (and we really did try a lot), I was surprised that the tri tip was my favorite. The ribs were also delicious, although I was doubly surprised to realize that my second favorite were those oh-​so-​yummy chicken wings.
I got a chance to speak with the manager after the event and learn a little more about the smoking process. He said that even with all their high tech and experience, it’s a difficult process to get that beautiful smoke on the meat. I learned that depending on the meat and desired outcome, they use white oak wood chips to enhance the smoky flavor, apple and hickory chips to get a fruity flavor, and pecan chips to get a nutty flavor. He also said their brisket smokes for 15 hours — that’s a long time! And even the tri tip gets a little time in the smoker, although most of the cooking is on the grill.
Even though this is a BBQ restaurant, the non-​meat foods were also very delicious. That mac and cheese is to die for, and I also really liked the cole slaw and sweet potato mash. I would definitely get all 3 of these sides again.
And the goody bag! Just that was pretty awesome — $ 10 gift card (Monday-​Thursday use) and a huge bottle of original BBQ sauce. Actually, the original BBQ sauce answered one of our table’s questions. We were curious whether there was a «house» BBQ sauce (since it seemed like the same one appeared on several dishes). Turns out the answer is yes!

I have been on the fence about checking out Wood Ranch BBQ for a bit, as their reviews seem to be a mixed bag, but after having experienced it now myself, I cannot wait to go back! I even ordered my husband a cheesecake to take home after the event so he wouldn’t be too sad I sampled so much awesome without him!
I had the pleasure of dining with Dave, Debby and Lyn, and thoroughly enjoyed myself the entire time. I think we probably only stopped talking during the presentations, haha oops! I just love catching up with my Unilocalie friends: new and old! Thanks for all the great bookmarks guys! :)
A server came by pretty quickly and grabbed our drink orders and then trays of aps and drinks started to be passed around. I was only able to sample the Raspberry Ranch Lemonade, but it was good, I would order it again. I also LOVED the BBQ sliders that came topped with a cool coleslaw and zesty pickle. It’s a tough call (I’m torn between that, dessert and those ribs), but I think that was my favorite bite of the evening. I also tried a wing, which I didn’t think was crispy enough, although the flavor was good, and a potato skin, which was too saucy for my taste. Also, before dinner service they handed out garlic rolls, but I didn’t think they were necessary, in fact, I think I would skip these in the future.
The buffet style dinner was server by table and I was very happy to see such a wide assortment when our table was called. Thank you Wood Ranch BBQ for being so generous! I tried a little bit of everything offered. I really liked the peanut slaw, what an interesting take on a old favorite, and thought the chicken salad was very tasty also; I would order both again. The mac and cheese and sweet potato purée were also damn good. I’m REALLY picky about my mac and cheese in a restaurant and as such do not normally order it, but I wanted to go back for seconds theirs is so good. As for meats, they had a tri-​tip, a brisket and some beef ribs, all were good and you can tell they have perfected their rubs/​cook time. Also the peach habenero sauce was the PERFECT amount of sweet and heat for me to slather on my meats.
But can we just talk about those ribs for a minute?
The caramelization on the outside.
The tenderness of the meat.
And that smoke.
Yes, please and thank you.
Yes, I will be back for more… maybe tomorrow?
Oh man. My poor husband, try as he might, he just can’t get a rib to do that, so I know how much effort goes into getting it just right… and I appreciate it. Holy cow (literally!) those ribs were good!
Then for dessert, pumpkin cheesecake with an amazing caramel drizzle and warm glazed pecans. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. I didn’t think I had room left in my tummy, but I still managed to make about half disappear.

Thank you Gretchen for introducing me to yet another local place that I want to throw all my money at. If I go broke trying to eat my way around the world I will blame you. ;)

I’ve been meaning to try Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill as it is the newest restaurant to open at the renovated Springfield Town Center.
**PRAISE BREAK**
If you’ve never been to a Baptist or Pentecostal Black church, let me explain what that means. A praise break is a totally unscripted portion of a Christian worship service where folks start feeling the Holy Spirit and it overwhelms them and they spontaneously start shouting, praising, singing, clapping, crying, dancing and running around the church like someone is chasing them because the message and/​or music was SO good. Remember this for later.
Back to the event…
Organization: On point.
I was waitlisted for this event and was happy to receive the «You’re In!» email the day before. We were seated in the back as a group and properly completed my name tag with a smile. I immediately noticed all the Unilocal swag on the tables and reached for some pimped out ‘Yelp Life’ finger cutout gloves that I modeled in many pictures, with fish lips.
Restaurant: Normal.
Typical American establishment. Nice cowboy gear artwork throughout. Ranchy.
Host: Fantastic.
Gretchen greeted every table and made her rounds throughout the event. She is always friendly, upbeat, and takes the best darn pictures.
Appetizers:
Newport Lemonade — that joker was ALL THAT and a bag of chips. I love me some lemonade and this one made my feet tingle. They didn’t skimp on the liquor.
Habanero Peach Wing — insert **PRAISE BREAK**
Girlllaaa, wing so good it felt like I got the Holy Spirit. In my head, I was electric sliding all through that ranchy joint. Unfortunately, we only got one of those wings to try but it was worth every bite and wipe of the nose because it was spicy. I could of eaten a whole platter of them flavorful jokers. I know what I’m ordering the next time I visit. Have you ever seen someone clean a wing so good when they plop down the bone on their plate you just stare at them and say «Daaaaaaaayuuum!» Yea, that would be me. I didn’t want to miss a lick of sauce or meat. I seriously ate that wing like it was the last one left on Earth. Ok, now that I write that, I’m embarrassed.
Buffalo Wings — eh, buffalo wings.
They were a great size, meaty and tasted very good. But they weren’t the habanero peach. I digress.
Potato Chicken Skins — not worth the calories. They sure do look good plated though.
Pork Sliders — YUM!
I loved the slaw and pickle they used with this dish. I added some of the BBQ sauce that was on the table. It was sweet, but not too sweet. I would definitely order these again.
Meal:
I’m writing too much so let me be hurry up. I approached the buffet style set up already full and tingling from my drink. I could of passed on the BBQ chicken topped chopped salad and peanut slaw. It was okay, but my eyes were on the meat! Those ribs and beef brisket were both pretty good, but that tri tip… whoops, gotta stop and insert **PRAISE BREAK**. They had a whole bowl of that habanero peach sauce beside the meat so I had put some of it on my tri tip. I’m doing the cabbage patch dance just thinking about how I felt when those flavors hit my tongue. Wow! The mac n cheese was okay (if you don’t know how to make it yourself) and the smashed sweet potatoes were definitely something I’d order again. All in all, I was a very fat and happy cowgirl. Then they came around with dessert. Pumpkin cheesecake with candied pecans and caramel sauce. Really? Now they were just playing with my emotions because as full as I was, I still ate the whole damn thing. And? So what!
They offered us more drinks; a raspberry concoction in a margarita glass and another cocktail with cucumber and whiskey. They didn’t compare to that lemonade.
I had a lot of fun with my table mates and met some cool new Unilocal friends. Oh, it’s good to be Elite!

What a fantastic event! I’d never heard of Wood Ranch BBQ before, and was super excited to try it. They had tons of food and some great drinks, and the staff was really friendly and seemed excited to have us there.
Over the course of the evening, we tried the pulled pork sliders, peach habanero wings, buffalo wings, buffalo chicken potato skins, garlic rolls, slaw, salad, whipped sweet potatoes, mac and cheese, brisket, tri-​tips, and ribs. Oh, and pumpkin cheesecake for dessert. Everything was great, and I loved the mayo-​free slaw, fresh salad, and garlic rolls. As for the meat, it’s a tough choice, but I love ribs, which had a char on them. I used their original BBQ sauce and it had a bit of tanginess to it. I don’t like cheesecake much, but I tried a few bites, and it had plenty of pumpkin flavor and a nice crust.
Drinks are strong, but not overtly so, so it sneaks up on you. Lemon-​based drinks aren’t usually my thing, but the Newport lemonade was tasty.
As usual, Gretchen throws amazing events, and this one was no exception. Thanks Gretchen!

This was such a fun and filling event. Thank you Wood Ranch BBQ and Gretchen (AKA Unilocal) for hosing this fabulous event. I loved every moment of it.
We started off the evening finding a place to sit. On each table, there were tons of Unilocal swag! .from gloves, cups, stickers to chap stick, keychains, sunglasses. What a variety of swag!
We started our meals with starters including BBQ Chicken potato skins, pulled pork sliders, 3 types of chicken wings (buffalo, BBQ, and habanero peach). By the time I finished eating these, I was already getting full and was feeling very happy to see that there was more food coming. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to finish everything though.
Our main course was buffet style. They served us BBQ chicken chopped salad, tri tip, ribs, and brisket, peanut coleslaw, mashed sweet potato, mac and cheese and then pumpkin cheesecake for dessert. All the food options were delicious! I do wish the meat was juicier but I guess it is hard to control how cooked you want the meat to be for an event like this. I also enjoyed trying their signature BBQ sauces.
I also enjoyed the brief intro from the manager and the goodie bag. It was overall a great event! We will be back at Wood Ranch BBQ!

I thoroughly enjoyed the Tasting Dinner at Wood Ranch BBQ. Many thanks to the management and staff of Wood Ranch for their efforts in preparing the food and space for this event. Thanks also to Gretchen P for organizing it! Wood Ranch is another of the inviting restaurants that have opened in the revitalized Springfield Town Center and I was very pleased to have the opportunity to sample many of their offerings
The tasting began with a series of appetizers. First was the BBQ chicken Potato Skins followed by Killer Wings. However, I liked the Carolina Pulled Pork Sliders among the appetizer group. Their size was ample and two or three of these would make a meal!
The buffet opened for our main meal. The Chopped Salad was excellent, very crunchy and tasty with many veggies. The Peanut Coleslaw was an interesting take on this standard. Of the meat dishes, best were the tender Tri Trip and Brisket slices. The Ribs were not meaty enough for my liking. Barbecue sauce was needed for all of the meats A choice among Original, Chipolte Cherry, or Habanero Peach sauces was offered. The meal was topped off with a generous slice of Pumpkin Cheesecake, perfect for a November evening.
Wood Ranch is based in Southern California with the Springfield location their first foray into the East. When talking with the friendly staff I learned they had come come California as well.
A most successful Unilocal event!

Unilocal events are so well executed — great job Gretchen. This was my second event and I had a blast. Good people, new venue, attentive staff, fun menu, really tasty food.
Sitting with new friends is always something I look forward to as a friendly person. Lyn, David, and Katie had me bookmarking so many restaurants and wineries that I left feeling like I haven’t been anywhere. Love that there is so much out there to experience still! And talking about favorite eating spots in Burke is pretty entertaining.
The night started with libations and apps. The pork sliders were impressive. The flavors were a mix of meaty, tangy from the coleslaw, bite from the pickle, and the BBQ sauce. I had to have internal dialogues to stop myself at two. Wings were good. Sliders weren’t my favorite, but I liked them conceptually. Sometimes when you carve out the potato to stuff it again with other things… they get dry. That was the issue with them this eve.
The buffet was awesome. Comfort foods and meats galore. Also had to stop myself from overindulging. I was satisfied after the apps after all! Mac n cheese was awesome so I know butter was making that magic. The sweet potato were also unique in that they were slightly savory and sweet without tasting like every other sweet potato purée with cinnamon and brown sugar. The ribs were my fav meat. They were meeeeatty and juicy and had a nice caramelization.
Cheesecake is one of my favs. And I love pumpkins desserts. The two met in the middle so you weren’t like oh it’s just a cheesecake or oh another pumpkin dessert. Well balanced.
I’d like to rewind the event and have it be later this week so I can do it all over again. Thank you Gretchen and Wood Ranch. Y’all are big very gracious and made it a successful night.

Describe this event in three words: fun, intimate, and tasty.
Our fabulous NOVA CM Gretchen P put together a fun event at Wood Ranch BBQ and Grill. It is located in the recently renovated Springfield Town Center. We were seated in groups and encouraged to mingle with our fellow Elites. Shout out to my awesome table of Bob, Tracy, Mary Kate, and LaDonna!
The food came out in stages and there was a ton of food. I was actually surprised by the amount of food. It was able to give us a better idea about the food at Wood Ranch. They also had samples of signature cocktails. My favorite cocktail was the Newport Lemonade. It was light, delicious, and well blended. For food, they offered two kinds of wings, potato skins, and pork sliders. We were also treated to a buffet of two salads, macaroni and cheese, mashed sweet potatoes, ribs, brisket, and tri tip. So much food! My favorites were the tri tip, brisket, ribs (I’m a meat girl, I can’t help it) and the mashed sweet potatoes. The meal ended with a sample of their pumpkin cheesecake. Yum. Perfect way to get into the holiday mood.
The event was relaxed, staff at Wood Ranch were friendly, and food tasty. What more could you want?

Lucky for my ‘cowboy’ hat, it had a date tonight! Wood Ranch BBQ was on my bookmark list and we had a chance to check them out! I was excited to see the new places opening at the Springfield Town Center!
Let me start out by saying that I had dinner before I arrived. My appetite was the size of a working cowboy! SO, I’m putting it out there right now… the food was SO good that I managed to eat a second dinner.
The team at Wood Ranch BBQ worked really hard to make sure that everyone at our table and other tables were properly served. They provided full sized cocktail samples, a plethora of appetizers and a full course buffet… all fit for a hungry cowboy!
No left hungry, in fact, I noticed a few ‘carry-​out’ bags. The hot wings and the garlic rolls were my favorite appetizers. Others at my table enjoyed the sliders. The buffet line consisted of two types of salads (a peanut coleslaw and a chicken ranch salad), both VERY good. I don’t usually grab coleslaw at any meal but this one had some awesome crunch and taste. The mac and cheese was also one of my fav selections, it was not fancy but just good olé cheese and pasta. I enjoyed the St. Louis ribs and their signature habanero bbq sauce was on fire.
Given the fact that I ate 2 dinners, the fork never left my hand when the dessert was placed in front of me. Yes, that pumpkin cheesecake melted in my mouth. The sample size was perfect!
It was so nice to see fellow Unilocalers! Food talk is one my favorite past times and doing it with Unilocal-​experts is awesome!
Everything about this BBQ buffet was amazing! There was a hungry soul in our group! Service was on point and food was intoxicating. Gretchen «cowgirl extra-​ordinaire’ P rounded up some good vittles and some amazing fun!

Great food and great drinks!
I’m totally loving the Newport lemonade. It was super awesome. The whiskey straight, look very similar to the Newport lemonade. When that came to the table, and we all started to drink — it we ended up making a face not assuming to have what we had. It was pretty funny but nonetheless pretty good. It was bitter versus the sweet spiked lemonade we had just consumed.
They offered us three varieties wings — regular, habanero peach and BBQ. I only tried the BBQ since it wasn’t spicy.
In addition to the appetizers we tried some chicken potato skins. I was not the biggest fan of this.
I was a big fan of their brisket and ribs. We got the try this when we were served buffet style. We had salad, garlic bread, macaroni and cheese, yams, brisket, and ribs. It was a dinner for a queen.
The pumpkin cheesecake finished it off perfectly. It was light in flavor and so good. I could eat a whole thing of it. It was truly delectable.
Thanks future Mrs. Fox and the people of Wood Ranch for making an awesome night out for the elites.