SmokeWorks Bloomington — Restaurant in Bloomington

They opened at 11 on the Saturday when we went and we got there at 11:15. My party of 7 was the Only table in the entire restaurant. Our server brought water for everyone but then didn't ask if we wanted anything else to drink. Didn't ask if we wanted a cocktail or soda or iced tea. We ordered 3 bowls of their chilli, and then ordered our lunch. The chili was not warm. It wasn't straight from the fridge cold, but wasn't warm either. I asked for all 3 to be microwaved. Hey, I get it. It happens. No biggie. Just microwave it. I think a reasonable guess would be that it came out about 12 minutes later. It wasn't warm again. It's as if the server went back and asked for it to be heated up but the cook didn't microwave it or put it in a skillet to heat it up-but instead got us new bowls 10 minutes later, from the same pot that wasn't warm previously.

We didn't complain to our server or the host, those 2 being the only employees we came into contact with. It took about 47 minutes from the time we ordered lunch to get our food. What I thought would be a quick lunch turned into an hour and a half experience from the time we sat down.

I got pulled pork, mac and cheese, and slaw. The pulled pork wasn't warm either. I can only guess that they took it out of the fridge, had it sitting out on the counter and then served it. Because it wasn't even warm, much less hot. And please don't get confused. I'm not the guy that wants their food boiling hot or I'm sending it back. I'm saying I stuck my finger into the middle of every dish I had and it was cold in the center. The Mac and cheese was awful. Put my finger in the middle and it was straight up chilled. The only way I can convey how cold it was was to imagine that they took it out of the refrigerator, put it into a cold oven, turned the oven on preheat, and before the oven had even warmed up, took it out of the oven and let it sit on the counter for 30 minutes. Straight up cold. I honestly WISH it had been sitting under a heat lamp for 40 minutes, that would've at least knocked the chill off. I asked the other 6 people and no one's food was hot. 2 of the people said it was lukewarm, but everyone else's wasn't. And I cannot stress this enough, at 12:40, an hour and a half almost after we'd gotten there, we were still the only guests there. At one point before our food got there, I went and stood near the kitchen entrance, trying to figure out what was happening. I saw a cook with a speed rack coming out of an elevator and a server polishing silverware. Is their kitchen downstairs or does their food come from a commissary at a different kitchen? That would explain why their food had lost all of its heat, if they had to walk a block or so from the kitchen to the restaurant. We decided not to complain about the lunch, since the soup took over 10 minutes to come back and it still wasn't warm afterwards. We didn't have another 30 minutes to gamble on if the lunch would be hot the second time. It took so long, we looked up the other reviews and read about how other's experiences was here. We all had to be somewhere at 1:15. I figured lunch at 11:15 would have given us plenty of time, but I was wrong.

We were visiting Bloomington for the weekend and we'd had a fantastic experience at TheFarm. We had great food at Uptown Cafe. In over 90 reviews, this is the very first time I've ever given a 1 star review. Read through my other reviews, I ENJOY giving nice reviews, hoping that the staff or management gets a good feeling from my ataboys! That's the only reason I give reviews, so that the staff knows someone out there cares and appreciates their hard work.

Hopefully, our experience was a one off and that usually everything is amazing.

Edit I've given 1, "3 star" review before and that was a 15 minute Steak and Shake experience in the drive through where they gave me several items that were wrong. I still gave them 3 stars. That's how not great my experience was here at Smokehouse for me to give...

Have you ever been drawn in by the bright city lights? The warmth of smoke in the air and laughter in the background? It felt like I was walking into a hip classy hockey tonk and the smell of whiskey and wood teased my senses of the indulgences to come.

Nathan Finney, business man, is turning his love of "just good food" into an empire. Along with his skilled and delightful staff they really got a good thing going. The atmosphere is somewhat evocative with deep rich fabrics and comfy seating, yet playful with accents of live wall greenery and signs like "whiskey is my spirit animal," yet so incredibly thoughtful. From a variety of types and heights of seating to meet families, friends out for a fun night, or dark cozy corners for a smokin date night - to small details like purse hooks on EVERY, yes I said EVERY table. I was throughly impressed. He even designed an expansion in the middle connecting Social Canteena, the sister restaurant, & Smoke Works that can seat large parties (like 50+)!

Their menu is a Memphis-Style dry rub barbecue joint with everything from brisket to jackfruit and indulgent sides using recipes from his mama, whom often pops in for surprise tasting inspections. They also have "a silly amount of bourbon, whiskey and moonshine." Including their own private label made in conjunction with Indy's very own West Fork Whiskey.

We started off by indulging on FRIED PICKLES and okra with a delicious house ranch. These babies were perfect - which is impressive serving 20+ ppl fried food and every batch was near perfection. They're perfectly crisp - the breading is CRISPY and full of FLAVOR - I literally could have eaten the whole basket by myself. Along side the cowboy caviar, which isn't my go to thing but still very tasty! (I'm not much for corn, I know, I know - please don't kick me out of Indiana.)

I couldn't resist a little cocktail and the TENNESSEE WEEKEND was calling my name! Be careful this gal packs a punch stronger than you'd think and boy does it go down smooth! Georgia Peach Moonshine, a little Jack, blueberry, lemonade, and house sour - I felt like I was sitting in a rocking chair on a lovely southern porch.

Next UP BBQ TRAY! Yes anything on a tray - I am here for it! I got the pulled pork and jackfruit which I let swim in the sweet bbq sauce because it was that delicious - heck if that ramekin would have been bigger I would have climbed in and swam in that sauce! Along side the mac n' cheese and coleslaw served with. A big ole slab of bread butter pickles and onions - the only way bbq should be served I was in heaven.

Because every night this good has to end on a sweet note I was sooo ready for some banana pudding! Served in a Mason jar almost too cute to eat.

I really can't wait to go back and I'll bring my stretchy pants next...

Review of Smokeworks, Bloomington

We decided to try Smokeworks Bloomington today, which is connected to Social Cantina Bloomington. Walking in at 12:35 PM, the restaurant was relatively empty, which was surprising for lunchtime.

We were seated promptly, but the experience quickly took a downturn. The waitress brought out a plastic pitcher of water with four small plastic glasses. For what they advertise as an “upscale” BBQ spot, we expected glassware, especially after repeatedly requesting water in proper glasses. Unfortunately, those requests were ignored.

We ordered drinks and banana pudding, intending to sample more appetizers, but the waitress disappeared for quite some time. When the pudding finally arrived via a different server, we asked if we could order the deviled eggs with pork belly cracklings, green onions, and paprika. We requested the green onions on the side, but that’s where the positives ended.

The presentation of the deviled eggs was comparable to a middle school home economics class project. The eggs were unevenly cut, the filling was carelessly applied, and the pork belly cracklings were overcooked and excessively fatty.

Expecting upscale BBQ, we tried to get a sample of the mac & cheese before ordering, a common courtesy at many BBQ joints, but the request was flat-out denied. This was a red flag, especially after the server admitted that the mac & cheese “tastes like beer cheese but isn’t as good as Panera’s.” Against better judgment, we ordered the mac & cheese as our side with the beef brisket meat tray.

The $12 “1/2 lb” brisket platter was another disappointment. The brisket was excessively fatty, despite requesting more middle cuts. It came with a small piece of cornbread and the infamous mac & cheese, which turned out to be overcooked, flat, and lacking any real flavor. It was clear why they didn’t want to give a sample—no one would’ve ordered it.

The Idaho potato with sliced turkey was also overcooked and dry, making it difficult to enjoy.

Throughout the meal, we struggled with the lack of attentive service. The waitress frequently disappeared and didn’t check in on us, leaving a lingering sense of neglect.

For the pricing and what was promised as an elevated BBQ experience, Smokeworks fell flat in both food and service. Perhaps the Social Cantina side would have been a better choice. Unfortunately, I can’t recommend spending your hard-earned money here, as the experience was far...