Introducing: Hogtown Smoke, Toronto’s first food truck with an on-board smoker
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
Just over a month old, the Hogtown Smoke is the brainchild of Mark Wasserman and brothers Scott and Kevin Fraser, who run the kitchen. Keen on peeling back the red tape that’s holding back Toronto’s food truckers, the team has been raising awareness of their cause through media stints. Case in point: last week’s food truck war on eTalk, where Ben Mulroney helped serve over 180 portions in an hour, completely, um, smoking his competition.
Owning a food truck was a long-time dream of Wasserman’s dad, whom he recently lost to cancer. When the trio saw the trend picking up steam in the U.S., they knew the truckin’ life was calling. The focal point of their truck is a competition-grade smoker—a unique set-up that encompasses a third of the space and lets them smoke everything from meat to beans. The Smoke can be spotted downtown during the week—across from Union Station, say, or at a Queen and Jarvis parking lot—while on the weekend, they can be found at private events all over the map.
The truck’s signature menu item: Big Ben’s Brisket Po’ Boy ($13), a Fred’s Bread baguette stuffed with their Texas-style brisket, which Scott was particularly taken with during travels down south. The meat is cooked low ’n’ slow for 20 hours before being drenched in jus and topped with onions, a three-cheese blend and truck-made horseradish aïoli. At a recent Tragically Hip show in Niagara, the crew shelled out over 800 portions. Also available is a Patron-infused smoked chicken sandwich ($12), and a pulled pork sandwich with Carolina slaw ($12). All of the orders come with root beer–smoked beans, slaw (with some smoked fennel) and a doughnut-shaped piece of corn bread. Judging by some of the lineups we’ve seen, people just can’t get enough.
149081 (Image: Karolyne Ellacott) Introducing: Hogtown Smoke Introducing: Hogtown Smoke https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_10-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_10.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_10.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-hogtown-smoke/slide/jul12hogtownsmoke_10/ jul12hogtownsmoke_10 0 0
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
149080 Brisket sandwich ($12) (Image: Karolyne Ellacott) Introducing: Hogtown Smoke Introducing: Hogtown Smoke https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_09-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_09.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_09.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-hogtown-smoke/slide/jul12hogtownsmoke_09/ jul12hogtownsmoke_09 0 0
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
149078 Patron-infused smoked chicken served on a Fred’s bun ($12) (Image: Karolyne Ellacott) Introducing: Hogtown Smoke Introducing: Hogtown Smoke https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_07-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_07.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_07.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-hogtown-smoke/slide/jul12hogtownsmoke_07/ jul12hogtownsmoke_07 0 0
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
149077 Big Ben’s Brisket Po’ Boy ($13): signature brisket au jus topped with fried onions, three cheeses and horseradish aïoli on a baguette (Image: Karolyne Ellacott) Introducing: Hogtown Smoke Introducing: Hogtown Smoke https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_06-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_06.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_06.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-hogtown-smoke/slide/jul12hogtownsmoke_06/ jul12hogtownsmoke_06 0 0
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
149079 This is how badly Torontonians seem to want food trucks (Image: Karolyne Ellacott) Introducing: Hogtown Smoke Introducing: Hogtown Smoke https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_08-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_08.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_08.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-hogtown-smoke/slide/jul12hogtownsmoke_08/ jul12hogtownsmoke_08 0 0
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
149076 Hogtown Smoke had set up shop right beside Caplansky’s Delimobile (Image: Karolyne Ellacott) Introducing: Hogtown Smoke Introducing: Hogtown Smoke https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_05-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_05.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_05.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-hogtown-smoke/slide/jul12hogtownsmoke_05/ jul12hogtownsmoke_05 0 0
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
149075 The suits started lining up at 11 a.m. amid the cacophony of construction at Front and Bay (Image: Karolyne Ellacott) Introducing: Hogtown Smoke Introducing: Hogtown Smoke https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_04-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_04.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_04.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-hogtown-smoke/slide/jul12hogtownsmoke_04/ jul12hogtownsmoke_04 0 0
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
149074 A carving station outside the truck (Image: Karolyne Ellacott) Introducing: Hogtown Smoke Introducing: Hogtown Smoke https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_03-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_03.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_03.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-hogtown-smoke/slide/jul12hogtownsmoke_03/ jul12hogtownsmoke_03 0 0
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
149073 Working the line in the heat (Image: Karolyne Ellacott) Introducing: Hogtown Smoke Introducing: Hogtown Smoke https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_01-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_01.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_01.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-hogtown-smoke/slide/jul12hogtownsmoke_01/ jul12hogtownsmoke_01 0 0
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
149082 Toronto’s first barbecue food truck (Image: Karolyne Ellacott) Introducing: Hogtown Smoke Introducing: Hogtown Smoke https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_intro-200x200-1405445086.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_intro.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/jul12HogtownSmoke_intro.jpg 656 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-hogtown-smoke/slide/jul12hogtownsmoke_intro/ jul12hogtownsmoke_intro 0 0
(Image: Karolyne Ellacott)
Hogtown Smoke, facebook.com/hogtownsmoke, @hogtownsmoke
Love that they use Fred’s Bread. It’s the best.
Hello can we get this food truck thing going right once and for all?? It’s no wonder why we have to travel far and wide to experience how it SHOULD be done!
The Monarch Tavern is hosting Hogtown Smoke for 2 weeks. No more standing and waiting without a cold beer to wash em down.
I am a resident of clinton street area and the blatant disregard for the hogtown smoke truck and its employers is appalling. not only do we have to deal with the giant truck blocking the roadways in front of the monarch (my family and i have been going to for years) the employee keeps smoking marijuana in front of the door on the sidewalk almost every day.My children live in this area and it is not the kind of thing i want to be teaching them. This is not the kind of person i want cooking my food and nor will i be eating hogtown smoke anytime in the near future
Hogtownsmoke is no longer affiliated with Monarch Tavern. We wish them all the best and welcome David and his family back.
Where is the truck located in Toronto ?