Hardwoods Smokehouse — Restaurant in Cookeville

I stopped & tried Hardwood Smokehouse. The gentleman that took my order was very helpful & pleasant.

I got the Bull Pen which is a brisket combo for $18.00. I ordered the loaded baked potato salad & the famous smokehouse baked beans as my sides. I was asked what type of barbecue sauce I wanted and was given the options (I don’t remember all that he listed). I told him I’m from South Carolina so I like the sweeter barbecue like I’m used to. He told me they had a sweet barbecue. It was “kind of like “Sweet Baby Ray’s“.

First, let’s start with the brisket… It was extremely tender! The barbecue sauce was indeed, Sweet Baby Rays. I was hoping that they would’ve had some authentic homemade sauce of their own for me to try.

I did not care for the potato salad at all. I’m more of a mustard potato salad person & this was too much mayonnaise for my liking. Now that being said, if you love more mayonnaise in a potato salad you’ll probably love this!

The baked beans were ok. They reminded me of a canned baked bean, I do believe from Bush’s that I had several years ago.

And then there was a Hawaiian roll, no butter, and was not warmed up.

I will definitely try them again and probably order a pork sandwich or even a brisket sandwich but I won’t be...

My wife and I have had the pleasure of sampling the meats of Hardwoods recently, all of which were extraordinary. Most BBQ joints will lather their wares in sauce prior to service to mask the mediocrity of the meat, NOT the case with Hardwoods!

All meats have a delicate balance of hickory and oak notes. The sausage delivers a well rounded, slowly evolving heat that lingers on the pallet until quenched with a sip of Dr. Pepper.

The brisket is juicy with a well smoked profile. Applying sauce is a disservice to the meat craftsmanship that takes place behind the scenes. The serving size is ample and well worth the cost.

The chicken is particularly delightful, most places have a difficult time retaining the moisture of the meat, yet again, not the case here. The dry rub really shines on this bird and delivers a well rounded combination of sweet, salty and smokey notes. Definitely worth a try!

Hardwoods is well worth making a special trip Cookeville for. It’s the best Texas style dining experience you’ll find...

I have been so excited to go here! Today we had a couple kids graduate, so we finally swung by to get some brisket! He had to pull some additional brisket out to fill the pound order...and what he pulled fresh was amazing! Unfortunately the bulk of it had been sitting and was super hard and dry. The flavor was great, but the texture was rough... The potato salad was amazing!! Loved it! Not too wet, perfectly cooked potatoes and good mix-ins. The smoked Mac n cheese was tasty and the kids gobbled theirs up with no complaints! I liked the rotini noodles...it made the side more filling. I hate to not leave a 5 star review and I would maybe come back for an earlier meal in the hopes of getting all fresh brisket...but for $26.99/lb I don't know that I'll roll the dice on getting whatever has been sitting again. I would definitely swing by just for some potato...