Smoke Berkeley LLC, Oakland CA

This place is beautiful. The staff are amazing and the old location gives it so much soul. The signs in the bathroom are hilarious. My favorite side is the mac and cheese and it's so much better than other restaurants for similar prices.

I feel so bad I recently reviewed a smokehouse thinking it was this place!
THIS PLACE, (SMOKED BERKELEY), absolutely sucks not only was the person taking the order, rude and condescending, I had a smoked beef dish that was just dry as a bone and the side dishes and the beef were very expensive. Don't waste your time go elsewhere!

They've always had the best barbecue in Berkeley for the past 5 years or so.

They were 1st located on San Pablo Avenue by the old car wash place place.

We miss Tina we all called her Momma Tina and her sonShawn and the crew.

They are fantastic I hope she's OK.

Got the pulled pork sandwich with mac and cheese which was very good. But I also got the sweet potato pie which was.awful. It was really sour? My friends and I all took one bite and then threw it away. Everything else was great.

The drinks are great, but the staff is phenomenal! Friendly, responsive, and just all around great. Would definitely recommend.

Nice environment, it has changed a lot with the customers service The Meal was pretty good too

The restaurant is in the old Spat’s pub. The bbq here is tender and flavorful. I had the two meat plate option. This was more than enough for me. The meats are spiced just right. The potato salad was delicious (more on the smooth texture).

I am so glad Smoke found a new home, this BBQ spot is wonderful. All the meats are tender and flavorful, the ribs fall right off the bone, and the cornbread is special.

I placed a large catering order with Smoke Berkeley for my business group and hosted the gathering at a Berkeley park. My coworkers raved about the food, the portions were generous, and it was a pleasure working with the Smoke team. Chef Tina accommodated the vegetarians in my group with Smoke Tofu sandwiches and they couldn’t have been happier with the dish.

Thanks Chef Tina and team, we will definitely order from you again!

Got a large mixed order of ribs, brisket and lamb with several sides. Loved the ribs and brisket, both tender and juicy with good proportions BUT the lamb was so tough, it was almost inedible.

Dear Spats: I placed a big order of BBQ yesterday and the food was not what I expected. The brisket was dry, you used too much smoked flavor. The peach cobbler was no very peachy, cornbread lacked something it was blah. I do love BBQ but yours is not up to part with other places that I've tried. Please fine tune your seasonings and you'll do great.

Great place and rely friendly staff! The bbq sandwiches and meat by the pound are all great deals. Try the collard greens- Best in town

Brisket was not what I expected. I Ordered with door dash for pick up, so my husband picked it up. To be honest I am comparing you to another restaurant experience and I'm use to it being juicy not dry and there was a lot of fat on it. We also ordered the chicken and the links on a Saturday evening those options were also to dry. The mild sauce bbq had more of a vinegar flavor. I paid over $100 and it was not worth it for us.

Smoke Berkeley is up and running in their new location inside spats bar. They have delicious barbecue and awesome sides. I recommend the pulled pork sandwich and the side of spicy mac and cheese

Some good, some not so much.

I had extremely high hopes based on solid reviews, and a preliminary call to see if they had any non-meat offerings found an extremely friendly, up-front, and helpful staff member. My wife is on a plant based diet, and, though it may surprise some, we can find plant-based items at some BBQ restaurants. Smoke Berkeley doesn't have anything I'm aware of on their menu that would cover that need, but the staffer referred me to a nearby place that had something for her, and that earned me making it a point to stop by and pick up some of Smoke Berkeley's offerings.

I am told their brisket and ribs are what they are known for, so I focused on those. The brisket was good, but those coming here for brisket should be aware that they subscribe to the "leave the fat on" model - it was easily the thickest fat cap I've seen left on restaurant BBQ ever, and resulted in my 1/2# of brisket having a lot less of a full meal to it than expected. I am normally a "juicy part of the brisket" kinda guy, so, if it is too much fat for me, it's a lot of fat. Know that going in, and it's a good if less than stellar brisket.

The ribs turned out to be worth the hype. They had a solid amount of meat on the bone, and were tender enough for the meat to come off the bone easily while still being firm enough to eat from the bone if you choose.

I personally was not a fan of either BBQ sauce I tried, but I don't have to like a sauce to recognize sauces that are good for what they are trying to do. Their sauces seemed a very reasonable offering, although the sauce I was given as "sweet" was way too heavy on the vinegar to reasonably consider a sweet sauce.

Overall, it hasn't earned a spot as a "go to" BBQ place for me, but I will be back to give the brisket a second chance and to get more of those ribs.

PS: I also tried the sweet potato pie. I'm going to forego a real rating on that one though, as I have an out of state friend who runs a BBQ restaurant and serves up his grandmother's recipe for sweet potato pie. It is so amazing that I decided a while ago nothing measures up and no rating would be fair, so I just pass on it. ;)

Another great meal! I admit, I'm a west coast boy and may not know BBQ as well as others, but. I know what I like, and I LOVE THIS PLACE! The whole family does.miss the old location though, but some things in life just cannot be controlled.really enjoy talking with the folks there while they put my order together.can't wait for our next visit!

I really love their food and service, good location right next to my residence. The employees are always helpful. Highly recommended.

Tried this place before with a friend and I am hooked since then. I enjoy the fantastic character and tasty dishes and drinks. Great work.

I could not recommend this place any further. Sean, the owner, is friendly and makes you feel at home and the food is on point.

I haven’t been since they closed their spot on San Pablo, but their meats have gotten even better. You can clearly see the red smoked meat beneath the savory peppery crust. They do smoked pork belly too!

Mamma always said to eat your greens and their collard greens go down just as tasty as the meat.

If you’ve got a hankerin’ for BBQ, look no further. Support your local joints!