Out and About: A Review of The Smokehouse by House of Blues Orlando

- Michelle Snow

Downtown Disney House of Blues The Smokehouse

One of my favorite places to eat at Downtown Disney is the House of Blues, so I was excited to hear they had opened a counter service restaurant out front called The Smokehouse.

Located in the small building that was formerly the ticket booth for the House of Blues concerts, The Smokehouse serves BBQ-meat sandwiches, smoked turkey leg, a hot dog, a few sides, and drinks.

Having enjoyed the pulled pork sandwich inside the sit-down area of House of Blues, my friend and I ordered that sandwich, along with the brisket sandwich, because we both love brisket.

Both sandwiches were served on a brioche bun, accompanied by a small cup of housemade cole slaw and a side of smoked tomato BBQ sauce.

Downtown Disney House of Blues The Smokehouse

We split both sandwiches and started with the Smoked Beef Brisket Sandwich ($11.99). The meat was ok, but nothing spectacular. We added the BBQ sauce (because the sandwich is served dry, you add your own sauce), and that helped give the sandwich more flavor. It was a sweet, smoky sauce, made with roasted tomatoes. Overall the sandwich was good, but we didn’t feel it was worth the $11.99 price tag.

Next was the Pulled Pork Sandwich. The ones we’d enjoyed inside were moist and full of flavor, even without sauce. This Smokehouse version was a major disappointment. It was a dry mound of meat on a bun that had very little flavor on its own. Adding the BBQ sauce helped, but it was nowhere near as good as the pulled pork sandwiches we’d had before at the House of Blues.

My friend and I agreed that while the food was ok, it certainly wasn’t worth the price, and was not as good as we expected it to be, given it’s from the House of Blues. Everything was just average.

Maybe The Smokehouse will improve with time – it just opened, after all. But neither of us has any desire to try anything else off the limited menu.

Sorry House of Blues…we’ll be dining inside next time.

About Michelle Snow

Michelle is the owner and editor of CitySurfing Orlando. She also owns Zengrrl.com, is a freelance writer specializing in travel and entertainment, and has authored/co-authored four guidebooks on Orlando and Florida. She lives in Orlando near Disney, and hears Magic Kingdom fireworks every night.
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