Smokin’ Q’s was closed at the end of 2023 and a new Italian concept called Cuoco Bello was opened in this space.
We decided to try Smokin’ Q’s in Mayfield, OH. The address listed has it listed as a Cleveland address but I do believe it is actually Mayfield. Their outdoor patio is at the front of the restaurant and looks out over Route 91. The inside of the restaurant is split up into a dining area and a bar area. A little hint we learned when we went is during happy hour you must sit in the bar area to get the happy hour prices, but it is well worth it. They have half off drafts, wine, and appetizers Monday thru Friday 3PM to 6PM. They do a daily special and lunch sandwich specials.
We have been here twice now, the first time trying their BBQ and sitting on the patio. The second time for Taco Tuesday and we sat in the bar area. The restaurant is separated into 2 sections inside, a dining area and the bar area that has some tables. The patio is on the front of the restaurant and has a nice fireplace for our chilly weather we can get in Cleveland. Their patio is also dog friendly. You do need to walk through the restaurant to get to the patio, but we saw patrons both times with dogs and it did not seem to be a problem.
Lets start with drinks. We decided to try some of their house cocktails. The first was the TexasSweet Tea which consisted of whiskey, peaches, ginger beer and lemon. It was sweet just as the name suggests but not over the top sweet. Next we tried the Higher Ground which consisted on Gin, cucumber, citrus, and simple soda. I am not much of a Gin fan but this was very refreshing and I would get it again. They also carry mostly local beers. Pictured above is the Market Garden Prosperity Wheat, which is a great light beer for summer time in Cleveland.
Now on to food and their main menu/BBQ items. They have a good sized menu which consists of sandwiches, tacos, house specialties, meats that can be put together in combo platters and salads. We tried their BBQ Chicken Quesadilla, BBQ Brisket Poutine, Baked Mac and cheese and Crispy Brussels sprouts. I didn’t get to try the BBQ Chicken Quesadilla but my friend seemed to really enjoy it. It comes with house sauce, red onions, pickles, Monterrey jack cheese and the chicken of course. It sounded to me like a bbq chicken sandwich in a tortilla, which sounds so amazing.
I ordered the BBQ Brisket Poutine and it was a huge portion. They use their house bbq sauce as the gravy with cheese curds and brisket over the fries. The brisket was not fatty at all, had great flavor and there was tons on top. The pickles were light and airy, tasting more like a cucumber but they worked really well with the other ingredients. I like that the dish was not over powering with the bbq sauce and you could still taste the flavors of everything else, but it still had enough on top for the whole meal.
We also tried the Mac and Cheese and the Crispy Brussel Sprouts. The Mac and Cheese is made with flat noodles almost like lasagna noodles but they are just smaller, Gouda, Pepperjack and Colby cheeses. I enjoyed the combination of cheeses and they gave the dish some great flavor. The noodles were different and I’m not sure they were my favorite but I appreciate using a different noodle to make your Mac and cheese stand out and it is a dish I would get again. The crispy Brussels are flavored with a horseradish sauce and lime. I like the slight spice the horseradish gave the Brussels and the fresh taste from the lime. The texture of these was perfect.
The second time we visited we went for Taco Tuesday. They do have margarita specials and $3 tacos on Tuesdays as well as their happy hour specials. We tried the Quesomole, which is house queso, and mixed in is the guacamole, fajita peppers and onions. They serve fresh chips with this dip and some additional salsas. I honestly would have never thought of mixing all these ingredients together but they all worked really well.
Now on to the tacos. So I enjoyed that these had some different meat options that were more BBQ themed and that they were different than most tacos. They really fill up the taco with the ingredients and I was shocked at how full they were when they came out. There are a couple options on the menu I didn’t try that I would like to go back and try. The truth is I was not 100% happy with my options. I tried the Pescado and the El Veggie. The El Veggie was fabulous it had cauliflower, peppers, guac, black bean, and corn salsa with salsa verde, pico, cotija, and slaw. This taco had tons of flavor including the cauliflower, which had a lot of flavor as well. My only suggestion I would have liked the cauliflower be cut into smaller pieces and more cotija. The cauliflower was in bigger pieces and it was hard to get a full bite of all the ingredients in the taco. The Pescado was my other choice and had hot smoked salmon, guac, slaw, black bean corn salsa, pico, and lime-horseradish creme. I have tons of friends that swear by this taco and were the reason I was like we must try tacos here but for me it just didn’t do it. Salmon normally is a very light fish with none to very slight fishy flavor and one of my favorite fish dishes. The salmon on this taco was more on the fishy side and I felt like I couldn’t really taste any of the other flavors that should have been in the taco. I would go back and try it again as it may have just been a fluke. One of my friends also ordered the Texas Cheesesteak taco and said it was amazing. It consists of brisket, fajita peppers, queso, jalapeños, and pico. She said the brisket was cooked perfectly and the taco had great flavor.
I really enjoyed some of the different options on Smoking Q’s menu and the way they interpret certain items. Where I say the noodles in the Mac were maybe not my favorite. I love that they took a dish so many restaurants have and made it there own by using a different noodle and different combination of cheeses. The brisket both times was cooked to perfection and I can’t wait to go back and try some other options both in the taco section and the bbq section.