Smoke BBQ (Delray Beach)
* Smoke BBQ.
About 33 minutes ago my buddy Alan called and left a voice-mail about Smoke BBQ -a new bbq-sports bar that he had eaten in last night…in a nutshell, he raved about how good the joint was!
About 56 minutes ago Jeff Eats received a “pr-piece” email about Smoke BBQ.
Other than Alan’s message and the pr-piece, Jeff Eats has no “other” info-on this bbq joint.
Thought you guys might like a heads-up about what appears to be Delray Beach’s newest restaurant opening.
If you guys get there before I do, please give us some thoughts.
The pr-piece is printed below.
*****
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BBQ OPENS IN DELRAY
SMOKE BBQ Showcases Two-Time American Royal Grand Champion Pitmaster, Bryan Tyrell
Delray Beach, FL (September 15, 2014)—Smoke BBQ (eatbbqnow.com), formerly known as Union, has just opened at 8 East Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach. The new concept will feature authentic Kansas City style, smokehouse BBQ — low and slow smoked meats, including burnt ends. They will also feature Carolina pulled pork, affordable entrée selections, a cool, casual ‘American backyard’ design, a large craft beer selection, exceptional Happy Hour promotions, and a Pitmaster whose BBQ credentials are world-renowned. SMOKE BBQ is owned by local restaurateurs, Stephen Chin and Scott Kennedy.
Executive Chef and Pitmaster Bryan Tyrell is formerly of the famed Oklahoma Joe’s in Kansas City, Mo. (Anthony Bourdain named it “One of the 13 places to eat before you die”); and Bodean’s BBQ in London. Tyrell is an original member of Kansas City’s Slaughterhouse Five, and is a member of the two-time American Royal Grand Champion team in the World Series of BBQ.
“Bryan Tyrell is not only the most experienced and successful competitive BBQ Pitmaster living in South Florida, but likely the entire state,” said Kennedy. “We’re thrilled he has brought his award-winning talents to Atlantic Avenue.”
SMOKE BBQ will feature 15-hour oak smoked beef brisket, spare ribs, chicken, turkey and pulled pork, smoked each day using dry rubs. The restaurant will also offer Kansas City classic burnt ends on Wednesdays (while they last.) Additionally, SMOKE BBQ will have fresh fish and vegetarian options. Cocktails will be made with quality purees and house-made simple syrups—all at affordable prices.
Bryan Tyrell began his love affair with barbeque when former college roommate, Jeff Stehney, introduced him to the world of competitive BBQ in the late 1980’s. In 1990, Bryan became a member of Slaughterhouse Five, a competitive BBQ team. Slaughterhouse Five went on to be one of the most successful competitive BBQ teams in the U.S., winning the 1993 American Royal – Open Division and 1995 American Royal – Invitational Division–long considered the World Championship of BBQ.
“For me, smoking meat is a passion and an art form. Good barbecue is a feeling; it’s a touch, a feel, a taste, and understanding that has been earned from years of experience. My philosophy is, why do something if it’s not going to be great?” Tyrell said.
SMOKE BBQ will be open 6 days a week (closing on Tuesdays). Happy Hour will continue in its former Union tradition, with the best deals on the Ave. Happy Hours are: Mondays, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday hours 5-7 pm; Fridays 5-8 pm; and Sundays all day. On premises corporate BBQ events and catering are also available. Delivery Dudes will be the preferred delivery option.
SMOKE BBQ has the largest screen in a restaurant in Palm Beach County, and two additional oversized projections screens to watch college games on Saturdays and NFL games on Sundays. The restaurant will feature live music several nights a week. The kitchen will close at 10:00 p.m. for late night dancing. Food will be available until 1:45 a.m. with a late night snack menu.
For more information, call 561-330-4236 or visit www.eatbbqnow.com. Connect with SMOKE BBQ on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. #SmokeBBQFL
—
Debbie Abrams • Vice President for Public Relations
The Buzz Agency • PR | Social Media | Events
t 855.525.2899 m 561.289.1378
e debbie@thebuzzagency.net
a 104 W. Atlantic Ave., Delray Beach, FL 33444
Dear News Media
Re: News story idea re: BBQ eateries and Smoke BBQ on East Atlantic Avenue
Thank you so much for your hard-work to keep the community informed.
With much enthusiasm, I’ve been reading some of the editorials about Smoke BBQ that recently opened in the former Union space on East Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach.
As a lifelong resident and community servant in Delray Beach, I believe the opening of Smoke BBQ is great for many reasons including an economic contribution and the preservation of a southern culinary tradition, the barbecue.
So, Smoke BBQ got me thinking about this potential news story idea for your consideration. Would your publication consider some sort of barbecue eateries roundup of the other eateries in the Delray Beach that feature barbecue? Possible inclusion of these other eateries in a potential news story with Smoke BBQ could be a lot of fun for your readership, engaging, expand your reach and highlight the culinary diversity in Delray Beach.
As you all know, I conduct the Taste History Culinary Tours of Historic Delray Beach which infuses the white and black culinary traditions, culture, heritage and historic districts. In the historic black district, we feature Dee Dee’s Conch & Rib Shack, Sweet’s Sensational Jamaican Café and Donnie’s Southern Restaurant. An important accomplishment from this tour program is that it provides for the tour guests some perspective about the cultural and culinary contributions that exist beyond East Atlantic Avenue/Downtown Delray Beach and can be found in the historic black business district. These black eateries all pre-date Smoke BBQ although barbecuing is a southern culinary tradition among both whites and blacks however the greatest migration of barbecuing came from African Americans who’ve had the strongest stronghold on this cuisine. Although Taste History travels to the historic white district of Downtown Delray Beach/East Atlantic Avenue, the black district is also included to provide perspective for the tour guests about the cultural culinary contributions of African Americans with their food, at times, being the sole vice for income, their survival.
As some brief history for you about barbecue, the Arawak and Caribe Indians in the Island of the Bahamas as well as the Taino Indians of the Caribbean and Timucua Indians in the Key West, Florida have been credited with cooking meat over an open pit or fire that was described as barbacoa or barabicu. This style of cooking was observed by Spaniard explorers in the 16th century who then introduced barbecue cooking throughout the Western Hemisphere. European colonist introduced pigs and hogs in the American Colonies which was the meat used to cook over an open pit (barbecue-style). This type of cooking was accessible and inexpensive therefore done by both white planters and black slaves. We all know that slavery came to end in America but certain culinary traditions remained. Beginning in 1916 was the year of the Great Migration where from 1916 to the 1970s some 6 million African Americans left the poverty south and moved out west to California or the northeast to New York, Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland and the like. As the African Americans moved their southern culinary traditions migrated with them too. In fact, penniless African Americans had as their greatest asset their southern cooking techniques that spawn soul food restaurants and rib shacks throughout California and the Northeast hence foods like barbecue became associated with being Soul Food too. Furthermore, in the late 1800s, black Bahamians immigrated to the Southern Florida and also introduced the barbecue-style of cooking to the area.
The following are some of the black eateries in the historic black business district in Delray Beach that feature barbecue. They are all family-owned and operated:
Dee’s Conch & Rib Shack ( Dee Dee’s is the barbecue rib master)
540 W. Atlantic Avenue, Delray Beach
Donnie’s Southern Restaurant
60 NW 5th Avenue, Delray Beach
Sweet’s Sensational Jamaican Café (Jerk chicken is cooked barbecue-style)
25 SW 5th Avenue, Delray Beach
Again, possible inclusion of the above eateries in a potential news story with Smoke BBQ could be a lot of fun for your readership, engaging, expand your reach and highlight the culinary diversity in Delray Beach. And, once more, it can provide some perspective.
This is just a thought…
Thank you so much for your time. As a disclaimer, I’m not the publicist for any of the eateries mentioned is this letter. I’m writing this letter as a volunteer, as a community servant.
Sincerely,
Lori J. Durante, Executive Tour Director
Taste History Culinary Tours of Historic Palm Beach County
tastehistoryculinarytours.blogspot.com
561-243-2662 or 561-638-8277
http://tastehistoryculinarytours.blogspot.com/
B
How hilarious JeffEats, you published my letter.Too funny but thanks for sharing. I love barbecue but I love the history even more and its one of those cuisines historically shared by both whites and blacks. It’s a food that doesn’t discriminate and no matter the differences, people will come to table together for some good barbecue. The other side of barbecue, as you can tell from these comments, is that it can be a hotly debated subject especially on the matter of who has the best barbecue. The barbecue debate is right up there with who has the best college football team. It’s a food that can conjure up a lot of emotions. Each southern state has their own unique version of barbecue and people from those states are very passionate about it.
Thanks so much,
Lori J. Durante
How far has this “blog” fallen? It’s now parroting press releases and allowing spammers to advertise? Sad. Very, very sad.
RonnyJ:
Just had a chance to read your comments.
Sorry…you see things differently than Jeff Eats does.
The press releases you mention…serve a purpose. They keep Jeff Eats’ readers abreast of what’s going “on.”
As for the spammers you mention…what “spammers”?…every Comment received is read/reviewed before being “published”…and no matter what, NOBODY and we repeat NOBODY can buy their way onto this site. Just so you know, Jeffeats.com on average receives over 5,000 spam emails a week-which are automatically deleted by our website.
Thanks for reading…
Ronnyj,
you are dead wrong.
the press releases keeps many of us up to date on new restaurants that have opened or are opening.
for example i’m eating at SMOKE tonight because I heard about it here.
if I hadn’t read the pr story I wouldn’t even know that the joint had opened.
Case and point. One of Jeff’s readers is going to a restaurant based on a false narrative because he failed to check it out. Zero credibility.
He can tell you it opened without repeating the embellishments.
Ate there tonight.
Delicious ribs, chicken and sides.
Of course we know this was a press release. Jeff said so. Jeff never said yeah or nay. All he did was reprint a pr piece which we all know is going to be favorable.
Get a life, RonnyJ.
Ok, well to me, the Taste chick is just advertising her blog. But as for parroting press releases, here’s the deal.
You’re supposed to be more knowledgable than your readers. Maybe you’re not. But if you haven’t figured it out in the 10 years you’ve been doing this site, Press Releases by PR companies are largely BS and often are outright lies. This particular one is just an embellishment that borders on false advertising; Bryan Tyrell wasn’t instrumental in Oklahoma Joe’s success; he worked the smokers, and most of the awards they cite came after he left So by parroting the misinformation put out by unscrupulous PR agencies, you’re just perpetuating the lies and in effect helping them to mislead the public.
What you *should* be doing is reading the release, filter the BS, and use your insight to produce something more useful.
By reprinting press releases, you’re just being used by the PR firm, and it damages your reputation.
You want Jeff to vet for you but how come you weren’t smart enough to vet taste chick who is working for a non profit museum?
You are a loser.
Ronny
Jeff has something like 25000 readers a month and you are the only one who wants him to review every press release for accuracy. You must be a real nut. Time for you to stop reading Jeffeats.com.
So let me get this straight, you want Jeff to check every fact in every press release and then give you a sanitized version. Are you nuts or what?
Jeff is just reprinting a release he received for the sole purpose of letting his readers know that a new restaurant opened. Nothing more and nothing less.
If you don’t think that Jeff Eats knows or for that matter his readers that PR releases have a load of positive fluff in them, then you really are one hell of a big old baby.
I got an idea for you, why don’t you fact check all of press releases Jeff has published and give us your version of each one of them?
Dear Ronny J:
It’s great that you’re sharing some additional information regarding Mr. Tyrell. Of course, everything you stated needs to be vetted just like you said the press release that JeffEats published needed to be vetted. JeffEats was transparent by stating it was a press release. However, based on what you’ve written I don’t think that the real issue is that JeffEats published the press release because we’re all entitled to freedom of speech. The issue seems to be some other facts you believe should’ve been published. This is why the comment section is a great forum to allow people to provide their perspective. I’m glad that you’ve shared but where is the data to support what you’ve stated about Mr. Tyrell the same way you have criticized the publishing of the press release? Whether he worked the “smokers” or not may not mean his role was any less than anybody else. I really don’t know. And, although you state some of the awards came after Mr. Tyrell left it doesn’t mean that he did not contribute to the winning. But, of course, that all has to researched and verified. Do you have some kind of personal connection to Mr. Tyrell or Oklahoma Joe’s because it was not stated in your comment? I re-read the press release and abstracted this one line from it: “Executive Chef and Pitmaster Bryan Tyrell is formerly of the famed Oklahoma Joe’s in Kansas City, Mo.” The press release references championships and awards from other places and not Oklahoma Joe’s so I don’t find it misleading. Nonetheless, you’re entitled to your position and JeffEats published your comment and did not block it.
What makes Jeff Eats the well followed blog that it is, is the fact that it seemingly publishes every comment received no matter what position the writer takes. It is very rare to ever see negative comments about the blog site itself elsewhere, yet at Jeff Eats pro or con they are listed.
At most sites A poster like RonnyJ would never see his comments listed but Jeff encourages all debate.
WOULD LOVE TO SEE A MENU
AND HOW DO THEY PREPARE
THE RIBS.
THANKS
Sun Sentinel gave the joint 3 stars last Friday and raved about how good the ribs are going so far as to call them the best they’ve had in Florida.
Ate there last night.
Jeff, you got to go.
The food kills!
Smoke BBQ was the worst restaurant experience I have ever had! Food was mediocre, service lacking, and owner was horrific!!!!! Will never go there again and will def not ever recommend it or anything owned by that owner!!!!!
Ate there today. Was fab!!! I love bbq and love pulled pork… so we tried several dishes. Will be eating there again soon !! Most prices are good. However a full rack of ribs is a bit pricey…… didnt drink this time but will come back for happy hour in a few weeks….HOPEFULLY RONNIE FOUND A LIFE as i and others who read this dont need. Or want to read negitive comments like he posted … thank you So. If you like Bbq … go to Smokes and enjoy ….
Out of business.
That was fast.