The Lancaster Smokehouse

What it is

Kitchener’s dedicated Southern smokehouse — “The Lanc” to locals — smoking brisket, pulled pork, ribs and wings on Lancaster Street West, with a roadhouse dining room, a lineup of house sauces, and regular live music in the main room and Lanc Loft event space upstairs.

Why locals rate it

Real barbecue is a discipline, and this kitchen has run it seriously for over a decade: proper smoke rings, bark that crunches, sides that aren’t afterthoughts (the cornbread and collards pull their weight). It’s simultaneously the region’s best barbecue and one of its most reliable group dinners — loud, casual, and generous. A local newspaper review once advised wearing your eating pants; that remains the operative dress code.

What to order

First visit: the sampler platter — brisket, ribs and pulled pork with two sides — settles your allegiances for future visits. The smoked wings are the sleeper hit, and the Friday fish fry has its own following. Sauce flight on the side; the house hot links well above novelty.

Insider tip

The same crew runs Back of House Pizza out of a takeout window around back — a New York-style slice operation that makes this address a two-for-one. Smokehouse dine-in tonight, pizza pickup next week.

Heads-up

Closed Sundays, and popular items like brisket can sell through on busy evenings — barbecue is finite by nature. Go earlier rather than later for the full menu.