Review: Green Street Smoked Meats

My love for the West Loop may be a little biased, but you can't deny its foodie presence in Chicago. Randolph Street's "Restaurant Row" has been banging out hit after hit, and we can now add Green Street Meats to the list of "must try" in the neighborhood. It also happens to share an ally with one of my favorite spots - RM Champagne. Green Street Meats is unique to the area - it's inexpensive and you can go there for a quick bite or drink while still having a cool atmosphere. It's like the upscale trying to be hipster version of Freddy's (for those with a perplexed look, google "House of Cards", and get with it yo). Basically they have BBQ in common...

This ally is now full of large picnic tables - ready for dining al fresco. Seriously CAN NOT WAIT.

You enter and hit a fork in the road. Do we find a table...do we order...where is the bar...

The answer: divide and conquer. Struan went in line to order our food while I grabbed a spot at the bar to get drinks. Whiskey seemed like the right call for our BBQ dinner.

Or grab a cold one

We sat at the bar and ate, but there are plenty of communal tables around. I just really didn't feel like sitting with other people...

You order by the half pound - we went with pulled pork, brisket and ribs. All were excellent. Pulled pork was probably our favorite (we ordered extra in anticipation of this) and I thought the brisket was really good with the burnt ends. And it's healthy because there are no carbs...right?! There are also a couple of sandwich options, although they do give you slices of white bread with the meat. Real down home. The menu also includes cold sides, your basic picnic fare like coleslaw, potato salad, macaroni salad, etc. We ordered the broccoli salad and it brought me back to childhood. My mom would make that for summer BBQs all of the time.

I have a feeling I will be making quite a few visits to Green Street Meats in the near future. Those outdoor picnic tables are calling my name.