TheSmoke

The Friday Montreal smoked meat sandwich on TheSmoke's menu is cured in-house over twenty-one days, then smoked and steamed before it lands on rye with mustard and pickles. The feature runs Fridays only and turns over in limited quantities, and it is the simplest read on what TheSmoke is — a Collingwood smokehouse built around the slowest version of every cooking step it can find. Chef Cam Dyment owns the kitchen, cooks the kitchen, and pits the kitchen; the smokers are electric, the pellets are hickory, the brisket and ribs sit on long holds, and the cuts that need a second cook see sous-vide before they hit a plate. TheSmoke has been doing this on First Street since 2012.

The board reads as a working smokehouse list. Smoked beef brisket, smoked back ribs, pulled pork, and smoked BBQ wings carry the core. The Wholly Cow brisket burger stacks an eight-ounce smoked chuck patty under four ounces of brisket with drunken onions, mushrooms, cheddar, and house barbecue sauce. The Cowboy Spud is a baked potato that carries the smoked meats from the rest of the board. Beef Brisket Nachos arrive over tricoloured tortilla chips with barbecue beans, and the Saturday French Onion Brisket Sandwich runs chopped brisket under smoked cheddar with drunken onions and mushrooms and a parmesan finish. Even dessert moves through the smoker — smoked banana before churning becomes the ice cream, and the smoked apple crisp pairs against it without competing.