Willow Ranch

A literal oasis in the desert. Decent BBQ huge portions and frindly service.

We stopped here on our way back from SoCal, and are so glad we did! We each orders something different so we could sample as many things as possible. My fried chicken salad (half size) was not only the perfect sized portion, but the perfect combination of both lighter greens and more fillings toppings including fried chicken pieces, bacon, avocado, red onion, tomato, carrots and olives. The ranch dressing was excellent. We all enjoyed the side of potato salad. My son in law ordered the Plow Boy and loved the combination of fillings. My daughter loved her pulled pork sandwich, but wished it was served with a pickle. We’ll definitely be back for future meals. Great value for the portions, too. Everything was delicious!

So I’m passing through central California on my way back to San Fransisco from my brothers graduation ceremony at UCLA when I stop to rest at a motel 6 in a place called Button willow. Not a very big town but the people here seem friendly. I found myself a little stir crazy in my room and decided to venture out in hope of finding something to pass the time.
To my surprise I found a local diner that seemed fairly promising. At first glance its not the most extravagant diner but does have a few pros. There’s a large sign outside which seems to attract decent business. As well the waiting staff seems friendly and their regulars are loyal almost to a fault. I had a couple beers and a slice of homemade apple pie, both of which I thoroughly enjoyed.
The beer selection was surprisingly not bad for it being such a whole in the wall. The menu as well had quite a selection. All and all I’d see myself coming back here if I ever found myself in the area again.
You have my business

This was the perfect pit stop for our trip up north. Tri tip sandwich was delicious!
The staff was incredibly friendly as well.

Yes! Such a great stop on the 5 north bound. I felt like I was walking into a Quentin Tarantino movie when I noticed two beautiful young servers taking people’s orders in this hot and dusty town. #dusktilldawn Food was also pretty good, I had the grilled chicken salad and forgot to even add the dressing on it. That’s how good it was. ;) Telling you Buttonwillow is on the map now. Tried fried pickles for the first time also and loved them.

A great diner. I eat here almost every week. The food is good and the service even better.

We were just driving through the area looking for a good place to eat. Willow Ranch had the highest reviews so we thought we’d give it a try. The food was great, staff was friendly and the prices were right. Fried pickles were a tasty appetizer. Patty melt and onion rings are a must try! Glad we stopped in.

5 stars. All ya’ll haters can move along! Food off the 5! Damn, I’m going to stop by here everytime I drive to norcal!
Great vegetable soup!
Safe, friendly, great staff! I think the owner was serving us!
My mom said very homey and great!
Rawrcats
Foodcats
Cats cats

This place is bomb. Everything is so yummy. The veggie soup is wildly delicious, homemade fresh with large chunks of veggies. The mashed potatoes are a great side, you can’t go wrong with either gravy. The portions are generous. The boys split the combo platter with three meats and two sides, and it was plenty of food for them. Our server Keisha was very helpful and sweet. The place has a total hometown vibe, and it reminded me of an Alabama bbq diner (and that’s a GREAT thing!)

Food here is great and is one of the places to get real good food in Buttonwillow, CA.
Place is located near Travel Center and may be easy to miss .
I ordered Fiesta Burger which was good .
However, the fries were over done (should be crispy light brown but not over-​cooked).
Maybe they need more thicker fries so as not to overdo them and I would pay more attention to temperature of the oil .
Burger was thick and juicy and very flavorful.
Service is also very fast. My order was complete in 10 minutes for pickup .
I will be trying other menu items here.

After reading the reviews on Unilocal we just had to stop by. The place looked really classic with souvenir T-​shirts. Smelled delicious. My fiancée and I were so hungry and excited. We ordered the famous ribs only to be disappointed with some rubbery meat that did not fall off the bone but stuck to the bone. The BBQ sauce tasted like something you would get at the 99 cent store. The sides are what suppressed my hunger. What a disappointment. I couldn’t wait to get back home and eat something edible. I was surprised to see such a diverse crowd out in the middle of nowhere… I would not recommend this place to any of my friends. Just keep driving don’t stop for some mediocre ribs…

Casual local BBQ for the racers right off the freeway amid a bunch of fast food chains. It’s a nice option with good food and delicious sauce to take home. We got the small order of beef ribs. The coleslaw is perfect. Nice smoky beans. The best fried pickles I ever had. The breading stayed crisp, so did the skins, and they never slipped apart. The side salad was very fresh, and they have beer on tap. Definitely buy their BBQ sauce. We cooked some pork shoulder with it, a can of root beer and a packet of onion soup mix in a slow cooker for eight hours and took it to a friend’s house to watch the Warriors game. Everyone loved it.

We had brisket and pulled chicken. Both were very tender and delicious! The chicken enchilada soup and cole slaw were awesome as well. The staff was friendly and knew many customers by name. It was a pleasant atmosphere and reasonable prices.
We will be sure to visit again next time we go down to SoCal.

For a pit stop off the 5 highway in Buttonwillow of all places this was a pleasant surprise!
My group of four arrived at 9:30PM on a Friday and were glad they still accepted folks as they close at 10pm.
The heffer that I am, I ordered a triple bbq combo– (Tri tip, beef brisket and pork ribs (extra $ 2))
So this ended up around $ 27. It came with soup or salad (I got some tasty chicken dumpling soup), a bit of their homemade chili with beans (this was just ok), a side which I opted for mashed potatoes (whatever), and bread. The tri tip was just whatever. I wouldn’t bother with this again. The brisket was delicious! Very juicy and fatty. The pork ribs was a full half rack! Worth the $ 2 upgrade.
My husband got the chicken fried steak and it was tasty. That gravy was bomb! We really enjoyed it.
Our other two friends ordered a two bbq combo which they liked and a burger and he killed it so I assumed he liked it as well.
Service was prompt and courteous.
It was a great little stop on our road trip.

One of the best BBQ places in CA! Stopped here on the way home from SoCal and my family and I agree it’s a new favorite.
There was stupid good service. The food came out within five minutes!
The BBQ sauce is the perfect blend of sweet and spicy. I bought a bottle to take home because I can’t go without it!
I recommend the tri tip sandwich; thinly sliced meat on a fabulous fresh French roll.
Shoutout to Joe for telling me about this bomb barbecue!

This place is super yum! I just had a full plate of ribs! Staff is super friendly and accommodating. Huge portion of food!

Unilocal challenge 2015. ²²¹⁄₃₆₅
Stepping in here, I feel like I am nowhere near home. It feels different in here. Located off the I-​5 in Buttonwillow. Offering a extensive menu full of meats. My kind of place. Lots of tables to accomondate large crowds. Friendly service and brains to split a check 15 ways.
Now lets talk meat. I am talking juicy hunks of beef like Rib Eyes, Flat irons, Top Sirloin. NY, Tri tips, deep pits, brisket, philly’s, french dips, long sausages. If your a legs and thighs type of carnivore they offer quarter, halfs, and breasts plates. Feeling kind of fishy? Sworddfish, shrimp, calamari. See what a mean? Its meat heaven. All served with gems like salads, beans, rice pilaf, mashed taters, veggies, cold slaw, potatoe salad, fries, onion rings. You name it.
Tons of angus burgers, deli sammies, hot sammies… yummy yummy in my tummy.
Now if your into veggies, they have stuff for you too.
Zucchini, poppers, veggie burgers, salads, veggie sammies. Dont worry we can all get along.
I had the BBQ bacon burger no bun with corn on the cob instead of fries. It was alright. I was expecting it to be more angusy, but I think they use mass produced premade patties. I was still hungry afterwards. Then again I didn’t have the bun.
Hubsters had the Plow Boy, a combination of angus brisket, pastrami, bacon, cheese, pilled high with onion rings, jack cheese and chipoltle sauce. He digged it.
If your passing by the I5 coming or going from Kern County, this is your designation. Just please don’t drive all the way here just to dig into some meat. Its the type of place that is only good if your in the area.
#705

There are not a whole lot of decent options when making the drive between LA and SF. You have the national fast food joints and the truck stops. Willow Ranch is one of the few decent alternatives. It’s kinda old school/​dated but the service is fine and the food decent.
If you want to sit down, relax, and «get away» from the I5 monotony, check this place out!

3.25
I almost died from happiness discovering real food that wasn’t fast food along the I-​5! Unfortunately it took over ten minutes for someone to take our order and then I almost really died from hunger. Also, the food was mostly just standard for an off-​the-​freeway-​establishment.
Despite the large menu and meat-​centric items, the tri-​tip was on the dry side and didn’t have much flavor. What little meat the beef ribs had was delicious, but they were mostly comprised of fat and bone. The saving grace of the meat was the barbecue sauce. The sides were just okay — iceberg lettuce salad, flavorless boiled corn on the cob, bland chili beans, a semi-​hard roll, and bland mashed potatoes.
Plusses? Decent french fries and really cheap beer (served in the bottle). Delicious BBQ sauce. Thick ranch dressing. Real-​ish food. Large, shareable portions.
Cons? Sloooow, leisurely pace. Forgettable meats. Bland sides.
Service was friendly, but harried when it got busy. Then came shift change and we saw staff just hanging out at the counter when we were trying to pay our bill (which we had to walk up to the register). Must be a local favorite though, for we saw tons of pick-​up-​truck-​driving patrons throughout as well as public service going in and out (including the CHP).
Note: don’t fill up at the gas station next door; total rip off.

In all my years of driving through up and down Interstate-​5, I never knew there was a BBQ place right off the freeway. After driving for a few hours, I decided to try this place out. I loved the interior design of the restaurant because it felt like I was eating at an actual ranch. Lights are dim and lots of seating available.
I ordered the Ranch Burger ($ 9.99) — certified Angus Beef with avocado, bacon and monterey jack cheese. The burger was a little bit overcooked than what I would have preferred, The avocado was not ripe enough to eat though. It was still a decent burger, considering it only cost ten bucks.
Waitresses were excellent. They were very friendly and refilled my water glass plenty of time. Many of them go to CSUB for school too!
Whenever I stop by in the future again, I am going to try out their famous barbecue ribs and brisket!