Jkq Bbq - Central City

One of the only stand alone restaurants in Black hawk and well worth it! Delicious burgers, potato salad, and coleslaw!

We decided to explore more of Colorado and went to Central City and its sister city Blackhawk. Central City is the quaint aftermath of the coal mining days. A cute little downtown dotted with antiques, alcohol and gambling machines. Blackhawk is casinos on steroids. While visiting Central City we stopped by an antique store and asked about good places to eat. The owner didn't have any recommendations for Central City but said the locals likes JKQ BBQ in the Crook's Palace in Blackhawk. JKQ has a large private lot which makes parking convenient. When we went for lunch on a weekday the restaurant was almost empty. Couples would come and go but there wasn't a packed lunchtime crowd. Because of all the mega casinos in town with places to eat in each, JKQ has to be a destination versus a place you impulsively walk to while shopping in the area. Although the town is trying to have more shops within walking distance of JKQ's. Out front of the place is a meat smoker which is a good sign when going to a barbecue place. I'm really not a rib eater but I've had St. Louis style ribs and liked those because the meat tends to be less fatty. I don't mind chewing the meat off the bones. I do like pulled pork and they had a sampler platter where I could get two choices of meat and two side dishes. I opted for the St. Louis ribs and pulled pork. For sides I picked cole slaw and French fries. The ribs were done well, but the meat to fat ratio wasn't impressive. I picked a little meat off the ribs and headed to the pulled pork. That was excellent. Tender and good. No fat. There were two squeeze bottles of barbecue sauces on the table. A hot one and a mild. I used some of the mild sauce. It was soupy versus thick, but it added some flavor to the pulled pork. With only a few patrons in the place I was surprised at the wait to get our lunch. I think the holdup was the kitchen because our server was very nice and attentive. One really nice aspect of this restaurant is they have freshly made desserts. They had a lemon cake I just had to try so I purposely didn't finish my lunch so I had room for it. It was very good. And the server was sweet enough to find some coffee so I could enjoy a cup or two with dessert. If you are in the Blackhawk area and are looking for good barbeque this place won't disappoint you. But I wouldn't make a special trip to Blackhawk just to go there.

Food was fantastic, way tastier and more reasonable priced than all the casino food in the area. We went there twice in one trip!

Love this place for both its Dining/in as well as a to-go option. I have never been disappointed. My favorite is a double order of Mac Cheese, smoked pulled chicken and kielbasa. Just amazing. The portions are excellent. I always have to ask for a box for my leftovers. Don't even get me started on the cheese curds...YUM.

I am very glad my house is near from JKQ BBQ. Price is also acceptable and their food made me so happy! And all the meat did not contain much fat so that is a really good point too. I tried several menus and ribs are the best. And you should try the mixed sauce of normal one and the hot one! The food I bought last time replaced my meals three times!