Traveling Cowboys: Lingering for a Slice of Brisket at the Best Smokehouse in Lethbridge, Alberta

Lingering Smoke

There is such a thing in BBQ as "too much smoke." Just because you can keep a piece of protein in a smoker for up to 13 hours, doesn't mean you should.

Smoke plays two prominent roles in cooking. Firstly it provides a distinctive flavor. Secondly, it helps to preserve. When you grill, there is smokiness. When you BBQ then smoke is a key flavor ingredient that contributes materially to the taste profile of what is cooked. The risk is that introducing the "seasoning" of smoke can jeopardize other flavors if it becomes too overbearing. Contrary to popular belief, smoke doesn't cook the protein. Temperature does the job.

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On our trip to Lethbridge earlier this summer, we were on the hunt for our favorites. Beer, Ice Cream, and BBQ. We asked the locals about their favorite local BBQ spots and couldn't get a straight answer. It seemed that Lethbridgians haven't discovered much beyond the standard pile of nationally branded franchise outlets when it comes to dining out preferences in the town. Or, we've not asked the right people. Before giving up, we consulted the universal "know-it-all" - our friends at Google - which suggested the Smokehouse BBQ & Bar.

We stepped in early to find Michael Wilson opening for the day's business. The Smokehouse BBQ & Bar is a southern style smokehouse where they smoke everything from brisket to chicken to ribs and seafood. It is a southern tradition right here in Southern Alberta. Two "Souths" cannot be wrong.

Michael, the owner, and executive chef was born and raised on a farm in Southern Saskatchewan. He has an impressive CV. Not the kind of schooling you find in most Smokehouses. He began cooking at the age of 8 years. He moved to Lethbridge in 1995, at the age of 26, to start cooking professionally. He attended Lethbridge Community College thus beginning his goal to become a Red Seal Chef. In 1996, he received a Certificate in Commercial Cooking. In 1997, he was awarded the Apprentice of the Year Award in his second year of apprenticeship. In 1998, he received his Journeyman Certificate as a Red Seal Chef. He has worked with many excellent restaurants as Executive Chef, such as Streetside, Brewster’s Brewing Company, Ric’s Grill and Firestone Restaurant.

Observations

Smokehouse BBQ & Bar is as unassuming as it comes. It is all about the food like it should be in such a fine establishment owned and operated by a seasoned chef. Michael serves all the trusted smokehouse favorites with an ample array of home-made sauces.

Something is different here, though. There seems to be a more refined touch. A sense of balance.

Usually, we reek of smoke for days after visiting a BBQ or smokehouse. You can get it out of your clothes when you take a shower. What we struggle to do, is get it out of your palates and olfactories. Maybe, BBQ pitmasters get so used to the smoke that they don't realize how overbearing it becomes. It shows in their food.

Instead, we found that the dishes at the Smokehouse BBQ & Bar was done with just the right amount of smoke. It had the full melt-in-your-mouth texture experience with a broad repertoire of traditional and new flavors. The smoke complemented it. It was almost as if a qualified Chef was involved in the preparation.

We may get into trouble for the following two statements. Firstly, of all the BBQ we've had since the Two Cowboys hit the road (including at competitions), this visit stands out. It is a definite must-do!

Secondly, if we can ask for one thing from Michael (not that we want to mess up a new friendship), it is that he should please serve some local Alberta beer. Eating at the Smokehouse BBQ & Bar was like a symphony with one out of tune (beer) violin. A local Alberta brew will perfect the performance.

We will be back.

Hendrik van Wyk

Old(er) Cowboy

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Two Cowboys: Joie De Vivre at L'Atelier du Fromage in Newmarket, Auckland, New Zealand

The Joy of Living

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Who perfected the art of living?

Was it the French, the Spaniards, or the Italians? Famous phrases have rung out over centuries of ongoing cultural refinement searching for this answer. Phrases such as "Joie de vivre", "pura vida" and "vivere la vita" all attempt to describe the art of perfect living.

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It is a question not to be taken lightly. Many cultures have fought centuries of war over its essence. As with most things in life, you have to lose your innocence to have an opinion. While minutes, hours, days and years are slipping away through the hourglass of our lives, it is profoundly necessary for every person to have an opinion and make up their mind. What is your art of living? Have you to tasted it, heard it, felt it, seen it. Lived it.

Today Two Cowboys dare to weigh in. In the New World, we are lucky. We can get away with borrowing a little bit of living from the Old World and supplement it with the New. With our own roots in South Africa, New Zealand and Canada, we were born into fine wine, refined cuisine and lots of cheese. For us, culinary living must also include beer, smoked brisket, lamb, chocolate, coffee, and oysters.

Life is not all about eating and drinking. It is also about loving family, good friends, fresh air, health and special moments. No matter where you are in the world. All of this is necessary to complete the perfect picture of the art of life.

Observations

Some places make it a little easier. One of those is L'Atelier du Fromage in Auckland, New Zealand. It puts you on the fast track to living. From the moment you step through the door, you are transferred to another world.

If you are from the south of France, it will feel like home. If you've never been to France, it will give you a reason to go. Until you do, Scott and his team will take care of your French culinary needs. All of them. Wine, cheese, croissants, charcuterie, eclairs, macarons and more.

If you need it fresh, resident chef Gilles stationed on his kitchen perch above the humdrum of the shop will orchestrate amazing flavours with fresh local ingredients. He will give you a simple quality meal with no equal in most of Auckland's top restaurants. I don't give out accolades like this lightly. The best pork belly ever: L'Atelier du Fromage. The best beef rib ever: L'Atelier du Fromage.  Gilles is a master with flavour, texture and pairing wine. You have to take it when you get it. The menu changes every week.

Then again, I am politely reminded by Scott, this is how we do it in France. The only part that doesn't fit is that this is in Auckland, New Zealand! Maybe the New World is, after all, discovering the art of living. Maybe the French do know something about it. A visit to L'Atelier du Fromage will certainly give you an authentic and first-class taste of it. If nothing else, it will raise the bar on what to expect.

It comes highly recommended.

Hendrik van Wyk
French Cowboy

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Cheese Heaven

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Two Cowboys on a Journey: JK Bakery - Canmore, Alberta

When Others Sleep

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I can still remember the delicious smell from my younger days, of freshly baked bread early in the morning coming from the kitchen on the farm. There aren't many scents that stir up so many good memories as the sweet smell of steamy hot freshly baked white bread, the moment it comes out of the oven. 

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Break it open. Let some butter melt in the snowy-white middle. When you bite into the crispy crust, you get that familiar feeling. The comfortable, at home, happy feeling you used to get when you were a little boy in your Mum or Nanna's kitchen.

These were the days when department stores and Supermarkets we out of reach. When it was too far to zip in for the daily produce. Store bought bread didn't, or couldn't compete with that which freshly baked yeast and sourdough loaves delivered. Butter for your bread still came from cream that was skimmed off yesterday's milk. These were the good old days. Comfortable days. 

As you can tell, I love freshly baked bread. It is such a delicacy that in my home, we make it a point to bake our own bread for special occasions and family visits. If I cannot bake my own, then I have a secret go-to place for it in Canmore: JK Bakery. They still do it they way it used to be done.

Nestled in the Canadian Rocky Mountains is a small Artisan Bakery that produces quality baked goods to its local residents, and to tourists from around the world. The ones that know the secret. You won't find them on the main street. Locals know where they are. In Canmore, we selfishly call them "our secret bakery".

JK Bakery has been quietly operating in the town of Canmore since 1994. They provide wholesome bread and tasty treats to retail and wholesale customers throughout the Bow Valley. JK Cafe, the face of JK Bakery has been operating from their Railway Avenue location since 1999. It is the place for a coffee, pie, cup of soup, great pastries and our favourite varieties of freshly baked bread. A meeting place for the locals.

As with all good artisan bakeries, you have to be there early or risk disappointment. The ciabattas come out of the oven at 02:00. Doors open early around 07:30. They keep things simple. In their bread you will find deluxe bread flour milled from the best grain Southern Alberta has to offer. Pure Rocky Mountain water, salt and yeast are the only other ingredients for the majority of what they make.  Some of their doughs still need to rest for a full day before it is divided and shaped for baking.

JK's bread don’t have the additives and preservatives used by most commercial bakeries for extending shelf life. They don't need it. It doesn't need to last that long. Because it is that delicious, you wouldn't want to leave it lying anyway.  It gives you an excuse to visit often. 

Impressions

If you want to learn about baking, you have to be where it happens. You have to be there when it happens. 

The Two Cowboys reported for duty at 23:30 with the baking crew already well into the night shift. Mike, the head baker and his colleague quickly inducted us into the go-go-go world of midnight baking. He didn't spare us any advice or comment about his continued motivation and colourful career being a baker.

We listened intently to his adventures and stories. What a life. What he does may be considered by many as a dying art. He is one of a handful of "old school" makers. It is amazing to observe how he knows just what to touch, how much to use, how the dough should feel, and what it should sound like when it mixes. And then there is the glorious smell to make the midnight hours go by quickly. When it all aligns and come together, you get that glorious smell of freshly baked bread. Good morning!

Dough flew, ovens hissed, buns rolled, and before we knew it the ciabattas were ready to come out of the oven. Wow! Is all we could say. What a taste experience it is to get a ciabatta fresh out of the oven. You have to try it. By 07:30 it is still perfect. Just not as perfect as the moment it came out of the oven. If there was a way to get it at 02:00 we will be up all night, ready and waiting for our share.

One piece of extraordinary equipment caught our attention. It seems to be the single most important item in the whole bakery. It shows its age: The baker's scale. Everything that passes through the baking processes, somehow makes a pass on the scale. Sometimes, several times over. Firstly as ingredients are measured, and then as the dough is cut and weighed into the right sizes for the different kinds of bread.

We are convinced that JK Bakery has one of the original models. I think it dates from the late last century. Definitely from before batteries were invented. Angie (co-owner) rightly informed us that the day she retires, she will take one item with her. The scale. It is the heart and soul of the bakery.

Maybe it is the one thing she should leave behind rather. Something to inspire new bakers to continue the trade.

Thank you, Samantha, Angie and the crew of JK Bakery for taking us into the heart of a traditional bakery. Nowadays we call it Artisan Bakeries. There was a time when it was just called The Bakery, and every town had at least one.

We enjoyed our ciabattas, and we continue to enjoy your bread and pies. Thank you for baking our bread in Canmore, Alberta the old school way. The good way. 

We are sorry, the secret has to come out now. The whole world will soon know just how good it is to get bread at JK Bakery.

Hendrik van Wyk

Sourdough Cowboy

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Swiss Baking in Canmore

Many Styles

Australian?

More Please

Expert Hands

The Famous Scale