As a Kansas City native, I was spoiled with a plethora of amazing barbecue options growing up, like Arthur Bryant’s, home of the burnt end, or Joe’s Kansas City, which started in a gas station and has since become famous around the world.
Sure, Denver has an amazing restaurant scene and tons of great food. But when it comes to barbecue, in my opinion nothing is like Kansas City, where the sauce is sweet and thick. Still, there are some rising pit-masters in Colorado whose smoked meats are demanding attention from Kansas City, Texas, Memphis and Carolina transplants.
I searched high and low for the local barbecue restaurants that leave my mouth watering, stain my clothes with the smell of wood-burning smoke and pass the ultimate brisket pull test. (A well-cooked brisket slice should break apart easily with a slight pull.)
These are my top spots around town, with my absolute favorite listed at the end (don’t go jumping ahead to see, now).
Pit Fiend Barbecue
Before it closed last January, Owlbear Barbecue had become an esteemed part of Denver’s barbecue scene. And while founder Karl Fallenius was ready to move on, his chefs weren’t, especially after co-worker Teven Hudgins died unexpectedly just before the last day of service. So the group — Michael Graunke, Juan Pablo Llano and Esteban Gallardo— decided to reopen their own barbecue joint in the same spot, to honor his memory.
Pit Fiend opened in May, bringing the sweet smell of barbecue back to RiNo. At the core of the restaurant are two custom-built, Texas-style smokers that Fallenius passed on to his former employees. Pit Fiend carried over some Owlbear best-sellers, such as brisket, pork belly and béchamel mac and cheese. But the team also experimented with menu items like Kansas City-style ribs (obviously, my personal favorite); a pulled, Yucatan-style jackfruit sandwich; and pork tenderloin.
Pit Fiend also continued Owlbear’s tradition of incorporating fantastical characters from the world of Dungeons & Dragons into their names and dishes. A pound of any meat, served with three sides and two beverages ($50), is called Hunger of Hadar and feeds two people. Sauces — from the North Carolina pepper-vinegar to the Kansas City confit garlic and molasses — carry names like Beholder and Kobold. The two smokers, of course, are affectionately named Smog and Shenron.
2826 Larimer St., Denver; pitfiendbbq.com
Smokin’ Yards BBQ
The father-and-sons team of Alan, Ian, Scott and Andrew Yard founded Smokin’ Yards BBQ in 2008 as a drive-through destination in Idaho Springs. But in 2018, they opened a second location in Denver’s Art District on Santa Fe.
They borrowed a number of regional barbecue styles for their recipes, but Smokin’ Yards is known for its hickory-smoked pulled pork (my favorite), chopped brisket sandwich and burnt ends sandwich, not to mention free boiled peanuts. The meaty St. Louis-style ribs are also a must-try. And if you have room, try the classic sides like mac and cheese, onion rings, mashed potatoes and gravy and smoked baked beans.
Anyone who isn’t craving barbecue (weird, huh?) can try a catfish po’boy, chicken fried steak or some smokehouse hot beef.
900 W. 1st Ave., Denver; 2736 Colorado Blvd., Idaho Springs; smokinyards.com
Roaming Buffalo Bar-B-Que
Roaming Buffalo Bar-B-Que is proud to call itself a Colorado-crafted barbecue joint. That’s because owners Coy Webb, a Texan, and his Colorado-native wife, Rachael, put their own spin on regional barbecue by using smoked lamb and bison to create a new tradition in the Mile High City.
But Coy, a classically trained chef who couldn’t resist his passion for smoking brisket, also has plenty of traditional meats on the menu, like pork ribs, wings, chopped pork, and turkey cheddar sausage (but give the bison green chile a shot as well).
Don’t miss out on the smoked poblano mac and cheese, cilantro lime coleslaw, house-made green chile potato chips and Cowboy beans infused with coffee and molasses. The original Denver location, which opened in 2015, doesn’t serve alcohol, but a newer Golden location does.
2387 S. Downing St., Denver; 17121 S. Golden Road, Golden; roamingbuffalobbq.com
Ragin’ Hog BBQ
A local staple since 2013, Ragin’ Hog BBQ immediately gives off that classic feeling of a mom-and-pop joint. Located in a strip mall, with a few tables inside and quick counter service, it reminds me of Joe’s Kansas City Bar-B-Que in my hometown.
Owners Stacy and Colleen Van Tuyl are Arkansas natives and are on-site every day, arriving at 4:30 a.m. to smoke brisket, burnt ends, chicken and hot links. Each combo comes with two sides and a slice of buttermilk pie, which tastes like gooey butter cake with a crust and makes my mouth water just thinking about it.
And don’t skip out on the coleslaw (it’s so good I could drink it), collard greens or Brunswick Stew (a combination of pork, chicken, lima beans and corn in a Georgia sauce-based broth).
4361 Lowell Blvd., Denver; raginhogbbq.com
The West End Tavern
The West End Tavern in Boulder may be known as a burger bar, but it’s also a great spot for barbecue — although more on the upscale side. West End serves a fatty prime beef brisket, pulled pork (with a smoke ring that smacks you in the face), smoked chicken and a half-rack of ribs, plus crispy burnt ends and brown-sugar-rubbed, St. Louis-style ribs.
And no matter what barbecue-heavy city you’re from, West End has got the sauce, including Kansas City-style, Carolina gold and Alabama white.
926 Pearl St., Boulder; thewestendtavern.com
AJ’s Pit Bar-B-Q
A true barbecue joint is one you can smell halfway down the block, which is how I discovered AJ’s Pit Bar-B-Q while riding my bike through this south Denver neighborhood. As soon as the oh-so-smoky whiff of AJ’s hit my nose, I had to stop. Which was a good thing, since AJ’s is located in an old warehouse in an industrial area off of Interstate 25 with almost no signage.
AJ’s originally opened in Chicago, the hometown of owner Jared Leonard, in 2010. And despite his origins, Leonard knows his barbecue. He taught over 1,000 barbecue classes during his time in Chicago. In 2018, he closed the Chicago operation and moved to Denver so he could expand his restaurant group, SSC Hospitality, which owns Au Feu Brasserie and Grabowski’s Pizzeria, both in Denver, and Campfire in Evergreen (he also owns two other concepts in Chicago).
“There will never be two of these restaurants,” Leonard said, speaking of AJ’s. “This is a one-off. It’s got so much character and takes so much passion to run that after being here for a year, I’d go back to Chicago and it didn’t have the same magic. So we brought the smokers out here and started over as barbecue ambassadors in Denver.”
There are no tricks or gimmicks at AJ’s. You get a plate of meat with sauce on the side and a bun at an extra cost if you’d like, similar to Kansas City (except without the white Wonder Bread).
AJ’s best-seller is its wagyu brisket, fatty or lean. It’s also one of the only spots in town with burnt ends on its daily menu, although those sell out by 1 p.m. Leonard’s other favorites include smoked turkey, smoked wagyu pastrami and spare ribs.
Pitmaster Patrick Klaiber, also a Chicago native who Leonard met at one of his barbecue classes, has been with AJ’s for three years. His typical routine is to throw all the beef on the self-regulated wood smoker around 5:30 p.m. and let that slow cook for 15 hours (the pork ribs are smoked for 12 hours). On a busy day, Leonard said they serve over 500 people.
“The secret is all in a good trim,” Klaiber said. “You have to be good at trimming the briskets and pork ribs, have a good rub and consistent temperature to have some quality barbecue.”
AJ’s sides are a little more adventurous than the traditional smoked meats. There’s truffle mac and cheese, custard-filled cornbread and pit beans. Inside, the small restaurant brings people together with long picnic tables and old-school Western decorations.
“Our barbecue is authentic, wood-fired barbecue,” Leonard said. “The service and people are genuinely hospitable and want to give you an incredible experience. It’s designed to make you feel like you’re eating barbecue in your friend’s backyard.”
2180 S. Delaware St., Denver; pitbarbq.com
Post Oak Barbecue
When a friend from home comes to visit, the first spot on our itinerary is Post Oak Barbecue, my favorite overall spot in Denver. I’ve been here more times than I can count, and it (quite literally) tastes like a slice of home.
Owner Nick Prince, a native of Fort Worth, opened the Texas-style barbecue joint in 2019. After working as a banker for 14 years, Prince was ready to get his hands dirty. He spent days and nights reading books on barbecue, watching YouTube videos and making brisket every weekend to learn the secret behind the slow-smoked meats he grew up with.
“I did things in reverse,” Prince said. “Instead of my family teaching me how to cook barbecue, I taught my family how to cook it. I was cooking briskets for probably four straight years, at least two a weekend, until I was satisfied with my product, which my in-laws loved.”
When you walk into Post Oak, you’re greeted by employees who are just as excited about the barbecue as you are to try it. I can confidently say I’ve never had a dry piece of meat here.
Post Oak uses, well, post oak (which comes from a certain kind of oak tree that grows in Texas) hauled in from Austin to slow-smoke its pork butt and brisket for 14 hours. Then the team throws the ribs, turkey, pork belly and sausage on the built-in smoker — which used to be a walk-in cooler — in the morning. The brisket, which absolutely passes the pull test, melts in your mouth and is Post Oak’s best-seller, Prince said. His favorite is the beef rib, which falls off the bone when you pick it up.
“You could eat the beef rib with a spoon,” he said.
I am also a huge fan of its jalapeno-cheddar sausage, Carolina-style pulled pork sandwich and brisket tacos, which come with a tangy “yum yum sauce.” On Fridays, I try to beat the rush for the burnt end special.
Post Oak’s long list of sides is also one of my favorite things about it. You can’t go there without getting some jalapeno-bacon mac and cheese and fried okra. Be sure to try the elote when it’s available (I still can’t stop thinking about it). The bar, a coveted dining spot in the restaurant, is stocked with plenty of bourbon, frozen drinks and Shiner Bock beer.
“We typically have six-hour lines out the door on Saturdays and probably sell out three times a week,” Prince said.
4000 Tennyson St.; Denver; postoakdenver.com
