Blu Smoke Pit — Restaurant in Charleston

Honestly, it’s tough to give this kind of review. Whenever I visit a place I always want to give it the benefit of the doubt. However, I must say, I was thoroughly unimpressed here. I ordered the ribeye. It was over cooked (medium well and I ordered medium rare). The serving staff was very kind but made us all feel that we were a bother to ask for anything. My mother has just had heart surgery and can only drink certain items due to her heart failure and the waiter made us all feel awkward after her ordering just ice (we brought her an electrolyte drink).

We ordered a good breadth of items from their menu. The appetizer consisted of their oyster deviled eggs which were reasonably good. They fried them well and they use excellent batter for their fried dishes. It was very good.

The other item we ordered for an appetizer were their oysters, raw. This is a raw bar after all. I have to admit, they were both tasty and a let down at the same time. Normally when a restaurant with a $50 a person buy in (based on average cost) carries raw oysters, they have a selection. I get to choose where they are from… however, here, we are subjected to their supplier….. that being said, they were not bad. However I couldn’t say they were good. They were mediocre at best for over $30 a dozen. Small, with a two or three large ones. They had a lot of brine flavor (which Is good) but they also tasted muddy. Your oysters shouldn't taste muddy. I don’t know. It was just unimpressive.

Overall I was really unimpressed with this location that seem to prioritize sushi and alcohol and leave the tables who just want a good dinner on the back burner. It’s loud, the service is… there… and the food is good but not...

I want to start by saying Megan, our waitress was awesome and attentive. The inside of the restaurant was beautiful, bright, and attractive.

My wife and I ordered; stuffed jalapeno with brisket, beef cheek, sausage, turkey, Mac and cheese, brisket and beans, and finally chopped “brisket”. Overall the food was pretty good, decent smoke flavor on all cuts of meat but slightly under seasoned in general. Where they lost me on the food, was the chopped “brisket”. The only food items I had with brisket in them were the jalapeños and beans. I never received the chopped brisket, instead what I received was 100% pulled pork (I have lived in the Charleston my entire life and eating bbq the same) I am very aware of the difference between pulled pork and brisket. I told the waitress that what I had received was pulled pork, she advised she asked the “head chef” if what she had was brisket and he confirmed. I don’t know if communication lines got crossed or what happened but I never received chopped brisket, we received pulled pork. The pork wasn’t great either, I couldn’t taste seasoning all I could taste was dry pork.

Overall not a bad place, a bit over priced for what we received but I would give it a second chance. Hopefully whoever mixed up brisket for pork learns...

First time dining here, and we loved it! Our server was kind and attentive, and offered recommendations to guide us thru the menu.

We started with the calamari. Lightly fried tender strips topped with a creamy corn sauce. There were fried pieces of jalapeño which was a nice touch. My husband had the Blu Bucatini, a great combination of fresh seafood with a delicious creamy lobster sauce. The only thing that would have made this better would have been some baguette slices, as there was a lot of sauce still in the bowl once he ate everything and what a waste to throw it out. I had the scallop fuoco, a hearty meal with Spanish risotto, fresh scallops, bacon jam and tons of flavor.

Even though we were full, we shared a dessert - poached pear with a strawberry sauce and brie whipped cream. The dish came with two halves of a pear, and we were delighted when we took our first bites! There was a bit of a crumble in the strawberry sauce, which I could have eaten like soup, and we loved how the flavors came together. That brie whipped cream was perfect with it. Great combination and recipe.

We loved everything and look forward to dining here again... next time on the patio...