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Poutine chain coming to Lake Zurich, Naperville

Ryan Smolkin has tabbed Lake Zurich and Naperville as the right places to start spreading his love for poutine — a Canadian delicacy of fries, gravy and cheese curds — in the Chicago area.

Headquartered in suburban Toronto with stores across Canada, Smoke's Poutinerie has ambitious expansion plans in the U.S. Lake Zurich and Naperville would be sites for the first of five restaurants in the Illinois-southeastern Wisconsin market.

“We're the party that's happening,” said an energetic Smolkin, who founded Smoke's in 2008. “We're the fun that is wherever we go. That's what we are. That's where Smoke's Poutinerie is at.”

Using a tagline of “Clogging Arteries Since 2008,” Smoke's has attracted throngs at grand openings similar to what's been seen in the suburbs for new Portillo's and Chick-fil-A restaurants.

For example, Smoke's reported serving 1,300 poutine orders when its first U.S. store debuted with lines that stretched around the block in Berkeley, California, in November 2014. Movie producers Danny Rodriguez and Robert Parada are the Smoke's franchisees in Berkeley.

Plans call for Smoke's to operate in a yet-to-be-selected retail center near Rand and Ela roads in Lake Zurich, Smolkin said.

Lake Zurich Mayor Thomas Poynton said he was unaware Smoke's was considering his village, but he would “love to have them.”

In Naperville, Smoke's intends to be near North Central College.

Kristin Menas, who specializes in researching Canadian food service for Chicago-based Technomic Inc., said she sees potential for Smoke's to take off here. Technomic conducts studies and produces research on all aspects of the food industry.

“In particular, Smoke's has a ton of experience with major expansion plans in Canada,” Menas said. “I think one of its strongest assets is the chain's strong brand self-awareness.”

About 30 poutine varieties typically are offered at Smoke's. Diners can stick with the traditional poutine of hand-cut fries, gravy and squeaky cheese curds or ramp it up with pulled pork, chicken or beef.

Smolkin said the restaurant is picky about its potatoes, sourcing them only from Quebec, Ontario and the Maritimes. The cheese curds come from Quebec dairy farmers.

Smoke's has about 100 locations across Canada specializing in the dish rooted in Quebec. Roughly 60 franchised U.S. units have been sold, Smolkin said, with five restaurants already open.

With a red-plaid motif, a fictional glasses-wearing character used in various ways and 1980s rock music, the food is just part of the Smoke's customer experience, Smolkin said. There is plenty of room for Smoke's on the fast-casual restaurant landscape, he added.

“It's just fun and unique and you want to go back there,” the 43-year-old Smolkin said of his growing poutine empire. “When you're in there, you have the '80s rock pounding. You're already looking at the board with the expectation of what you're going to order the next time you come back — that type of atmosphere.”

  Smoke's Poutinerie wants to open near Rand and Ela roads in Lake Zurich. Here, Rand Road traffic whizzes past Ela Road. Bob Susnjara/bsusnjara@dailyherald.com
Smoke's Poutinerie founder Ryan Smolkin plans to expand in the Chicago area starting with Lake Zurich and Naperville. Courtesy of Smoke's Poutinerie
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