I had a friend visiting last minute and while I was incredibly busy while he was here, I still wanted to make some time to hang out and perhaps do dinner. He was excited about
Inside Hardwood 
The menu!
After seeing the place, I was surprised that they take bookings, but our table was available when we arrived and we were shown to our seats. I decided to try out one of the cocktails on the menu, while my friend stuck with gin and the other half tried to order one of the delicious sounding stouts that was on the menu. Sadly, that one ran out, so he went with the other stout that was available. The stout was fantastic, but my cocktail was just okay. We did finally order some food as well, and we went with queso dip, a brisket plate with sweet potato fries and slaw, dry fried chicken wings, ribs
Surprisingly (and annoyingly), everything arrived at the same time. It was a lot of food to try to squeeze onto the table. Also frustratingly, most of the food was cold. (I imagine it had been waiting there for quite some time to be delivered to the table.) The queso was definitely not hot, nor was the brisket, but we decided to dive in and eat it before it got even colder. The queso was pretty average and bland to be honest, as it turned out to just be any sort of processed cheese dip that a person could buy at the store. It was definitely a disappointing dish. The chicken was okay, with the fried jalapeños being the best part, mostly due to the chicken being overcooked. At this point, we tried to order more beer, and when we finally flagged down a server, it turns out the other stout also ran out, so we ended up reverting to Anchor Steam.
Queso dip 
Dry fried chicken
The brisket was actually quite flavorful and tender, but cold, so it did put a damper on what could be an excellent dish. The fries and coleslaw with it were fairly pedestrian though. The ribs were also tasty and fell off the bone, but definitely not the best ribs I’ve eaten. The sausages were definitely a miss as they were dry and grainy. Also, the barbeque sauce was fairly flavorless and insipid, and it could really use a lot of work. Plus, we were given three tiny tubs of it which seems quite stingy for barbeque sauce. One very positive note though was the homemade pickled onions, as they were really tasty, and I wish there were more of them on the plate.
Brisket with fries and coleslaw 
Ribs and sausage
Hardwood was a definite miss on many things, which saddens me because I really wanted my friend to have a great meal while he was in town. I was just expecting a bit more flavor from a lot of the barbeque, and sending out cold plates of food just really isn’t pleasant. Also, the service left quite a bit to be desired, as at one point the server came up and absolutely stank of cigarette smoke which is really unappetizing. I don’t foresee a repeat visit any time in the near future.
Score: 2/5
Recommendation: The brisket, I guess, but only if it comes out hot.
Hardwood Bar & Smokery
680 8th St Ste. 170
San Francisco, CA 94103
