International Smoke

International Smoke is an interesting restaurant mini-chain, with one location in San Francisco (and another in Vegas).  One of the biggest names in the restaurant scene, Micheal Mina, is behind it, along with Ayesha Curry ... who folks may know from her acting gigs, her cookbooks, or, just via her connection to her husband, Steph Curry (for non-sportsball folks, he's a big deal in the sportsball world).  A rather odd pairing, but, both big names, and thus, the place got attention when it opened.

"Inspired by Curry and Mina’s shared love of global travels and international cooking techniques, International Smoke ignites a new spark of flavor and creativity focused on woodfired steaks, seafood, ribs, and vegetarian entrees to create flavorful dishes that are craveable worldwide. Located in San Francisco, Del Mar and Las Vegas, International Smoke is the epicenter of flavor for the community delivering a fresh take on enticing world cuisine as only Mina and Curry can. Let’s get saucy!"

International Smoke also has a notorious location in San Francisco, at the ground level of the high end Millennium Tower ... yes, the sinking tower.  It also happens to be just a few blocks from my house.  Put all that together, and, hey, I was interested to see what the fuss was all about.  Because underneath all the surface level "fame", the food actually gets decent reviews.  Even during the earlier stages of the pandemic, International Smoke lived on, pivoting to a take out model, which, yeah, bbq does work well for.

Takeout During Construction.

I still have not visited the dining room myself, but rather opted for delivery, when I had a little bit of leftover bbq at home, and wanted to complete my meal.  I ordered using Door Dash, and my order was quickly confirmed.  Everything came well packaged, it is clear they really have mastered takeout.  Since then, I've ordered a few more times, always to round out some leftovers I had at home.  I've still yet to try the ribs or mac and cheese, both things I really like, but get mixed reviews.  One of these days ...

Side note: Stuck doing a lot of takeout and delivery these days? Want to try some free food and new pickup or delivery services?  Here are some codes for free money!

• Nextdish: ($10 off your first order) [ Delivery only ]
• Door Dash ($15 off, $5 each of your first 3 orders) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Caviar ($20 off, $10 off your first 2 orders) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Ritual ($6 off) [ Pickup only ]
• Delivery.com ($10 off) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Grub Hub ($10 off) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Seamless ($10 off) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Allset ($5 off) [ Pickup only ]
• Nextdish: ($10 off your first order) [ Delivery only ]
• Uber Eats ($20 off - use code eats-lejw5 at checkout) [ Pickup or delivery ]

Bottled Cocktails

For delivery, International Smoke offers up 3 cocktails: a classic negroni, a play on an Old Fashioned, and one slightly more interesting one, the "Oaxacan Standoff".   I've tried them all.

Oaxacan Standoff. $17.

"Ilegal Joven Mezcal, Aperol, lime, passion fruit falernum, Firewater bitters."

I actually often order negronis or old fashioneds as my cocktail of choice, but I decided to venture out and get this, thinking the mezcal smokey flavors would pair well with my bbq.

The drink came in a nicely sealed container, in an additional plastic bag to make sure it didn't spill.  I poured it over ice, and served it in a proper cocktail glass.

The drink was good - it had strong, smoky components that I was hoping for, and although it was a touch sweet from the passion fruit, it was well balanced with the bitters.  Overall, a nice drink, and it did indeed pair well with bbq.  Above average, and interesting, cocktail.

The portion was a standard cocktail, so while slightly pricey, that is the price of a nice cocktail at a higher end restaurant in SF.

****.

ISSF Old Fashioned. $19.

"Redemption Rye, Amontillado Sherry, lemon, POM, orange marmalade." -- Door Dash Menu.

"Bacon-washed old forester bourbon, smoked maple angostura, cherry & vanilla bitters." -- Packaging and their online menu.

The next time I ordered, I went for the old fashioned, just to mix it up.  Well, this was a bit confusing.  I ordered my cocktail on Door Dash, and it was called the "ISSF Old Fashioned", which I took to mean the "International Smoke San Francisco Old Fashioned".  The description said it would have rye, sherry, lemon, and orange marmalade, certainly an interesting play on an old fashioned.  But the drink I received, while labelled "International Smoke Old Fashioned" said it was bourbon, angostura, cherry, and vanilla bitters.  Those, um, are pretty different cocktails.  The online menu for International Smoke on their own website matched the bottle description.  It certainly had a cherry in it, and it certainly had bitters, so, I believe those were right, the Door Dash menu wrong.

It was also odd that the container was only half full, or even, less than half.  Did ... my Dasher drink half before it came to me?  Did the restaurant short me?  Or, was the container just bigger than they needed for a standard drink?  I wasn't sure, but it certainly wasn't the most satisfying delivery experience, packaging-wise.

As for the cocktail ... eh.  It seemed pretty out of balance, too heavy in the bitters.  I didn't taste the smoked maple, nor the vanilla, really, just bitters, and what turned out to be bourbon that I didn't like very much either.  I didn't like this very much, and wouldn't get it again.  Also, they need to update their Door Dash menu!  **.

Classic Negroni. $16.

"Botanist Gin, Campari, Allesio di Torino Vermouth, orange essence." -- Their Website

"Henrick's Gin, Campari, Punt e mes." -- The packaging

The next time I ordered, I went for the classic negroni, which, much like the old fashioned, had a different description on the label compared to what I actually ordered (different gin, etc).  And just like the old fashioned, it came only half full, which just looked odd (again, did the Dasher drink half?).  Perhaps it is the supply chain, etc, but having bottles that aren't the right size for orders isn't a good look.

Anyway, the negroni was absolutely fine.  Once I served over ice, a well balanced drink.  No qualms with this, just, well, a classic negroni.  ***+.

Small Plates

To go along with your steak/seafood/ribs, International Smoke has a handful of sides, such as the signature duck fat fries, a couple seasonal vegetable offerings (sometimes crispy brussels sprouts, sometimes creamed corn, etc), and some other carbs (garlic noodles, fried rice).  They also have a selection of "small plates", many of which seem like classic appetizers (wings, hamachi crudo, soup, etc), but others that really seem more like, well, sides.  I'm not sure why cornbread is considered a small plate and not a side?  

Anyway, these small plates are generally the more interesting items on the menu to me.

Ayesha's Fresh Baked Cornbread. $7.

"Thai red curry butter."

If people have heard of International Smoke, they most likely know of it as the place with Ayesha's cornbread.  Yes, they know about it being a Micheal Mina establishment, known for the bbq, etc, but, the cornbread, bearing her name, is definitely the most talked about dish.  It has been on the menu since the start, and is their #1 most selling, most liked item.  I obviously had to get it.

The cornbread doesn't take a classic shape, instead, it comes as large muffins (sans muffin wrappers).  It was good cornbread.  Not dry, nice grit to it, lightly sweet, crispy top.  Each half seemed to have one slice of chili pepper in it as well.  But, just one.  Barely noticeable.  Better than your average cornbread, no question, but I wouldn't say it was that special.

Of course, it is the curry butter than draws people in.  At the restaurant, they come served with tons of curry butter draped over them.  I was glad that it came on the side for takeout, so I could add as much as I wanted.  The curry butter was fascinating - it did have some slight curry flavor, but not as much as I was expecting.  I also expected some heat to it, but it was pretty mild.  The consistency was also not what I expected, as it wasn't really like any butter I've ever had before, more like a thick sauce.  I've never once thought of pairing curry, butter, and cornbread, but, it does kinda work.  

Overall, this was certainly good, and certainly different, but not mind-blowing, and not something I'd go out of my way for.  It did pair quite nicely with my leftover ribs ... although the curry butter and bbq ribs was a bit of an odd pairing, which I think would be true at the restaurant too, as all the ribs have traditional sauces.

The portion of two large muffins, with plenty of curry butter, was great for $7.  ***+.

Whole Roasted Cauliflower. $19.

"Golden raisins, tehina sauce, pistachio, fried shallots, pomegranate."

Ok, this was an odd order for me, but, when you look at reviews for International Smoke, this is a dish that gets all the accolades.  People have mixed feelings on the ribs, on the mac and cheese, on just about everything else, but, literally, very review praises the cauliflower, and it is frequently called out as the surprise hit of the meal.  And I do like cauliflower, so, even if I was weary of the tehina sauce and pomegranate, not ingredients I'm a huge fan of, I still was excited for it.

It ... wasn't really what I was expecting, and wasn't very good.  First, I did think it would be a "whole roasted cauliflower", served as a big hunk, much like RT Rotisserie, but it was broken into florets.   This is fine, easier to eat anyway.  Second, I thought it would be, well, roasted.  Charred, smoky.  It seemed flash fried instead.  It was slightly crispy and fairly oily.  It was also strangely under cooked, and still too crisp (and I like it crisp, not soggy!) in many places, but mushy in others.  So the cauliflower itself?  Yeah, not great.

It was drizzled with the tahina sauce, which, well, tasted a bit like tahini, basically like a thin layer of hummus covering it.  A fine pairing, and if you like those flavors, likely a good one.  The fried shallots were soft and soggy, likely just a poor experience because of delivery, as they'd been steamed inside the takeout container basically.  I never found pistachio.  The pomegranate wasn't particularly ripe, and was fairly bitter, but did add nice pops of texture.  The wining element was surprisingly the golden raisins, juicy and plump, and the sweetness worked well with the rest of the dish.

I can see how this dish *could* be good, particularly if you like mediteranean flavors.  But it really didn't seem to be well prepared, didn't match my expectations, and didn't hold up great for delivery.  I wouldn't get it again. **+.

Pickled Ketchup. $1.

International Smoke lets you order any of their sauces, including the truffle Caesar they use on the salad, the curry butter from the corn muffins, etc.  And this, a fascinating sounding "pickled" ketchup that comes with the duck fat fries.  It sounded interesting, so I threw it on to one order.

The ketchup was ... fine.  I can't say I tasted anything particularly pickled about it, although maybe it was a touch more acidic than usual?  No chunks of pickle nor anything like that.  It also was slightly watery.  Basically, um, ketchup.  ***.

Dessert

For takeout, International Smoke has offered up 4 items for dessert, for as long as I've been paying attention to the place: their signature Basque style smoked cheesecake, a trendy crepe cake, and brownies and cookies.  The crepe cake and cheesecake have their toppings change seasonally (e.g. strawberries in the summer, peaches in the fall, apples in winter, etc).  If you dine in, they have a few other options.

I haven't tried the cookies or brownies, but the others really were a great find for delivery high end desserts.  I'll admit, I'm often tempted to just order a cocktail and dessert as a DoubleDash add on when I'm ordering something else on Door Dash.

"Smoked" Cheesecake. $12.

"Citrus strawberries, sesame crunch."

Sometime a while ago, I remember reading rave reviews about International Smoke's "Smoked" cheesecake.  It looked to me perhaps a bit like a basque cheesecake?  But people really, truly seemed to adore it.  And thus, when I was craving cheesecake a few weeks later, it immediately came to mind.

The cheesecake was a large slice, certainly big enough to share, given that it was quite rich.  It wasn't quite as dense as a New York style cheesecake, but wasn't anywhere near as light and airy as a Japanese cheesecake, nor other basque cheesecake I've had.  I expected it to be considerably lighter, more souffle-like, and even slightly gooey inside, as those are the signature hallmarks of basque cheesecake ... I thought?  The consistency was great though, just more classic cheesecake style. The flavor to the cheesecake itself was fairly plain, not particularly cream cheesy, not vanilla, just, almost like a standard creme brulee base.  

It did have the burnt top, which added a slight smoky flavor to it, and deeply caramelized notes.  The smoky notes from my cocktail were a rather perfect pairing.  While not exactly what I was expecting from a basque cheesecake, it was a very good cheesecake, and the caramelized top adds an element you don't find normally with cheesecake.

The online menu said it would come with "citrus strawberries", but, the seasons had changed, and mine had poached peaches on the side.  Interestingly, when I looked a few days later, on the menu at International Smoke in person (I was walking by), it called it "Basque" not "Smoked", and listed "Poached Tenbrink Peaches", so, clearly, they seemed to have realized that while the "Smoked" name was on-brand with the restaurant, more diners would be familiar with "Basque", particularly, as, um, even Cheesecake Factory carries one now.  I did have to look up "Tenbrink" though, and found that it is the name of a local farm.  Anyway, the peaches were, um, really not good.  Three slices, and, I understand that they were local, but they tasted like canned peaches, just soaked in something odd.  The liquid they were submerged in was sweet, but not cloying, but also just tasted ... odd.  I am not sure what spices or other elements were in there, but I didn't care for it at all.  At all.  I was very glad it was on the side, even more glad I tried it first, and, I even did try more with the cheesecake, just in case it magically transformed when properly paired, but, wow, did not like.  Luckily, I had fresh strawberries on hand, and those went well with it.

I did like the sesame tuille on top, and think it would be great to have more sesame notes - perhaps some in the crust?  I also really wanted whipped cream with it, just to balance it out a bit.

Overall, the cheesecake was very good, but, wow, those peaches.  Perhaps the strawberries the previous version were more successful?  Definitely an above average cheesecake, but not quite as raveworthy as reviews seemed to suggest.  **** cheesecake, * peaches, so ***+ overall, given how easy it is to discard those peaches.

Stacked Key Lime Crepe Cake. $10.

"Fresh raspberries, coconut crème anglaise."

Ok, this this was a very, very odd order on my part.  If you've read my blog for a while, you know I don't generally like citrus dessert, particularly lemon and line ones.  You may also know that I don't find crepes to be that great, much like choux pastry, the eggy nature just doesn't do it for me.  And yet one night, I was really, really, really craving this crepe cake, having seen it on the menu before, and suddenly, I needed it.

Why?  Well, I was in Houston the week before, and ate some glorious desserts (great pecan pie and ok chocolate cream pie from Goode Company Seafood, great Italian creme cake and decent red velvet cake and ok banana pudding from Truth Barbecue, fantastic creme brulee from Brasserie du Parc, and great cheesecake from Fleming's Prime), and I sorta intended to get a key lime pie while I was there, as it was on menus everywhere, and I figured if I'd like key lime pie anywhere, it would be in the south where it was done right.  But other desserts always took precedent, and thus, no key lime pie was had.

I returned to SF, and kinda kept craving key lime.  And so one evening, when I couldn't get the thought of key lime out of my head, AND I had resisted ordering some excellent sounding crepe cakes earlier that weekend from Sweet Glory (they have a taro one, pandan, mango, even durian!), it just came together to needing this key lime crepe cake, stat.

And thus, I ordered up a cocktail and dessert, and set about to wait an agonizing 45 minutes for Door Dash to satisfy me.

I was pleased when the cake arrived, as it was a decent size slice, had plenty of whipped cream on top, and had a nice pool of creme angalise around it.  The garnishes looked fresh.  I tentatively took a bite.  I was further pleased, but, it wasn't quite what I expected.

The bottom 60% of the slice is the crepe layers, very dense, quite firm.  It ate much heavier than I was expecting.  The taste was lightly key lime, but there was a much more dominant flavor that I also wasn't expecting: crème fraîche.  It had a fantastic tang, not a tart tang like key lime, but, an almost buttermilk like tang, but, stronger.  I think it really was crème fraîche, although I would have expected that to be listed on the menu?  I quite liked the flavor, more than I would have liked a strong key lime taste I suspect.  So, the base, a dense, tangy thing.  I wasn't quite sure how I felt about the very dense and heavy base, somehow I thought the layers would be more delicate, the creme between them making it eat lighter.  I think this was my first ever crepe cake ...

The top 40% was whipped cream, thick, rich, fresh tasting whipped cream.  It balanced the heavier and tangier base well, but it could have used more, or a lighter style, to really combat how heavy it was.  All around it was coconut crème anglaise, that didn't taste particularly of coconut, but was a lightly sweet thinner cream sauce, and it was nice to drag the crepe cake through.  I'll never complain about crème anglaise.

Finally, the toasted coconut shards on top were crisp and seemed to have been applied just prior to delivery, which I appreciated.  No soggy coconut here.  The raspberries were fresh and ripe.  I added more berries (blackberries and blueberries) and really liked the fruit and tangy crepe cake pairing.

Overall, this wasn't quite what I was expecting, and I'm still not sure if crepe cakes are supposed to be this dense, and I don't think I'd get it again, but, it was enjoyable, and I'm glad I got it. ***+.