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| - I've been a Smoke devotee for quite awhile. We used to hit up their Homestead location on the regular. Smoke has changed quite a bit trough the years, but certain things remain consistent enough to keep me coming back.
The original Homestead location's menu was quite limited compared to these days - it was basically tacos, mac and cheese, and a couple other items. Always BYOB. They remained BYOB in Lawrenceville for awhile. And I really, really miss that aspect. You used to be able to stroll in, pop your six pack in the old fridge there, and settle in for awhile. Given the byob aspect, you didn't mind paying 6-8 dollars for a taco, because you could still get out of there for less than 50 bucks. Those days are long gone now. Their alcohol is way overpriced, and if you want a few drinks with your meal, a couple out for lunch is in for $80, $90, even $100+. For tacos and a few glasses of wine. It's a pain. Oh, and they're STILL cash only. Not sure how they get away with that.
I have to address the slowness complaints in other reviews. For years, Smoke was slower than molasses. And that was okay by me. I kind of subscribe to the French philosophy of restaurant service - most of the time, I'm there to slowly drink, chat, and stretch the meal out over the course of a couple hours. I don't want the waiter stopping by every 5 minutes to ask if I need anything. Smoke reminded me of that style of service. That was always true, until the last year or so. Some process in the kitchen has changed and the food basically comes right out now. I haven't had to wait more than 15-25 minutes in quite awhile, busy or slow. So, speed of service is really no longer an issue.
Okay. The food. My disclaimer is I basically only get tacos at smoke. Sometimes we'll grab a side, but I find that the sides only serve to take up much needed taco real estate in my stomach. That said, the sides are generally good to great. The mac and cheese is killer.
I know they have ribs now, and Tuesdays are burger nights (exclusively). Which sucks, quite frankly. I'm not coming to a place called Smoke Taqueria for a burger. I'm coming for the smoked... taqos.
Anyway. All of the tacos are generally outstanding, my favorites being Chicken Apple and Brisket. If you go to smoke enough, you'll find that they're pretty inconsistent in terms of taco flavor, texture, and heat. Homestead Smoke used to absolutely bring the heat. I remember trying to get through some of those tacos - it was was like some form of exquisite torture. Pouring sweat, pounding beer, and begging for sweet mercy.
For the most part, they've dialed back the heat. But sometimes you'll still get one that will rip your face off. It's a coin-flip, really. There are similar inconsistencies with the ratio of ingredients on any of the signature tacos. It's all good though - it's part of what keeps me coming back. Always something slightly different than last time.
So this review probably hasn't helped you in any way. And for that, I am sorry. My suggestion would be to go down to Smoke, get some tacos, break out the wallet and pay (cash) for some over-priced craft beer, and have yourself a day. Odds are you'll like it.
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