TICKLE FANCY WITH TANGY BARBECUE; SECRET SAUCES WILL STICK TO YOUR RIBS AND MAKE YOUR MOUTH DANCE WITH DELIGHT.

Byline: Larry Lipson Restaurant Critic

Rib Ticklers may have finally found a home.

The award-winning barbecue sauces and general barbecue cooking concept hit Southern California in 1993 when Dennis Ofsthun brought the late Willie Harris' recipes from Washington to the little town of Saticoy and hooked up with Marco Gonzalez at Gonzalez's taco stand.

Soon the fame of Rib Ticklers spread and it moved over to Adobe Cantina in Agoura.

But this arrangement didn't work out and Rib Ticklers turned up in a bowling alley in Camarillo briefly before settling in in the former Shooters sports bar facility on Kanan Road in Agoura Hills.

There's no doubt about the good taste of this barbecued food. The Willie Harris way, developed in the Carolinas and savored in the Southwest and West, was picked up by Ofsthun, who won numerous taste-offs and contests in Kansas, Texas and New Mexico.

The sauces - designated mild, spicy, turbo, thermo and nytro - are currently being sold in stores in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Alaska, according to Ofsthun, who promises their distribution soon in California.

Meanwhile, local `` 'cue'' fanciers can sample some pretty good stuff at the new Rib Ticklers restaurant.

I particularly like the pulled pork, supposedly smoked for 15 hours, and the tri-tip, here thin-sliced and available with the pulled pork as a terrific combination plate ($10.95) with a choice of two side dishes - the beans and fries are recommended, but there's also a pretty good cole slaw and a passable salad.

You also get your choice of one of the sauces. But if you ask nicely, your waitress or waiter will usually bring you the mild, spicy and turbo with which to experiment.

Naturally, the big faves here are the ribs, especially the half ($10.95) or full ($15.95) racks of baby backs, impressive in looks and taste. They are marinated to ensure tenderness with appropriate seasoning for assertive flavors. Of course, the sauces - whatever your choice - give the ribs and all the other barbecued possibilities the final touch. And in the Carolinas manner, they are nicely restrained - but available to be slathered on to your heart's content.

The chicken passes muster, too.

It comes in various ways and sizes. It's available in a sandwich ($6.95) or with a chopped salad ($7.95). And in quarter ($6.95) or halird ($8.95) sizes, the Rib Ticklers chicken is offered as an individual entree.

It also comes with a choice of ribs ($11.95), with tri-tip or pulled pork ($10.95), and with ribs and a choice of tri-tip or pulled pork ($16.95) for the barbecue fancier who wants a three-way combination at one time.

There are the usual sports bar-type starters like nachos, hot wings and potato skins. Surprisingly, Rib Ticklers comes up with an impressive rendition of fried calamari ($5.95) for the price, showing neither rubberiness in the rings nor doughy batter.

And for a spark at the beginning of the meal, the jalapeno poppers ($5.95) are as good as they come.

Although Rib Ticklers' version of chili verde ($5.95) hardly measures up to those at better Mexican cantinas (like Tortilla Inn in Northridge) its mahi-mahi tacos ($7.95 for two) provide a fine, light, Mexican-accented plate. The kitchen here stuffs the moist, grilled fish into corn tortillas with shredded cabbage, an earthy chipotle sauce and pico de gallo.

Though very limited in wines, there are some interesting beer choices here and a full bar.

Let's hope that Rib Ticklers has finally found a home and will stay in one place.

THE FACTS

--The restaurant: Rib Ticklers Barbeque.

--Where: 5617 Kanan Road, Agoura Hills.

--When: Open for lunch, dinner and snacks from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

--Behind the scenes: Dennis Ofsthun and Marco Gonzalez are co-owners.

--Recommended items: Calamari, jalapeno poppers, soup of the day, pulled pork, tri-tip, baby back pork or beef ribs, mahi-mahi tacos.

--How much: Starters and sandwiches from $3 to $7, entrees from $7 to $17, dessert $3.95 each. Full bar. AE, MC, V.

--Wine list: Limited list has no red zinfandels (to go with barbecue), but has a fairly pleasant cabernet sauvignon from J. Lohr ($28, $6 per glass). No vintage dates and no still wines under $20 in the abbreviated list of seven labels plus Copperidge wines by the glass ($3.75).

--Reservations: Only taken for parties of eight or larger. Call [phone].

--Our rating: Three stars for food; Three stars for service; One star for wine.

CAPTION(S):

photo, box

Photo: Dennis Ofsthun, left, and Marco Gonzalez are partners in the new Rib Ticklers Barbeque in Agoura Hills, and use award-winning recipes and sauces to create zesty dishes.

Tom Mendoza/Staff Photographer

Box: THE FACTS (see text)