Matt’s BBQ Leaves Brisket Outside For Superior Smoke Flavor

As Portland’s Air Quality Index creeps into the 200s, Multnomah County officials are encouraging residents to stay inside for the safety of their lungs, especially the elderly, pregnant people and young children. While most Portlanders are keen to heed the advice and stay indoors, some flocked outside, lured towards North Mississippi Ave by a certain mouthwatering aroma.⁣
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“Normally our meats get cooked for 12 hours in the offset smoker, but when an opportunity like this presents itself, you’d be a fool not to jump on it,” said Matt’s BBQ’s assistant pitmaster, Gretchen Tharp. “We typically use oak wood to impart flavor in our meats, but Portland’s unique smokepocalypse has given us the rare opportunity to incorporate a smorgasbord of charred wood flavors from fires all across the Pacific Northwest into our proteins. This special circumstance calls for us to forgo the smoker entirely and just leave all of our product out in the open to get smoked by the thick Portland air.”⁣
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Scientists familiar with the phenomenon said that the city is currently blanketed in smoke from fires burning in the North Cascades, as well as throughout Oregon and California. Tharp lamented this tragic and dire effect of climate change, yet tried to find a silver lining in the smog. ⁣
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“It sucks when our air is so opaque it blocks out the sun. Just taking a breath outdoors tastes spicy in the worst way, but we’re trying to make the most of it. If the Pacific Northwest’s air quality is the worst in the world, the least we can do is harness it to make Matt’s BBQ brisket the best in the world.”⁣