Smokin Yard’s BBQ

Stumbled upon this place just passing through and it turned out to be some of the best BBQ I’ve ever had — maybe THE best. I had a pulled pork sandwich and have yet to find one better. Their mild sauce was perfect — not too sweet or tangy. We ate on the deck, on a rare 65 degree day in March, and it was great. Service was good too.

We were on our way back to Denver International after a whirlwind bachelor party/​ski trip and needed a place to grab a bite. We pulled in at about 1130 and the place was packed! We saw 2 Five-​O cars sitting out front and had a pretty good idea we were in for a treat!
The folks there were awesome! as we were waiting in line to order, they pushed 2 tables together to accommodate the 12 of us before we sat down. Being that there were 12, we had ordered a wide range of sandwiches and sides. My Carolina Pulled Pork with a side of fried okra was really, really, really good as was everything else that was ordered. There is a great selection of Colorado craft brews (though being that we spent three days of bachelor party living, the water was perfect).
Did I mention that the staff here was so nice!!! All in all a great way to end a great trip. This will definitely be a stop every time we drive by. Though I think the secret is out.

Loved this place! It’s right off the highway so it’s not out of your way. The girl at the register was extremely nice and helpful in suggesting what to try. We had the chopped brisket and the brisket and chicken plate. It was all delicious and cooked perfectly! The fried Ocra is a must try, very good! They even have boiled peanuts while you wait which is not long at all!

What a great find! I’m no BBQ connoisseur, but the food was good and the service was excellent and extremely friendly from the minute we walked in. We ordered the combo plate with four choices of meat and three sides. We had the pulled pork, chopped brisket and ribs. Sides were Mac n cheese, Cole slaw and collard greens. Place your order at the counter and grab a table. The meat was all really good and flavor, the sides were
A-​ok. But what bumps this place to five stars was the friendly staff. I’m sure this place get bombarded with people heading to the ski hill or on the way home. They were super helpful and knowledgeable about the me the items too. Kind of an unexpected surprise and a great way to kick off a ski weekend in Vail.

I’ve heard a lot about Colorado and their odd lack of good BBQ. A Wild West state that has a cowtown heritage, seems crazy there aren’t a bunch of joints. Whatever. I stopped here after a day at the bAsin and felt right at home (Texas, that is). Smokin Yard’s does BBQ just right as far as I could tell.
A sandwich sounded really great, so I made the decision to get burnt ends before I read the rest of the menu. Burnt ends are, after all, the greatest meat ever. They were out… So I went with the sliced brisket instead. I will say this… The quality of brisket is the easiest and best way to judge a BBQ place. Even more than that, the quality of sliced brisket is really telling. Burnt ends are pretty easy to do, but getting tender, smoky sliced brisket is a talent. Smokin’ Yard’s has that talent. The sliced brisket sandwich melts in your mouth, I was really happy with it.
I questioned my decision to order fries but they were a pleasant surprise. I don’t know if they are frozen or not, but they sure didn’t taste like it. Usually at BBQ places the fries all kind of seem to be the same, but these looked unique and tasted great. The smoked bbq beans were AMAZING as well. There were what seemed to be some burnt ends inside, really great dish.
Overall I was impressed. I was also starving after a long day so there’s that. I plan to go back and take some visitors with me, definitely a solid joint to get a BBQ fix.

We love this place and always try to stop when we’re in Idaho Springs. It’s like a little hidden BBQ gem! The spicy slaw and smoked baked beans are amazing!

This is my go to place when I make it up to Idaho Springs. If I’m up there, I will go here for grub time. I cannot say enough about my love for this BBQ place. The brisket is always on point. Ribs will come right off the bone. Mac and cheese is ooey gooey heaven. Fried okra is BOMB. Literally everything on this menu is amazing. If you can, try the brisket sloppy joe. TO DIE FOR! But it’s only limited availability throughout the day. Service is phenomenal too. Drink is always full, but I will warn you this place gets PACKED. Getting a table inside during the winter during peaks times? Good luck. Summertime is a different story because they have a great patio. Like previously stated, I love this place!!! And it’s worth the drive, wait, and anything else you might encounter on I-​70 lol.

A wonderful BBQ spot! The staff was very accommodating! Their homemade sauces are amazing!

So good! My husband said «wow, you must have really liked that place.» because I couldn’t stop talking about it the whole way home to where we were staying in Black Hawk. This was some of the best BBQ I have ever had– and I am a big fan of BBQ– I have had it lots of places, including Texas and South Carolina. Everything was moist but not overly fatty. We’re big fans of fried pickle chips. I was thrilled to get the 15% discount for checking in on Unilocal,and the free boiled peanuts tip from other reviewers. We had a combo plate with Pork, baby back ribs and brisket, and it was tons of food for my husband and I and our toddler.

AMAZING Ribs, great sides, and delicious sweet tea! Super attentive with the drink refills this time. My favorite stop on the way home from the mountains for sure.

The best food I ate while visiting Colorado! I was lucky enough to get the last of the Burnt Ends sandwich. It was ridiculously good!
The view outside just added to the whole experience. When I go back to Denver I am making a special trip back here to eat.

Delicious bbq. I personally prefer some sauce, but this place nails the «no sauce» bbq. The st louis style was juicy with strong rub flavors. House Red Chili was too notch.

Great spot! Let me start with service. I forgot to present my 15% off coupon during purchase. My wife went back to see if they’d honor the coupon and they said yes. I saved $ 13.
Now on to the food. We ordered quite a few things for four of us — two adults and two kids, 4 and 7. Burnt ends — 5. Perfectly cooked and no sauce needed. Baby back ribs — 5. Could have came off the bone a tad bit better but still incredibly tasty. Kids chicken tenders — 5. I would have been happy to order those for myself! Collard greens — 5. Well cooked and flavorful with right amount of salt. Kids pulled pork sandwich — 3.5. Very dry. :(Fries — 5. Hard to mess up and they didn’t. Sweet Potato fries — 4. Little flavor but not soggy.
I’ll be back!

Got the 2 meat/​2 side option, chose brisket, pulled pork, hot links, mac and cheese, and baked beans. All good, with the brisket leading the way. They had three of their sauces on the table, and the waitress brought out a bottle of their Carolina style sauce, specifically suggesting that it complement the hot links. And she was right. All in all a very pleasant afternoon nosh, sitting out on the back deck overlooking the creek.

Would’ve been 5 stars if I had more smoke on the brisket, very small smoke ring. Sorry, I’m very picky about my brisket.
My wife & I stopped in to give this very popular spot a try during a road trip to Idaho Springs. We placed our 4 meat 3 sides order inside and decided to sit out on the deck as the weather was beautiful.
We had sliced brisket, hot links, pulled chicken and pulled pork. The pork was very good as were the hot links, the chicken was a little dry, the brisket was very tender & seasoned well but didn’t have enough smoke for my liking. The sides we had consisted of fried dill pickles, coleslaw and sweet potato fries, they were all flawless and quite possibly the best fried pickles I’ve had.
The coolest thing about our trip was the boiled peanuts, I got hooked on these things in Florida. I could’ve sat on that deck and ate peanuts all day, great flavor!

This place is one of the best BBQ places I’ve eaten at across America.
I went with the burnt ends sandwich which they can sell out of relatively quickly. Went with a side of friend pickles and fries. Tons of BBQ sauce choices at the table and beer for sale as well. The parking is kind of tight but we were still able to get a table outside on the back deck.
Definitely try to grab a bite here after rafting or if you are just passing through.

This place is hands down the best bbq place! Right off i70 I though it would be sketch. Nope! We got greeted with smiles and chill music. They had some people who just got done rafting down the river so they we kinda busy. I had the pulled pork it was AMAZING! My be had the sloppy joe and it was the bomb dot com! The Mac and cheese is yummy and the mash potatoes, the corn is good too.
It’s so good I’m already planning the next trip up here and we haven’t even left yet! Best Unilocal find in a while! And just 20 mins away from Denver.

Parking here is a skill when it is busy.
Additionally, the line can be daunting.
However, the food is great and the service is solid. I had the misfortune of arriving behind a group of six and a group of nine. I had to wait behind some woman who interrogated the cashier about just how much fat would be in the BBQ. She seemed genuinely surprised there was no lean, non fat option for brisket or pulled pork (not sure if she had ever eaten BBQ before). Anyways, that really was the only problem.
I got the burnt ends sandwich with sides of greens and fried okra. Dining partner got the pulled pork sandwich with a side of Cole slaw. We were both very happy. Burnt ends were smoky and tender. The roll they were in was warm and fresh. I added some raw red onion, their bold BBQ sauce and a few jalapeño slices and I was quite satisfied. The helping of fried okra was large and tasty. The greens were OK. I prefer my greens to be a bit more vinegary.
A shout out to the staff, who refilled my soda and even suggested I get a to go cup when we were ready to leave.
Heaven help people trying to navigate that parking lot in the winter. A challenge in the summer alone.

We have eaten here 16 times and it is always great.
We have brought all our friends and they all love it
The granddaughter really loves the ribs as we all do
Thank you

I will say its worth the drive up from Denver. I ordered the Two meat combo with Baked beans. I went with Brisket and Ribs. Only downfall is I thought It would of came with atleast 6 rib bones not 4. But they were smoky and delicious with more meat than fat. Nice Smoke rings. And the sauces are on the table. I used it sparingly so i didnt mask the flavor. They were more than delicious.
Great Service as well.

Thanks Unilocal for finding us another Great BBQ! (: The pulled pork, ribs and sweet potato fries where excellent. I am not a big fan of the fried okra. They also offer free boiled peanuts, never had them before, salty but good (:
Great Atmosphere and good service as well.

Excelente comida, típica americana.