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The Smokehouse: Barbecue & Brews -- 2015 Flower & Garden Festival Booth

*This review took place in March 2015. Please note that the Flower & Garden Festival booths have increased risks of cross contamination.Smokehouse Flower & Garden FestivalThe Smokehouse: Barbecue and Brews has become a hugely popular outdoor kitchen booth at the Flower & Garden Festival. Last year, I didn't get a chance to eat any of their offerings (like the Smoked turkey "rib" which I was so curious to try), so this year, I made sure to make a trip over there to grab a bite. Here are the gluten free offerings at the booth (with notations of the dairy free ones):

  • Smoked Debreziner sausage with house-made kraut and mustard – Gluten Free, Dairy Free (Confirmed by Sarah on March 7, 2015)
  • Beef Brisket Burnt Ends Hash with white cheddar fondue and pickled jalapeños - *ONLY made gluten free if ordered without the white cheddar fondue (it contains flour as a thickener). If ordered without sauce, it is also dairy free, per Chef at the Smokehouse on March 7, 2015.

The Smoked Debreziner sausage was marked gluten free on the marketplace passport, and I wondered if the Beef Brisket Burnt Ends Hash could also be eaten without the sauce. When I got a chance to speak to one of the chefs on hand, he let me know that the brisket could be served without the sauce and that it would be gluten free without the flour based cheese sauce. Good to know!On this occasion, I decided to only try out the smoked sausage, as I was quickly getting full at the various booths, including Botanas BotanicoSmoked sausage The Smokehouse at Flower and Garden FestivalI totally forgot to take a picture before I started to dive into this; the sausage is not normally cut into thirds (I was splitting it with my family). The sausage itself was so good. It had that delicious smoked flavor and was perfectly cooked. Yes, low and slow is always a good thing when it comes to smoking. I really enjoyed the tangy mustard that came with it, but wasn't a huge fan of the sauerkraut. It was a little too vinegary and had way too many caraway seeds for my taste.While we enjoyed our eats, we also got a chance to talk to the culinary team about the smoking and even get a nice shot of the sausages in all their smoking glory.Smoker at the Smokehouse Flower & Garden FestivalOne non-food related thing that I noticed this year at the festival is that many of the booths have branded merchandise. They had quite the variety for the Smokehouse. I'm not sure I'd personally buy any of the merchandise, but I like the idea of having unique items to pick up at the festival! Smoker at the Smokehouse Flower & Garden FestivalOverall, I enjoyed the Smokehouse, and I'm glad it's become a yearly booth at the Flower & Garden Festival. I hope to go back and try the burnt ends hash sometimes, minus the cheese sauce. It looked and smelled terrific!  For more Flower & Garden Festival info, check out my main festival page, as well as the reviews found on Gluten Free in Orlando’s website. Alexis visits the festivals regularly and offers terrific updates

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