Zydeco Smokehouse

In December I was anxiously and excitedly waiting for the opening of the new Zydeco Smokehouse on Preston Street.  They very smartly posted the name of the restaurant and the menu long before they opened so that by the time the doors officially opened for business I could hardly stand to wait any longer to taste the tempting southern, smoked, barbeque offerings.

 

 

I had checked out the reviews on-line before heading over there on very cold January late afternoon and even though everyone posting about Zydeco was raving about the pulled pork I had a hankering to try the chipotle meatloaf ... what a brilliant idea.  Sadly, this was bad planning on my part as it was only about 30 minutes before closing for the day and the chipotle meatloaf was all gone.  According to the owner, the cooks from the Italian pub next door (which I'll not name here but which I can totally understand being familiar with the mediocre food they serve over there) were over and bought up the last 3 orders.  Well, at least you can take that as proof that everything is fresh made.  Since I was foibled on the chipotle meatloaf I decided to stick with the opinion of the masses and picked the pulled pork even though I was pretty tempted by the barbequed chicken.  Along with the pulled pork sandwich I went for the mac n' cheese which the on-line reviews and the owner recommended; and of course I had to have the Louisiana cole slaw - since I'm a huge fan of the oil/vinegar style.

 

Before I give you my review of the meal, I will tell you that I was on my way home from walking my princess Gwenny, and it was a pretty chilly -15*C temperature, and it took us about 15 minutes until we were home from Zydeco.

 

on chilly days even dogs need a moose antler hoodie sweater!

 

By the time we got home the food was cold.  And this was definitely a factor in me enjoying the meal.  The pulled pork sandwich is loaded with pork and the smoky barbeque sauce.  Unfortunately, there was a fair amount of liquid in the sauce and from the cole slaw which basically saturated the bun.  Cold, soggy bun = not good.  I ate the pork and threw the bun away -- extra carbs are not necessary anyway.

 

 

For me, it was not the best pulled pork I've ever had.  There was a spice in the meat that wasn't to my taste.  Clearly other people absolutely love it and it wasn't bad - it just had a bit of an odd after taste for me.  The cole slaw was too oily and needed more vinegar -- and for the take out service I'd rather see the cole slaw in a separate container.  Finally, the mac n' cheese was not good.  It was really mushy and overcooked and somewhat bland.  Again, I would say the basic cause of my failing to enjoy the mac n' cheese was from having been sitting in the steam table for a long time.

 

Sadly I was very disappointed with my experience at Zydeco but I`m not giving up on this place.  First off, the owner is incredibly friendly and wants to please his customers and I'm a firm believer in supporting local, independent businesses.  The cold walk leading to cold food and soggy bun were partially my fault; as well as me showing up just minutes before closing lead to me getting the over cooked macaroni.  I`m still holding out for the chipotle meatloaf and there are lots of other sides to check out.  Next time I`ll pass on the cole slaw and check out some of the other sides.