THE SMOKIN' OAK PDX: I HAVE A NEW MAC & CHEESE CHAMPION I need to start with a confession. I'm a little bit of a mac and cheese snob. There. I said it. There are a million different versions of mac and cheese floating around Portland, and most of the time I take a bite and think, "Yeah... that's mac and cheese." Good? Sure. Life-changing? Not usually. For a while, my favorite was the Italian pork belly mac from Grassa. Keyword: WAS. I walked into The Smokin' Oak PDX at Cartside and saw people eating BBQ. Something told me to take a look at the menu. Then I spotted the mac and cheese. "How's your mac?" They said, "It's our most popular item." Well, apparently Portland's mac and cheese committee had already spoken. I ordered it with that beautiful sliced brisket, and folks... this combination is straight fire. That brisket was freaking amazing. Smoky, tender, packed with flavor. But then you get a bite of that brisket with the mac and cheese together, and suddenly I'm questioning every mac and cheese decision I've made in my life. Brisket + mac = loaded happiness. I should have thrown some jalapeño on it because that would have taken this thing into another zip code, but honestly, it didn't need much help. And there's a reason this mac is so popular. The Smokin' Oak makes its mac from scratch using a family recipe from Tyler, Texas, and their BBQ is Central Texas style, with their meats smoked over Oregon white oak. So apparently they brought Texas to Portland and then made it everybody's problem. The hospitality was excellent. The cart was clean. The price was right. The people were friendly. And the food? Gold medal. I'm not going to sit here and declare this the best BBQ in Portland because I haven't eaten every piece of brisket in this city. But the mac and cheese? That's a different conversation. As of today, I'm calling this my favorite mac and cheese with BBQ in Portland. Grassa's Italian pork belly mac, you've officially been bumped to number two. Sorry. Nothing personal. The brisket and mac hit the spot and gave my taste buds a good smack. Five stars. Straight fire. Loaded happiness. Mac and cheese championship belt secured. read more

The Smokin' Oak Pdx - Food Trucks Near Me - Portland, Oregon

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Hmm I'm usually a huge brisket guy, but something about it was just off here. It was very dry and even the sauce didn't fix everything. I'd put the pulled pork that I tried over it. Mac'n'cheese was also just average. Service was extremely quick and friendly at least. read more

The Smokin' Oak Pdx - Food Trucks Near Me - Portland, Oregon

Great spot with perfect BBQ. Brisket is always consistent and the Mac and cheese is great. Friendly staff and quick service Their sauce is very well balanced and the brisket has never been dry. read more

The Smoking Oak is a food cart located in a pod of food carts. There is ample seating, inside and out. I ordered the Beef Rib, Beet Salad, and Smoked Chicken Wings. When we went inside, we ordered drinks. It wasn't crowded at all so we had our choice of seating. The food is absolutely delicious. If you're into foodie type things, try the Beef Rib. It's huge and delicious. The meat is tender and the sauces they have really complement the food. The beet salad accompanied the beef rib well and I thought the chicken wings were good. They were even better with this sweet smoky sauce they had - tasty!! The customer service was great. The employee was patient while we decided what we wanted. When our order was ready, she brought it to the table for us. My experience was a 5/5 and I'm definitely going again for that beef rib! read more

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We moved here from Oklahoma a year ago. After visiting this place, we're still looking for decent barbecue. The food carts were nice and the service was good. However the pulled pork was ultra fatty and the meat sauce..... The sauce was very thin and unusual for barbecue, almost picante like. read more

I stopped at this food cart when I saw a huge group of fire fighters all ordering from here so I knew it had to be good. When I got my order it did not disappoint. The brisket and chicken literally melted in my mouth it was absolutely delicious. The bbq sauce was a bit more ketchup forward for my liking but still very tasty. I definitely want to come back to try the hot link it looked so good!! read more

The Smokin' Oak Pdx - Beef brisket and smoked chicken - Food Trucks Near Me - Portland, Oregon

I ordered delivery through their website on a Saturday evening. Brisket was tender and juicy. I was able to easily cut it with the provided plastic knife! The mac and cheese was very flavorful. I believe there are pimientos in there. A side of bbq sauce, pickle spears, and large diced onion were included on the side. The bbq sauce is tangy and delicious. Overall, very good food. Here and Botto's are my favorite barbecue spots in Portland. The delivery person had difficulty finding my place, so the food wasn't very warm. The food itself was affordable, but $8.60 for delivery and service fee. I definitely want to try it again at the cart, especially one of those beef ribs on a Wednesday. read more

The Smokin' Oak Pdx - Beef brisket and mac and cheese - Food Trucks Near Me - Portland, Oregon

I'm a sucker for BBQ, so I went to this pod specifically to try this place. It was solid. Overall, like the pod a lot, it's nice to have drink options and the seating is great inside and outside. Great pre-game spot to check out. The sandwich was decent, I could have gone for more sauce on it, but the meat was great and the onion and pickle sides were a good addition. I'd go back. read more

The Smokin' Oak Pdx - Chopped brisket sannich - Food Trucks Near Me - Portland, Oregon

Some tasty brisket for sure. Fairly small selection of meats - brisket, chicken & pulled pork plus hot links and a few sides. It's a la carte so order ur meats by the 1/4 lb plus sides. I opted for the brisket sandwich (u can choose sliced or chopped) and it was heaped with some thick slabs, like 2 fat burger patties worth o meat. U get some toppings on the side you can add to ur sammich like jalapeños, raw/pickled onions. My only complaint would be I wished there was a bit more smoke flavor and seasoning and the BBQ sauce is a bit mild for me, but the meat was extremely tender and flaky. I also tried a Texas hot link which was a juicy fat sausage bursting with flavor. A newer addition to the Cartside food truck pod on Williams, I like the spot, has a bar that has an upstairs deck as well, great at sunset. read more

The Smokin' Oak Pdx - Sliced brisket sando $15 - Food Trucks Near Me - Portland, Oregon

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The bbq quality here is flat out amazing. The fatty brisket melted in your mouth and the ribs were perfection personified .these guys know their bbq. For me they rank in the top 3 EVER. That saying something . read more

The Smokin' Oak Pdx - Menu - Food Trucks Near Me - Portland, Oregon

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We were looking for something that sounded interesting for lunch to try out and decided to check this place out. We ordered a little bit of almost everything. The food was decent. The brisket was done nicely and the pulled pork wasn't too wet or soggy, which I like. The smoked sausage could use a bit more flavor. The mac and cheese was great. The person working there was friendly and got our food out to us in a reasonable time. read more

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Just wow. This was the best bbq I've had in Portland thus far! Every single thing was just as phenomenal as the last. The brisket was my favorite but the Mac n' cheese was also so good. The service was prompt and the employee was kind. Extra care and attention to detail with their food. Highly recommend! read more

The Smokin' Oak Pdx - Brisket, chicken, Mac and cheese, potato salad, frito pie, and corn bread - Food Trucks Near Me - Portland, Oregon

Foolishly I initially missed this food cart and ordered from another spot before I noticed it tucked back against the wall. Fortunately, my kiddo ordered what can only be described as BANGIN mac and cheese and let me taste some of its amazing-ness. I was heartbroken that I had ordered from somewhere else and was going to cancel my order to try more of their smokin offerings, but alas, my order came up before I could. I can't wait to go back and sample more of their menu! read more

Food is good and reasonably priced. Great location in regard to the Moda center. Quick and friendly service. One of a handful of food carts. The Garden Tavern has a great sports ambiance. They watch everything there. read more

It's great, and near my home. I love it because: --smoked brisket is perhaps my favorite food on earth --good service --great smoky atmosphere --even the drinks are smoky --consistently good read more

Food was cold and they ran out of ingredients I had wanted wanted to order. They tried to substitute but I have food allergies. Later server came to take plates away before I even finished eating. Never has these happened before.Food over priced for quality given. read more

It's fine but there's so much better. The dinosaur beef rib was too tough to use the supplied flimsy plasticware. (I just got home, and even my steak knives are struggling.) The smoke is minimal. It was on the dry side. The side of slaw was absolutely excellent (but it's a lot of $ for a side of slaw). They claim their beef ribs are their best product. This was midling at best, and I wouldn't come back. read more

I happened upon this food cart while out with colleagues at lunch. I ordered the brisket mac & cheese and beet salad. I got way more food than I bargained for, and it was delicious! Brought it home to share with my partner for dinner, and he *had* to know where this food cart was. We'll definitely be back! read more

Stopped here for lunch with the wife. They have a location in Vancouver that has some great reviews so we wanted to give the food truck location a try. The cart is located in a pod called The Garden...it is small pod but good seating and a full bar and beer available. The BBQ is decent.. but really lacked in flavor (smoke and seasoning). We ordered and shared a 1/2 lb of brisket and two pork ribs. Sides were Mac and cheese, potato salad and jalapeño beans. Both the potato salad and beans were very good...Mac and cheese was decent as well. Overall I think the sides outshined the meats...but this was a slightly above average bbq spot. read more

we had seen it on a utube review thought we would give it a try. after an 30 minute drive i have never been so disappointed. we ordered the frito pie and was very disappointed it really was lacking in flavor. we also ordered the ribs never have i gotten ribs that where so under cooked that the were raw . the cole slaw had no flavor other then cabbage. i would never recommend this place to anone. read more

The brisket is one of the best things I've ever put in my mouth!!! Love, love, love this cart!

What an amazing addition to Cartside! It's so awesome to be able to get amazing BBQ right before a show or a game at the Rose Quarter! read more

The Smokin' Oak Pdx - Smokin Oak at Cartside! - Food Trucks Near Me - Portland, Oregon

I'm so happy a second location opened up! The food is beautiful, the prices are great and did I mention how friendly the staff is?? Couldn't ask for more! Except maybe some brisket bisquits and gravy with hand maid sausage on Sundays! Oh wait! they do!! Make sure you don't miss them before the sell out! Come early, eat well! read more

I ordered brisket slices and the pork ribs and coleslaw from the smoking oak food cart. Let me just say that was some of the best brisket and spare ribs that I have ever eaten. I would recommend this to all my friends and family that love brisket as much as I do. thank you for providing such good food and excellent customer service read more

The food was amazing! The meat is juicy, tender, and so flavorful. Every bite transports you to the south, with such a wonderful balance of smoke, salt, spice, pepper. Such a simplicity done RIGHT. Service was quick, very friendly staff, knowledgeable in their craft. 10/10, best place to go prior to ANY event at the Moda, or just whenever you need your BBQ fix south of the Columbia. A must try! read more

Super friendly, quick, fresh and cheap for the quantity I got. I ordered the brisket mac n cheese and expected a small cup with a few tiny pieces of brisket. No no no, they LOAD it with brisket. Hands down best loaded mac n cheese I've had. Ate it to fast to get a picture. read more

amazing service and totally frickin amazing food. you will find nothing better in the world!!!!

Amazing brisket and ribs. All around great food and friendly service. Not your average food truck, glad to see them in PDX. Go to their Vancouver location you won't be disappointed. read more