Smokin' Joe's BBQ on Soi Lengkee

[Mike056]

2 hours ago, CyberPro said:

 

Given that Mexican food, as experienced close to Mexico, requires Mexican cooks and appropriate ingredients, why does Mexican food served abroad (or other food) have to be "special for the price?" What's wrong with an honest offering for the price? 

I did not insist it needs to be, only told, in my opinion it was not.

"Honest" offering for the price can be OK, unless there is better offerings.

[tko]

On 7/22/2018 at 00:20, steak&co said:

 

Thanks for the feedback, I'm gonna take a look at the menu and 'reduce' it by 30% which will give the chef's more time to focus on the detail, I'm considering cutting all the Mexican dishes and introducing fried chicken instead, over-all we haven't had complains about the food and the business has grown 30%-40% since opening 18 months ago but we do need to make some changes before high-season comes.     

Do less but do it better.... thanks again for trying us and the feedback, we will aim to do better.  (BBQ, burgers & Fried Chicken) 

Oh, please don't.  They're are too few Mexican choices as is.  I've tried and enjoyed your ribs and steaks (next door) before, and planned on trying you Mexican mid September.

 

[TheGrill]

3 hours ago, tko said:

Oh, please don't.  They're are too few Mexican choices as is.  I've tried and enjoyed your ribs and steaks (next door) before, and planned on trying you Mexican mid September.

 

Thanks for your feedback, nothing is changing for now, I am going to be working on a new BBQ rub for the ribs and looking at a coffee based BBQ sauce, we will probably purchase a bane marie before high season to try and keep things as fresh as possible (rather then portion, vac pack, reheat). And there will be a new style menu, basically more pictures for Thai's / Asian customers and those who don't know the wonder that is 'Beef Brisket' ...  

And I tried the BBQ beans last night, a little too sweet and I might go with just pinto beans rather then the mixed beans...

Edited July 24, 2018 by steak&co

[Kreggerz]

I strongly support your idea of cutting all of the Mexican food. It's not your area of expertise which I can say because I've tasted it. I would keep the tortilla chips free included appetizer though. 

I stopped ordering the beans long ago because of being too sugary. I guess I'll try them again as you say you're changing them. 

Better restaurant quality fried chicken can be wonderful but it's going to need to be better or people will wonder why not just go to KFC. 

Edited July 24, 2018 by Kreggerz

[TREX7]

Ribs were a little tough today, but brisket was great, all my other experiences with the ribs have been outstanding. 

Edited August 27, 2018 by TREX7
Changed my mind

[manb00]

Went there with a TG and ordered enough food for 3 because I wanted her to try a little of everything.  Really good chicken and ribs.  If you're looking for a BBQ place that's easy to get to and a great deal for the price, this is it.  

Do not go here after having a few drinks earlier and wearing a shirt that your TG paid 1500 baht for!  The food was so good and I was a little tipsy from the pre-drinking that I wasn't careful.  I still have spots on the nice shirt and I didn't know how much she paid for the shirt until after.  I still kick myself for not being as careful as I should.  Put on a bib if you're going to dive right in!

[Memurtle]

Love the food here, keep up the good work. Can’t be easy operating a bbq style restaurant & constantly monitoring the quality of all the ingredients coming in, in a foreign country and have to constantly train and monitor the Thai staff that work there.
Takes balls to put your money where your mouth is and start a restaurant especially in a foreign country like Thailand.
I’ve eaten at at smokin Joes plenty of times and posted pics in previous posts in this thread. Keep up the good work your doing a top job mate!

[Jollygaroger]

Looking forward to trying this place out.  I'm from Texas so I'll try to go easy on the critique.  But if your guys cut the brisket the wrong way I might have to contact the Thai police! 

Do you'll smoke over wood there or pellets or ??

Edited September 8, 2018 by Jollygaroger

[tko]

I enjoyed their American breakfast this trip, but I also wanted to try something Tex Mex while it's still on the menu.  I came in on a Saturday and the Fajita platter was on special.   I got the mixed chicken and beef.  It's served with fresh guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo, and shredded cheese.  Four warm flour tortillas are provided in a warmer, but instead laid flat they're folded into triangles, which resulted in one of them being torn.  I'd add a little more Liquid to the pico de gallo, and fajitas are messy anyway so the torn tortilla didn't bother me.  As always here, the meats were full of great flavor.  I'd be happy to order this on special again.

[TheGrill]

On 08/09/2018 at 23:10, Jollygaroger said:

Looking forward to trying this place out.  I'm from Texas so I'll try to go easy on the critique.  But if your guys cut the brisket the wrong way I might have to contact the Thai police! 

Do you'll smoke over wood there or pellets or ??

We have 2 pellet smokers, it's easier to control the temp and clean-up, Hickory pellets, plus access to Cherry, Maple etc is difficult / storage. The Brisket, we use a Black Angus imported Australian point-end Brisket, once it's rested we separate the flat from the point and make slices from the flat, I'd love to make burn-ends from the point but its just not cost effective so we cut / slice that for our Brisket sandwiches. We could separate the point and the flat before the cook and get bark on both pieces but I like the fat between the two muscles to melt into the brisket and I'd guess its the way most Texan's prepare their brisket, 1 whole piece with just salt & ground pepper rub. 

 we are considering trying burned ends with Australian Chuck roast but other then American's very few people know the deliciousness and thus wont pay for it and it's too expensive to 'just include'. We will have some wonderful smoker pork and beef sausages soon.... they are amazing.  

Edited September 16, 2018 by steak&co

[TheGrill]

On 12/09/2018 at 11:24, tko said:

I enjoyed their American breakfast this trip, but I also wanted to try something Tex Mex while it's still on the menu.  I came in on a Saturday and the Fajita platter was on special.   I got the mixed chicken and beef.  It's served with fresh guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo, and shredded cheese.  Four warm flour tortillas are provided in a warmer, but instead laid flat they're folded into triangles, which resulted in one of them being torn.  I'd add a little more liquid to the pico de gallo, and fajitas are messy anyway so the torn tortilla didn't bother me.  As always here, the meats were full of great flavor.  I'd be happy to order this on special again.

Still undecided if the Tex-Mex / Mexican food will stay or go, usually when we add new items such as the forth-coming Smoked Turkey & Smoked Sausage I like to remove slower selling items such as Burritos, it allows the Chef's more time to prepare the other dishes, 'jack of all trades, master on-none' scenario ... but I may keep them and see if they can handle the extra work-load. 

[Kreggerz]

On ‎9‎/‎12‎/‎2018 at 11:24, tko said:

  I'd be happy to order this on special again.

 

Too late. This place has discontinued all specials. 

[Sexy Couple]

On 16/09/2018 at 12:09, Kreggerz said:

Too late. This place has discontinued all specials.

That's a bit of a shame because we found it because of the specials at the beginning of this year and then enjoyed a full rack with a bottle of red there 50:50 on specials night and full price.  

We're here for 4 months this trip and was disappointed not to see any specials nights now. We came at the start of October and have only eaten there once so far, the ribs were great but we haven't felt the imperative for repeat visits.   I'm guessing that we're not the target customer base though and it's a difficult market to maintain a margin in.

[Kreggerz]

27 minutes ago, Sexy Couple said:

That's a bit of a shame because we found it because of the specials at the beginning of this year and then enjoyed a full rack with a bottle of red there 50:50 on specials night and full price.  

We're here for 4 months this trip and was disappointed not to see any specials nights now. We came at the start of October and have only eaten there once so far, the ribs were great but we haven't felt the imperative for repeat visits.   I'm guessing that we're not the target customer base though and it's a difficult market to maintain a margin in.

Yeah I agree. They lost me as a regular customer. It's not that I can't afford the regular prices. It's that for that amount of money I would rather eat some other type of food elsewhere.  I hope the owner will reconsider and offer specials limited to earlier hours.

[Imlooking4fun]

On 16/09/2018 at 06:09, Kreggerz said:

Too late. This place has discontinued all specials. 

Maybe for “high season “ 

[Kreggerz]

3 hours ago, Imlooking4fun said:

Maybe for “high season “ 

I somehow doubt that based on what the owner wrote about how they have graduated to a big boy restaurant that doesn't need to discount.

[thumper64]

Will still eat there when I am in town 

[Ah dinnae ken]

Oct - Nov was in there many times seemed pretty busy & was doing well with the door 2 door service as well

[TWD]

On breakfasts - I eat there every couple of weeks or so. For me the 295 baht Great English is top value, real quality ingredients. 

Did a review couple of weeks ago of one I hadn’t tried before - the 245 baht smashed avocado on sourdough toast, salad, poached egg, great sausage, coffee of choice.

Quote

 

“What is an excellent breakfast? Quality of course, and value for money. Consistency. Good service. Handy location, parking. But a restaurant can't be all things to all men. We each have our likes and dislikes, cultural differences and preferences. Which is why I have to hand it to Ian Matthew Brooks. During the current prolonged economic uncertainties, in not exactly the most financially flush part of town, he's pitched the product he sells just about right. And he's shown flexibility with the pricing. The quality is there across the range of prices. Simple variety, without offering an over-complicated menu. Healthy options. Coffee - and it's a decent blend - down to 50฿. Broad appeal, even if there's an Anglo-Saxon leaning to the style of cooking. Thai breakfasts available too, for those who wake up bleary-eyed alongside someone they may or may not recognise from the night before.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and there are a few familiar-looking options borrowed from a successful restaurant a short distance away. But it still maintains its own character, with very good dishes of its own adding to its overall appeal. The 295฿ Premium fry-up (including juice, coffee/tea, bread buffet) is excellent. And they even do a 95฿ English brekkie for the severely Brexited...

Smashed avocado on toasted sourdough bread, salad, poached egg, and a quality sausage - including a cappuccino - priced at 245฿. Really delicious.

Any negatives? Barely. Don't like the bench seats along the walls. But that's pretty much it.

Nowhere is perfect, even Cafe des Amis can have a rare off day, and now and again you see a not-so-contented review of pretty much every restaurant. But for me Smokin' Joe's BBQ has been very consistent as far as breakfasts go. I can't think of anywhere offering a better set of morning meal options right now in Pattaya.”

 

 

[The Danimal]

I agree with most on here...proper 1/2...full slab is 50% more than in farangland...and frankly not as good.  Ribs, high end seafood, high end/edible sushi, legit pizza...some of the few food items that cost is way more and quality usually way inferior here...I don't mind paying higher prices if the food is exceptional...but I am back and forth enough that I can feed my cravings where they are most cost/quality effective.  Don't even get me started on proper ice cream milkshakes...

[corp009]

I used to live in Texas and have missed a good brisket being back home now in Oz , so i will pop in to do a taste test , now if only i find a good philly cheese in town haha.

[tko]

I dropped into Smokin' Joe's to give the combo platter a try.  In Texas I always went for brisket and sausage.

The brisket is thicker sliced than in Texas, and the sausage wasn't sliced at all, but it's okay there's a knife on the table   The flavors were spot on.  The beans and coleslaw were also good, and the sauce is on the side as it should be.

I ordered the smallest serving size of each of the meats, and could barely finish.  There are also many other items on the menu I need to try, but I enjoyed being able to order my old favorites from home.

 

[jimboh]

Had breakfast here a few days ago, was good, added extra beans and reasonable priced at 30B, a few places I go charge 40B.

Had an extra cup of tea at 30B, many places give second cup free.

Had an extra slice of toast at 35B, expensive in my book.

Also found it too hot inside, that was around 10am.

Menu looks impressive, may return in evening for some TexMex food.

[chookyargyll]

On 11/04/2019 at 09:15, jimboh said:

Had breakfast here a few days ago, was good, added extra beans and reasonable priced at 30B, a few places I go charge 40B.

Had an extra cup of tea at 30B, many places give second cup free.

Had an extra slice of toast at 35B, expensive in my book.

Also found it too hot inside, that was around 10am.

Menu looks impressive, may return in evening for some TexMex food.

Add 20 baht to that bill and you would have had a far better breakfast at Casa Pascal.

[kittycouple]

Sad to just find out that burritos are no longer on the menu... They were amazing :(

Edited April 20, 2019 by kittycouple