We had originally planned on having a casual dinner at a newly opened ramen place in the area but on my drive home from work, I had an overwhelming hankering for baby back ribs. The only option was either Houstons’s in El Segundo or Hillstone in Santa Monica. To my chagrin, the Houston’s in the South Bay had no reservations available. The Santa Monica location appeared to have a 9:30 availability. However, when I arrived home, a unicorn reservation for 8 p.m. appeared on Resy which I immediately accepted. We arrived exactly on time and from entrance to exit, the entire dinner experience took 40 minutes.

Having frequented the establishment many times over in the past decade or so, we had our regular dishes in mind. We ordered our Titos martini and Titos Moscow mule to start. For our appetizer, we ordered the savory, crispy, cheese toasts which were absolutely divine. 

Then we had the Thai jungle salad with filet mignon. The noodles were al dente, the chunks of filet were tender and juicy. The portion size could have easily been an option for a main entree.

However, we had other plans for our actual meals. My husband ordered the half chicken with black rice and beans. It looked to be moist and perfectly prepared, juicy, not greasy, with the perfect concoction of seasonings and spices.

The reason for our trip was my entree: the full rack of baby back ribs. I omitted the cole slaw in favor of a double order of fries. The ribs were so moist, juicy, flavorful that I nearly ate the entire rack. Realizing my gluttony, I stopped short with two ribs left to go.

Houstons/Hillstone has been a love of mine for nearly two decades. Their recipes at every location has remained tried and true and consistent throughout. That cannot be said of even some of the more famous steakhouses like Mastros or Del Frisco’s. I could easily recommend this chain and not fear any inconsistency in service of quality. 

Hillstone

202 Wilshire Blvd.

Santa Monica, CA 90401

https://hillstonerestaurant.com/locations/santamonica/