Smokey's Mission Statement

To take you on a tour of America’s best barbeque regions and satisfy your hankering for melt-in-your-mouth barbecue by offering four distinct flavors. All slow-smoked on the premises the old-fashioned way, using only premium quality meats and the finest ingredients.

A Little History - Mike Christian, Founder

You could say I’ve got smoke in my blood. I admit it; I’m an addict.

Smokehouse meats are my passion. Well, my second passion. My wife is my first — but that’s another story.

See, I’ve been working with meats and their infinite possibilities since grade school — a long, long time ago as my grandkids like to remind me. I appreciate the fine textures and the different ways in which meat can be prepared. I know of every meat’s beginnings and of their potential for bringing great pleasure to the palate.

And by far, the best way to prepare meat is with smoke. Nothing beats the fall-off-the-fork, melt-in-your-mouth flavor and texture of meat prepared in a smokehouse. There is nothing else that is so tender, so traditional and so mouthwatering.

I’ve spent my life working in the meat industry, including time spent on a farm on the East Coast when I was a kid. It was my wife’s family’s farm, come to think of it. See how the two passions come together?

In junior high I got my first real job working for a traditional smokehouse out West, preparing meats the old-fashioned way, by convection for slow cooking that provided natural preservation and flavoring. You could say my love affair — my addiction — started when I was a kid, and I carried through with it. My passion grew so much that my wife and I ended up opening a meat and deli market, which we never would have abandoned had we not discovered the beauty, serenity, cooperativeness and delight of farmers’ markets. For 25 years we ran a series of farmers’ markets across the West. It turned out to be a great environment for raising our kids, as well as nourishing our lives. We always made sure to include the best and finest meat offerings, with an onsite smokehouse, of course. In this arena, I was able to combine my passions for family, culture, community, quality foods and meat.

Always a purveyor of quality, I couldn’t resist the offer to open a meat distributorship with one of the country’s finest meat producers 15 years ago, bringing the best in meat to the public.

But being the lover of smokehouse meats that I am, I couldn’t turn my back on it any longer. In the hope that I can bring my passion to you, my wife and I offer you Smokey’s House of BBQ — a traditional tour of some of America’s best smokehouse traditions.

There’s No Rushing Smoke

The key component to cooking with smoke is time. It takes time for the smoke to slow cook, flavor and preserve the meat. In today’s fast-paced, instant-gratification society, most people don’t slow down and take the time necessary to prepare great meat. And trust me, throwing a chicken breast on the outdoor grill and cooking it over high heat for 15 minutes is not barbecue. Real smokehouse barbecue takes time. And in my opinion, you need smoke to prepare great meat. And smoke needs time to do its job right.

There are several regions in the United States where good smokehouse meat can be found. And trust me, we’ve tried them all. But with a lot of tasting, some serious determination and a very discernable palate (just ask my wife), I narrowed it down to the four best — four flavor-filled regions: Georgia, Texas, Arkansas and Kansas City.

We selected these four regions as the flavors for Smokey’s House of BBQ because each offers a unique treatment of their meats, while still staying true to the smokehouse tradition. You don’t even need sauce to eat these meats. But if you insist, these four regions also have the best flavor combinations in sauces and sides to complement the main course. All are equally good, just different in their own ways.

Each of these four regions has perfected the process, using woods that bring out distinct characteristics and flavors in the meats. After all, what would Texas brisket be without its mesquite smoke flavor?

Smokey’s Difference

That’s why each and every night Smokey’s House of BBQ begins the smoking process for the next day’s menu. You won’t find liquid smoke in our inventory, and our meats aren’t precooked, sealed airtight, frozen and shipped across the country. No, they are cooked right on the premises in our traditionally-designed smokers. This all-natural slow-smoking process allows for the best flavors and helps us avoid unnecessary preservatives or additives.

The Pickings – Find Your Taste

When perusing the menu, you have to know a little bit about your preference. Do you like your meats tart and peppery like the traditional pork out of Georgia? Or how about sweet, tangy and thick as in Kansas City style? Maybe you don’t even like sauce. Then the Texas beef brisket is for you — with its distinct red smoke ring testifying to its slow-cooked origin. And then there’s the catch-all — sweet, spicy, tomato based, but thin like the vinegar-based sauces. That’s the Arkansas style for you. And in Arkansas, you’re welcome to try it on chicken. My wife, she’s a Kansas City style girl all the way. But maybe you’re like me and can’t choose just one — come back and try ‘em all.

Not only am I offering these traditional flavors, but I wanted to enhance the smokehouse and traditional barbecue experience by adding some traditional sides. What would a pulled-pork sandwich be without a batter-fried pickle and some sweet tea? Or baked beans and some fried green tomatoes on the side? And let’s not forget the ol’ standby — coleslaw. And it’s not just any coleslaw. This recipe is light and tasty, made with a vinegar base, the traditional way, like I learned when working in smokehouses all those years ago. This way it complements your chosen main course rather than weighing down the delights of smokehouse. You can put it right on top of your meat like they do in Arkansas, or eat on the side like they do in Georgia.

And we couldn’t stop with the sides. Smokehouse meats have great potential that can’t be ignored. Salads at Smokey’s House of BBQ will fool you in to thinking you’re breaking the rules. Topped with your choice of regional smokehouse meat, your salad becomes the healthful option that delights the taste buds and satisfies your craving for traditional smokehouse that you won’t find anywhere else.

So, come on a tour with us, and let’s pay our respects to some of America’s best smokehouse flavors. You never know; you might just find smoke runs in your blood, too.