Slow Groovin BBQ — Restaurant in Marble

This is destination Barbecue, and worth any distance traveled to get here. Located in the remote town of Marble Colorado, Slow Groovin BBQ has been quietly serving the centennial state's best smoked meat for over a decade. The town it is in is a serious tourist attraction all on its own, and from spring to fall this tiny historical landmark is jammed packed with leaf peepers, off-roaders and outdoor enthusiasts. They all used to eventually end up at Slow Groovin simply because it was literally the only restaurant in town.

A true testament to how far they've come however, is the fact that now quite often the reverse is true for its patrons. Eating here is now a pilgrimage that many Coloradans must make AT LEAST once a year, regardless of which far off corner of the state they live in. Getting to check out the historic marble mill or taking a scenic drive up to crystal city is now usually only the consolation prize for driving so far just to enjoy a plate of some of the best barbecue in the west.

BBQ obsessives can sometimes get lost in the weeds with region specific snobbery. I get it...to a point. Yes I've had better slices of brisket in Austin, and definitely enjoyed the cook better on a few ribs in St. Louis. I had a pulled pork sandwich in the Carolinas so good it made me believe in love again, and better chicken while judging a backyard competition in Western Colorado. The point is that all of these examples were only so marginally better that it barely deserves a mention. I don't live near any of these places, so why compare every bite to them?

Brick-and-Mortar barbeque restaurants rarely get as good as this, and never operate at this level of consistency. Not just consistency either, but constant improvement. When I come back to meats I've gone a couple years without ordering in favor of other favorites, without fail I'm always blown away and kicking myself in the butt for going so long without eating them. The fact that I've been having this same problem at Slow Groovin for so many years is bewildering. The talented pit masters and kitchen staff are always refining their techniques and honing their craft to delicious effect.

This attention to detail spills over into every perfect side dish and all of their insanely good appetizers, providing yet another hurdle when trying to decide how much stomach room you have before ordering. The line more often than not stretches to the road, but one of their simple but perfectly executed cocktails makes waiting painless while taking in the amazing views of Marble. Year after year their handpicked staff run this madhouse like a well-oiled machine, keeping the vibes chill and the food moving with ease.

This is Colorado's best barbeque restaurant. In fact, there isn't even a close second place. Take the drive before the snow flies and...

I ate at this restaurant in 2010 when it was owned by Woody who served very good BBQ. Coming back I had high expectations and am please that the new owners have improved every aspect of the restaurant and taken it to a much higher level.

BBQ is very subjective and based on personal taste. I admit I am a BBQ snob having judged for 10 years at the Chicago Rib Fest. I always eat BBQ when traveling and I found that Slow Groovin does a terrific job of providing a very high quality product that will appeal to BBQ connoisseur as well as the occasional feaster. Every aspect of our experience; the food, the service, the environment was first rate.

We had turkey, ribs, brisket and chicken and found all to be moist, tender and with a wonderful smoke flavor. Personally I prefer a heavier mesquite smoke flavor but this was a milers but wonderful fruitwood based smoke. Portions were generous and serving the meals in the metal "prospecting pan" added a unique touch.

Their coleslaw is a course texture and I enjoyed the clear dressing. Baked beans were a unique tomato based receipt that my wife loved. Me - not so much because I like my beans made with a greasy bacon and molasses based receipt. (Just because they are not my favorite does not mean they are not great) The cornbread was a terrific and moist and denser than most I have tried.

Their choices of sauces included a Carolina, Kansas City and a full flavor hot sauce. Here again the owners have developed a very fine offering that will appeal to everyone. The hot sauce is one of the best I have ever had and bought a bottle to take home.

The deserts were over the top good. We had three including the coconut cream pie that was so rich is was like a custard pie, the warm apple cinnamon pie and the warm cornbread with ice cream. All were fricking awesome.

Slow Groovin also has great drinks served in canning jars. (Nice touch and size) The Margaritas were great and made from scratch. (No premix used here) Daiquiris my daughter had was not short on alcohol and my beer was cold the way I like it.

It is really enjoyable to have the privileged to dine at a place where the owners take such pride and care in every aspect of their business. I spoke with a few employees and servers all of whom took pride in the restaurant and went the extra mile to ensure we had a great experience. Slow Groovin is one of my favorite BBQ places in the country and if I am within a hundred miles of this place I will make the detour to...

Slow Groovin was one of the best dining experiences I have had in some time :) the staff is knowledgeable, friendly, engaged, and passionate about their food and environment.

The food was outstanding. This had a family get together feel with the freshness of the ingredients and the quality of the plates.

My friend and I split a two meat plate featuring beef brisket, pork ribs, the default sides of beans, coleslaw, toast, and pickled onion, and an additional side of fried okra.

The beef had a gentle hickory note, wonderful coloration, and a thin tasteful amount of charring. It was melt in your mouth, grill master Uncle Joe peel brisket. Rest in peace. The beams seemed to be prepared in a semi sweet tomato based sauce and were paired well with fresh bell pepper and chopped onion which created a nice sharpness in the flavor. The coleslaw deserves high praises. It tasted made that morning and was not dependent on heaping amounts of sauce, rather a tasteful vinegar infused palate cleansing experience of fresh cabbage. Really very pleasant. The pork sausage was good and I was not able to pick out too many intense flavor profiles. The sauces!

On the table were a sweet Carolina style bbq, a more vinegar based “medium”, and a wonderful hot sauce that was not overpowering and present a true to its name gradually flavorful buzz. My personal favorite was the hot and really made the meats sing (not that they needed much help)

The “Texas” toast was a little thin for this Texan’s standards ;) though it was toasted beautifully and had a well balanced spread.

The fried okra was beautifully battered, fairly thinly, with tasteful amounts of seasoning in the fry batter. The okra was just shy of perfect in my personal bias of enjoying a little bit crunchier of a bite - don’t let me take away from the quality of this side. They were damn good.

Beers were served cold and the draft was poured in mason jars, which felt fitting to the town of Marble.

Speaking of the town of Marble, sitting outside enjoying this wonderful handcrafted spread, we were also able to enjoy being surrounded by a quaint historic town, soft earthy smells mixed with the occasional whiff of smoker in the close distance, to top off the surrounding mountains we were blessed with fresh cottonwood seeds drifting through town adding a “snowing in summer” like effect.

All in all, a wonderful experience and a reason all in itself to make a trip to Marble, CO. Hope to enjoy the service of this family...