FIRE&FOOD restaurant recommendation: Black Smoke in Rotterdam

Stylish BBQ
A shared BBQ road trip through the USA provided the spark to shake up the gastronomic BBQ scene in Belgium and the Netherlands. Kasper Stuart and Jord Althuizen opened their first Black Smoke restaurant in Antwerp in 2016, and in 2019, a second one followed on the grounds of the Van Nelle Factory near Rotterdam—which we are introducing here. Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and a mecca for architecture fans, but thanks to Black Smoke, we BBQ fans are also well taken care of. The BBQ restaurant is located on the grounds of a former tobacco, coffee, and tea factory, which has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2014. Its clear industrial style, focused on light, air, and space, offers a stark contrast to Black Smoke, whose pitmasters prepare dishes with great passion and expertise over open fire on custom-built grill stations as well as in smokers. Sparks literally fly here, creating an electrifying scene reminiscent of the sweat-inducing work at blast furnaces in metal processing.

The culinary selection is diverse; meat and fish lovers are just as well catered to as pure vegetable fans: everyone is offered a fiery barbecue. Along with dry-aged steaks and other famous barbecue cuts, there is fresh-caught fish of the day—which is somehow what you expect in a port city like Rotterdam. The menu is rounded off with a good selection of drinks. Those just visiting Rotterdam for a day trip will certainly appreciate the many non-alcoholic cocktails.

Definitely put Black Smoke on your to-do list if you are in Rotterdam—but don't forget to book a table just to be safe.

Black Smoke Rotterdam
Van Nelle Fabriek terrain
Van Nelleweg 1
3044 BC Rotterdam
www.blacksmoke.nl

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