I like it here, great food & service. The service was friendly and observant. Prices are fair I would say. Ambience reminds me of San Diego's scene.
Gregory Thurston
This place rocks!(ed?) I always stopped here for sampler plate on drive from SLO to LA. The meat was marvelously tender and flavorful and contrasted well with the pickled sides. Stopped by today for a bit and it was totally cleared out with no forwarding address!
Scott Beatty
Only reviewing because this place is ridiculously underrated. As a native Virginian with exposure to very high quality BBQ, this place is the real freaking deal.
Sikun LIN
Meat is really so so... Good sauce tho
Joaquin Resasco
Bad food and overpriced
Brea C.
My friend and I were walking past all the restaurants in the Public Market trying to figure out what to get. Two things made me decide on Soul Cal Smokehouse--the AXXESS deal for buy one food item get the second free, and the AMAZINNGGGGG smell of the meat smoking. Wow oh WOW did it smell amazing and then taste even better. My friend and I both got the Pulled Pork sandwich with 1 side of fries. Fries had a garlic and pepper kick to it and we could not stop eating them...despite being full from eating the entire sandwich. Pulled pork was so fresh and JUICY with a rich smokey (I mean has to right?) flavor, topped with coleslaw (which I think had a pickled cucumber in it?).
Sharon S.
Omg! The brisket... with the pickles! Amazing!!! Just so happy right now! Thanks Clark!
Michael H.
Skip this place. BBQ in Santa Barbara is generally poor and this place is no exception. Buddy of mine and myself ordered the variety plate and the chicken, ribs, and pulled pork were a complete joke. Dry, badly seasoned, poorly executed food. It was so bad we didn't even eat most of the meat, as seen in the attached picture. The one saving grace was the brisket, so I went to order more of it with an Axxess deal. The brisket combo is $16, which is one dollar more than their BOGO Axxess deal max. No problem, right? They'd probably just take $15 off the cost. However, the cashier said this wasn't possible and when he asked someone else behind the counter, they loudly exclaimed that they would "absolutely not" do that and offered no alternative options. Seriously? I simply said "we're going somewhere else" and left. My friends couldn't believe it when I told them how it played out. TOTAL miss for both the food and service. Let this one die off like all of the other mediocre restaurants that the Public Market has chewed up and spat out since it opened. Go to Empty Bowl or Corazon instead.
Diana W.
I've had these baby back ribs twice in two weeks. The smoke is perfect and I love the rub. They don't skimp on the portions here-- we got the three "small" sides for $10 between two of us and couldn't finish. The Mac and cheese was comfort food perfection, the potato salad was savory with a good amount of crunchy texture and the baked beans were amazing!! Sweet and smoky and yummmm. Lastly, my friend had the pulled pork sandwich and even with ribs on the brain, I'll get the sandwich next time. I'd recommend one sandwich plus the 3 sides for 2 people unless you're super hungry. Great value. Don't miss this back corner of the market.
Lenore C.
To write a review after only one visit doesn't seem 'complete' somehow -- and yet I don't get up to Santa Barbara all that often these days and so my Brisket Sandwich will have to suffice. Brisket. So easy to screw up and make tough it's often served VERY THIN and drowned in sauce. So as long as the sauce rocks you could eat an old pair of heels you wore at your wedding. The brisket wasn't sliced thin. It wasn't drowned in sauce. So either these thick tabs of brisket were going to be THICK and DRY or I was about to become very happy. The brisket was moist and tender. Very easy to eat as offered (sandwich). But it was a tad dry. Not the meat, but the experience. I recommend picking a BBQ sauce you like and putting some on the roll, which had none. Then put a little on at a time. So when you're about to take a bit, drip some of that goodness on. I do with this with green sauce and burritos and the same magic was worked here. I'll be back. I wish a jaw-dropping cole slaw was readily offered as a side instead of french fries, which for a sandwich this dense is too much. Best of luck Soul Cal Smokehouse. I'll be back. BY THE BY -- You're in a HIPSTER food court and so I want to recommend a simple name for your place. SBBQ. Done.
I had the pork belly and the brisket with fries and beans. My husband had the sampler. The meat is amazing! The quick pickles they give were my favorite part of the meal. I wasn't a fan of the beans, they had weird ingredients and it was too sweet. The pork belly was good, but I could have had it with a little more crust on it. The brisket fell apart in my mouth and had the proper seasoning. The fries were crispy and yummy! My husband said the ribs were very well cooked and seasoned. This is definitely a place I would come back to. It is nestled in the back of this "open market" where there are several choices of food to chose from.
Nathan Vonk
Some of the best pulled pork I've ever ordered from a restaurant. The ribs and brisket were good, but the pork was great.
Jesse Nguyen
Hands down the worst mac & cheese I've ever had. Their sampler plate was as minimal as the choice of stars that I could give and the meat was mediocre at best. The BBQ sauce was delicious but could not save the lack of flavor of anything in the plate and the only thing in abundance was the cardboard french fries that they conveniently decided not to salt. Save your wallet and time.
Josh C.
First time was great, but second time I should have stuck with their actual BBQ. Their chicken sandwich looks better than it tastes. Here I thought I would get a nice juicy piece of chicken breast or thigh...instead it was a few strips of heavily battered strips of chicken wrapped in a large bun. Pickled toppings make it ok. Stick with their BBQ.
Kristoffer P.
Met some friends at the SB public market for dinner Wednesday night, and decided to eat here. I'm a s***** for smoked bbq, and been wanting to try this place out. I ordered a half pound of smoked baby back ribs, and 20 wings (Wing Wednesday special, $1 per wing) spoke with one of the workers there, and he said they use oak to smoke their meats. He also said that they brine the wings first then smoke them. As an amateur bbq smoker myself, I was excited to try the goods! First up, the baby back ribs. The meat was very tender, one bite and fall off the bone kind of ribs. They dont sauce the ribs up, and have them offered on the side. I chose the spicy bbq and coffee bbq sauces, both were good, but I preferred au natural for the ribs, can get a better taste and smoke flavor, and the ribs didnt disappoint. The smoke wasnt overwhelming, but present. The meat had a good meat/fat ratio which made it tender and succulent. Overall, They were tasty! The only knock I'd have to point out, was that they weren't hot(temp) enough and was just warm. The wings. Wow. Very delicious and on wednesdays, just $1 per wing! As usual, I opted to have the sauce on the side and glad I went that route! These wings had a slight crisp to it, not too fried crispy, but still a very slight crunch to it. The meat was tender, juicy and HOT(temp) I waited a few mins before I could touch them. The wing sauce on the side was ok, tasted more on the spicier side, and a good compliment to the wings. I ate more than half the wings dry, with no sauce. Overall, I'm Pretty stoked to have this place near my house, and will be back next wednesday for these delicious wings!
I like it here, great food & service. The service was friendly and observant. Prices are fair I would say. Ambience reminds me of San Diego's scene.
This place rocks!(ed?) I always stopped here for sampler plate on drive from SLO to LA. The meat was marvelously tender and flavorful and contrasted well with the pickled sides. Stopped by today for a bit and it was totally cleared out with no forwarding address!
Only reviewing because this place is ridiculously underrated. As a native Virginian with exposure to very high quality BBQ, this place is the real freaking deal.
Meat is really so so... Good sauce tho
Bad food and overpriced
My friend and I were walking past all the restaurants in the Public Market trying to figure out what to get. Two things made me decide on Soul Cal Smokehouse--the AXXESS deal for buy one food item get the second free, and the AMAZINNGGGGG smell of the meat smoking. Wow oh WOW did it smell amazing and then taste even better. My friend and I both got the Pulled Pork sandwich with 1 side of fries. Fries had a garlic and pepper kick to it and we could not stop eating them...despite being full from eating the entire sandwich. Pulled pork was so fresh and JUICY with a rich smokey (I mean has to right?) flavor, topped with coleslaw (which I think had a pickled cucumber in it?).
Omg! The brisket... with the pickles! Amazing!!! Just so happy right now! Thanks Clark!
Skip this place. BBQ in Santa Barbara is generally poor and this place is no exception. Buddy of mine and myself ordered the variety plate and the chicken, ribs, and pulled pork were a complete joke. Dry, badly seasoned, poorly executed food. It was so bad we didn't even eat most of the meat, as seen in the attached picture. The one saving grace was the brisket, so I went to order more of it with an Axxess deal. The brisket combo is $16, which is one dollar more than their BOGO Axxess deal max. No problem, right? They'd probably just take $15 off the cost. However, the cashier said this wasn't possible and when he asked someone else behind the counter, they loudly exclaimed that they would "absolutely not" do that and offered no alternative options. Seriously? I simply said "we're going somewhere else" and left. My friends couldn't believe it when I told them how it played out. TOTAL miss for both the food and service. Let this one die off like all of the other mediocre restaurants that the Public Market has chewed up and spat out since it opened. Go to Empty Bowl or Corazon instead.
I've had these baby back ribs twice in two weeks. The smoke is perfect and I love the rub. They don't skimp on the portions here-- we got the three "small" sides for $10 between two of us and couldn't finish. The Mac and cheese was comfort food perfection, the potato salad was savory with a good amount of crunchy texture and the baked beans were amazing!! Sweet and smoky and yummmm. Lastly, my friend had the pulled pork sandwich and even with ribs on the brain, I'll get the sandwich next time. I'd recommend one sandwich plus the 3 sides for 2 people unless you're super hungry. Great value. Don't miss this back corner of the market.
To write a review after only one visit doesn't seem 'complete' somehow -- and yet I don't get up to Santa Barbara all that often these days and so my Brisket Sandwich will have to suffice. Brisket. So easy to screw up and make tough it's often served VERY THIN and drowned in sauce. So as long as the sauce rocks you could eat an old pair of heels you wore at your wedding. The brisket wasn't sliced thin. It wasn't drowned in sauce. So either these thick tabs of brisket were going to be THICK and DRY or I was about to become very happy. The brisket was moist and tender. Very easy to eat as offered (sandwich). But it was a tad dry. Not the meat, but the experience. I recommend picking a BBQ sauce you like and putting some on the roll, which had none. Then put a little on at a time. So when you're about to take a bit, drip some of that goodness on. I do with this with green sauce and burritos and the same magic was worked here. I'll be back. I wish a jaw-dropping cole slaw was readily offered as a side instead of french fries, which for a sandwich this dense is too much. Best of luck Soul Cal Smokehouse. I'll be back. BY THE BY -- You're in a HIPSTER food court and so I want to recommend a simple name for your place. SBBQ. Done.
Restaurantji Recommends
I had the pork belly and the brisket with fries and beans. My husband had the sampler. The meat is amazing! The quick pickles they give were my favorite part of the meal. I wasn't a fan of the beans, they had weird ingredients and it was too sweet. The pork belly was good, but I could have had it with a little more crust on it. The brisket fell apart in my mouth and had the proper seasoning. The fries were crispy and yummy! My husband said the ribs were very well cooked and seasoned. This is definitely a place I would come back to. It is nestled in the back of this "open market" where there are several choices of food to chose from.
Some of the best pulled pork I've ever ordered from a restaurant. The ribs and brisket were good, but the pork was great.
Hands down the worst mac & cheese I've ever had. Their sampler plate was as minimal as the choice of stars that I could give and the meat was mediocre at best. The BBQ sauce was delicious but could not save the lack of flavor of anything in the plate and the only thing in abundance was the cardboard french fries that they conveniently decided not to salt. Save your wallet and time.
First time was great, but second time I should have stuck with their actual BBQ. Their chicken sandwich looks better than it tastes. Here I thought I would get a nice juicy piece of chicken breast or thigh...instead it was a few strips of heavily battered strips of chicken wrapped in a large bun. Pickled toppings make it ok. Stick with their BBQ.
Met some friends at the SB public market for dinner Wednesday night, and decided to eat here. I'm a s***** for smoked bbq, and been wanting to try this place out. I ordered a half pound of smoked baby back ribs, and 20 wings (Wing Wednesday special, $1 per wing) spoke with one of the workers there, and he said they use oak to smoke their meats. He also said that they brine the wings first then smoke them. As an amateur bbq smoker myself, I was excited to try the goods! First up, the baby back ribs. The meat was very tender, one bite and fall off the bone kind of ribs. They dont sauce the ribs up, and have them offered on the side. I chose the spicy bbq and coffee bbq sauces, both were good, but I preferred au natural for the ribs, can get a better taste and smoke flavor, and the ribs didnt disappoint. The smoke wasnt overwhelming, but present. The meat had a good meat/fat ratio which made it tender and succulent. Overall, They were tasty! The only knock I'd have to point out, was that they weren't hot(temp) enough and was just warm. The wings. Wow. Very delicious and on wednesdays, just $1 per wing! As usual, I opted to have the sauce on the side and glad I went that route! These wings had a slight crisp to it, not too fried crispy, but still a very slight crunch to it. The meat was tender, juicy and HOT(temp) I waited a few mins before I could touch them. The wing sauce on the side was ok, tasted more on the spicier side, and a good compliment to the wings. I ate more than half the wings dry, with no sauce. Overall, I'm Pretty stoked to have this place near my house, and will be back next wednesday for these delicious wings!