Brussels (and Belgium) rightly prides itself on being something of a culinary heaven, with all types of world cuisine catered for.
But there’s one thing it has always lacked and that is a smokehouse.
Happily, that has been put right with the presence in the city of Holy Smoke, probably the only smokehouse in Brussels.
For the uninitiated, a smokehouse, or smoker, is a building where meat or fish is cured with smoke. The finished product might be stored in the building, sometimes for a year or more.
At Holy Smoke, they do not leave quite so long, maybe a maximum of 20 hours, but the end result is absolutely delicious.
Holy Smoke, in fact, first arrived on the scene here a good few years back now (2017) but, while slow cooking has been particularly fashionable in recent years, it remains almost certainly the only place of its kind in Brussels.
Pride of place at this terrific eatery, very conveniently located just round the corner from the city’s Midi rail station, is a huge smoker where all the meat is smoked, some (such as the brisket) for as long as 20 hours.
It is right at the entrance so you cannot miss it and, if you get a chance, take the time to ask just how the thing operates because it is a real education, not least in how to produce fabulously succulent meat.
Staff like the super friendly Nico are hand to lend a hand, both in explaining the meat smoking process and to guide you through the menu.
This consists of meat platters (a customer favourite in the evening) and different cuts of meat, such as the brisket (a personal favourite of Nico – he calls it “The Special One”).
The platters are particularly good as they give you the chance to sample different types of meat on the one plate. There are a couple available, one priced €93 called “Holy Platter” is for two people, with pork ribs, a sausage and “flat” brisket. The other, “Smoke Ring” is €119 and is for 3 three people.
Aside from the brisket, which is so tender and moist you hardly need a knife and fork for it, there are pork ribs, beef cheek, beef rib and sausage on the menu. You won’t go wrong whichever you choose but prepared to sample some of the most tasty meat you will have ever eaten.
At lunchtime, the smoked meat sandwiches are particularly popular and these well-priced options consist of a sweet pulled pork burger, chopped brisket burger and another called “hangover burger” (pulled pork and chopped brisket).
The portions are so generous and filling you hardly need a starter but a few starters are also featured on the card and one that is recommended is the tortilla chips and Asian pulled pork which is very tasty but not too heavy on the stomach before you fill up on all that marvellous meat.
This place doesn’t do things by halves and there are also a very impressive choice of rare whiskies, authentic craft beers, wines and, in particular, classic bourbons.
A range of homemade products have also been developed, including sauces, smoke salt,BBQ kits and craft beers. All can be purchased (either at the restaurant itself or several shops throughout Brussels) and, to even if you do not have a 2-ton smoker in your kitchen, give you the chance to at least flavour your meat with, for example, the smoked salt.
The USP (unique selling point) of this delightful place is very much based on the traditional Texan BBQ, with low and slow cooking techniques in the aforementioned two-ton smoker which was specially imported to Brussels directly from Texas. The wood in the smoker can be burning for up to five days of the week and the smoke isn’t wasted, even being used for the salt.
Each cut of meat is smoked for hours to achieve exceptional tenderness and depth of flavour. It’s so tender you can eat it with your fingers. All meat cuts come along with homemade cornbread, coleslaw, pickles and homemade sauces
The owner Gabriel, originally from Paris, has relatives in Texas and, having travelled in America’s Deep South and sampled the smoked meat there decided, with his partner Agathe, to introduce the same concept in Brussels, his “adopted” home city.
A visit here is a chance to have a peak at a still-rare craft in Belgium (food cooked in wood smoke) and sample some of the tastiest Black Angus meat this side of, well, Texas.
The interior, set around an open kitchen/bar, is tastefully rustic and homely (there’s also a nice outdoor terrace) and the resto is located next door to Porte de Hall in Parvis de Saint-Gilles which is one of the most vibrant areas of the city.
The staff are equally nice, such as Nico, himself a former chef and originally from La Rochelle in France, who has been working here for four years after a short spell in Scotland (where, like the Texans, they also know a thing or two about good meat).
Should you wish to learn more, he (or Gabriel) will happily explain the smoking techniques, wood selection and cooking times. Closed on Monday and Tuesday.
Holy Smoke
9-10Avenue de la Porte de Hal, Brussels
02 503 6610
