Smoke City Char Bar Reviews
Submitted by Praneet Raj on 08/23/2022
Praneet Raj 5 stars rating.
Aug 22 Update: stopped by again for dinner and drinks. Ordered deviled eggs, sliders and tacos. Food was great. Great experience. Ordered Sangria as well which was delish.
Loved this BBQ place. Amazing decor and great selection of apps, drinks and food. I will absolutely be back. They have an mango flavored water and it was delish. They had $1 wing happy hour special.
Jonny Lim 4 stars rating.
Had a dinner with my team members; tried out brisket deviled eggs, wings, street tacos, house nachos, and couple of meat platters. I thought their seasoning was just a bit too salty but others members were enjoying the food and drink. The atmosphere was quiet and staff members were super friendly. I would comeback to this place.
Submitted by Jonny Lim on 07/27/2022
CT Davis 4 stars rating.
A sign of the upward trajectory of the previously run-down arts district area, this very comfy space in a new residential building features long sofa benches and big roll-up windows to take advantage of the excellent So Cal climate. The food is tasty and fresh, with flavorful meats supporting their smoky branding. I feel they could do better on their draft beer offerings, though. We live amongst an embarrassment of riches when it comes to contemporary craft beer which would go excellently with smoked meats. We'll probably be back.
Submitted by Ct Davis on 05/24/2022
vince kelly 5 stars rating.
Great food, inviting staff with the right attitude. Price was great especially considering portion SIZE. Brandt is the man great server who's very knowledgeable. Sous chef George is helpful and hilarious ????. Overall great experience, we will be back????????
Submitted by Vince Kelly on 05/22/2022
Jay 5 stars rating.
Food taste delicious ???? closes to eating food from South Carolina there smoke char cuts of meat are juicy and the Mac and cheese ???? it's the best I ever had. I highly recommend the place and there meat platers are delicious getvan option of 1,2 or 3 meats with any sides and there smores dessert its out of this world. I highly recommend this place.
Submitted by Jay on 05/14/2022
Arthur Greenup II 5 stars rating.
Executive chef Omari Williams knocks it out of the park with his exquisite cuisine. This food is so good we will return. Not only was the food excellent, the service was attentive and polite. The restaurant decor is beautiful. This is a "must eat" restaurant!
Submitted by Arthur Greenup Ii on 04/26/2022
Katherine M 5 stars rating.
Excellent BBQ Restaurant! Food is incredibly delicious and looks beautiful. The decor matched perfectly with the theme of the restaurant. I love the outdoor setting , honestly has to be the best setting in house. Tried their Brioche sandwich with pulled pork and it was so yummy and tender. They have a few desserts that definitely pulled me in , the Buttermilk Biscuit Shortcake is so good, a dessert is needed after some tasty BBQ food. Will be coming back soon!
Submitted by Katherine M on 04/18/2022
Shyla Williams 5 stars rating.
After reading the reviews I was hesitant to come dine at this place, but I can confidently say I'm more than glad I did. Looking back at the dates on some of these reviews I'm assuming its from when they first opened and they've made some improvements since. I ordered the 3 three meat platter with the beef brisket, baby back ribs, and pacific salmon. For the sides I got the Brussel sprouts and the burnt ends Mac and cheese.
Lets start with my favorite- the ribs were practically falling off the bone; the meat was so tender and the Harissa Molasses sauce was phenomenal. I asked what it was to see if I could buy some and it turns out all sauces are made in house, my only negative to this is that I couldn't buy a whole bottle and take it home.
The brisket was rich, smoky, and fragrant. I found myself upset that I was getting full because all I wanted was to eat more.
The salmon melts in your mouth. It was layered; light, smokey, and fresh (as salmon should be) but the soy ginger sauce added an extra layer of flavor that was unique and delicious.
My sides- although the Brussels were good (I loved the touch of pomegranate seeds to add a little sweetness) the Mac and cheese stole the show. It is SO HARD to find a place that doesn't serve a soupy, watery mess for Mac and cheese. This place nailed it with the consistency; a creamy, cheddar-cheesy, buttery goodness.
Would I dine here again? Without a doubt
Submitted by Shyla Williams on 04/17/2022
Pedro Rico Jr 5 stars rating.
Beef brisket was great ???? My wife loved the Mac and cheese side. The ribs we had weren't dry nor juicy (they fell in between).
Submitted by Pedro Rico Jr on 04/16/2022
Trevor Widger 1 stars rating.
Drier Than Ben Shapiro's Wife
I'm from the Midwest, so I've had some really good meat. My friend and I agreed this place had some of the driest we've ever tasted. Most of the sides were good, and the cocktails, but the entrées were not. We sampled just about everything (dressed in the default, signature sauce).
Appetizer Wings - Extremely basic, bone-in wings. You'd have the same quality at any cheap pizza joint. The sauce was too salty. They said the blue cheese dipping sauce was made in-house, but they should save themselves the trouble and just buy from out of house. Very bland.
Beef Brisket - Good, the only one we truly enjoyed.
Tri tip - Dry.
Chicken - Profoundly dry.
Ribs - Shockingly dry (how do you manage to make ribs dry???)
Pulled Pork - You guessed it, dry as the Sahara
Burnt Ends Mac & Cheese - Delicious, hard to mess up.
Cornbread - Amazingly, this was some of the best cornbread I've had in my life. It's made-to-order and has cinnamon. Genuinely the best thing we ate.
Cabbage Slaw - Actually pretty good slaw. Not too sweet, creamy.
Truffle Salt Fries - Literally frozen, generic steak fries sprinkled in truffle salt. Bad. Didn't even come with ketchup to mask it. Luckily we ordered a side of one of the other sauces.
For dessert we had the smoked peach dish, which is literally just a smoked, singular peach, a small dollop of vanilla ice cream, a smattering of brown sugar, and cilantro??? It's like peach cobbler had an identity crisis.
As I'm typing all of this my friend is rushing to the bathroom due to digestive issues. Unsure if it was from this place or not, but the rest of the review definitely stands. Perhaps they should try being a vegan BBQ joint, or a bakery, because the current menu tastes like a covert PETA operation to discredit the concept of meat itself.
Submitted by Trevor Widger on 04/02/2022
