Smoke and Fire Social Eatery — Restaurant in Paramount

We visited 5/1/2021 afternoon Pics looked fire but food and service was a MAJOR disappointment I have no idea why there’s so many 5 stars reviews for the food and service. What we experienced was anything but that!

Overall, disorganized experience that doesn’t think about the customer first. Staff aren’t friendly. Don’t get me started on the food AND drinks! But I will:)

You walk in and music is loud. Cool, they’re going for a fun social vibe. You order and pay first then find a seat. After we paid- we weren’t given directions to pick up the food ourselves at the counter or wait for staff to bring it to us. So we sat down.

Per another reviewer, staff don’t care about cleaning up tables. It’s either that, or they’re understaffed. (Suggestion for the owners: invest in your customer experience and logistics. At the Habit for example who excels in this counter service type of restaurant- customers get a numbered placard so that staff can find where they’re sitting at without having to shout every few feet. They also one dedicated bus boy who ensures tables are cleaned and ready for the next group of customers.) We had wipes and cleaned the tables ourselves. Meanwhile, there were at least two idle staff standing behind the counter.

At the fountain drink area, there’s a sign that CLEARLY states to wait to allow staff to assist you with drinks. I stood there for a minute before a staff turned her shoulder and told me to just do it myself. Okay, fine by me but why have the sign then?

Staff brought our food: chicken sandwiches, brisket fries, burger, and Mac and cheese. We tried to ask for utensils for the mac and cheese but the staff who brought it over dashed away and couldn’t hear us. We went over to the drink area and utensils were available there. Signage over the utensil area so indicate ‘self-serve’ would’ve been helpful!!

If you are going to have a ‘self-serve’ type of restaurant, then make it easy for the customer to ‘help themselves!’ I shouldn’t have to scout out where to go to grab utensils or takeout boxes (which unintuitive you are located at the counter at the front where you PAY! Who knows that they want a box when they order?! No one.

Food: Bleh. Nothing spectacular. They look good in pics but that’s about it. Prices are fair. I had the brisket fries and it was drenched in sweet bbq sauce. The sweet pickles don’t help to cut the spice at all so I wanted ranch or something. We asked at the counter they said they charged so I skipped out on it cuz they should have asked us at the counter if we wanted sauces if they were gonna charge like that. Who is gonna go back in line to pay for ranch? Chicken sandwich isn’t what we expected for Nasheville hot.

Drinks: So at the front I asked about the smoked lemonade. The girl said it tastes like regular lemonade. Okay cool. We got one charcoal lemonade and that sh** tasted literally like someone switched up salt and sugar. I asked staff about this And complained to him that it was salty. He was confused ofc and offered no apology. He told us to get another drink but we were already on our way out and duh ofc we already changed our drinks. Strawberry lemonade, looks pretty in pics right? Well if you like pink sugar water then it’s just the drink for you! A little neon in color has us thinking that it’s just food coloring because nothing about it tasted like strawberry NOR lemons as the name suggests.

They had 2 TVs that replayed the same 10 pics of the staff. It was cute for the first 5 mins but I wished a ‘social eatery’ would put a sports game on or something.

Outdoor eating available. I wish the business well and hope they focus on improving their people, product, and process rather than expanding but we won’t...

I've been stalking this place on IG for months. We finally made the trip out from the South Bay yesterday and we're so happy we did. The old man is not a foodie like me and of course kids are picky.... but I finally convinced them to go and everyone thoroughly enjoyed everything we ate there.

Brisket Grilled Cheese (not pictured): my man loved this. He didn't make a sound the entire time he was eating. After we left we were talking about another restaurant and he did I don't think you're going to get better food than what we just ate anywhere! That's a lot coming from him.

Brisket Burrito: Fries, Mac and Cheese, Brisket and more cheese!!! Really can't go wrong here. Has all of the amazing things at this restaurant wrapped up in a lovely little tortilla. It was a carb lovers dream. The Brisket was cooked perfectly with just the right amount of sauce. Wasn't overbearing and just right. Only thing I would add to this is some spicy sauce or a salsa of some sort but it was mind-blowing!

Brisket Potato Skins: Hold the flippin phone here. THESE WERE THE BEST DANG POTATO SKINS I HAVE EVER HAD IN MY LIFE! I would honestly make the hour round trip to secret eat two servings of these and not even tell my family! 🤣 They were really that good! They were good without the extra cheese but when you dip them in there it is truly heaven. If you love potatoes and BBQ I highly recommend you try these! The entire was completely quiet as we shoveled all of this awesomeness into our mouths.

Wyatts Tenders and Mac: Kid wanted Mac and Cheese but seeing as we are trying to keep a tiny human alive, she needs more than that to sustain life. So we got the tenders with the mac and this girl was grubbin'! She ate half of everything on her plate. I've never seen her keep going back for more and more like that. The mac is so thick... no utensils required. She ate the entire thing with her bare hands! Perfect amount of seasoning on the mac too 🥰 definitely one of the better macs I've tried at a restaurant.

Mud Pie: This was a perfect way to end this glutinous meal. My man didn't touch it but me and my baby demolished the entire thing. I won't post her pics on her but she was in a state of euphoria after eating this that i had to snap her out of. Oreos, chocolate, carmel, whipped cream...almonds in the Ice Cream... my goodness. Best dessert I've had in a long time. Did not regret saving room for it at all. It was sooooo good!

Finally... the cashier was amazing.... when we told him it was our first time, he told us we would get tired of seeing his face. Considering how satisfied the whole family was with this experience, I gotta say he is probably right! All of the servers were so attentive and eager for you to enjoy your experience here. This is truly a gem and not just one of those places that are hyped up on reviews or IG. Go and experience it for yourself! It truly was an amazing and unforgettable experience and we'll definitely be back. Best BBQ spot we've had in a long time! Thank you Smoke and Fire for the amazing dinner with family! Nothing brings you closer together than good service and...

Welp, here we are..... i can honestly say "tik tok made me do it!".

Where has this place been all this time?! Literally 5 minutes drive from my place but has been hiding from me! Lol

A hidden gem! If you're craving BBQ flavors, this is the place to go. I ordered a bunch of food to try it out, and they did not disappoint. Great family atmosphere, warm welcome at the door, employees there enjoyed what they were doing. I didn't get that "I'm just here to make a buck" feeling. Great customer service. I ordered a bunch of food and the servers always checked in with me to keep me in the loop of where my order was. I never once felt like "maybe they forgot about me..".

This is a order as you come in the door and seats are furst come first serve. Now i know for next time! Lol

Clean tables as i saw the servers continually clean.

Now for the food.....

I ordered the Giant Dino short rib, brisket mac & cheese, stockberger, giant pretzel, brisket quesadilla, 3 pcs chicken, smash burger and smash burger fries. Yes, i know, i was stuffed!

Giant dino short rib was delicious. Well prepared and soft. Definitely fell off the bone. Not chewy and very flavorful. The cole slaw that it came with was fresh. Texas toast was yummy. Recommended!

Brisket mac & cheese was cheesy! Topped with shredded brisket had that sweet and salty taste which was a great combination.

Stockberger was simple and if its just a burger you're looking for, this is hands down the best choice. Big serving and Definitely beats the competion of other fast food places...

The Giant pretzel....... well, it was big! Came with that savory cheese sauce for dipping. Although...... the pretzel was a bit chewy and on the hard side, but that may have been from the drive back home. It may have gotten cold. I will need to try it again when i come back to see if there is a difference.

Brisket quesadilla was the best quesadilla i have tasted. Soft, meaty and full of flavors. Melts in your mouth.

The chicken was cooked well.... well seasoned and perfect on the spicyness. I got the medium spice so i can make sure i could taste it and not have to worry about paying for it later....

Smash burger and smash fries....when i say its loaded, i mean it is loaded! Hefty, and heavy on the belly.... flavor was amazing. The burger needs 2 hands to handle.

All in all, hands down a big recommendation from...