In a former Chinese restaurant at Brindleyplace, a little slice of Americana (with a touch of the valleys) has been born in the shape of The Smoke Haus.
Opening their first restaurant in Swansea in 2012 and expanding to Cardiff in 2014, this is their third restaurant bringing the taste of Kentucky and Louisiana to us Brummies. They have turned the place into a cosily boothed diner with graffiti and celeb splashed walls
Onto the food, this was launch night so we went wild! The style of The Smoke Haus is big flavour and big portions, so I recommend a hearty appetite to keep up with the food!
Choosing a HUGE sharing portion of nachos topped off with chilli to begin, this thing was a beast. A mini bathtub full of tortilla chips with sour cream, guacamole and topped off with a generous serving of chilli and cheese.
Just because it was large didn’t mean it wasn’t flavourful. The chilli was rich and smoky, the cheese had a little bit of a kick and the guac was deliciously creamy.
Moving onto the mains….
I went for something a little different: chicken and waffles partnered with ranch dressing and sweet sauce. This soul food dish isn’t seen much outside of the Southern US. Fried chicken with sweet waffles is usually a breakfast dish though to me, it’s a dish I’m happy to have at any time.
The chicken was crispy, the spicy batter just right for the Kentucky taste whilst two hefty sweet buttery waffles gave a completely different aspect to the usual fries. The ranch and sweet sauces helped everything go down smoothly.
This night’s dining partner went for the New Orleans Burger with Swiss cheese, slow cooked brisket, ‘dirty sauce’ and fresh pickles, swapping out his skin on fries for slaw. The feedback, I could gather between mouthfuls, was mainly of the nom-nom-nom variety and he seemed very satisfied!
We couldn’t neglect the sides, however…
To accompany our mains, we chose a few sides:
- Sweet Potato Fries – these were a separate portion for moi. Hot, crispy and well seasoned, always nice.
- Cheesy Chilli Fries – we couldn’t resist trying these, similar to the nachos above but swapping out one carb for another.
- Smoked BBQ Beans – these were a highlight for me. Rich and smoky, similar to the cowboy’s favourite rather than a pot of Heinz’s usual. I’d heartly recommend these to anyone!
We did look at the dessert menu but with shirt buttons straining and waistbands tightening, it’ll be a revisit before trialling them!
Disclaimer: For this event, I was a guest of The Smoke Haus who provided all food; this provides no bias to the post. This blog is my own personal opinion and strives to provide an independent view, promoting, enjoying and reviewing the range of exciting food and venues in and around Birmingham.
When: 02/06/2016
Where: The Smoke Haus, Brindleyplace, The Water’s Edge, Birmingham, B1 2HL
Who: The Smoke Haus