Pellet smoker vs wood smoker

Rick, morning...  Some restaurants use liquid smoke....  Then there is the type of wood they might use...  and the length of time they apply smoke...   Do they have a smoker on the premises ??  check their wood pile and ask the chef....  Dave

I have both and with out a doubt the stick burner gets a lot more smoke flavor.  Sometimes I don't even taste smoke flavor at all with my pellet smoker.  That being said I love my pellet smoker.  That wood flavor and moist meat is top notch.  Its just not even close to the smoke flavor the stick burner gives.
 

I now have both and I can say the stick burner puts alot more smoke onto the meat, but you need to be carefull with too much smoke also..

Some restaurants use liquid smoke, some (sad to say) boil their ribs then put them on a grill. Then there are the truly authentic slow cooking real deal. The authentic BBQ joints use a lot of wood all day long which will create intense smoke over & over through out the day. When they add wood to their pits, they usually have a set schedule as to when & how much wood they add through out the day. This is how they maintain consistency from day to day. It takes a true pit master to pull this off with consistency. I personally have both a B&M smoker (Brick & Mortar) and 2 pellet grills. I find myself using my Rec Tec pretty much all the time now. I never have the time to keep up on my stick burner these days and along with my tube smoker, I produce the best food I ever have.

I have to say too, with a pellet smoker It seems that it imparts more of the wood/smoke flavor as opposed to just a smoke flavor. It's important to know the difference between a smoke flavor and creosote flavor too.

I am on my 2nd old-school Brinkmann--the fire box/smoking chamber style and in my opinion there's not other way to go!  This is as close to caveman as you can get, and when i use cherry, apple, pecan or any fruit/nut wood, the results are beyond what any pellet-type smoker can deliver.
 

Like any other tool, a smoker takes some time to figure out.

Without BASHING pellet smokers, it's fair to say, they produce less smoke than a conventional stick burner

You give up something for convenience!

It's really about personal preference.....

If a guy likes strong smoke, who am I to tell him he's wrong?

Personally, I like a stronger smoke flavor than what my pellet grill produces, that's why I invented a gadget to supplement smoke in a pellet grill.  Now others can add more smoke too

Todd