Haze Smokehouse — Restaurant in LaSalle

Review from 7/2015 I stopped in early on a Saturday with some friends. I smelled smoke, which is a great thing when hitting a BBQ joint. We were immediately greeted and seated. Our server was okay. Didn't recommend anything, not very personable, but friendly.

We ordered some appetizers to share but didn't have any appetizer plates. I know I should've asked. Soft pretzels were served with beer cheese sauce that was curdled. It tasted okay, but the texture was nasty. The smoked wings were solid and we were introduced to the three sauces on the table. Every BBQ sauce at different BBQ restaurants around the country are meant to compliment not cover up smoked meat. This is the case at Haze. Good start.

My friend and I both ordered the sampler. Looking at the pricing of this, ($24) I was a bit hesitant, but I wanted to try everything. The vegetable kebab was odd. No seasoning, just lightly smoked, it wasn't bad but it was just, meh... The sampler came with a slice of brisket, a spoonful of pulled pork, a 1/4 chicken and two pork ribs.

The chicken was just a little dry, but the sauces helped out. The chicken was flavorful, though. The brisket was juicy and tender. The only problem was there wasn't enough of it. The pulled pork was solid, but again, not enough of it. The ribs were perfectly seasoned, and unbelievably good, this was well worth the stop in. The sampler, though was a bit high priced. Try it once and see what you like.

Haze has a few different burgers that look good, but why? Focus on barbecue, it's hard enough to get right. Look at Texas or Kansas City. People travel for barbecued meat when it is good. Haze is good. Can Illinois be a place to travel to for barbecue? Maybe!

UPDATE Have been back multiple times and have...

We we're staying in Ottawa, IL for a few days and came across some flyers in the hotel lobby and one happen to be from this restaurant. We thought we would give them a try. I'm so glad we did. We stopped by and ordered a sampler entree and fried green tomatoes and fried kale. While we waited we saw that they had fried pork extras. It was a new item so we ordered that while we waited for our order to be done. That was really good. After we finished the pork extras, our food arrived. We headed out to the car and the smell of the food was overwhelming that I had to crack the take out box open. It was so good that the sauces that I asked for extra really aren't needed. The meat is so good that it can go without sauce. I forgot to mention that while we were waiting we tried the sauces and all three were so good. I had to buy all of them. I can't figure out which is a favorite. For appetizers, the fried green tomatoes were delicious. They are served with a shrimp on top and sauce drizzled on top. They we're so good that I had to eat one right away before we left the restaurant that I burned my tongue. It was so worth it. The fried kale was a bit soggy as it was fried whole instead of cut into pieces. We talked with the owner, Lee and he told us when he isn't around that the guys in the kitchen have a tendency to do that. Hopefully, the next time we come he'll be in cause my husband would like to try it again. As for staff, everyone is so kind and helpful. The restaurant has a great atmosphere and ambience. If you are in LaSalle, IL, stop at Haze Smokehouse for some really great BBQ. It is well...

Some of the worse service I've had in the area. I know not to expect the fastest service on a holiday like Father's Day, so ten minutes to greet us after we sat didn't strike me as super slow. However, we had enough time to figure out our full order and got that in with our drinks.

Brought our drinks except they still had to check on my son's milk. Now the real waiting starts. It's at this point I realize we're not the only ones waiting, I watched one table receive half their food and have to wait for the other half. Another table requested refills and were able to finish most their food before getting them. So it wasn't just us. At least thirty minutes have gone by and noone has acknowledge us, my daughter drank her whole drink, both were cranky from hunger (preschool age).

Now we arrived a little before 1245, no drinks until about 1, and no one checking on us until I flagged someone down, 1:30ish for a drink for my daughter & at this point we are told there was no milk for my son. 1:50 the food is finally there and it's not hot or close to it. 2:15 we get a check. Largely not worth the wait and the food was meh.

Worse part, at no point did anyone apologize for the slow service or even acknowledge it. Just business as usual. I recommend taking your money to any...