KINsmoke

photo by Patrick

KINsmoke, Lunch, Healdsburg
July 10, 2016

P:
"The Chopper" Sandwich - Pork shoulder & brisket, KIN BBQ Sauce, Costeaux plain white roll

J:
Smoked Chicken and White Sandwich - Thigh and leg meat, Alabama white sauce, sliced sweet pickle, Costeaux plain white roll

Sides to share:
Frickles & Buttermilk Ranch
Drunken Hush Puppies and Cajun Remoulade
Bourbon Baked Beans
Granny Smith Apple & Horseradish Slaw


Notes:
We ended up in Healdsburg with the intention of going to a New-Orleans-style place for brunch but it was closed by the time we got there.  Instead, we headed into town and picked a barbecue place for lunch.

KINsmoke is trying to be too many things to too many people, but the food was good, so I'll limit the following rant to three sentences.  This is one of those places where you walk in, order at the counter, they give you a number, you sit down and they bring your food to the table.  Except here, you don't pay until the end of the meal, in what seems a thinly-veiled attempt to get the guests to tip for full service at the end of the meal (even when they did not receive full-service), which in my conspiracy-theorist mind allows the business to pay their people less and somehow everybody is happy (except me).  Moving on.

I'd never had white barbecue sauce before, but I'd heard of it and they had it so I ordered it.  White barbecue sauce is mayonnaise based and flavored with vinegar and horseradish (among other things), and man, is it good.  When used as a basting sauce, the "white" melts away and you're left with a super-moist, zippy-flavored piece of meat.  In this case, the meat (being chicken) was also smoked, bordering on a little too heavily, but it was still good.  Juicy, smokey dark meat stacked on that buttery, toasted white bun with sweet pickles and extra white sauce made for a damn good sandwich.

Patrick's sandwich was a heap of brisket and pulled pork doused in their house barbecue sauce, tangy and a little sweet.  He liked it well enough, the meats were flavorful and moist, and proportions were right, though he added a little more sauce from time to time.

The sides were all pretty good.  Patrick liked the beans, despite them being favored with bourbon.  I really liked the cold slaw, it was crunchy, a little creamy, not too sweet, and that horseradish zing was pleasing.  The frickles (fried pickles) were nicely done; the cornmeal coating was thin but sturdy, perfect for dipping into freshly made buttermilk ranch.  The marble-sized hush puppies were savory and not overly dense; the remoulade was a delicious dip for these and the pickles.


As pleased as we were with the food, I'm not sure we'd go back.  The prices were reasonable (which stands to reason since they don't seem to use "happy" meat), but I was irritated by the whole payment/tipping thing, and there are so many more places to try in Healdsburg...