Holy Smoke BBQ & Grill

Reviews 7

WA

Walter Macalma

Before I flew to Layton for business I did yelp a few of the higher rated places in and around the new office and hotel we were at. Holy Smoke came up with a good amount of reviews and 4.5 stars. I convinced my 2 co-workers to go here for lunch and although CA is not a big BBQ region, neither is UT. I was hungry because on my 6 am flight I had a vodka/tonic and a red wine and no breakfast. I go with the Brisket and sampler platter. Fried okra, sweet potato and pickles. The okra was good, not slimy, but just right, a hint of crunch went really good with the ranch. I found the fried pickles soggy and a hint of spices which threw me off. The sweet potatoes werent like the trendy gastropub places in CA, but more traditional burger joint esque. The Brisket was juicy, tender and portioned perfectly sized if you got an app, extra sides. I have a large appetite.. When you look at the outside of the place, it doesnt look like your usual BBQ pit, but this is more of a hole in the wall version of a place you grew up going to. Great staff, but a funky eating arrangement. Especially in the rain with umbrellas and water around. The sauces really made things here. Sweet was good, I couldnt quite put a finger on the type of signature sweetener it used, but it was tastey. The hot sauce was weak on the heat, a little runny, but had good flavor. If I wasnt sharing a car with my travelmates Id come back here before I left, but I have other places to check out like Osaka, Crown Burger, Roosters and Gabor. My usual travel routine is fruit and a Gatorade for breakfast, big lunch and local food place near my hotel for food and hopefully bar nearby for a night cap. This is more difficult in Utah, but not impossible.

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HE

Heath Jones

If cold, mediocre meat with very little smoke ring and even less smoke, then have I got the place for you to eat. It took 30 mins after we ordered to get our food. I was thinking I had to wait for them to smoke the meat still, but then the meat came out and it was cold so I knew that wasnt the case. I own a smoker and do quite a bit of Texas style Bbq and this aint good Bbq. The brisket was chopped and dry as leather. The ribs had very little meat on the bones. Its done with spare ribs but had less meat than any baby back rack I have ever bought and spare ribs are suppose to have more meat than baby backs. The sides were a mixed bag. The fried pickles were tasty as were the Buffalo chips and hush puppies. Of course this is all all fried food so its pretty difficult to mess this up. The corn muffins were good as well. The beans were northern beans in a catsup sauce with chunks of tomatoes. The corn was just corn kernels in buttery milk. Texas style cream corn should be in a thick cream sauce, not like bowl of breakfast cereal. The Bbq sauces were all catsup based. Very heavily catsup based. It seems they took catsup and then added Chipotle and lime juice to it and called it Bbq sauce. The rest of the sauces werent any better. Im not going to say famous daves or dickeys are much better but at least famous ds has sauces to accompany his mediocre meat. Im assuming the other people that have reviewed on here saying how great it is have never had REAL Bbq. If you eat here, good luck.

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WI

William Howell

I had the brisket and the fried catfish with macaroni and cheese and Cole slaw for my sides. The fish and macaroni were on point and I would absolutely order then again, however, the rest was a poor imitation. The brisket (they only offer chopped brisket, no sliced) was incredibly dry. It was reminiscent of gum with how difficult it was to chew through. The taste overall wasnt bad and they have a selection of several barbeque sauces that were okay but none of this could save this brisket. Then the slaw. The taste was fine, above average even, but it was drowning in so much juice that it just wasnt enjoyable to eat and I barely made it through three bites. If they toned down the amount of slaw juice it would be a good dish but as is, no thanks. As a bonus, the sweet tea was quite possibly the worst Ive ever tried. The tea was weak with not nearly enough sugar. It as a vaguely sweet water is all.

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A

A Private User

Im a true blue lover of BBQ ribs. You often hear that Memphis (loin) ribs are the best quality, but the St. Louis (spare) ribs that are served here lead me to conclude that as long as the pit master knows what hes doing, there are only "ribs." These babies are smoked to perfection to where they slide right off the bone, and have a modest coat of glaze that leaves the ribs tasting great on their own, and theres a great variety of sauces to add to the experience as you pound down on the ribs. Love the pulled pork and the chicken. The chopped brisket is good--just prefer sliced, and loved the quality selection of sides that leaves me never having the same two twice--sweet potato fries, fried okra, frickles (fried pickles)--all YUMMY YUMMY!! The atmoshphere is nice and down home, with southern/western memorabilia. Everything just comes together beautifully!!!

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JE

Jeremy Robinson

The service was decent, but slow. They ruin brisket by chopping it, and it was dry with very little flavor, its like bbq for someone who had no idea what bbq is. Im pretty sure everything is just reheated in a microwave. Ribs were ok on flavor, but Ive had canned tuna with better texture. Not the worst I ever had, but still crap. Additionally I tried their bbq sauces, with good bbq you dont need bbq sauce, this did, and they didnt have a single decent sauce. The closest thing was the mustard based one, but it wasnt very good. Mango? Come on guys, how the hell did that even become a thought, disgusting. The one upside is that they had jalapeños, but red onions? Have yall ever had bbq before, and they didnt even offer me a slice of bread, just a little corn muffin that was crap and a little thing of jello. Why is jello so popular here? Weird state...

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A

A Private User

My husband is originally from Louisiana and loves authentic BBQ which in Utah is hard to find. I will admit first off that the food is very good, and probably some of the best BBQ you will find but the prices are outrageous. It is 8-10 dollars a plate which includes maybe three bites of meat, and a couple of small sides. The price of a drink is separate! And to top it off, everything is served on paper, plastic, and styrofoam! You have to wait in line to order and then sit down at a cafeteria table and wait for your name to be called. For the same price you can be served at a nice sit down restaurant. Unfortunately my husbands love for good BBQ outweighs his wallet and I cant get him to stop going. So if money is no issue to you, you will enjoy the food, what you get of it.

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BR

Bruce Ginkel

Listen, its Utah. This isnt 5 star global BBQ mecca, but I really challenge you to find anything better locally. The tri-tips are consistently cooked perfectly, pulled pork is great, and they have a great selection of sauces that are actually good and not gimmick sauces like some joints out there. I like the sweeter than your first kiss and the hot white sauces. You wont find a better service staff around and would be hard pressed to find a more passionate owner of a small restaurant. Ive gone here over a dozen times, used their catering multiple times; always a class act with this joint. This place sets the bar high for BBQ in the Layton area for sure. And every other place Ive been locally is always under it.

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