The family business started in 1969 in Bay City, Texas, a small town southwest of Houston. It began as a passion project for Frank Sr., who worked various jobs delivering milk and driving bread routes before going all in on barbecue. His mother, Frank III's great-grandmother, owned the Dairy Mart in the small town, so the family has been immersed in the food world for generations.
Citing steep competition in the Bay City area, the Volkmers moved their business to Denver in 1980, bringing a taste of Texas-style barbecue to the Mile High City. And they haven't looked back since, keeping the tradition alive for over forty years.
Not much has changed since then, either. The recipes and even the smokers date back to when it all began, with the only deviations being minor recipe tweaks and equipment repairs along the way.
Frank’s specializes in beef brisket, with its signature outer crust and a delicate smoke ring encircling the unctuous, juicy, slow-cooked meat. The sauce has a ketchup base, with a sweet Kansas City-style touch balanced by a tanginess similar to vinegar- or mustard-based Carolina sauces.
Frank's specializes in Texas-style barbecue in addition to its pig roast offering.
Frank's Bar-B-Que
While noting that many customers think there is a secret ingredient that sets Frank's barbecue apart from others, “it’s nothing out of the ordinary," Volkmer says. "The flavor comes more from the ratios of ingredients we use and the way it’s all put together.”
The real showstopper is the whole-pig roast, a specialty Frank’s has been perfecting over thirty years.
The preparation is simple: A whole hog is loaded into the smoker and cooked low and slow for upwards of eighteen to twenty hours. Smoking meat is as much an art as it is a science. At Frank's, the pitmasters are acutely dialed into the inner workings of the equipment, with typical cooking temperatures ranging between 200 and 225 degrees. “At this point, we’ve really just got a feel for it versus looking for a specific temperature. We know how our smokers like to run,” says Volkmer.
As for the seasoning, there’s none to speak of — not even a grain of salt. The alchemy of the meat with the smoke is what creates those flavorful, succulent, falling-off-the-bone tender bites.
“You really can eat nearly every part — though you may not want to,” Volkmer jokes, noting that the low and slow cooking gives areas like the ears and the skin an inedible leathery texture. From there, he says, everything else is fair game.
A pig roast can feed a crowd: The rule of thumb is one pound per person, so a forty-to-fifty-pound hog will feed forty to fifty people. For those curious to try but reluctant about carving the meat themselves, Frank’s team can carve and serve the pig on site. Volkmer noted, however, that many customers are excited to dig in and try themselves, whether it's their first pig roast or their hundredth.
Pig roasts must be ordered well in advance, as Frank's is often booked out for several months, especially in the summer, when the business typically serves up to five per weekend.
In addition to the pig roast and Texas-style brisket, Frank’s offers a variety of other meats — smoked sausage, pork ribs, pulled pork and chicken — as well as coleslaw, potato salad and pinto beans.
While most of its business is driven by catering, Frank’s is also open for to-go sandwiches and barbecue by the pound during the week starting at 9 a.m. until sold out at its location off West Colfax and Winona Court, just south of Sloan’s Lake.
Hungry for more smoked meats? Check out our list of the ten best barbecue joints in metro Denver.
Frank’s Bar-B-Que is located at 4700 West Colfax Avenue and is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (or until sold out) Monday through Friday, and offers catering services exclusively on Saturday and Sunday. For more information, visit franksbbq.com.
