Aug 02, 2021
Felix von Hurter

Friends and Fam - Reuben's Reubens

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At Freestar we're all about championing the next generation and there is nowhere more happening than the London food scene right now.

We caught up with an exciting new player in the smoked meat scene - Reuben - who has been making fall-off-the-bone meats in his back garden since lockdown v1 (at the age of 19 btw 🤯)

How did you get into the food scene?

I came up with 'Ruben's Reubens' when entering the 'Brixton Kitchen' competition back in 2019. My idea was focused around the famous 'Reuben Sandwich', comprised of mounds of salt beef with layers of cheese, sauerkraut and pickles, smothered in secret sauce and forced between two slices of toasted rye bread. Despite being runner-up in the competition, I was still determined to bring my idea to life. So, I hosted pop-ups across London, preparing for an eventual launch in Brixton. Then coronavirus hit and plans for this launch were off the table.

In the early days of lockdown I started experimenting with my dad’s smoker in the garden. After a while, I began selling small amounts of the smoked goodies to neighbours. The feedback was really good and I slowly saw my following grow. I eventually expanded delivery to across most of South London by borrowing my uncle's old cargo bike. I'm now smoking and delivering on a weekly basis and loving every moment!

Where did you learn your skills?

In my early days of smoking I was doing a lot of reading / watching youtube to learn the basics. From there, improving mostly involved making mistakes and learning from them! After a while you can judge whether a bit of meat is cooked by the 'feel', but as I said this just takes a lot of time and overcooked/undercooked mistakes! I'm constantly learning and getting better every time I fire up the smoker.

I love the whole BBQ culture in the states, I just think it's so awesome. I reckon this is what inspires me, along with all of the mad talented chefs I've been able to work with.

Plans for the future?

Right now I'm looking for a kitchen space which should allow me to increase volume and expand my delivery to lots of different areas of London. I also think it would be super cool to have my own food truck one day... maybe a smokehouse on wheels!

Favourite London restaurants?

That's a tricky question since the London food scene is so sick. Naughty Piglets, Sarap & Original Patacon are a couple of my fav Brixton spots.

Keep an eye on Reuben's insta for the latest kits, pop ups and partnerships. This guy is gonna be big!