 CITY FLAME SMOKE HOUSE 363 Chestnut St., Manchester 622-6022
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Located at 363 Chestnut St., right next to the Manchester Police Station, City Flame Smoke House is owned by Ventz and Milena Simon, whose journey to a New Hampshire barbecue joint started in Bulgaria, where they were professional chefs. They moved here about nine years ago and knew they wanted to start their own place, but it wasn’t until two years ago that they decided barbecue was their calling.
There are many variations of barbecue throughout the world and especially in the United States, where purists differentiate barbecue from grilling: Barbecue uses indirect heat, while grilling uses direct heat. But even within barbecue there are variations; City Flame Smoke House specializes in hickory smoked, Memphis-style barbecue, (or barbeque, BBQ, bar-b-que and bar-b-q — even the name has variations!) which is also know as a dry rub barbecue. That means the sauce comes on the side and only touches the meat when the diner allows it to do so.
City Flame Smoke House offers all types of traditional barbecue fare such as BBQ sandwiches ($6.50); BBQ plates, which all come with two sides and corn bread ($6.50-$13); combination plates with two meats with two sides and corn bread ($13.50) or three meats with two sides and corn bread ($17.50); BBQ spaghetti ($8); chunky chili ($4) and family packs of all sizes to handle the hungry family large and small ($33-$61).
We wanted to try a little of everything that they make, so we ordered two of the City Flame Samplers ($27), each of which consists of a quarter-slab of St. Louis ribs, half a smoked chicken, smoked sausage, beef brisket, pulled pork, smoked turkey and our choice of two sides. We decided to try the BBQ beans, smoked sweet potato, and the cole slaw.
We were told that each sampler was good for one person, but one would have been plenty for both of us. We had lots of leftovers that lasted us through a good part of the week.
We sat down and started the tasting. The smoked chicken was moist and flavorful with the right amount of smoke, as was the smoked turkey. My dining companion said the smoked sausage was the best he’s ever tasted. He said it had nice spice with just the right amount of smokiness. He suggested this would probably be a good addition to the BBQ spaghetti (that’s a combination of barbecue and spaghetti sauces over pasta and pork, with sides of corn bread and cole slaw).
 Chef/owner Ventz Simon serves a plate of smoked turkey and brisket with red pepper salad, potato salad and cornbread at the City Flame Smokehouse in Manchester. (DAVID LANE photos/Union Leader) |
As for the sides, we both enjoyed the smoked sweet potato. The half of a sweet potato was a nice twist, both sweet and smoky at the same time. The cole slaw and beans both got thumbs up, and the roasted red pepper salad was delicious with just the right amount of vinegar to make it pop.
City Flame Smoke House is small — only about a half-dozen high-top tables — but clean and welcoming. You order at the counter and have an open view into the kitchen. It isn’t anything fancy, but the food is perfect for taking home and enjoying in front of a good movie, so either way you’ll be happy. The restaurant offers catering as well.
Overall, the City Smoke House scored well in our books. The food is good and the restaurant is a nice addition to downtown. Open just since October, we hope it has a bright future in the Queen City. We know we plan to return soon.
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