Walking into The Big Smoke Bistro is a startling experience. The restaurant opens onto a light-filled room, then veers into a cavernous dining space that evokes smoky leather and the Old West. The Big Smoke specializes in South American-style barbecued dishes.
One of its signature dishes is the eight-hour applewood fried pork (RMB 68), featuring meat from a whole pig cooked over an Argentinian wood-fired barbecue called an asado. According to Chef Juan Pablo Seade (known as Chef JP), sharing is the best way to experience The Big Smoke’s menu. For a table of two, it’s recommended to order two or three side dishes and one or two mains. One of their newest creations is the falling-off-the-bone Big Smoke Ribs (RMB 72), which are braised in a soy-based sauce for six hours. On Rib Thursdays, every order of ribs comes with a side of creamy truffle macaroni and cheese from Uncle Otis, The Big Smoke’s adjacent sister establishment. The more health-conscious can stick with salads, such as a baby spinach and shaved prosciutto salad with toasted pine nuts, crumbled feta, roma tomatoes, and olives (RMB 42). Mom and Dad can try Manager Gordon Kutil’s carefully-crafted specialty cocktails (RMB 50-75), incuding the zesty GK Old Fashioned and refreshing Moscow Mule.
Mon-Fri 11.30am-midnight, Fri-Sat 11.30am-late. Lee World Building (down the alley from Frost Nails), 57 Xingfucun Zhonglu, Chaoyang District (6416 5195) 朝阳区幸福村中路57号利世楼
This article is excerpted from the beijingkids December 2012 issue. View it in PDF form here or contact distribution@beijing-kids.com to find out where you can pick up your free copy.