Blue Smoke Bar-B-Que

To sum up my review in one word for Blue Smoke B-B-Que, DRY! I am sure Mochachocolata Rita * and Gastronomous Anonymous would agree with me. A fairly new joint located in the heart of LKF, do come here with an empty stomach for some hearty food selection but remember to order some drinks to go along with their rather dry signature ribs.



According to my information, the group behind this venture, the Dining Concept, spent some efforts on the decor with wood panels imported from old cottages in the US, at least I have been informed. I have to admit that I enjoyed the setting, just like a southern bar per se.

We started off with Train Wreck Thick Cut Fries which LITERALLY arrived within 1 minute after we ordered. Can I have that deep frying machine? Did I mention the fries were not even of optimal temperature? Come on, within 1 minute from ordering? At least TRY to wait for a bit longer so it seemed to involve more work I bet whoever ordered this after us will get their fries within 30 secs! Is there a contest among themselves on speed? Anyways, did not really have the WOW factor but it was hearty indeed. More bacon bits would be nice.

How can such a hearty meal go without wings, hot wings to be exact. Flavors were alright but the wings were fairly dry! (time to start counting how many times I will use the word DRY in this post!)

Next was the corn bread and it was ... wait for it ... dry! I really did not mind having some melted butter as the dipping to make it more moist!

Crispy Mac and Cheese, not a typical way to describe Mac and Cheese right? Well, it was not ordinary mac and cheese anyhow, they were served in the shape of a sphere, the size of a table tennis ball. In other words, deep fried Mac and Cheese to be exact. However, the batter was rather thick with only a tiny bit of macaroni inside it. More cheese sauce on top would not hurt since it was ... wait for it ... dry! On the plus side, Interesting interpretation / creation indeed to go along with beer!

Mashed Potatoes ... alright, it wasn't dry for a change but more butter would be wonderful. Texture was mushy but not very creamy in my opinion.

We ordered both the Kentucky Style Australian Lamb Ribs and the Full Slab of Baby Back Ribs. The flavor of the lamb ribs were rich but it was rather ... wait for it ... dry! On the bright side, it was less dry then the Baby Back Ribs!

As for the Baby Back Ribs, how dry and tough was it? S had to fight against it as shown in the picture with her fork and knife.

We were surprised to find the ribs being so dry so we asked the staff. Apparently, it was suppose to be dry or at least intended to be on the dry side from the slow smoke process. I learn new things through my food adventures that was one of the new lesson I have learned regarding ribs. In any case, I still prefer my ribs to be meaty and ... wait for it ... not dry. The flavors were alright but I got too distracted and physically exhausted from chewing that I could not finish up my portion of the ribs.

So how many times did I mention the word DRY?

Likes:

• Nice Decor (I don't know what else to say)
• Crispy Mac and Cheese - interesting interpretation (at least to me) and good to go with beer (although it bit too dry / lack of cheese sauce in my opinion)

Dislikes:

• Many items were relatively ... wait for it ... DRY! (ie; Corn Bread, Hot Wings, Lamb Ribs, Baby Back Ribs)

Avg Spending: HKD 200 - 300 per person

Blue Smoke Bar-B-Que
3/F, Grand Progress Building,
15-16 Lan Kwai Fong, Central
Tel: +852 2816 9018
http://www.diningconcepts.com.hk/blue_smoke/index.php