John L.
Yelp
This place is a Denver 5 stars, but would be a Texas 3.5 stars. The flavors on all the food items were great. Texture, not quite there. Service was very friendly and efficient. And inside was very charming and clean, but a little tight. Price-wise, it is on the higher end.
When approaching the restaurant, one can smell the beautiful bbq smoke from blocks away. The location lacks curb appeal and is not in a nice area, but streetside parking is plentiful within a block.
We wanted to try almost everything, so we ordered brisket, pastrami, burnt ends, chicken, turkey, sausage, pulled pork, pork ribs, custard cornbread, truffle mac and cheese, bbq beans, and banana pudding. Complimentary are 4 kinds of bbq sauce (smokey sweet, smokey jalapeño, Carolina gold, and Chipotle citrus), diced onions, sliced raw jalapeños, and sliced bread and butter pickles.
The brisket was dry, but not crazy dry. It had really good flavor though. I'd rate it 3/5. Pastrami was excellent in terms of flavor and texture, 5/5. The burnt ends were really good, and probably the best I ever had. I don't really like burnt ends, but these were good and a 4/5 for me. Chicken was very mid, 2/5. Turkey was amazing and a favorite for everyone at the table, 5/5. We might stop by every now and then to order a pound of turkey to-go. Sausage was pretty good and heavily flavored with fragrant spices, 4.5/5. Pulled pork was tasty with a great smoked flavor, but somewhat dry, 4/5. Pork ribs had great smokey and slightly tangy flavor with a wonderful salty and peppery rub. Unfortunately the ribs did not fall off the bone at all, quite dry, and a little tough. 3.5/5.
Everyone loved the custard cornbread (5/5). The truffle mac and cheese was very well-executed (4.5/5). Bbq beans were average, but the hunks of brisket in there was nice (3.5/5). And banana pudding was nice, not too sweet, and with real bananas. It tasted fresh and natural, but creamy and luscious. Quite simple, and there's beauty in simplicity, but maybe too simple? I'd give it a 4.5/5.
The sauces were nicely balanced, thick, and nothing too crazy. Onions are just onions. The jalapeños had zero heat, but were nice and crunchy. Bread and butter pickles were very nice, but only if you like that sweeter style of pickle.
Overall a top bbq joint in Denver that I will be eagerly coming back to for pastrami, turkey, sausage, and custard cornbread.