I apologize in advance for these photos.  They’re not perfect in the least, but it was dark and I didn’t want to use flash and kill the rocking vibe of this place, so I just did what I could and hoped for the best.

That being said, I had the most awesome experience the other day with The Russian.  We went out to dinner at Smoken’ Joe’s, a neighborhood BBQ joint with live music every night.  For some reason I didn’t think it would be busy.  Then I heard the music and smelled the smoke about a block down the street and knew I was wrong.  It was their 3rd anniversary party, and I felt like I was crashing, but, man, it was so much fun.

There was awesome music, and the people there were obviously regulars that had been with the place since the opening.

We enjoyed some awesome food as well.  Starting with the fried oysters, only $9, with a tartar–esque dipping sauce.  You could taste the oyster and the breading was light (It did fall off a bit, but that was okay).

I then had a half rack of ribs, which was $15.  Probably shouldn’t had had that much, as I needed to be rolled home later. I couldn’t help myself, the meat was so tender and satisfying, before I knew it I had polished off a bunch of ribs. You can choose which of their many homemade BBQ sauce you would like to accompany your meal, and I had the honey BBQ.  It was a good choice. The cole slaw and sweet potato fries on the side were also killer.

The Russian had the brisket with the sweet BBQ sauce, $16.  You would think the sauces we chose were similar (cause of their names) but they both had such a richness and complexity in flavor you could tell them apart easily.  The Russian’s brisket was so tender it almost fell to pieces when you touched it.

We stayed for a while after dinner, enjoying the music and the atmosphere.  I would come back just for that.  Luckily, the food is excellent as well.

-L