BIG DADDY'S HOME TO TASTY BARBECUE.

Byline: Larry Lipson Daily News Restaurant Critic

Dr. Hogly Wogly had better watch out: Big Daddy could be on the verge of knocking the good doctor off his longtime perch as the best, if not the most heralded, of barbecue purveyors in the San Fernando Valley.

Dr. Wogly's place is known for its dark, rich sauce and meaty ribs that are supposedly cooked in the style of Tyler, Texas.

Big Daddy's Kitchen, a 32-seat, no-frills, storefront cafe in Woodland Hills, may fit more into a general Southwestern category, or what is loosely known as California barbecue. It has a sauce that is quite piquant, possessing an agreeable tart quality imparted by the noticeable inclusion of cider vinegar in its formula.

But thankfully, its pork baby back ribs are sauced with restraint, allowing the best characteristics of the meat - of which there is plenty per rib - to shine through.

Allen ``Big Daddy'' Rothman, a rotund, twinkle-eyed chef with a dark mustache, often personally delivers to customers' tables the food they've ordered at the counter, especially if it's late into the lunch hours and the dining room's green vinyl booths are virtually empty, or early in the evening before any rush of business develops.

Big Daddy's may not have any fancy smoking equipment, but that doesn't deter it from coming up with some surprisingly tasty fare.

Its menu is fairly basic: baby backs, tri-tip, ``broasted'' chicken, hot links, burgers, sandwiches, chili, pizzas and salads with a few grilled items, a variety of potatoes and the expected beans and cole slaw.

If you're not familiar with the term ``Broaster,'' it's a pressure oven that was well-known to the public some years ago when there were numerous fast-food-style roasted chicken outlets around town that boasted of their ``broasted'' chicken, including one mini-chain called Abner's.

The oven still works well, producing moist, tasty chicken with a slightly crisped skin.

Here, the chicken may be purchased by the piece, in a bucket, or as a family-style dinner ranging from eight to 24 pieces.

It also comes combined in various sizes with either ribs, or tri-tip, or both. As the latter, it's titled This, That and the Other ($10.95) and emerges as a quarter chicken, a half-pound of tri-tip and a quarter-rack of ribs that are matched with a choice of potatoes (thick broasted wedges or mashed), cole slaw, beans and either a tortilla or garlic toast.

Plenty to eat, for sure. You learn quickly that this place isn't about small portions.

And there are several other combination options available.

As for how they rate individually, none are disappointing. Yet, of the three main items, the tri-tip is probably the weakest, possessing excellent flavor and requisite juiciness, sliced to medium thinness, but every so often offering parts that are just too chewy to swallow.

And not everything leaves an eater yelling superlatives.

One day, the kitchen had run out of baby backs so giant beef ribs were substituted. These were certainly quite good, but not as nearly as outstanding as the elusive pork baby backs tried at the next visit.

But there is one terrific plate that should not be missed titled On the Bayou ($5.95). It consists of well-marinated, seasoned pieces of chicken that have been grilled to perfect tenderness and served with the very good house Spanish rice.

Big Daddy's recipe for rice rises above all expectations. It certainly is an excellent melange, nicely cooked, mixed with corn niblets, diced green and lima beans, green and red sweet peppers, onion, celery, tomato paste and mild Mexican-style seasoning.

It, like most every thing here, can be purchased separately. Referred to on the menu as Our Famous Spanish Rice, it is sold as a 4-ounce side order or by the half-pint or pint.

The chili is another triumph.

Top-rated by this newspaper as part of its ``Best of the Valley'' series, Big Daddy's chili hasn't lost its punch and quality since March, when it won first place as a specialized recipe. Made predominantly with tri-tip beef, it costs $4.75 a bowl and is a mini-meal in itself with cheese, onions and Big Daddy's crunchy garlic roll.

If you like full-flavored, nonwimpy, down-to-earth food, this Large Patriarch a k a Big Daddy of Woodland Hills should quickly become your adopted cooking parent.

THE FACTS

The restaurant: Big Daddy's Kitchen.

Where: 21604 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills.

When: Open for lunch, dinner and snacks from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. daily except Sunday.

Phone: [phone].

Recommended items: Chili, garlic rolls, marinated grilled bayou-style chicken, broasted chicken. broasted potatoes, Spanish rice, baby back ribs, hot links, mashed potatoes.

How much: Sandwiches and salads from $2 to $5.50, chili and pizzas from $3.50 to $13, main dishes from $3.85 to $11, desserts from $1.30 to $2.50. No alcohol. AE, MC, V.

Our rating: Three and One Half Stars for food; Three Stars for value.

CAPTION(S):

Photo

Photo: Owner Allen ``Big Daddy'' Rothman shows some of the specialties served at his Woodland Hills restaurant.

Evan Yee/Daily News