My frineds on Long Island have been telling me about Smokin' Al's for some time. They've been saying that I'll like it better than my beloved Dinosaur Barbeque. Well, I HAD to take that challenge! Smokin' Al's in located at 19 West Main Street Bay Shore, NY (Long Island). Their website is
www.SmokinAls.com. We got there around 5pm last night and there was about a 40 minute wait for a table. We bellied up to the bar for some drinks and it was situated right across from the pit where the smokers were and where they prepped the plates to go out. I wasn't up for any alcohol last night, but some of my dining companions had a local beer, Toasted Blue Point Lager and I tried a bit, Slightly bitter and very good. Blue Point is an area that is also known for their oysters. I became hungry very quickly watching the plates of 'cue go out. One thing that looked pretty good to me was an oversized baked potato stuffed with pulled pork, cheese and our cream ala Big Bob Gibson's. A meal unto itself. The time went by quickly and we moved on to ordering. Enjoy the pics:
My dessert of Bourbon Street Crunch-$5.50. A pie that is similar to Toll House Pie with chocolate chunks, pecans, caramel and whipped cream. Scoop of vanilla ice cream was $1 extra. Good, but nothing special. I've had many similar pies and what usually elevates it is the homemade crust. This one was okay.
The "Haystack of Onions" appetizer-$8.99. This was insanity. I've never seen anything that big in my life. It was very good and I couldn't stop eating and picking at it, despite my repeated protests of "This is my last bite of this!". Crispy, salty, chewy, it does get a bit soggy though in the middle as you dig in, but it's impossible not to with all of the heat piled on like that. The dipping sauce was a disappointment though. It tasted like their BBQ sauce mixed with ranch dressing. Just didn't do it for me.
My #2 Ribs-N-Meat Platter. It's usually $19.99 with baby backs, but for $1 extra, I substituted St. Louis cut ribs and requested them dry. I liked that they offered a wet and dry option on the menu. So, here we have St. Louis cut ribs, BBQ pulled pork, Baked Beans, Garlic Mashed Potatoes and cornbread. The mash were red jacket, skin-on, chunky and packed quite a garlicky punch. The beans were okay, somewhat sweet with brown sugar and maybe molasses, but I've had better. The cornbread is possibly the best I have had in some time, moist, good corn flavor and just a bit of chew to it and brushed with honey. The meats, however, were somewhat disappointing. The pulled pork had a lot of sauce on it and I prefer it dry and decide for myself how much sauce I want on it. It was a bit chewy and I could barely detect any smoke flavor. The ribs were also a bit chewier than I prefer and there really wasn't any smoke flavor to them. They were pretty meaty did have a good crust on them though.
My buddy Doug had the St. Louis cut, pulled pork, sweet potato fries, baked beans and cornbread. The sweet potato fries had great potato flavor and they had been lightly dusted with some cinnamon sugar which lent a nice sweetness to them, They were, however, a bit soggy.
My GF's platter of baby back ribs, brisket (both wet), vinegar slaw, mac and cheese and cornbread. I didn't think much of the slaw, just ordinary. I liked the different choice of pasta, but the flavor and texture were lacking for the mac and cheese. It was like a thin cheese sauce on it. I was hoping for something thick and custardy. The baby backs were okay and the meat did pull of fairly easily. The brisket was chewy and not tender like I had hope for. Both didn't have smoke flavor and I didn't see any smoke ring on the brisket.
Melissa's platter has ribs (baby backs, I think), mac and cheese, sweet potato fries and cornbread.
Larry's platter has baby back ribs, brisket (I think there is a slight smoke ring on this brisket), slaw and french fries with cheese sauce. I didn't try the cheese fries. You can see the Blue Point lager in his hand. Larry is a great home BBQ'er and I had some great stuff from his smoker this summer. Beer Can Chicken, ABTs, and grilled corn with spicy garlic butter. Keep it comin', Larry!!
Our large order of the "Some Like It Hot" smoked chicken wings with Rattlesnake Sauce-$11.99. This is their spicy sauce and one can see the massive amounts of pepper flakes in the sauce. It's rare that I've seen the wings and drumettes served together. These were some mighty tasty, meaty, wings and they had a subtle crispness to them. They were drowning in sauce, but it really worked for them. Multiple napkins and lots of finger licking was required for these babies. After just two of them, I could feel my lips tingling, nose running and forehead sweating. The heat was wickedly good and wasn't added for injury.
A platter of beef ribs, collards and sausage waiting to be taken to a hungry customer.
A shot of the interior of Smokin' Al's.
The prep station and a shot of the Pulled Pork, Pulled Chicken and Chopped Beef. I'm just not a big fan of meats that are already covered in sauce. I like to taste the meat first, then add sauce (or not) to my liking.
Outside Smokin' Al's
They had three sauces on the table along with a roll of paper towels and they do provide wet naps after the meal. The three sauces were:
ORIGINAL-Sweet, possibly with a hint of cinnamon?
SWEET TALKIN'-Tasted just like the BBQ sauce I would get with Chicken McNuggets from McDonalds.
RATTLESNAKE-sweet, spicy. I liked this one the best, but honestly, they all tasted like the same base sauce. I like sauces that have their own distinct personalities and these just didn't. The Rattlesnake, though, did work on the wings.
Overall, I was disappointed. The sides were hit and miss, but that's not the point. My big issue was with the meats. There was little to no smoke flavor in them and they were just too chewy for me. I like it tender, melt in your mouth, and almost fall apart. These fell short in those regards. Would I go back? Yes, if someone wanted to go there, but I wouldn't suggest it or seek it out on my own. Oh, my friends wanted me to mention that Al's is right near the terminal for the Fire Island Ferry and many people get takeout to bring with them on a day trip to the island. Hope this is helpful.
