Smokin’ George’s BBQ
In a town that’s been itching for years for that authentic smokehouse flavour, the wait has come to an end. Nanaimo is thrilled to welcome Smokin’ George’s BBQ. And good golly Miss Molly, the food is divine.
Chef George Kulai (aka Smokin’ George) has moved on from teaching at VIU’s culinary program, to smoking up the tastiest meats, churning out the tangiest barbecue sauce and baking up the most mouth-watering cornbread, this side of the Mississippi.
Choose from pulled pork, beef brisket, fried chicken and smoked sausage, along with a number of sides and even a few vegetarian options. In a meatery, that’s pretty impressive.
Check out Smokin’ George’s site for their entire a menu and a few laughs. Pulled Pork Poutine. Sounds like a winner
Website – http://smokingeorgesbbq.com/
Unit #5, 4131 Mostar Rd.,
Nanaimo, V9T 6A6
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I was so thrilled to finally have a real BBQ place opening in Nanaimo.
Being a bit of a BBQ aficionado, I have 3 different smokers myself and have in my travels sampled some of the best BBQ on the planet.
I stopped in with my wife for a quick sample. Brisket is the holy grail to me, so I’d test the waters with a brisket sandwich. My sandwich was dry…real dry…I had to drown it in sauce to get it down. It was also nearly $20 for 2 sandwiches and one bottle of soda.
Not thrilled but I thought I’d give them another chance. I stopped in for a pulled pork sandwich. It’s hard to screw up pulled pork…dry again!
I thought one more chance…I ordered the feast, to sample everything.
here’s my breakdown:
Ribs, consistency of steamed meat and all the meat came clean off the bone on the first bite. Not the way a smoked rib should be.
Brisket: zero smoke ring and the flavor and consistency of a pot roast.
sausage: nice heat to it, but again the consistency is like it was steamed or boiled.
Pulled pork and chicken: sadly couldn’t tell them apart other than the cartilage in the chicken. both were bland and needed saucing to make it work.
Of course the only sauce they have is a dark BBQ sauce that for me just doesn’t work with the pork. A Carolina vinegar based sauce would have been nice.
Fries: pathetic. possibly the worst I’ve had
Cornbread: not to my liking but it wasn’t bad.
Beans: probably the best part of the meal. a good helping of beans with lots of meat in it.
Coleslaw: pathetic. there’s more to coleslaw than cabbage and vinegar.
This place will probably survive and do quite well mainly because most people don’t know what good BBQ is.
I may stop in and try them one more time in a couple months once the buzz dies down. I really want to like this place.
Wow… it’s too bad to hear JB had such a mediocre experience. My wife and I have had nothing but amazing meals at Smokin’ George’s BBQ. In fact we’ve taken 3 other couples there and everyone has been blown away.
Last night we ordered the feast for 3 of us and took half of it home. Every bit of it was amazing. And the fries…? Couldn’t disagree more with JB. I know the crew uses hand cut Kennebec potatoes and cooks them fresh to order every time.
A couple things I noticed right away, SG’s serves real gravy. None of this “out-of-a-package” garbage. Same with the soup. George makes EVERYTHING from scratch, including his own BBQ sauce.
A chef who takes pride in his food and has given Nanaimo the best BBQ experience it’s ever seen. You won’t be disappointed.
No disappointments here. Just another WOW from a very, very happy BBQ fan. Five upbeat visits to Smokin’ George’s so far, and counting. The pulled pork and beef brisket have been absolutely delicious. Generous portions of both. And they’re smart here, using a hearty bun that you can hold in your hands from start to finish.
My wife and I were surprised how well the industrial location works. Clean, simple look with lots of natural light and open space. Welcoming despite the high ceilings and concrete. We especially like the booths and tables to eat-in. I’d guess there’s seating for about 35-40.
I picked up a full rack of ribs last week on the way back from Victoria. Meaty, juicy and just ready to come off the bone. Again, a very generous portion so there were wonderful leftovers to savour the next day.
Two side dishes – the fries and the beans – merit special attention. What can you say about fries that make you want to eat two-handed? They’re more like a frite – crispy with great flavour. The beans bowled me over. They’re a great combination of sweet and earthy, and tender, not mushy. It has become a dilemma to choose just one of these sides.
I’ve read the criticism from an earlier reviewer with three different smokers who concludes that most people don’t know what good BBQ is. I guess we can’t all be experts in this cooking art. For me, and I suspect for many others, Smokin’ George’s has got it right with awesome BBQ and sides. I’m elated that my days of seeking BBQ at Smoken Bones and PIG in Victoria are now over.
Let me add ratings to my earlier comments.
Sorry to hear of JB’s experience. I would say that Smokin’ George’s is the ultimate in slow food served fast, everything made from from scratch in house. We have been there several times, and I think we’ve tried just about everything on the menu. It has all been first rate!
The freshly cut fries were the best – perfectly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, and the pulled pork poutine was so good! The cornbread and the homemade soups were to die for. The pulled pork, brisket, and chicken were delicious in a sandwich or a feast. I really enjoyed the mixed green salad with roasted vegetables and a side of chicken with SG’s special salad dressing. I have not tried the ribs yet, but my husband says they were done just right – tender, juicy, and perfectly cooked.
Had my first take out dinner tonight… wow what a lot of food. I ordered the Smokin’ George’s Combo… a bit of everything… the chicken was my favourite, very moist and flavourful. Salad, fries, beans, sauces and even cornbread.. I’ll be ordering again for sure. JB (other review) doesn’t have a clue what he’s talking about…must be a sushi sucker.. cuz our food was awesome!! My only complaint is the super-bright lighting…tone it down and I’ll come in to dine..otherwise it’s as bright in there as Walmart. Keep it up..well done.
Awesome love going here i get cravings for BBQ and smokin george fills the bill.
brisket and pulled pork are amazing cant wait to go back for more.
I was extremely disappointed both times I went in. The Meat was dry and bland, I had to cover it with flavor. I had the ribs the first time…. warm, not hot when I got them and the meat was of weak texture and flavor. COVERED it in my own sauce. If I wanted to add sauce to ribs I would cook them at home.
Had the pulled pork poutine… you would think it would be delicious but no. It tasted like watery steamed meat, and the gravy was bland. once again soaked it in the sauce they have at the tables just to enjoy it.
WILL NOT be going back for the food.
VERY expensive for what you get.
One of the best resturants for bbq meat that I have ever tried. At first glance, the 16.99 price tag for a full rack of ribs seems pricy but I get three full meals out of it- so it’s really quite a deal. I haven’t tried their fries yet since I am addicted to their cornbread, but I’m sure I will too. The resturant is bright, but it’s an industrial setting, so I didn’t find it a problem. The servers are friendly. They have a fan with me.
I have been many times now to SG’s. It is obvious to me that this place is run by a guy that not only owns the joint, but is there almost always, actually gives a damn about your culinary experience there, and is a qualified chef with an impressive resume. The food is absolutely first rate. I am puzzled by the 2 negative reviews I read. These guys must have been jealous? LOL .. Maybe competition? Just guessin… but any foodie is gonna love the place.
This place is fan-fricken-tastic!! We visited Smokin’ George’s last night. The two boys and I split the Supersized Smokin’ George’s BBQ Feast, our one vegetarian had the salad and a couple of veggie sides. As we ate, everyone of us was raving about the flavour, quality and value of the food. What can I say: the food is superb, we all walked away stuffed and happy, the staff is as nice as you could possibly want and the meals are very reasonably priced. We’ll back back for sure!
Tried Smokin’ George’s BBQ for the first time today with my wife. We were interest in trying EVERYTHING, so we ordered the “Supersized Smokin’ George’s BBQ Feast” ($43.70). Truly enough for a party of 4 normal appetites, we have BIG appetites and only managed to eat about half (which means we will have an excellent lunch at home tomorrow)!!
BEFORE going, we contacted Smokin’ George’s by both e-mail and telephone to inquire about use of MSG (my wife is seriously allergic to it) and were informed that they make everything in house, except for the Kaiser buns, and they use NO MSG whatsoever!!
Everything was absolutely delicious!! My wife particularly liked the ribs, corn bread and beans. My favorites were the ribs, pulled pork, and brisket (You can probably guess that I am not a vegetarian). The fries, chicken, sausage, and cold slaw were very good, but not our favorites.
PS FORGOT to mention that Smokin’ George’s has instantaneously become one of our “Favorites” and we plan on returning to have more EXCELLENT BBQ whenever we travel to Nanaimo!!