Since Hang Fire Southern Kitchen closed its doors in 2021, there's been a smoke ring shaped hole in south Wales’s barbecue scene.
So, despite 2025 being another shocker of a year for the hospitality industry, it was exciting to see two brand new barbecue restaurants arriving in Cardiff within a matter of weeks of each other.
Spitfire Barbecue was the first to open its doors in Cardiff city centre at the end of September. With a solitary sister restaurant in Bristol, Spitfire interestingly blends Texan style BBQ with South African braai influences.
The second new BBQ joint to open was Hickory’s Smokehouse in St Mellon's. Owned by Greene King and part of a nationwide chain of over 30 restaurants, their original independent roots date back to Chester back in 2010.
Despite one being an independent the other a chain, one thing that they both have in common is that a number of influencers lined up to praise both restaurants during their opening weeks… of course after having had free food.
With Mrs G away for work, it was an opportune time to guzzle some barbecue, and my friend Alex was my partner in crime. A self-confessed smoked meat strumpet, he’s even got a barbecue themed tattoo.
On a Wednesday evening at 6.30pm, Spitfire was impressively busy both upstairs and downstairs. It certainly gave off the right smokehouse vibes with its painted brickwork, earthy tones, and wood panelling.
Spitfire’s menu comprises of starters like cornbread bites (£4.20) and pork belly rashers (£6.85) as well as things in bread such as pulled pork sandwiches (£9.95) and double cheeseburgers (£13.85). But the Texas pit barbecue section is where the most fun is to be had, allowing you to construct your own platter with items priced by weight or the slice.
On the drinks front, Spitfire’s house pale ale (£6.80), brewed by Bristol’s Arbor, very much hit the spot. Easy drinking at 4.2% ABV and with a good hit of citrusy hops, I could definitely have sunk a few pints of the stuff.
Onto the food and our barbecue tray was a handsome beast. There were some definite highs, some good and a couple of lows.
Starting with the best of the stuff, and Spitfire’s jalapeno cheese sausage (£6.95) was a thing of beauty. An absolute whopper, it was juicy and smoky with pops of spicy pepper and oozes of filthy cheese. If there was any doubting how juicy it was, a stray spurt splattered Alex’s white jumper whilst he was cutting into it.
Spitfire’s signature St. Louis rib (£23.95) was very good too. Straight out of the Flintstone’s in its proportions, the slab of bone in pork belly had a deep crusty bark, unmistakeable smoke ring, soft seam of fat and tender flesh.
It was lovely paired with Spitfire’s house sauces, a smoky and not too sweet barbecue sauce and a well layered Louisiana hot sauce.
Smoked chicken wings (£7.50) were delicious despite not being particularly smoky. Their commendably crisp skin, juicy flesh and a zingy Buffalo sauce coating were all plus points.
Pulled pork (£4.65 per 100g) had good flavour and the meat was nice and tender. But I felt that it had been overly pulled in places, resulting in a slightly mushy texture. It would have nice to see a few bigger shreds and nuggets of meat.
Brisket is the most unforgiving of meats to smoke and so unsurprisingly it’s here where the real disappointments lay. A pair of slices (£7.65 per slice) had a fairly tight texture, were lacking in smokiness and leant towards the dryer end of the spectrum. Whilst they were pleasant, they weren’t at the same level as the pork and chicken.
Brisket burnt ends (£10.85) were even more of a let down. Whilst they had a bigger hit of smoke and more flavoursome bark than the brisket slices, they were dry instead of being the indulgently soft and mouth melting bits of meat that normally make this cut so compelling.
Back onto the sides and I very much enjoyed Spitfire’s mac and cheese (£4.50). The pasta still had a good bite, and it was coated in a rich cheesy sauce with a caramelised crust.
Pit beans (£3.95), whilst a little too saucy, had a lovely soft texture and spicing to them and were nicely flecked with nuggets of bacon.
Overall, I enjoyed dinner at Spitfire despite the couple of duff elements. Alex liked it too, even though Hickory’s slightly edged it for him. I guess I’ll have to go and find out for myself.
Spitfire is a welcome addition to Cardiff city centre and if you’re looking for a barbecue fix then I think it’s well worth checking out.
The details:
Address - Spitfire Barbecue Cardiff, 39-41 St Mary Street, Cardiff CF10 1AD
Web - https://www.spitfirebarbecue.com/
Telephone - 029 2297 0671
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