Smoke Shack BBQ

The fun about writing this blog is not just that I get to eat great food at a number of interesting restaurants, but also the many anecdotes that come out of some of my visits. These anecdotes tend to range from the treatment I received from a particular waitress, my having to send soup back a couple of times because it isn't hot or just about one of my dining companions. This is one of those times.

My buddy Gary was in town from NYC and hadn't had any good barbecue since he left Florida, so we decided to hit the Smoke Shack in Ormond Beach. I have written about the Smoke Shack before, so this is less about the food we had that day and more about one of our friends that joined us. Just as I was getting ready to leave the house to meet Gary, I decided to shoot a note to our friend Dan to see if he could meet us as well. He loves barbecue as much as we do and I knew if he could swing it, he would be there. I was a bit worried as this was the Friday of the Coca-Cola 400 weekend at Daytona International Speedway and thought he might be jammed-up with the race, but he was able to meet for lunch after all. Looking back, I am glad he did as once again, he didn't disappoint.

It is here that I should really break you down on the legend of our good friend. And please trust me when I tell you, he is a legend. A few years ago, a number of folks went to lunch one day at P.F. Chang's. Somebody noticed that one of the menu items was the Spicy Dan-Dan Noodles. From that day on, Dan was known as "Spicy." I'm not real sure he has really liked the nickname, but sometimes you just can't fight it and I think he has given up at this point. One of the things I have noticed is that most of our female friends still call him "Spicy", but many of us guys just simply call him "Spice." Whenever somebody brings up something about Dan, inevitably somebody will reply, "The Spice is nice!" He's just a great guy that brings a smile to every one's face when you think about him and all he has going on. The Spice name has bled over into his family with many of us affectionately referring to is wife as "The Spice Rack", his triplet daughters are "The Spice Girls" and his father is "Old Spice." So you see that it all works out and makes perfect sense.

My best way to describe Dan is to tell you he is the Asian George Costanza. He always has something going on that has him jammed-up. Like the time he called Animal Services and told them he had raccoons in his attic he needed them to come remove. They told him they don't remove raccoons, only alligators. He said, "Well, it might be an alligator." Or the time he was driving home from work in the rain and did a 180 spin that left him facing in the other direction only to see a cop sitting at the light looking right at him. Then there was the time he hit a curb in his new BMW and jacked-up the rim on his tire. He called the insurance company to tell them this should be covered, only to find out he would have to pay since he said he hit a curb and not a pothole. "That will be $1,200 please." I think you get the idea of what we are dealing with here.

I get to the Smoke Shack to find Gary had just arrived. Spice hadn't made it yet, so we hang out and wait for him before ordering. Spice finally gets there and says to us, "You guys are not going to believe what happened to me. I'll tell you when we get to the table." He jumps in line in front of us and orders his food. He didn't realize we were waiting for him and hadn't ordered yet. Gary and I place our orders and cannot wait to get to the table to find out what has happened to Spice.

We sit down and he proceeds to tell us that he was a little late joining us because he car wouldn't turn off. Seems something was going wrong with his car's electrical system and it wouldn't turn off. He cut his engine off and removed the key, but the radio and air conditioning still continued to run. But, in typical Spice fashion, he came on into the restaurant to eat and just let it run.

Spice ordered pulled pork and Gary and I ordered some monster sandwich that was comprised of beef brisket, pulled pork, cole slaw, shredded cheddar cheese and jalapenos. I had the macaroni and cheese as well as the baked beans as my sides. Their mac-n-cheese is really good, but their beans have a surprise in that they add small chunks of pineapple to give the beans a sneaky, sweet flavor. They are really good. The sandwich I had was incredibly tasty and quite filling. Don't order this sandwich if you are not really hungry. You'll kick yourself for having to throw away all of that good stuff. The brisket and pork were tender and had a great smoky flavor. The jalapenos added a nice kick. This is by far, the best barbecue available in the Daytona Beach/Ormond Beach area.

I hope Dan is not upset about this post being mainly about him and I appreciate your taking the time to read it. For this visit to the Smoke Shack, including the great food and great company, I have to give them five Stiffy's.

Eat, drink and be merry!

Harry