The Weekly Entrée 9-6
Smoke’n Dudes
Rating: 
Eventually, he got involved in barbecue competitions. As luck would have it, his son Bill had a serious love for cooking that took him to the Culinary Institute of America. After graduation, while at a competition, Bill recognized there was a business in selling barbecue to the attendees. Thus began Smoke’n Dudes, a family- owned and -operated business that sold lunches at festivals.
At first, it was a catering business located in Croydon, but they soon outgrew the building and found a gas station in Bensalem that had been vacant for 12 years. After extensive renovations, they opened a catering business with takeout.
As more customers requested seating, a small, pine-paneled area with five tables was opened. The décor is simple with rustic-looking chairs and a few pictures of children enjoying the wings and barbecue. This past February, a larger restaurant was opened in Bellmawr, N.J.
To prepare the meats, the Christines use a smoker large enough for 12 full-size pigs. The smoker is kept busy, as they smoke 35 to 40 pigs a week.
They estimate that at each competition, they serve 4,000 people. To handle this volume, as well as prepare for the competitions, they have a trailer fully outfitted as a kitchen with a smoker that holds six pigs.
When not competing, they keep three crews busy on weekends catering local affairs. They are also a distributor of Meadow Creek barbecue equipment and have applied for USDA licensure to be a meat processor.
Tom also teaches a barbecue class at the competition held in New Holland each August. I knew that the Christines compete along the length of the East Coast at Kansas City Barbecue Society events and regularly outperform stiff competition, so there was more than enough indication I was in for good food.
To get a good idea of the different meats, I ordered the sampler with two ribs, pulled pork and brisket served with hush puppies and two sides. I chose homemade potato salad and baked beans.
In keeping with the casual barbecue atmosphere, the food was served in a paper-lined plastic basket with plastic fork and knife.
I was amazed the brisket was tender enough to cut with the edge of the fork. It had a full flavor, as did the tasty sauce-slathered ribs and pulled pork.
The creamy potato salad, beans and well-seasoned hush puppies nicely rounded out my meal. My spouse had pot roast served over homemade smashed potatoes, which is a new item on the menu. The roast was prepared with the smoked brisket and combined with fresh vegetables in thick and flavorful gravy, giving this dish its unique characteristics.
While only one dessert is available, it is one that has drawn high praise.
This bread pudding is prepared by Tom’s wife, Barb. One taste and we understood why it had won such high honors. It was a large, warm piece of pudding loaded with cinnamon and raisins, covered with a creamy sauce. We were glad we had saved room for it.
These barbecue jockeys have worked hard in perfecting their meats, whether it’s the smoked beef and pork or the barbecued chicken to which they add their homemade sauces.
The immense amount of effort and resulting delicious barbecue gets an overall rating of AHHHHH (5) out of 5 AHs.
E-mail Jim Clark at weeklyentree@verizon.net.
Location: 5400 Neshaminy Blvd., Bensalem Ambience: Casual Cuisine: Kansas City barbecue Alcoholic Beverages: B.Y.O.B. Hours: Sunday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Tuesday to Thursday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Prices: Soups, salads, appetizers: $2.25 to $7.99; Wings, sandwiches: $6.49 to $27.99 Entrees: $9.99 to $20.99 Phone Number: 215-752-5500 Web site: www.smokendudesbbq.com
