The Rocket

Issue date: 11/30/07 Section: Focus

Media Credit: Kristen Baselj Besides its well-known barbecue dishes, Smokey Bones Barbeque & Grill in Cranberry Twp. offers unique dishes such as warm cinnamon donuts served with strawberry cream and chocolate dipping sauces. [Click to enlarge]

Smokey Bones Barbeque and Grill offers a rustic, mountain atmosphere in the middle of bustling Cranberry Township.

One in a chain of 125 in the Eastern and Midwestern parts of the United States, the restaurant offers a wide range of American favorites but specializes in barbecue dishes.

With its barbecue items slow-smoked for up to 12 hours daily at each restaurant, it gives the meat a distinct pink ring which Smokey's claims is "an assurance of genuine smoked barbecue."

FOOD & BEVERAGE

We started our meal with a unique appetizer of old-fashioned skillet cornbread served with crushed pecan and honey butter. The sweet butter was an extra delight and added to the fresh, warm and moist cornbread.

Because the restaurant is known for its barbecue selections, I decided to go with a combo meal of a half rack of ribs and a quarter of a chicken breast, served with cinnamon apples and broccoli.

The ribs were very tender with a lot of meat on the bone, and this meal definitely did not disappoint. I also got to sample the sliced beef brisket covered in Smokey's signature barbecue sauce. After tasting both of those, I would recommend any of the barbecue choices.

All of the portions were rather large, including the Honey Glazed Salmon. The herb and garlic grilled chicken sandwich was a delightful choice if you want to skip the barbecue.

For dessert, we tried the fresh cinnamon donuts served warm with strawberry cream and chocolate dipping sauces. I thought it was a unique dessert but is not something I would get again.

As far as beverages, Smokey's offers a full bar and signature drinks like the Mountain Margarita and the Twisted Timber, which is a mixture of margarita and strawberry daiquiri.

Be sure to customize your meal with the two additional barbecue sauces that sit on each table. One is a sweet, thick, traditional-style sauce and the other is a tangy, mustard-style sauce.

PRICE

Smokey Bones is owned by Darden Restaurants, Inc., which also operates Red Lobster, Olive Garden and Bahama Breeze, so prices are in the same range as those restaurants'. Entrees fell between $6 and $19, with the option of building your own combination platter for $12.49 for two items or $15.49 for three, plus two sides.

ENVIRONMENT

The restaurant is designed to look and feel like a mountain lodge built with tall timber, large stones and fireplaces. The atmosphere is relaxed and casual.

There were more than 20 TVs that could be seen from every table in the dining area. On each table is a speaker box and keypad that lets you choose what TV you would like to listen to. It is the perfect place to catch any big sporting event while dining.

Spanning the length of the grill area is a lighted picture of beautiful snow-capped mountains and a mountain lake, which adds a bit of the outdoors to the restaurant.

The full bar is stationed in the middle of the restaurant with eight TVs in its center.

SERVICE

Our waitress was cordial and accommodating when we needed something, but it took a long time for her to come back to take our meal order after she put the appetizer in. Overall, the meal took a bit longer then I would have liked, but not too long that I would have complained, and it definitely will not stop me from going back.

Besides in-house dining, the restaurant also offers a Party Package that can accommodate anywhere from 25 to 2,500 people.

Smokey Bones
Barbeque & Grill
1708 Route 228
Cranberry Twp., PA 16066
(724) 772-7000

Kristen Baselj is a senior communication major and a regular contributor to The Rocket.

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