Smoque
3800 N Pulaski Rd Chicago, IL 60641; Phone 773-545-7427
Date of Review: August, 2007
Is Smoque a sit down BYOB restaurant or a carry out place? When you walk into the restaurant and step behind the line of hungry customers waiting to put in their order, you may wonder. As you wait, you will be taken in by the incredible aroma that permeates the restaurant. At this point, you know you have arrived in a true barbeque spot and have no choice but to wait for your number to come up. Smoque has a significant carry out business and does not offer table service although there is enough seating in the restaurant for over 50 people. You wait in line, put in your order and pick up your tray of food. I went on a Saturday night and it took 10 minutes to get to the front of the line to order and another 10 minutes after ordering for my number to be called. All the while, I sipped on a beer. While you are waiting in line, someone will take down your name and the number of people in your party so that they can make sure you have a table to sit at.
Smoque has the best barbeque ribs I have had to date. That may change in the future but the St. Louis ribs at Smoque are the best I have ever had.
On my visit, I ordered the half and half combo, one half sandwich of pulled pork and one half sandwich of beef brisket. It is served with slaw and 1 side dish. I chose the French fries because the little bags of fresh cut fries I saw being served up looked too good to pass on. The slaw is tangy and the fries have great taste and aren’t too greasy. The brisket and pulled pork both have a wonderful smoky flavor. The pulled pork is shredded and has a nice combination of the crispy and incredibly tender pieces of the pork shoulder roast mixed together. The brisket -- I got mine sliced as opposed to chopped -- is tender and has a nice flavor from the Memphis style dry rub that is used on it prior to cooking. The smoky flavor of the meat is a deep flavor that lingers in your mouth after each bite. It is served with 2 small plastic containers of barbeque sauce. The thicker North Carolina vinegar and tomato based sauce is for the ribs and the thinner sweet and tangy sauce is intended to be used on the sliced and chopped meats. At the end of my meal, I used the brioche like buns from the sandwiches to sop up every last bit of the homemade sauces. For an extra $4 dollars, I complimented my entrée with a ¼ slab of St. Louis ribs. The meat on the ribs was cooked perfectly. It isn’t falling off of the bone but is tender enough where it sticks to the bone but pulls off in perfect segments and detaches completely when you take a bite. I appreciated the meatiness and smoky flavor of the meat much more because I was able to bite in and really chew the rib meat. I didn’t even bother using the sauce because the smoky meat was so flavorful and the rub they used had such a perfect flavor. The ribs were glazed with just the right amount of barbeque sauce so as to not take away from the flavors of the meat and the rub.
Smoque is a very good value for the quality of the food. My total bill was $13 for the half and half sandwich combo and a ¼ slab of St. Louis ribs. A brisket platter served with slaw and 2 sides is $9.45 while a pulled pork platter is 1$ cheaper. For $3, you can add a portion of pulled pork or brisket to any entrée or salad. For $4, you can add a ¼ slab of St. Louis ribs. A brisket sandwich is $7.95 with slaw and 1 side and a pulled pork sandwich is $7.45. A slab of ribs with slaw and 2 sides runs at $18.45 for the St. Louis ribs and $19.45 for the baby back ribs.
Smoque produces as much meat as they can but do not be surprised if they run out of something. You need to be flexible with what you order because you may have your heart set on brisket but end up with pulled pork. One of the employees told me that they always sell out the brisket and they sometimes need to grill burgers and sausages on the side of the restaurant to feed the employees because there is nothing else other than side dishes left to give them.
