looloo rendezvoos - Holy Smokes BBQ (Makati City)

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Okay, taking advantage of the holidays to deal with my restaurant reviews backlog, before I completely forget everything...

As I have said time and again, I am not  a fan of barbecued meats in general. It's not something that I crave for when it's not there, and I have always used to think that there are better ways to cook a slab of meat than to place it directly over burning wood or charcoal. But when I do have the chance to try some really good smoked meats? Oh heck, not only do I honestly enjoy them, I will even tell you where you can find them.

It's at Holy Smokes BBQ. They know how not to waste those beautiful meats and poultry, moreover turning them into masterpieces from the grill to the table.

Holy Smokes BBQ is tucked away at a more hidden enclave in Makati's Poblacion area. Being not familiar with Poblacion, I felt like a lab rat going through a maze, as the area was mostly residential mixed with some inconspicuous-looking commercial establishments.

I thought the place used to be a residential property because of the immediate homey feel that it exuded as I was stepping into the premises. At the far end of the porch there was a nice stack of wood at the outdoor dining area, so it added a rustic feel to it (and I was happy to learn that they smoke their meats outside the building, and that's how a barbecue should really be). Truly a hidden gem in Makati. I was fortunate to be invited to this looloo rendezvoos last month as it allowed me to what Holy Smokes BBQ had to offer.

Handsome and high-quality meats were thoroughly and painstakingly smoked in American-style BBQ in the course of over 12 hours. They really put all their energy and love into all their efforts, and result was delicious, tender smoked masterpieces that were also well-balanced in terms of flavor. The sides were stars as well.

Smoked meats, poultry and fish:

🔸 Beef brisket - I thought this was Holy Smokes BBQ's "piece de resistance" and it was a top favorite of mine. Holy Smokes BBQ showed us how a perfectly smoked meat was done -- gorgeously blackened crust on the outside, nice and uniform rosy pinkness on the inside, juicy, extremely tender and with a right amount of melts-in-your-mouth fat. Might be a bit too salty to my taste buds, but I could balance it with their milder-flavored sides to offset some of the saltiness.

🔸Pork ribs - I liked the shape of the cuts, as they were not the usual spareribs that you can find from the major supermarkets. These were big ribs. They were juicy, not dry, not too bland nor too salty (unlike the beef brisket), not exactly fall-off-the-bones tender as I had expected but the tenderness was otherwise spot-on.

🔸 Chicken - I was surprised at the size of the chicken. The portions were unusually big and the chicken itself was plump -- I thought they were a bit too plump to me that I initially had doubts whether they would render themselves tasteless because of the size. But another surprise -- nope, they were in fact quite flavorful. Really nice and tender too.

🔸 Bacon - Who doesn't love bacon? Holy Smokes' slabs of bacon were mouthwatering at first look. Fat and meat were well-balanced and the flavors were on the mark.

🔸 Grilled Mahi-Mahi with Grilled Pineapple Salsa - This was also one of my most favorites there. In addition to pineapple salsa, it also came with a cilantro lime cream sauce. My first time to try mahi-mahi -- it was light, flaky, smoky, soft and flavorful. I sprinkled my portion with some lemon zest (as I like my fish to have some fruity sourness to it, like kalamansi zest to my fried galunggong or tilapia).

Part of the reason why I'm not a fan of BBQ'd meats is the sweet sauces that are traditionally paired with it. Fortunately, Holy Smokes BBQ offered other sauce options like the spicy and tangy in addition to sweet. I liked the tangy one the most, second was the spicy and the least favorite was the sweet.


Sides:

🔹 Jalapeno Poppers - It was an unfortunate time for me to eat spicy things like this because I was on the verge of having a sore throat, and I was already coughing a lot (I was a bit of an embarrassment at the time). Too bad I like spicy things. So I was able to eat only morsels of these japaleno poppers which were really, really good.

🔹 Onion rings - They were not like the other fried onion rings I have tried, wherein the fried batter coating would come apart from the onion rings themselves, and they usually end up soggy. With Holy Smokes' onion rings, the coating itself was soild but crunchy and crusty, and so, so flavorful. The rings were not soggy too, they remained crispy throughout. No wonder this was the crowd favorite, and they were finished within seconds even before they were brought to our table.

🔹 Sweet potato tater tots - They were also a favorite of mine. The coating used for the tater tots was the same they used for the onion rings. I thought they did not alter the natural sweetness of the "kamote", which was a good thing, but the flavorful coating added an "oomph" to it.

🔹7-Layered Nachos - Good for eight people. Those were some of the most loaded nachos I have ever seen. Chili con carne, tomatoes, onions, sour cream, cheese sauce, jalapenos and beef brisket spread between layers of corn chips. Good with beer (okay, I don't drink beer, but still...)

🔹Chili con carne - ground beef, kidney beans and cheese on a chili sauce. This was good, and being at home with dishes with "heat," I enjoyed it.

🔹 Cajun Rice - As I am a rice person, this was the perfect side to my meats, poultry and fish. It had just the right spice and flavor on its own, while never overpowering the main dishes.

🔹Elote-style steamed corn - This Mexican-style dish's main ingredient was the grilled corn shredded from the cob, mixed with mayonnaise or cream, chili powder and other ingredients. Add it with lime zest for an additional kick!

🔹Blue Cheese Coleslaw - I make no secret about my hatred towards blue cheese -- they taste like old socks to me (sorry, not a gourmet diner). But fortunately, this coleslaw had only subtle hints of the blue cheese as they craftily enhanced this dish with other flavorings.

🔹Mac N' Cheese - classic mac n' cheese.


Desserts:

🔸 Turtle pie - while it was a favorite of the majority, to me it was just okay. In fact, I found the crust a bit too hard to the bite (I even found the turtle pie from a local cafe, Uggy Cafe, even better than this).

🔸 Corn donuts - My most favorite of the desserts bunch. I may not know what the others were comparing the donuts to, but they were good. They came with an unusual partner -- the salted egg dip -- I am not a fan of anything with salted egg, but this turned out to be very good. A must try.

Holy Smokes BBQ location is well away from the more bustling areas in Makati. To those who want to genuinely enjoy good food while avoiding the crowds, Holy Smokes BBQ is the perfect place. Plus, the place is just beside Joe's Brewery and we were in fact served with some of their craft beers (I don't drink beer though, I only had a glass of red wine).

Thank you to the owners of Holy Smokes BBQ and to looloo for this sponsored event!