Wendy A.
Yelp
From the generous Yelp reviews and the packed parking lot, I thought this place was bound to be good. Top to bottom, however, it was dissatisfying. The prices, the portions, the food that was, as my husband said, "unburdened by flavor," and the beautifully sounding cocktails that were unburdened by actual alcohol were all just a little insulting. Details? Read on...
First, selection. The menu is quite shallow, though I suppose that's par for a BBQ place. There was no option to get one meat and sides, only two or three, starting at $24.
Second, price. Side portions (which are unavoidable given the unimpressive entree portions) are small for the prices (ranging from 4.50 to 12.00 each). The "quart" of coleslaw was actually half the size of the "quart" of Mac n cheese... how does this happen when a quart is a measure of volume, not of weight? The server explained "well, the pasta expands..." Er? Without the sides, a 6-bite pulled pork sandwich was $9. And my single piece of catfish and side salad was $16. But that's not so bad, for craft food, right?
Third, flavor. The food was lackluster... as mentioned, unburdened by flavor. The catfish had a delicious breading, but the actual meat was slimy and just tasted wet. And the small salad looked beautiful and featured gorgeous red tomato wedges that in fact (literally) tasted like dirt. (If you don't know, the thing that makes a vegetable or fruit taste like dirt is mold. I ate mine in one bite, as did my son who commented the same, so I can't be sure. But, there was no actual dirt on it, so I'm assuming the strangely dark center was indicative of tomato-gone-bad.) The slaw had an immediate flavor that was pretty good but vanished after a moment of chewing, and the Mac n cheese was enjoyable only because any Mac n cheese inevitably possesses the inherent delight of pasta and cheese.
Fourth, mocktails. The "if a Spritz and Negroni had a baby" cocktail featured not the slightest hint of gin, nor even of tonic. I only tasted about 4 oz of watered down vermouth. And the "refreshing springtime mule" cocktail was simply flavorful ginger beer, with no evidence of vodka.
Four me, ambience will generally only raise, rather than lower, a review. But it's worth mentioning that although it's decorated beautifully, and there's pleasant music emanating from the lounge, the exposed ducts added an almost unsettlingly loud hum from the AC. It diminished the general vibe and intimacy of the place for me.
The original Nexus had concept and delivery pretty well locked in. This sibling smokehouse is just nowhere near as good. I give one star for being a unique place to go in an otherwise under-attended part of town, and another to our lovely server and the red Chile cheese fries, which did not disappoint. But I don't think I'll feel compelled to return on the basis of those two points.