Smoke BBQ

            Last fall, Bill ate at Ox Lot 9, a new restaurant in Covington located within the Southern Hotel, and enjoyed an excellent meal there. The restaurant is headed by the husband and wife team of Jeffrey and Amy Hansell. In his career, Jeff has worked at Commander’s Palace in New Orleans, as executive sous chef at Lüke, and at restaurants in Birmingham and Colorado. Amy has extensive front of the house experience, serving as a Food and Beverage director and general manager. Together, the couple has made Ox Lot 9 into one of the best restaurants on North Shore—garnering positive reviews from NOLA.com and elsewhere. Now for their second restaurant the Hansells have set their sights on another popular food trend: quality barbecue. Last Monday, they opened their newest venture, Smoke BBQ in Covington.

The new sign. 

             

            The restaurant sits at the intersection of Lee Road and North Collins Boulevard in Covington. It previously housed a bank, a café, and a Thai restaurant. While the Hansells are running the restaurant, former Ox Lot 9 sous chef Nate Meharg has assumed the role of pitmaster and Ox Lot 9’s pastry chef Breanne Kostyk is in charge of the restaurant’s pie selection. The restaurant draws elements of barbecue from across the South. The menu features homemade sausage, smoked chicken, St. Louis ribs, pulled pork, and smoked brisket. It also includes a number of homemade sides including baked beans, mac & cheese, collard greens, cheddar grits, deep fried okra, and hand-cut fries.  The appetizers range from house made pickles to peanuts to crispy pork skins to smoked chicken wings, and a cheese and sausage board. During its first week in operation, the restaurant was only open for lunch, from 11-2. This week it expands to include dinner service as well. 

The interior of Smoke 

            

            Last Tuesday, a few of us took the opportunity to eat at Smoke for lunch. The pulled pork fell apart effortlessly and was not overly mealy or fatty. The Carolina Vinegar sauce cut through the strong pork flavor and added a nice bit of acid. Together we sampled four side dishes: the hand cut fries, mac & cheese, cheddar grits, and baked beans. The beans contained a bit of heat and a strong vinegar flavor. They were good, but our least favorite of the four. The mac & cheese had a smooth and creamy texture that elevated it above the typical boxed mac & cheese found at other barbecue restaurants.  The grits and French fries were the stars of the sides. The cheddar shone through in the grits and the grits  themselves had a soft texture that can only come from a long simmer. The hand cut fries were seasoned—just the way good fries should be. Based on the food alone, we will be eating there again.

            

Pulled Pork Sandwich with Hand Cut Fries and Cheddar Grits

           After we finished our meal, our server asked us what the restaurant could have done better food/service wise. In its second day in operation, Smoke was trying to settle into a rhythm. Running a restaurant is a difficult and tricky operation, the front of the house, servers, and kitchen all need to work in harmony to ensure a successful service. It’s clear (and not surprising) that they haven’t quite hit that rhythm yet. An order of a pulled pork plate and a pulled pork sandwich became two sandwiches. Despite ample room, the tables lacked ketchup. When we were ready to order, our server had to go fetch his notepad. We traded servers at least once (they seemed to have an experienced server training newer ones). The interior of the restaurant contains only tables of four and one of them was taken up by a single diner. These minor service hiccups should work themselves out over time and did not detract from the excellent food.  

             All in all, the barbecue was delicious. The sides were a clear step above typical barbecue fare. The service needed to work out the kinks, but considering it was the restaurant’s second day in operation, Smoke should be just fine.