Local Smoke BBQ - Red Bank - Red Bank, New Jersey

Chris M.

2 stars cause my wife loved the pulled chicken and my brother in law enjoyed his sandwich. The pulled pork however was dry and rough, just not good at all. To be honest I thought it was chicken at first glance before I even opened the pulled chicken. Just expect better for what I paid. Was even worse after being reheated. Not sure if this was just leftover from the day before but it didn’t seem fresh at all. I used to come here all the time but ever since they rebranded there has been an increase in prices and a dip in quality.

Thomas L.

This is my first and last visit here.

The girl at the counter had no personality and was super basic.

The food took forever to arrive. The customers behind me got their meals before me.

The mac n cheese was made with canned cheese. If I wanted canned mac n cheese, I would have gotten Stoffers at the supermarket. The ribs were meaty and juicy. I'm not a fan.

Joey B.

BLUFF- ribs and brisket are where it’s at (4.5). Pulled pork and sides are mediocre at best(3).
A bit overpriced
Overall 3.6

Nice restaurant. Friendly staff with good recommendations. The brisket and the ribs were recommended as the best things on the menu. I went ahead and got the pulled pork because I always like to see how a barbecue joint does their pulled pork as well. Should’ve listened to the staff and just stuck with the ribs and the brisket.

Ordered the three meat combo. Brisket, ribs, pulled pork, hot, and ordered two sides, which were à la carte (coleslaw and the mac & cheese). Also also ordered cornbread.
Was a bit disappointed that the sides and cornbread weren’t included in any meal option. They were all à la cart. Felt like the prices were a bit on the high side and some small sides or cornbread would be included. But no dice.

Regarding my order:

Brisket was tender and moist. Decent portion size. A win for sure.

Ribs were really well cooked and tasty. Not too much sauce and the meat was really tender. It definite win.

Pulled pork was a fail imho. Drenched in their Carolina bbq sauce. Would prefer for it to come out dry and allow the customer to add the sauce that they wanted. Almost felt soggy. Unpleasant.

Coleslaw also a fail. Probably one of the worst long coleslaw I’ve had. Completely mushy. I don’t have many texture issues with food and I certainly didn’t expect it with coleslaw but this one definitely was not pleasant to eat, so much so that after a couple bites to taste it, I couldn’t stomach anymore and left the 90% full side container on the tray.

Mac n cheese was decent. Nothing to write home about but not horrible either.

Cornbread was good. Definitely the top winner in the “sides“ category.

Overall, if visiting this bbq establishment I would stick to the staff recommendations of brisket and ribs. And throw in some cornbread. Leave the rest alone.

BBQ sauces

Felicia Y. D.

I am only giving this a one star because I cannot go lower. I ordered through Uber Eats on 03.25. 2025. As I travel for work I try to try local restaurants for dinner. I ordered a brisket sandwich without bread, coleslaw, fries and cornbread. The brisket was extremely hard as it had been warmed over several times, the fries were hard and the cornbread tasted like cake it was so sweet. The only part of the meal that was somewhat tasty was the coleslaw. I hardly ever give reviews but this was worth mentioning considering the $36 price tag.

Ryan C.

This is still the best BBQ in the state and many others. It's hard to find better BBQ even in Dallas. But my guys, that new menu UI is not doing you any service. It's overly busy, confusing, and the wrong parts are emphasized while others are in fine print. I knew exactly what I wanted to order (from coming in over the years), but struggled to figure out how.

I don't do Google reviews, I don't think I ever have before this. And I love you guys and am obviously going to keep coming in. But please reevaluate that menu layout for the folk who don't already know how good your food is

Michael S.

My daughter and I went to Local Smoke on a Monday because our preferred bbq spot, Mostly Smoked, is closed on Monday and Tuesday. We were sorely disappointed. The brisket was DRY. All lean, no fatty portion. And flavorless. The BBQ sauce wasn’t very good either. The only thing that made it edible was the bbq sauce from MS. The mac and cheese also was just bad and wrong. Not creamy at all. Even the fries were super salty and not great. Overall this was a big miss for us. From now on we’ll just wait until Wednesdays when Mostly Smoked is open to get our bbq fix.

Brando T.

My first experience here was an unfortunate disappointment. The first meal I began with was the Mac n cheese. It tasted artificial and chalky which lowered my expectations for the other dishes I ordered. Next was their most expensive burger, and not only was it expensive, it was dry and flavorless even with all the toppings on it. Their Easton hotdog was not only overpriced, but underwhelming. The pickle on the dog overpowered all the other toppings and the hotdog itself. Their brisket was dry and bland. Their turkey was nothing special, it was just another bland dry dish like the previous meals. Ironically, the wings with the dry rub tasted the best with it's sweet flavor. It's a shame, because I had heard so many good things about this place.

Sonja L.

Local Smoke BBQ (Red Bank) catered our company BBQ for 100+ people. Amazing all around! The caterer arrived early (he's great btw), helped organize and set everything up. We ordered quite a bit from the menu as we wanted to try it all and each dish was more delicious than the next. Everything had SO much flavor and was so satisfying - from appetizers to smoked entrees to the sides. Everyone said so. Thanks LSBBQ, we're already looking forward to our next event!!