Smokemasters Ribs 'N Pollo

This place finally opened... In the middle of nowhere. I think it's called Lilburn or Lilith Fair. There are a lot of butch looking women in these here parts or is that a man? I can't tell with all the overalls, bad tattoos, facial hair and bowl cuts. I was up here picking up some tools and I remember seeing the sign for this place months ago but the inside was always empty. Now, they're up and running and I was interested to see what was up with their BBQ. There's really not much of a variety here... The menu consists of ribs, rib tip and Peruvian chicken... But from time to time, they do a few brisket. Lucky me, they had a couple slabs of brisket on this visit. The people are very nice here but the place just doesn't remind me of a BBQ joint. It's too empty, sparse and sterile and there is no aroma of smoke that puts you in the mood for some good eatin'. Also, the real smokers are out back supposedly and the only contraption inside is the coal and wood burning rotisserie for the Peruvian chicken. There's some meat in a hot box on the counter which doesn't exactly say quality. But you never know until the pouch delivers the verdict...

Pile O' Ribs. They looked kinda dried out sitting in that hot box.

Brisket.

Hand slicing with a cleaver. Dry rub looked decent but no smoke ring. Supposedly, they do the brisket in the chicken rotisserie.

This was $6 worth of meat... A couple measly slices of brisket. The thing that I do not like them doing here or anywhere else that I pay for food is reheating the meat in a microwave... Yeah, in a fucking microwave after it has been sitting in that hot box. That is a big no no. Besides that malpractice issue, the brisket was pretty tender and moist, but the rub didn't impart any flavor into the meat and there were fat globs spotted here and there. So, you're chewing and spitting...Like a good hillbilly should with a wad of Kodiak in your mouth.

More brisket from another slab. So, I wanted to sample another brisket and see if the quality was better. The portions are ultra chintzy on the brisket... What are you saving it for? The brisket gods? Pal, this brisket isn't gonna win any awards, even in Alaska.

Rib Tip Sandwich. I sampled a small bit of the ribs, they were dry and chewy as expected sitting in that hot box. So, let's try the rib tip sando. Once again, the tips are tossed into the nuke box for a few seconds. Pour some super sweet BBQ sauce on it and no one will notice the dryness of the tips. You chew and chew on this thing until your dentures fall out. Not even Poligrip can save the day. I think the bits of bone and cartilage were softer than the meat. 

Peruvian Roast Chicken. I lurv me some Peruvian cheekan. The marinaded chickens in citrus, garlic, cumin, paprika and whatever else you wanna put in there makes this bird juicy as fuck in a rotisserie. It's like heaven... So, how was this version? It was ok, the meat was tender and skin color was roasted nicely but the flavors did not get infused in the coal and wood burning oven. How could that be when it was basking in the rotisserie for hours? For one, this bird was made hours earlier and been sitting in the same hot box with the ribs wrapped in foil which made the skin soggy in order to keep the inside moist. There were no other birds ready at the moment, maybe if I waited for an hour. What a shame, this chicken coulda been really good... Perhaps it woulda been if I had a fresh one that just came out of the rotisserie and been resting for 15 minutes waiting for me. But seriously, don't serve subpar shit when you know it has been tanning in a hot box. Now, for the famous Peruvian green sauce of mayo, lime juice, vinegar, garlic, jalapeno and cilantro... It was more water down mayo than anything else. No hints of heat or citrus and even the color was pale pale green almost white from not using enough of all the required ingredients. I was really craving a nice Peruvian bird since Las Brasas is still in limbo from opening their new location in the old Burnt Fork space, but the Pouch gets fucked again with the colorful signs and friendly smiles. Ok, it wasn't that awful but just don't call it a Peruvian chicken... Maybe something like carnival cheekan. Then people's hopes and dreams aren't shattered after taking the first bite.

Like the name of the place says, it's just ribs and pollo, period. I don't know where Smokemasters come into play here.. But don't expect anything more because you're not gonna get it. They had some limited sides like rice, fries, slaw and beans but there's no time for that nonsense if the main attractions were this underwhelming. Besides the lackluster grub, they were super nice and very proud of what they're trying to do here... I hope they work out for the local yokels but I'm pretty sure I'll be at pho joint next door before I come back here any time soon. Keep working at it and maybe one day you'll be able to right the wrongs you did to the pouch.

Bless their hearts..

4805 Lawrenceville Hwy 
Ste104 
Lilburn, GA 30047
678-788-4683