I was a little stressed out at first. The place was hazy and packed, and we were faced with the possibility of perching at a tiny bar to eat our meal. All of the cozy, padded booths were full. All of the tables overflowing with moms, dads, and kids. A large and unorganized crowd of people attacked the counter; they placed their orders and then fought their way back to their seats. Names were being shouted and people jumped up to collect their fare and juggled it back to their waiting brood.

Given the array of comforting and yummy food I have been enjoying lately as part of my contribution to Midnight Poutine, I was a little worried that my luck would run out, that I would eventually find a restaurant that disappointed.

But Bofinger did not disappoint.

Things calmed down a little and we managed to find a spacious booth and jumped in before anybody else snatched it up. Ordering turned out to be easy; following their overhead menu we chose our meat, sauce, desired heat-level, and side dishes. Our name was shouted and two giant plates of food were handed out.

How you manage to produce authentic, southern smokehouse barbeque in the frozen wastelands of Montréal, Québec is beyond me. Must have something to do with smoking your own meat over honey maple, and paying attention to the details. Whatever it is, it happens at Bofinger. We were faced with a tasty pulled pork sandwich, with sides including a zesty cucumber salad, a big helping of bean salad, and a simple, graceful order of mac-and-cheese. The real star being the big plate of sweet and charred ribs that we devoured greedily. Heaven.

And we barely scratched the surface of what Bofinger has to offer. Our puny appetites were no match for their gut-busting combos and smoked goodness. I would love to try one of their burgers, maybe with a side of baked beans, and some chili to start. I will then, of course, need to go home and roll around on the floor, moaning about having eaten too much, and sweating Texas BBQ sauce.

I'm looking forward to it.

Bofinger Barbeque Smokehouse
5667 Sherbrooke West
514-315-5056