Ten smokehouses.

One Pitmaster Cup.

One champion.

Smoke Wars is our year-long search for Santa Clarita's best BBQ.

Every contender is judged using The Pitmaster Scorecard, with each item scored out of 10 before we calculate an overall average.

That average becomes the restaurant's official Secret Sauce Score and determines its place in the race for the Pitmaster Cup.

Every Smoke Wars review follows the same process.

Each item on the table is scored individually out of 10.

Once every dish has been judged, we calculate the average score across the entire meal.

That average becomes the restaurant's official Secret Sauce Score and determines where it sits in the race for the Pitmaster Cup.

Simple.

Fair.

No favourites.

Smoke Wars rolled into its second contender with one mission: find out whether anyone was ready to knock Lucille's off the top of the leaderboard.

I ordered enough food to feed a small army.

Brisket.

A full rack of Jack Daniel's glazed baby back ribs.

Organic chicken.

Hoe cake.

Two mashed potatoes.

Baked beans.

Deep fried okra.

Southern slaw.

Mac and cheese.

By the time the bill landed, it was $152 before tax and tip.

Picking up late in the afternoon, the restaurant was surprisingly quiet, but one thing hit me before I even reached the counter.

Smoke.

Real smoke.

Not the kind pumped through an extractor fan for atmosphere, but the unmistakable smell of wood and barbecue that tells you something serious has been happening in the kitchen long before you arrived.

Back at Secret Sauce HQ, everything was laid out across the kitchen counter and the judging began.

Just like Lucille's, opinions around the table weren't unanimous.

That's exactly why Smoke Wars works.

Everyone scores every dish individually before we calculate the average.

Sometimes the family agrees.

Sometimes they don't.

This was definitely one of those meals.

The brisket and baby back ribs were both cooked properly, tender enough to pull apart without a fight and packed with flavour from the glaze.

I was a fan of both.

Not everyone agreed.

Two members of the family thought the ribs leaned a little too heavily on the salt, while the organic chicken quietly stole the show. Juicy, well-cooked and consistently good, it ended up earning the highest score of the meal alongside the hoe cake.

Speaking of the hoe cake...

That was one of the surprises.

Moist, full of flavour and the sort of side you don't expect to remember after a BBQ feast, yet somehow do.

The mashed potatoes were another highlight, creamy with plenty of flavour, while the mac and cheese comfortably held its own on an already crowded table.

The deep-fried okra disappeared quickly too.

Southern slaw did exactly what slaw normally does.

Fresh.

Crunchy.

Perfectly acceptable.

Just not particularly memorable.

The baked beans, however, divided the table.

They were noticeably different from the sweeter style most of us expected and never quite landed with the family.

One thing that tied the meal together was the glazing.

Whether it was the brisket, ribs or chicken, the marinades had clearly been given some attention, adding plenty of flavour without completely taking over the meat underneath.

Neca's Kitchen
18902 Soledad Canyon Rd, Canyon Country.

Walked in and the place was doing exactly what a good taco shop should be doing on a Monday night.

Busy.

Most tables were taken, people chatting over dinner, and hardly a seat to spare.

That's usually a good sign before you've even ordered.

I placed my usual at the counter: a carne asada burrito with all the usual suspects.

No special requests.

No shortcuts.

Every burrito gets the same test.

While I waited, I looked around the dining room.

Most of the tables were full, and plenty of them looked like regulars people eating without looking at the menu, chatting away like this was just another Monday night.

That's always something I pay attention to.

First impressions are one thing.

Regular customers are another.

A few minutes later my name was called.

Out came the burrito, a bag of fresh tortilla chips, and both red and green salsa. The red looked like the one making all the important decisions.

Back at Secret Sauce HQ, the first thing that stood out was the size.

This wasn't one of those burritos padded out with air and optimism.

It had some proper weight to it.

Inside was exactly what you hope to find: carne asada, beans, rice, onion and cilantro, all packed tightly enough to hold together without putting up a fight.

Everything stayed where it was supposed to.

No exploding wrap.

No structural collapse.

Just a burrito that knew its job.

There's a salsa station here too.

Earlier in the Burrito Belt Championship, I'd approached one like a man trying to assemble IKEA furniture without the instructions.

This time, I looked like I actually knew what I was doing.

Progress.

Then came the problem.

I fully intended to save half for the famous Last Burrito test the following morning.

That plan lasted about as long as it took me to finish the first half.

The second half disappeared shortly afterwards.

No air fryer.

No 400 degrees.

No five minute reheat.

Just an empty plate and a failed experiment.

I'm not giving it credit for a test it never actually took, but I'll happily put it through the full Last Burrito challenge if I find myself back here.

One thing did stop this from pushing even higher.

The filling wasn't perfectly consistent all the way through. A couple of bites were noticeably lighter on the rice than others, but the balance of flavours never really suffered because the carne asada carried the burrito from start to finish.

That extra point in The Carne Question wasn't difficult to award.

There's a marinade on the meat doing some real work full of flavour without overpowering everything else wrapped around it.

And at $12.20, this might just be one of the best-value contenders we've seen so far.

The verdict: The meat is the story here, well-seasoned, generous, and it held up beautifully the next morning. The pico de gallo doing exactly what they should. Structure solid throughout.

Just one point behind the leader.

And if Neca's Kitchen gets another shot at The Last Burrito, don't be surprised if it starts asking some serious questions at the top of the table.

Three restaurants.

Three Secret Sauce Scores.

One chance to win.

No random draw.

The first four correct answers win.

The Secret Sauce Scores for Ayuthaya Thai, Wow Spaghetti and Slice House are hiding inside past reviews on the Secret Sauce website.

Find all three and email your answers to [email protected].

Name:
Ayuthaya Thai: X/10
Wow Spaghetti: X/10
Slice House: X/10

Entries are timestamped, so speed matters just as much as accuracy.

Incorrect scores won't count, no matter how quickly they arrive.

Winners will be announced by first name in next week's newsletter, with $25 Dutch Bros gift cards sent on August 15th.

The answers aren't in the summaries.

They're hidden inside the reviews.

Good luck.

Openings, events and things worth knowing.

Concerts in the Park rolls into another weekend.

This Saturday, Blue Breeze Band brings Soul, Motown and R&B classics to Central Park.

Food trucks start serving from 5pm, the music kicks off at 7pm, and, as always, admission is free.

Bring a chair.

Bring a blanket.

And don't be surprised if half the park ends up dancing.

Lucky Luke is keeping Friday sorted.

Live music returns to the Rye Canyon brewery this Friday from 6-9pm, with food trucks serving alongside the beer.

No elaborate plans required.

Beer.

Food truck.

Live music.

Sometimes Santa Clarita makes things easy.

If you're already heading to Old Town Newhall for dinner, make one extra stop.

Objectively Speaking continues at the Santa Clarita Artists Association Gallery, open Friday evening from 5-8pm.

A relaxed way to wander through local artwork before grabbing dinner on Main Street.

Not every Friday night needs to end at a restaurant.

Burrito Belt Championship - Contender #9

The championship heads into its final stretch. Can anyone catch the leader?

Korean BBQ

We're firing up the grill to see if cooking your own dinner is worth the hype.

Competition Winners

Four readers.

Four Dutch Bros gift cards.

Did you make it?

Something Completely Different...

No championship.

No scorecard.

Just an idea we've wanted to try for a while.

Trust us.

You won't see this one coming.