Dining out: Sugarfactory Smokehouse

LAYTON — Most of the time, smelling smoke when you enter a restaurant is a bad thing. But in the case of Layton's Sugarfactory Smokehouse, it's definitely a good thing.

As my family and I walked into Sugarfactory on a recent weeknight, our noses were besieged by the smoky-meaty smell of the place, evidence that a real on-site smoker is at work, smoking meat for 10 to 20 hours before it's offered to patrons. The ambience supports that rustic smell, with rough-hewn decor, such as rope dividers, stone counters, a high-beam ceiling and a rusty floor.

Service is cafeteria-style: Choose from the menu and in moments you'll have the smoky specialty of your choice, along with several side dishes.

Meat is, of course, the star at an establishment like this. You can choose from two kinds of pork (loin and pulled), as well as turkey, beef brisket, sausage, ribs and prime rib. The menu offers them in various combinations, including the family-style Smokehouse Feast, with four meats and a half-rack of ribs, along with five platters of sides.

I chose the brisket, turkey-and-pork-loin combination plate. You can get it in sizes ranging from a third of a pound to a full pound of meat, each with three side orders; I went with the small end of the spectrum, which was ample for me.

The turkey was chewy and dark outside, moist inside and tasted the "smokiest" of the three meats in my dinner. The brisket was slightly peppery, with lots of meaty flavor, although a bit less tender than I expected. And the pork loin was light, garlicky and more delicately flavored than the other meats.

Each of them was complemented well by one of Sugarfactory's excellent barbecue sauces. The house sauce, with a dark, slightly spicy flavor, set off the smoked turkey, while the brisket shone under a few drops of the spicy sauce. My favorite combination, though, was the pork-loin-and-apple barbecue sauce. I'd like to buy a gallon of that sweet-spicy, fresh-tasting sauce and pour it over everything.

My husband chose the three-meat combination plate and got a heaping platter of dry-rubbed ribs, sausage and brisket. The ribs, slow-smoked like the rest of the meat, were a highlight of our meal. It was quite a sight to see our usually finicky 3-year-old enthusiastically tearing juicy meat from a rib with her teeth.

The sausages were plump, lean and well-spiced without being fiery. They had a savory, firm casing and were a particular favorite of our 2-year-old.